( CNN ) -- The U.S. Justice Department is suing the state of California and Gov . Jerry Brown because prison authorities required a Sikh prison inmate to cut his beard . The lawsuit was filed Tuesday on behalf of Sukhjinder Basra , an inmate at prison in San Luis Obispo in central California . It said that the requirement violated the man 's right `` to practice his religion '' under the federal Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act ( RLIUPA ) . In the Sikh religion , which originated in northwestern India , unshorn hair is an article of faith . The Justice Department said the suit followed a probe `` that revealed that California 's inmate grooming policy substantially burdens the rights of an inmate to practice his Sikh faith. `` `` The rights guaranteed by the Constitution extend to all people in the United States , '' said Andre Birotte Jr. , U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California . `` By protecting those rights -- even for those incarcerated -- we strengthen those rights for all . '' The state Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation was also named in the suit . RLUIPA , which became law in 2000 , protects the religious freedom of people `` confined to institutions such as prisons , mental health facilities and state-run nursing homes , '' the Justice Department said .
Justice Department says the inmate has the right to practice his religion . The inmate grooming policy burdened the inmate 's religious rights , Justice said . `` Even those incarcerated '' have the right to practice their religions , an attorney says .