The News Minute | September 26, 2014 | 2.12 pm IST

Indian citizens have the right to say that they do not belong to any religion, the Bombay High Court has ruled.

According to a report by India Today, the high court ruling came after two people approached the court with a PIL. The High Court said: “"India is a secular democratic republic and there is complete freedom for any individual to decide whether he or she wants to adopt or profess any religion. If a person is practising any particular religion, he or she can give up that religion and claim that he or she does not belong to any religion.”

The bench said that saying “No religion” in official forms could not be interpreted as a religion or a form of religion. Religios freedom also included the right to say that one did not practice any religion or faith.