Religious education is controversial worldwide. Some countries, such as the United States, do not publicly fund religious education nor make it part of compulsory schooling. In other contexts, such as the United Kingdom, an ‘open’ religious education has emerged from Christian confessionalism that it is intended to promote religious literacy without imparting a particular religious perspective. This kind of religious education has drawn criticism because, it is argued, there is no neutral perspective from which to study religions and any kind of compulsory schooling is likely to impact on the formation of a student’s religious identityReligion in India is characterised by a diversity of religious beliefs and practices. India is a secular state with no state religion. The Indian subcontinent is the birthplace of four of the world’s major religions; namely Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism. According to the 2011 census, 79.8% of the population of India practices Hinduism, 14.2% adheres to Islam, 2.3% adheres to Christianity, and 1.7% adheres to Sikhism.

Aniruddh Jha is a Professor of Philosophy, University of Hyderabad. He achieved his degrees M.A. (Philosophy) and PhD (Moral Values of Hinduism in Veda) from BHU, Varanasi. He has worked extensively on Vedic philosophy, Classical Indian Philosophy, Contemporary Indian Philosophy, Comparative Religion and Buddhism. He has authored several spiritual books. He has authored more than twenty research papers and articles published in national and international journals. He has travelled all over India to teach Indian Religion & Philosophy.