SC asserts secularism as core of Constitution

In a separate hearing, SC junks PIL seeking to replace term 'Hindutva' with 'Indian constitutionalism'

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NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday reaffirmed that secularism is an integral part of the basic structure of the Indian Constitution. A bench comprising Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Sanjay Kumar made the observation while hearing multiple petitions challenging the inclusion of the words "socialist" and "secular" in the Preamble of the Constitution.

"This court has in a number of judgments held that secularism was always part of the basic structure of the Constitution. If one looks at the right to equality and the word 'fraternity' used in the Constitution, there is a clear indication that secularism has been held as the core feature of the Constitution," the bench noted.

The petitions, filed by former Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy, advocate Vishnu Shankar Jain, and others, challenge the 42nd Constitutional Amendment of 1976, which introduced the terms "socialist" and "secular" into the Preamble. The amendment passed during the Emergency under the Indira Gandhi government, altered the description of India from a “sovereign, democratic republic" to a "sovereign, socialist, secular, democratic republic."