Supreme Court Rejects Petitions To Remove 'Secular' And 'Socialist' From India's Constitution Preamble

The Supreme Court of India on Monday (25 November) dismissed three petitions seeking the removal of the words 'secular' and 'socialist' from the preamble of the Indian Constitution.

These terms were added to the preamble through the 42nd Constitutional Amendment in 1976, during the national emergency imposed by then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.

A bench comprising Chief Justice of India (CJI) Sanjiv Khanna and Justice PV Sanjay Kumar stated that the power of Parliament to amend the Constitution extends to the preamble as well, and dismissed the petitions, affirming that the addition of these words remains valid.

“The writ petitions do not require further deliberation or adjudication,” the bench remarked. The Court clarified that the Constitution’s amending power under Article 368, which allows Parliament to make changes to the Constitution, also extends to the preamble, and the adoption date of the Constitution cannot curtail this power.

The petitioners, including BJP leader Subramanian Swamy, advocate Ashwini Upadhyay, and Balram Singh, had challenged the 42nd Amendment, arguing that the inclusion of 'secular' and 'socialist' in the preamble was unnecessary and inconsistent with the original intent of the Constitution.

However, the Supreme Court had previously upheld the 42nd Amendment and reiterated that secularism is a core principle of the Constitution.

The Court also noted that the terms 'socialist' and 'secular' should be understood in the Indian context and that the government's policies on these principles are open to interpretation.

In its observations, the Court acknowledged that these concepts need not be viewed through a Western lens and are subject to evolving policy decisions in India.

In a related development, CPI leader and Rajya Sabha MP Binoy Viswam had filed a petition opposing the move to remove the terms, arguing that the words 'secular' and 'socialist' reflect the country’s commitment to social justice and pluralism.