Secularism has been declared by Supreme Court to be one of the basic features of the Constitution. A long line of decisions delivered by Supreme Court on the subject have explained the meaning of the term ‘secular’ and ‘secularism’, but before we refer to the judicial pronouncements on the subject we may gainfully refer to what Dr. Radhakrishnan the noted statesman/philosopher had to say about India being a secular State in the following passage:
“When India is said to be a secular State, it does not mean that we reject reality of an unseen spirit or the relevance of religion to life or that we exalt irreligion. It does not mean that Secularism itself becomes a positive religion or that the State assumes divine prerogatives. Though faith in the Supreme is the basic principle of the Indian tradition, the Indian State will not identify itself with or be controlled by any particular religion.
We hold that no one religion should be given preferential status, or unique distinction, that no one religion should be accorded special privileges in national life or international relations for that would be a violation of the basic principles of democracy and contrary to the best interests of religion and government. This view of religious impartiality, of comprehension and forbearance, has a prophetic role to play within the national and international life.
No group of citizens shall arrogate to itself rights and privileges, which it denies to others. No person should suffer any form of disability or discrimination because of his religion but all like should be free to share to the fullest degree in the common life. This is the basic principle involved in the separation of Church and State.”
Dr. B.R. Ambedkar on Secular State
Dr. B.R. Ambedkar also explained the significance of ‘secular state’ in the Parliamentary debate in the following words:
“A secular state does not mean that we shall not take into consideration the religious sentiments of the people. All that a secular State means is that this parliament shall not be competent to impose any particular religion upon the rest of the people”
Saifuddin Saheb v. State of Bombay
In Saifuddin Saheb v. State of Bombay AIR 1962 SC 853 a Constitution bench of Supreme Court described secularism thus :-
“50. These Articles embody the principle of religious toleration that has been the characteristic feature of Indian civilization from the start of history, the instances and periods when this feature was absent being merely temporary aberrations. Besides, they serve to emphasize the secular nature of the Indian democracy which the founding fathers considered should be the very basis of the Constitution.”
Ahmedabad St. Xavier’s College Society and Anr. v. State of Gujarat
Again in the Ahmedabad St. Xavier’s College Society and Anr. v. State of Gujarat and Anr. (1974)1 SCC 717 a Nine-Judge bench explained the secular character of the Indian Constitution and said:
“75. …….. There is no mysticism in the secular character of the State. Secularism is neither anti-God nor pro-God; it treats alike the devout, the agnostic and the atheist. It eliminates God from the matters of the State and ensures that no one shall be discriminated against on the ground of religion.”
Indira Nehru Gandhi v. Shri Raj Narain
So also in Indira Nehru Gandhi v. Shri Raj Narain (1975) Suppl. SCC 1 it was observed::
“664.. …….. The State shall have no religion of its own and all persons shall be equally entitled to freedom of conscience and the right freely to profess, practice and propagate religion.”
S.R. Bommai v. Union of India
In S.R. Bommai v. Union of India 1994 (3) SCC 1, Sawant J. speaking for himself and Kuldeep Singh J. in para 145 of the judgment elaborately referred to several provisions of the Constitution including Articles 25, 26, 29, 30, 44 and 51A and declared that these provisions prohibit the State from identifying with any particular religion, sect or denomination. Drawing support from what jurists have said about the concept of secularism in the Indian Constitution, the Court explained the legal position thus:
“148.One thing which prominently emerges from the above discussion on secularism under our Constitution is that whatever the attitude of the State towards the religions, religious sects and denominations, religion cannot be mixed with any secular activity of the State. In fact, the encroachment of religion into secular activities is strictly prohibited. This is evident from the provisions of the Constitution to which we have made reference above. The State’s tolerance of religion or religions does not make it either a religious or a theocratic State.
When the State allows citizens to practise and profess their religions, it does not either explicitly or implicitly allow them to introduce religion into non-religious and secular activities of the State. The freedom and tolerance of religion is only to the extent of permitting pursuit of spiritual life which is different from the secular life. The latter falls in the exclusive domain of the affairs of the State.
This is also clear from Sub-section [3] of Section 123 of the Representation of the Peoples Act, 1951 which prohibits an appeal by a candidate or his agent or by any other person with the consent of the candidate or his election agent to vote or refrain from voting for any person on the ground of his religion, race, caste, community or language or the use of or appeal to religious symbols.
