The concept of Secularism in Indian Constitution

Spread the love

Table of Contents

ABSTRACT:

Secularism is an essential principle which emphasizes of how the State and Religion are separated. It ensures that the Government has a neutral mindset when it comes to different faiths, religion and ensuring that it is well protected thus protecting social cohesion. In this article we will learn in brief the origin of secularism, its key principles, its importance, some challenges and its role in Indian Constitution.

ORIGIN OF SECULARISM:

The word secular is derived from the Latin word saeculum which means of a particular generation or age or a century. The concept gained prominence during the Enlightenment period, which is particularly highlighted in the works of philosophers and scholars like John Locke and Jean-Jacques Rousseau

ORIGIN OF SECULARISM IN INDIA:

India is a vast country where people of different Caste, social background, religion, culture etc. Live in unity. There is a sense of religious diversity in India because eight major religions which are practiced or professed are found in India. “Out of all religions in the world, the most common religions which are practiced or professed in India are Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, Jainism respectively.”^[1]^[2]^[3]

According to statistical data Hindus are amounting to almost 79.8% of India’s population and Muslims amounts to 14.2%; Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Jains hold the remaining 6%. of the population.^[4]

The Supreme Court told its view of how the concept of secularism can be found in the Constitution of India for the first time in the Landmark Judgement of Sardar Taheruddin Syedna Saheb v. State of Bombay.^[5]

The concept of secularism was enshrined in the constitution through Article 14, Article 15 and Article 25 – 28.

In the year 1976, the word secular was inserted in the constitution through the “42^nd amendment”^[6]. In the year 1947 India got independence but it came with a price. The price was partition. A new separate nation was formed which was addressed by everyone as Pakistan whose Father of the Nation was considered to be Mohammed Ali Jinnah.

Pakistan became a “new native land for the Muslims located South Asia. Out of the 14–15% of the population of the newly formed independent and Free India, Muslims, who were in almost 200 million, constituted a minority so large as to be the populations of Muslim Majority in located in Pakistan and Indonesia.^[7]^[8]

The origin of Secularism in India could be traced backed to year 1857 when the rebellion happened by the Indian Freedom fighters. The concept of secularism during the time of British Raj in India essentially was on the basis that that the British government would not promote any of the local religions in India or involve itself in administration activities of any of the local religions and their institutions.”^[9]

Although there were various religions practiced in India under the British Raj, the British Government instead of having different laws for different religion decided have to single uniform law for everyone through various legislations such as the Indian Succession Act, 1850, Special Marriage Act, 1872.

Although there was a common law in India as introduced by the British Government still conflicts happened. This was majorly due to divide and rule policy by the British Government which created conflict chaos between Hindus and Muslims resulting in bloodshed, violence and ultimately the demand for a partition resulting in a separate nation.

“The Constituent Assembly when framing the constitution decided that “secularism, as adopted in the Indian Constitution, was not to be considered as an anti-religious concept;”^[10] instead, it helped in the citizens discriminated on the Grounds of Religion.”^[11]^[12]

According to D.R. B.R. Ambedkar, a secular State means is a state where “Parliament shall not be competent Enough to impose any particular religion upon the rest of the community or society. This is the only limitation which the Constitution of India accepts and is followed by the Government.”^[13]

KEY PRINCIPLES OF SECULARISM:

The word Secular in our Indian constitution means any person has the freedom to practice, profess, propagate any religion of their choice. The state shall not interfere in their rights. Through the concept of Secular, the state and Religion are considered as a separate entity. The ideology of Secularism is that it is the essential and main duty of the state to ensure that there is no discrimination on the basis of religion and the state shall protect every religion followed in the country. Some of the crucial elements of Secularism are:

Separation of Religion and State:

The Primary aim of secularism is that both the state and the religion, religious institutions should be separated. The state has to ensure that it is neither supporting any religion nor opposing it, at the same time ensure laws are there to protect it.

Equal treatment of all Religion:

The main essence of Secularism is that all Religions in the world they must be given equal treatment. No religion should be considered superior than any other religion.

Right to Freedom of Religion:

The golden rule of Secularism is to promote and defend the freedom of all religion, or none at all.^[14]

SECULARISM IN INDIAN CONSTITUTION:

The Constitution of India was enacted and adopted by the people in the year 1950. It says that “India will be a secular nation where people can follow religion of their choice.”. Though the word “secular” was not part of the text of the Constitution, it represented one of the achievements that its framers were most proud of, and over the years, several constitutional requirements to make India a secular state have been maligned.^[15]^[16]

The 42nd Amendment in the Preamble:

“When the 42nd Amendment happened in the year 1976, the Preamble of the Constitution declares: India to be a “Sovereign, Socialist, Secular and Democratic Republic”^[17]^[18] The mention of “secular” in the Preamble was a reiteration that India as denoted with the blind tricolor will treat all religions equal and state would be an unbiased to any religion. Here, the term “secular” means that the state itself has no religion.

“Articles 25 to 28: freedom of religion

“Articles 25—28 of Indian Constitution tells that people have fundamental right to follow any religion of their choice.^[19]

Article 25:

It provides for the freedom of conscience and the right to freely profess, practice and propagate religion, subject to public order, morality and health.

Article 26:

It talks about Five related institutions which are for religious and charitable purposes.

Article 27:

It declares that that no tax revenues shall be used or accepted for the promotion or maintenance of any religion.

