Secularism

Secularising India has to begin with a uniform civil code that ensures equal rights to all citizens without exceptions. Laws should be equal for all citizens irrespective of religion, caste or gender. The courts of India have been prodding successive governments to bring in a Uniform Civil Code as enshrined in Article 44 of the Indian Constitution.

Recent Developments

Law Panel suggested Uniform Civil Code Not Desirable Now

In the ‘Consultation Paper on Family Law Reforms' released by the Law Commission, the commission has taken a stand in favour of "equality ‘within communities' between men and women" (personal law reform), "rather than ‘equality between' communities (Uniform Civil Code)".

Some of the recommendations made by panel are-

  • Treat a Muslim mother as natural guardian of the child on equal footing with the father.
  • Amend Juvenile Justice Act to ensure all communities can adopt children (only Hindus can now do so without too much hassle and with full inheritance rights for the adopted child).
  • Enact a law on the legitimisation and inheritance of children born out of live-in relationships.
  • Make 18 the marriageable age for both boys and girls (it's now 21 for boys).
  • Simplify divorce procedures to discourage spouses from bringing false criminal charges (like domestic cruelty) against each other to ensure a quick exit.
  • Amend the Special Marriages Act to ensure the 30-day notice given to the registrar is not misused by families to discourage inter-caste or inter-religion marriages.
  • Make polygamy a crime for all communities, with a clarification in the Nikahnama itself. On this the panel says that although polygamy is permitted within Islam, it is a rare practice among Indian Muslims, on the other hand it is frequently misused by persons of other religions who convert as Muslims solely for the purpose of solemnizing another marriage. Also, only a few Muslim countries have continued to protect the right to polygamy but with strict measures of control.

Supreme Court Lifts Ban on Entry of Women in Sabarimala Temple

The Supreme Court on September 28, 2018 overturned centuries-old traditions to allow entry for women of all ages at the Sabarimala temple in Kerala.

  • The Supreme Court’s five-judge Constitution bench made it clear that devotion cannot be subjected to discrimination and that patriarchy in religion cannot be allowed to trump right to pray and practice religion.
  • The bench said the practice of age restriction on women entry to Sabrimala temple can't be treated as an essential religious practice

Law on Sacrilege

  • Punjab state Assembly unanimously passed Bills for an amendment to the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Code of Criminal Procedure (Cr.P.C) to make sacrilege of all religious texts punishable with life imprisonment. The decision was primarily influenced by the violent protests set off by the tearing of the pages of the Quran and the Guru Granth Sahib nearly three years ago. This is only the latest example of mass politics around religion driving laws against sacrilege and blasphemy in the subcontinent. The trend stretches back nearly a century.
  • The law is still termed as secular in a way that protects four texts, but attempting to levy the same kind of rigidity on Gita (a Hindu Scripture) as with others could now lead to more tensions with attempted or actual desecrations of the Hindu religious text.

Government withdrew the Haj Subsidy

  • Haj subsidy for thousands of Muslims who go on Haj pilgrimage each year was scrapped.
  • Now, Haj pilgrims will no longer get benefits like discounts on Air India flight tickets, assistance to reach specially designed Haj departure airport terminals and help with meals, medical care and lodging etc.
  • In favour of this the government argued that the Constitution says the Indian State is secular, and forbids discrimination on religious grounds. The Haj subsidy was always a violation of this principle.
  • On the contrary, recently launched the PunyadhamYatra scheme, subsidising transport and accommodation for pilgrims to Puri, Vrindavan, Ajmer Sharif, Mathura and VaishnoDevi.
  • PunyadhamYatra Scheme also includes a Muslim destination, Ajmer Sharif. But appeasing multiple religious groups is as wrong as subsidising one. Favouring some destinations over others is also discriminatory.

Karnataka Accords Religious Minority Status to Lingayats

  • Karnataka Government has decided to accept the recommendations of an official expert committee to grant recognition and religious minority status to Lingayats and Veershaiva Lingayats—two sub-sects that will be considered under the same religious minority status.
  • Lingayats, who are classified as Other Backward Classes, are considered the single-largest community in the state, with their population estimated at anywhere between 11.5% and 19%.

Secularism

  • The old age philosophy of oneness of religion has been mentioned in Hindu scriptures known as the Upanishads. The Upanishads preach ‘Sarva Dharma Samabhava’ which means respect for all belief systems.
  • The word secular was added into the preamble by the 42nd Amendment (1976). As per this there would be equality of all religions in India, along with religious tolerance and respect. As per the written Constitution of India, India is a secular country and we as citizens of India must abide by it.

Secularism in the World and India

According to Bhargava, three types of Western conceptions of secularism are present:

  • First is the model of secularism which operates in countries in France and Turkey, where the state is explicitly anti-religion or hostile to it. Even open proclamation of religion is prohibited.
  • Second, it is that which operates in America, where there is a clear Wall of separation between the religion and the state and both are exclusive.
  • Third, is the model which operates in certain western European countries like the UK, where religion holds a certain degree of edge over the state. This is weak secularism as the state remains embedded in the values of the dominant Christian religion.

Seen in this background Indian secularism is uniquely different than all these models as its main characteristics are:

  • The state is not strictly separated from religion.
  • The state neither disrespects nor bestows unqualified respect but rather adopts an attitude of critical respect.

The qualification of citizenship is wholly independent of religion and although most rights are independent of religion but some are dependent on the membership to a specific religious community.

Constitution and Secularism

The Preamble of Indian Constitution aims to constitute India a Sovereign, Socialist, Democratic Republic. The terms Socialist and Secular were added to it by the 42nd amendment.

Constitutional Provisions to Maintain Secularism:

  • Article 25(1) & (2): Provides broad sweeping power of interference to the state in religious matters. This Article imposes drastic limitations on the rights guaranteed under Article 25(1) and reflects the peculiar needs of Indian society.
  • Article 26(a) & (b): This article is a group right and is available to every religious denomination. Clause (b) of Article 26 guarantees to every religious denomination the right to manage its own affairs in matters of religion. The expression ‘matters of religion’ includes ‘religious practices, rites and ceremonies essential for the practicing of religion.’
  • Article 26(c) & (d): This article recognizes the rights of a religious denomination to own acquire and administer movable and immovable property in accordance with law.
  • Article 29: This article is the recognition and preservation of the different types of people, with diverse languages and different beliefs, which constitute the essence of secularism in India.
  • Article 30: This article deals with another aspect of collective freedom of religion:
    1. All minorities, whether based on religion or language, shall have the right to establish and administer educational institutions of their choice.
    2. The state shall not, in granting aid to educational institutions, discriminate against any educational institution on the ground that it is under the management of a minority, whether based on religion or language.
  • The Indian Penal Code (sections 295-8): Makes it a crime to injure or defile a place of worship or to disturb a religious assembly etc. even though these actions might be sanctioned by offender’s own religion. Practices like devadasi, sati may have religious sanctions but the state still has constitutional power to ban them.
  • Article 326: This article declares that elections shall be on the basis of adult suffrage.

Secularism’s Impact on India’s Social Life

  • Under the impact of secularisation, there are profound changes in Hindu society regarding purity and pollution.
  • Due to secularisation, restrictions on dining have disappeared.
  • The traditional idea of purity and pollution associated with occupation has declined. Now people of all castes are taking to all types of occupations.

Related Content