The Supreme Court was hearing a PIL seeking to remove the words “socialist” and “secular” from the Preamble to the Constitution.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court today said the terms “socialist” and “secular” form part of the Constitution’s basic structure, and courts have more than once underscored this in a series of judgments.
The court made the remarks while deciding a Public Interest Litigation, praying to delete the terms from the Preamble to the Constitution. BJP leader and former MP Subramanian Swamy is among the petitioners.
Arguing before the bench of Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice PV Sanjay Kumar, petitioner and advocate Vishnu Shankar Jain said that the 42nd Amendment to the Constitution in 1976, which brought about these changes, was never debated in Parliament.
Justice Khanna replied that the issue had been debated at length. “Please see, Mr. Mr. Jain. The words have varied interpretations today.
Even our courts have declared them, time and again, as part of the basic structure (of the Constitution),” he said.
Socialism can also mean that there must be fair opportunity for all, which is the concept of equality. Let’s not take it in the Western sense. It can have some different meanings as well. The same goes for secularism, ” he added.
Another petitioner, Ashwini Upadhyay, an advocate, referred to the Emergency imposed by the Indira Gandhi government during which this Amendment was affected. “I don’t want to say much about what Justice HR Khanna did and saved us,” said Mr Upadhyay.
It was a reference to the Supreme Court’s 1976 judgment that held that a person’s right not to be unlawfully detained could be suspended in the interest of the State. Justice HR Khanna was the lone dissenting voice in the 4-1 judgment of the Constitution bench. Justice Sanjiv Khanna is Justice HR Khanna’s nephew.
Responding to the lawyers’ arguments, Justice Khanna asked, “You don’t want India to be secular?”
I asked Advocate Jain, “We are not saying India is not secular. We are challenging this Amendment.”
