The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed pleas challenging the inclusion of ‘socialist’ and ‘secular’ in the Constitution’s Preamble.The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed pleas challenging the 1976 amendment that added the terms “socialist,” “secular,” and “integrity” to the Preamble of the Constitution.
A bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar had reserved its verdict on November 22 on pleas by former Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy, advocate Vishnu Shankar Jain, and others, contesting the addition of “socialist” and “secular” to the Constitution’s Preamble.
The Chief Justice of India said that the petitions do not require a detailed hearing.
“The two expressions ‘socialist’ and ‘secular’ were made in 1976 through amendments and the fact that the Constitution was adopted in 1949 does not make any difference… the retrospectivity arguments if accepted will apply to all amendments,” CJI Sanjiv Khanna.
