<h3>Overview</h3>
<p>On <strong>5 May 2026</strong>, a nine‑judge bench of the <span class="key-term" data-definition="Supreme Court of India — the apex judicial body that interprets the Constitution and settles disputes involving the Union, states and fundamental rights. (GS2: Polity)">Supreme Court</span> heard a combined petition that linked the long‑standing <span class="key-term" data-definition="Sabarimala reference — a constitutional challenge concerning the entry of women of certain ages into the Sabarimala temple, raising questions of gender equality and religious freedom. (GS2: Polity)">Sabarimala reference</span> with a fresh case filed by <span class="key-term" data-definition="Goolrook Gupta — a Parsi litigant challenging the exclusion of Zoroastrian women who marry outside the community from entering the fire‑temple (Aghyaris). (GS2: Polity)">Goolrook Gupta</span>. Senior Advocate <span class="key-term" data-definition="Darius J. Khambata — senior counsel representing the petitioner, known for arguing on the interplay of Articles 25 and 26. (GS2: Polity)">Darius Khambata</span> contended that giving primacy to <span class="key-term" data-definition="Article 26(b) — constitutional provision granting religious denominations the right to manage their own affairs, subject only to public order, morality and health. (GS2: Polity)">Article 26(b)</span> over <span class="key-term" data-definition="Article 25(1) — constitutional guarantee of freedom of conscience and the right to freely profess, practice and propagate religion, subject to public order, morality and health. (GS2: Polity)">Article 25(1)</span> would erode individual religious rights.</p>
<h3>Key Developments</h3>
<ul>
<li>The bench noted that the practice of barring Parsi women who marry outside the community appears <strong>gender‑discriminatory</strong>.</li>
<li>Senior counsel argued that <span class="key-term" data-definition="Religious denomination — an organized group of believers that follows a distinct set of doctrines and rituals, recognised by law for certain rights. (GS2: Polity)">religious denominations</span> derive their collective rights from <span class="key-term" data-definition="Article 25(1) — constitutional guarantee of freedom of conscience and the right to freely profess, practice and propagate religion, subject to public order, morality and health. (GS2: Polity)">Article 25(1)</span>, not the other way round.</li>
<li>He emphasized that equality is embedded in <span class="key-term" data-definition="Articles 14, 15 & 17 — provisions guaranteeing equality before law, prohibition of discrimination, and abolition of untouchability respectively. (GS2: Polity)">Articles 14, 15 and 17</span>, and that <span class="key-term" data-definition="Article 25(1) — constitutional guarantee of freedom of conscience and the right to freely profess, practice and propagate religion, subject to public order, morality and health. (GS2: Polity)">Article 25(1)</span> must be r
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