Hinduism is not a religion in western sense. We don't have a set list of doctrine and rules to follow.

When I say I am allowed to be atheist or agnostic according to Vedas, your typical dumb Purohit also screams and tries to justify it's not that.

It's almost like Vedas or Upanishads or the values they emphasize have no place in preist centered medieval / modern "Hinduism".

Your typical dumb purohit is not needed to follow Dharma. No one's going to issue a Fatwa if you do your own research and find your own way. You are free to choose between the Astika or Sramana or any of the heterodox schools. The doctrine is there but not in form of DIY commandments.

This is true but doesn't apply to those of us who have to follow certain traditions for the satisfaction of parents. Given a choice I am an atheist / agnostic.

Edit: And 'Dharma' in texts is used to refer to qualities such as 'dhriti' (courage) and r'ta (truthfulness), much more than its being used to refer to rituals. So I don't necessarily even need to read any of these to follow "dharma".

If that's case, I can hardly take Hinduism as a religion. If the burden is on an individual to discover and accept his/her own truths rather than blindly accepting beliefs, then isn't this the same as any secular belief system? Secular people also emphasize on one's own and discover truths themselves to make up of their own belief system.