Article 15 prohibits discrimination on which of the following grounds?

Explanation

Article 15 belongs to the Right to Equality cluster of Fundamental Rights and is titled as a prohibition of discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth. Clause (1) gives the operative rule: the State shall not discriminate against any citizen on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth or any of them. Religion, race, caste, sex and place of birth form that closed five-ground list. The word "only" prevents candidates from importing similar-sounding grounds into Article 15(1). Language, disability and economic status may look plausible in a broader equality discussion, but they are not among the discrimination grounds listed in Article 15(1).

Why the other options are wrong

• (A) Language is not listed in Article 15(1), which names religion, race, caste, sex and place of birth.
• (C) Article 15(1) expressly includes place of birth and does not list disability.
• (D) Economic status is not one of the grounds named in Article 15(1).

Concept

Fundamental Rights under the Right to Equality require exact recall of the grounds in Article 15(1). In RAS-style MCQs, one extra ground, such as language or economic status, changes the answer.

Source

• Government of India, Ministry of Law and Justice, Legislative Department - The Constitution of India

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