Sub-section [3A] of the same section prohibits the promotion or attempt to promote feelings of enmity and hatred between different classes of the citizens of India on the grounds of religion, race, caste community or language by a candidate or his agent or any other person with the consent of a candidate or his election agent for the furtherance of the prospects of the election of that candidate or for prejudicially affecting the election of any candidate. A breach of the provisions of the said Sub-sections [3] and [3A] are deemed to be corrupt practices within the meaning of the said section.”
The Court declared that whatever be the States attitude towards religious sects and denominations, a religious activity cannot be allowed to mix with the secular activities of the State. The Court held that encroachment of religious activities in the secular activities of the State was prohibited as is evident from the provisions of the Constitution themselves. The Court observed:
“148.One thing which prominently emerges from the above discussion on secularism under our Constitution is that whatever the attitude of the State towards the religions, religious sects and denominations, religion cannot be mixed with any secular activity of the State. In fact, the encroachment of religion into secular activities is strictly prohibited. This is evident from the provisions of the Constitution to which we have made reference above.”
The Court drew a distinction between freedom and tolerance of religion on the one hand and the secular life of the State on the other and declared that the later falls in the exclusive domain of the State.
Speaking for himself and Agarwal J., Jeevan Reddy J., held that the Constitution does not recognize or permit mixing religion and State power and that the two must be kept apart. The Court said:
“310…….If the Constitution requires the State to be secular in thought and action, the same requirement attaches to political parties as well. The Constitution does not recognise, it does not permit, mixing religion and State power. Both must be kept apart. That is the constitutional injunction. None can say otherwise so long as this Constitution governs this country. Introducing religion into politics is to introduce an impermissible element into body politic and an imbalance in our constitutional system.
If a political party espousing a particular religion comes to power, that religion tends to become, in practice, the official religion. All other religions come to acquire a secondary status, at any rate, a less favourable position. This would be plainly antithetical to Articles 14 to 16, 25 and the entire constitutional scheme adumbrated hereinabove. Under our Constitution, no party or Organisation can simultaneously be a political and a religious party.”
M.P. Gopalakrishnan Nair and Anr. v. State of Kerala
Relying upon the pronouncement of SR Bommai (supra) Supreme Court in M.P. Gopalakrishnan Nair and Anr. v. State of Kerala and Ors. (2005) 11 SCC 45 declared that the judicial process must promote citizen’s participation in the electoral process free from any corrupt practice in the exercise of their adult franchise. The Court held that rise of fundamentalism and communalism of politics encouraged the separatist and divisive forces and become breeding grounds for national disintegration and failure of the parliamentary democratic system.
In Dr. Vimal (Mrs.) v. Bhaguji & Ors. (1996) 9 SCC 351 Supreme Court emphasized the need for interpreting Section 123(3) and 123(3A) of the Representation of Peoples Act, 1951 to maintain national integrity and unity amongst the citizens of the country and maintaining the secular character of the society to which we belong. The Court said:
“20.We may also indicate here that in order to maintain national integrity and amity amongst the citizens of the country and to maintain the secular character of the pluralistic society to which we belong section 123 and 123 (3A) of the Representation Act have been incorporated. For maintaining purity in the election process and for maintaining peace and harmony in the social fabric, it becomes essentially necessary not only to indict the party to an election guilty of corrupt practice but to name the collaborators of such corrupt practice if there be any”.
In Ambika Sharan Singh Vs. Mahant Mahadeva and Giri and Others (1969) 3 SCC 492, the Court held:
“12. Indian leadership has long condemned electoral campaigns on the lines of caste and community as being destructive of the country’s integration and the concept of secular democracy which is the basis of our Constitution. It is this condemnation which is reflected in Section 123 (3) of the Act. Inspite of the repeated condemnation, experience has shown that where there is such a constituency it has been unfortunately too tempting for a candidate to resist appealing to sectional elements to cast their votes on caste basis.”
The upshot of the above discussion clearly is that under the constitutional scheme mixing religion with State power is not permissible while freedom to practice profess and propagate religion of one’s choice is guaranteed. The State being secular in character will not identify itself with any one of the religions or religious denominations. This necessarily implies that religion will not play any role in the governance of the country which must at all times be secular in nature.
Reference
Abhiram Singh v. C.D. Commachen (dead) by LRS & Other (2017)