On Monday, the Supreme Court of India postponed the hearing of a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking the removal of the words “socialist” and “secular” from the Preamble to the Indian Constitution.
The PILs were filed by Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy and Supreme Court advocate Vishnu Shankar Jain, while another Rajya Sabha MP, Binoy Viswam of CPI, opposed the plea.
"We have too many matters and a very heavy board today"
Supreme Court adjourns to July petition filed by BJP leader and former Union Minister Subramanian Swamy seeking the deletion of the words "socialist" and "secular" from the Preamble to the Indian Constitution.… pic.twitter.com/nQX7BojePS
— Bar and Bench (@barandbench) April 29, 2024
The matter was under consideration by a two-judge bench comprising Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta. However, citing a busy schedule, the bench adjourned the hearing to July. This decision was made despite the suggestion by one of the counsels to pose questions for the petitioners to provide answers on record.
After the court session, Vishnu Jain, one of the petitioners, confirmed the adjournment via a tweet, stating that the court had listed the matter for hearing in July.
Today the sc heard the matter werein i have challenged the word secular and socialist appearing in the preamble of the constitution of india. The court has listed the matter in july.
— Vishnu Shankar Jain (@Vishnu_Jain1) April 29, 2024
The delay in the hearing has sparked discussions on social media, with many expressing opinions in favor of the petitions, emphasizing that the terms “Socialist” and “Secular” were added during the controversial Emergency period through the 42nd constitutional amendment.
During the last hearing in February 2024, the court raised an important question regarding whether the Preamble of the Constitution could be amended while retaining its original adoption date of 26th November 1949. This doubt led to discussions on the possibility of amending the Preamble without altering the adoption date.
Swamy, in his petition, argued that the addition of the two words violated the basic structure doctrine established in the Kesavananda Bharati judgment of 1973.
He contended that the framers of the Constitution had never intended to introduce socialist and secular concepts and that their inclusion was beyond the amending power of Parliament under Article 368.
Binoy Viswam, opposing the pleas, argued that secularism and socialism are inherent and basic features of the Constitution.
Despite the adjournment in February, the court once again delayed the hearing on 29th April, frustrating the anticipation of both petitioners and opponents.
The Supreme Court’s decision to postpone the PIL hearing until July has extended the debate over the constitutional amendments proposed by Swamy and Jain. The outcome of the forthcoming hearing will likely have significant implications for the interpretation of the Indian Constitution’s Preamble.
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