New Delhi, October 21: The Supreme Court of India reaffirmed on Monday that secularism is an inherent part of the Constitution's basic structure, as it heard petitions challenging the inclusion of the words "secular" and "socialist" in the Preamble of the Indian Constitution.
A bench consisting of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Sanjay Kumar emphasized that these terms should not be interpreted strictly through a Western lens, suggesting that socialism could imply equality of opportunity and equitable distribution of wealth within the country, while secularism also holds context-specific meanings.
The petitions, filed by BJP leader Subramanian Swamy and others, argued that the inclusion of these words through the 42nd Constitution Amendment Act of 1976, during the Emergency, was unconstitutional.
Swamy contended that the original framers of the Constitution, in 1949, had deliberately excluded these terms, and their insertion later on violated the basic structure doctrine, which bars Parliament from altering essential features of the Constitution.
The court has scheduled further hearings for the third week of November.
Meanwhile, opposition to Swamy's petition came from figures such as Rajya Sabha MP Binoy Viswam of the Communist Party of India, who argued that secularism and socialism are fundamental elements of the Constitution.
