Recently, Supreme Court (SC) in Dr Balram Singh Vs Union of India (2024) dismissed petitions challenging the inclusion of the words "socialist" and "secular" in the Preamble through 42nd Amendment Act, 1976.
More on the News
Petitions against the inclusion of these words were filed on the ground that they were inserted during times of Emergency (1975-1977) and do not represent the people's will.
Petitions also held that since the date of adoption (26th November, 1949) by the Constituent Assembly, was mentioned in the Preamble, and no additional words could be inserted later to it.
About 42nd Amendment Act, 1976
About: It was referred to as the “mini-Constitution” as it amended the Preamble, 40 articles, 7th Schedule and added 14 New Articles and two new parts to the Constitution.
Major changes made were:
Preamble: Inserted the words ‘Socialist’, ‘Secular’ and ‘Integrity’.
Changed the ‘unity of nation’ to ‘unity and integrity of the nation’.
Changes in the 7th Schedule: The following categories were transferred from the State list to the Concurrent list:
Education, forests, protection of wild animals and birds, weights and measures, administration of justice, constitution, and organisation of all courts-with the exception of the Supreme Court and the High Courts.
Emergency: Amended Article 352 to authorize the President to declare Emergency not only throughout the country and but also in any part.
Addition of New DPSPs:
Article 39: To secure opportunities for healthy development of children.
Article 39A-Equal justice and free legal aid.
Article 43A-Participation of workers in management of industries.
Article 48A-Protection and improvement of environment and safeguarding of forests and wildlife and
Addition of new parts: Part IV-A (Fundamental duties), Part XIV-A (Establishment of administrative tribunals).
Key Observations made by the SC
Dismissed retrospectivity: The date of adoption does not curtail the amending power of the Parliament under Article 368 of the Constitution.
Article 368 states that Parliament may in the exercise of its constituent power, amend by way of addition, variation or repeal any provision in accordance with the procedure laid down in this article.
The Court held that this amending power extends to the Preamble and can be challenged on various grounds, including violation of the basic structure.
Defined Socialism and Secularism: The court also defined the two terms as:
Secularism represents one of the facets of the right to equality as neither the State maintains its own religion nor restricts the freedom of conscience and right to freely profess, practice and propagate religion to citizens.
In Kesavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala and S R Bommai vs Union of India, SC observed that secularism is a basic feature of the Constitution.
Socialism denotes the State's commitment to the Welfare State, and its commitment to ensuring equality of opportunity.
Constitution is a living document: Over time, India has developed its own interpretation of these terms imparting an organic character to the Constitution.
About Secularism and Socialism
Secularism
Indian Concept of Secularism follows the concept of Neutrality and positive role towards the religion.
In this, state enjoys the power to regulate the economic, financial, political and secular aspects associated with a religious practice.
It deals with religious freedom of individuals and minority communities.
It is different from the western concept based on the principle of non-interference in the matter of religion. In this, state and religion are strictly separated.
Socialism
Socialism: It deals with principles which envisage the establishment of a society where all individuals enjoy equality in different walks of life – economic, political, social, etc.
The idea of socialism was largely popularised with Karl Marx, who gave the idea of scientific socialism.
He held that violent revolution by the working class could overthrow the exploitative capitalist.
Socialism in communist countries like Cuba, China, and North Korea, etc. provides for the strict control of industries by the government and a centrally planned economy.
There are many varieties of socialism like Democratic socialism, Evolutionary Socialism, Fabian Socialism, Guild Socialism etc
Idea of socialism in India
It is based on the mixed economy model where state ensures the welfare of the needy while private enterprise exists for increased employment and strong economic growth.
It was largely shaped by the ideas of leaders like Jawaharlal Nehru, Mahatma Gandhi, etc.
It is different from socialism practiced in other communist countries in the following ways:
Rejects the stark difference between Individual and Community: It is focussed on reforming both together.
Relevance to Private Property: It accorded greater emphasis to the powers of the State in bringing change along with the presence of private property.
It does not believe in the elimination of capitalists but seeks to remove inequality.
Idea of Non-Violence: It seeks to eliminate violence from domestic politics.
Democratic Socialism
It is based on the idea coexistence of democratic principles with the ideas of socialism.
It differs from Marxism in its conception of state.
It believes that the state is not an instrument of exploitation of workers by the capitalists. Rather the state is an instrument of social welfare.
All classes in society own the state.
It advocates peaceful and evolutionary means for social change through ballot box.
Despite differences from the Marxist idea of socialism, it shares the common goals of ending the exploitation of workers and and promoting equality among people.
Conclusion
The current SC ruling stresses on the idea that Constitutional values have shown continuous evolution to suit the needs of the country. The ideas like socialism, and secularism are now well accepted and understood by the people. Hence, vigilance, dedication, and willingness to adapt to new challenges while remaining true to the core values of Constitution like justice, liberty, and equality would go a long way in dealing with contemporary challenges like persistent inequalities, environmental degradation, etc.
