The Supreme Court on 25 November upheld the inclusion of ‘socialist, secular’ in the Preamble of the Constitution.
- The order was based on a batch of petitions filed in 2020 challenging the validity of the inclusion of ‘socialist’ and ‘secular’ in the Preamble through the 42nd Constitution Amendment in 1976.
Petitioners arguments:
- The insertions made with retrospective effect, that is, from the date of adoption of the Constitution by the Constituent Assembly on November 26, 1949 amounted to a fraud on the Constitution.
- The word ‘secular’ was deliberately eschewed by the Constituent Assembly and the word ‘socialist’ fettered the economic policy choice of the elected government, which represents the will of the people.
Supreme Court’s observations:
- Preamble was an inalienable part of the Constitution.
- The Parliament had an unquestionable power to amend the Constitution under Article 368. Its power to amend extended to the Preamble.
- The court confirmed the retrospective amendment to the Preamble, saying the date of adoption would not curtail the power under Article 368.
- The Constitution is a “living document”, and open to changes according to the needs of the time.
- ‘Socialism’ in the Indian context meant the commitment to function as a welfare state.