Article 28:

No religious preaching shall be provided or be done in any educational institutions which are fully maintained by the State Government.”^[20]

Article 14: Equality before Law:

The idea of equality in Article 14 is the bedrock on which Indian secularism rests. “The state shall not deny any person equality before the law and provide equal protection of law within India.”^[21]^[22]Article 14 in the context of secularism Means that the state cannot discriminate based on religion and a whole host of other things.

Article 15: Discrimination Prohibited

Article 15 states that there shall be no discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth and access to any public shop, hotel and places situated where open to the public. This safeguards secularism which means equal treatment of all irrespective of their religious beliefs, becoming a manifestation of non- discrimination as meant in Article 16(2) of the Constitution

Article 44: Uniform civil code:

The State shall endeavor to secure for the citizens a uniform civil code throughout the territory of India It would mean the personal laws, which vary for different religious communities, are to be done away with.

THE UNIFORM CIVIL CODE ISSUE:

The uniform civil code is a proposal to replace the personal laws based on different customs, religion to common set of laws for everyone in the country. The UCC seeks to ensure equality in various matters such as marriage, divorce, inheritance, and adoption across all religious communities, thus promoting a unified legal framework and system that applies for everyone irrespective of their religion.

SECULARISM AND UCC:

Through the concept of secularism Religion and state can be separated. At the same time implementing UCC will help in promotion of secularism as well. Certain Reasons for this are –

Equal treatment for all:

It helps to ensure that all citizens are treated equally, regardless of their religion

Promotion of National Integrity:

It ensures to Promote national integration and unity among the citizens in the Country

Protection of Women’s Rights:

It ensures that women’s rights protected and there is a sense of gender justice among the public.^[23]

UCC And Indian Constitution:

UCC is incorporated as a directive principle under Article 44 of the Indian Constitution. Directive Principles are not justiciable but instead formulate guidelines for governance. Article 44 says,

“It is the main role of the state Government to ensure that the citizens follow a uniform civil code which is common for everyone throughout India and ensure there is a common law for everyone.”^[24]

The ultimate goal is equal treatment under the law by all people, without religion-related activity. Today, personal laws vary considerable between religious communities. For example –

Hindus (including Sikhs, Buddhists and Jains) are governed by codified laws like the Hindu Marriage Act 1955, the Hindu Succession Act 1956, etc.

Muslims have Sharia-based personal laws, especially relating to different concepts such as marriage and inheritance, such as the Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act of 1937. Christians have laws such as the Indian Christian Marriage Act of 1872.

This diversity of laws leads to inequality, especially when it comes to the concept of gender rights. For example, the rights of divorce and inheritance are different for Muslim women as compared to Hindu laws on these matters. Thus, while promoters of UCC propagate that it can bring about gender equality and national integration by introducing a common law framework.

Thus, the main aim of UCC is to ensure that all the citizens follow a common law framework such as special marriage act instead of having different laws or personal laws such as Hindu Marriage Act, Muslim Personal law Act, Christian Marriage Act etc.

SECULARISM AND UCC:

In the Indian context, the term secularism implies that the state belongs to no religion and does not prefer any religion more than any other.

This aspect is distinct from that prevalent in the west where separation of religion from the state is correctly polarized. Neutral disinterest involving a positive engagement of all religions defines Indian secularism.

Their argument is based on the fact that enforcement of one common code would run afoul of the freedom of religion, which becomes a guaranteed right under Article 25 of the Constitution.

The rationale for such an argument lies in the fact that the imposition of UCC would amount to a violation of the religious identity of Muslims, who synthesize their personal laws with their faith.

Proponents of UCC argue that secularism also connotes no discrimination on account of religion and would not be adequately served if different laws apply to persons according to religion.

They argue that the promise of equality in Article 14 and protection against discrimination in Article 15 of the Constitution require a uniform code so that justice can more easily be delivered to all citizens, particularly the vulnerable such as women and children.

The judiciary played an important role in articulating and further defining the concept of secularism in India. Important judgments that explained the state approach to secularism and the limits on religious freedom include several landmark judgments. One such judgement was S.R. Bommai Case.

The S.R. Bommai Case (1994):

The court held that secularism is the heart of the Constitution, and whatever violates it would be unconstitutional.

CONCLUSION:

Thus Secularism is one of the most important and essential elements of a nation. It is very important to respect each and every religion in the world. This ensures all community and its members respect each other, know their boundary and live in peace and Unity.

^[1] https://byjus.com/question-answer/india-has-religious-diversity-because
-all-major-religions-in-the-world-are-found-in-india

^[2] https://faithinspires.org/religions-in-india

^[3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion_in_India

^[4]https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2021/09/21/key
-findings-about-the-religious-composition-of-india

^[5] https://www.ebc-india.com/lawyer/articles/9807a1.htm

^[6] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forty-second_Amendment_
of_the_Constitution_of_India

^[7] https://contendingmodernities.nd.edu/global-currents
/secular-india-hindu-nation

^[8] https://www.npr.org/sections/parallels/2017/08/13
/542803259/giving-voice-to-memories-from-1947-partition-and-the-birth-o
f-india-and-pakistan

^[9] https://secularismandnonreligion.org/articles

^[10] https://www.legalserviceindia.com/legal/article-8742-concept
-of-secularism.html

^[11] https://nehu.ac.in/public/uploads/Pages_from_Nehu_Journal
_Vol._XIX_Jan-June_2021-6_Arun_Singh.pdf

^[12] https://philarchive.org/archive/SIRTPO-6