ASSIGNMENT

On the Topic- “ENDANGERING THE INDIAN

SECULARISM: HINDUTVA POLITICS. Submitted to
University Institute of Legal Studies in Partial Fulfilment of
Requirement of B.A. LL. B (hons.) Constitutional Law II

Submitted by: Submitted to:

Navdeep Professor Rattan Singh

B.A.LL. B (HONS) UILS, PANJAB UNIVERSITY

62/17 CHANDIGARH

Section B

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 INDEX

SR.NO CONTENTS PG.NO

1. Table of cases 3

2. Acknowledgement 4

3. Introduction 5

4. Secularism in India 6

5. Indian Secularism and the differences from 9

the Western concept

6. What is Hindutva 10

7. Hindutva politics a threat to Indian 10

secularism
8. Citizenship amendment bill 2016 14

9. Conclusion 15

10. Bibliography 16

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 Table of cases

1. Bal patil and anr. V. union of India 2005(6) SCC 690

2. Commissoner H.R.E v. L.T 1954 AIR 282 1954 SCR 1005

swammiar

3. Indra v. Raj Narayan 1975 AIR SC 2299

4. Ratilal panchand v. state of 1954 AIR 388 1954 SCR 1035

Bombay

5. S.R Bommai v. union of India 1994AIR SC 1981

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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I would like to express my special thanks of gratitude to Prof. Rattan Singh, who gave
me the golden opportunity to do this wonderful project of Constitutional Law on the
Topic “Endangering the Indian secularism: Hindutva Politics”, who also helped me in
completing my project. I came to know about so many new things and I am relay
thankful to him. Secondly, I would like to thank my parents and friends who helped
me a lot in finalizing this project within the limited time frame.

Navdeep
B.A.LL. B(HONS)

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 Introduction
India is a land of several different religions and cultures that have co-existed in
harmony for thousands of years. Indian diversity has been the strength and basis of
modern India, the country’s inclusive nature is what sets it apart from any other
country in the world. Secularism plays an important role in a complex social fabric
like India where since time immemorial different religions have come from various
parts of the world and lived cohesively with occasional quarrels. The concept of
secularism was missing from the Indian Constitution until 1976, when the 42nd
Amendment of the Constitution was adapted and enacted. However, the concept of
secularism and its interpretation in Indian context is still vague and unclear even
among the courts and the experts as compared to the interpretation of secularism in
West.1

To understand the concept of secularism in respect of constitutional philosophy first

we have to understand the term "RELIGION". In general sense, Religion is a system
of faith and worship of supernatural force which regulates and control the destiny of
human kinds.

According to Swami Vivekananda, ‘It is based on faith and belief and in most cases
consist only of different sect of theories’ that is the reason why we find all religion
quarrelling with each other.2

According to Dr Radha Krishan, ''The main aim of the Hindu faith is to permit image
worship as the means to the development of the religious spirit to the development of
the supreme who has his temples in all beings.”3

From these definitions we can conclude that no universally acceptable definition as to

what exactly religion is. There appears to be near unanimity that religion, generally, is
a belief or faith in the existence of a supernatural being and the precepts which people
follow for attaining salvation.

1
“secularism and its interpretation in India” Available at: https://www.mapsofindia.com/my-
india/politics/secularism-and-its-interpretation-in-india visited on 18/3/2019
2
“Secularism and constitution of India” Available at:
http://www.legalservicesindia.com/article/1964/Secularism-and-Constitution-of-India.html visited on
19/3/2019
3
Ibid

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The term religion has not been defined in the constitution but the meaning given by
the Supreme court of India to the religion can be referred here, the Supreme court
in Commissioner H.R.E v. L.T. Swammiar 4 SC held that, A religion has its basis
in a system of beliefs or doctrines, which are regarded by those who prefers that
religion as conducive to their lay down a code ethical rules for its followers to accept,
it might prescribe rituals and observances, ceremonies and modes of worship, which
are regarded as integral parts of religion and these forms and observance might extend
even to matters of food and dress.

The freedom of religion guaranteed under Indian Constitution is not confined to its
citizen but extends to all persons including alien. This point, was underlined by the
supreme court in Ratilal Panchand V. State of Bombay5 , as it is very important
because substantial number of foreign Christian missionaries in India were engaged at
that time in propagating their faith among the adherents of other religions.

SECULARISM IN INDIA
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. The whole constitution is summarized in the preamble. It is the mirror to
the spirit of the constitution. The arrangement of the words in the preamble is also
very significant. Indian society is a multi – religious society, it is having different
caste, religion along with several religion diversification. So, all these are the divisive
factor in some way or the other and if not handled carefully then can cause a threat to
the unity and integrity of the nation.

The concept of secularism is provided under Article 25 of Indian constitution as

follows-

25. Freedom of conscience and free profession, practice and propagation of religion

4
1954 AIR 282,1954SCR 1005
5
1954 AIR 388,1954 SCR 1035

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(1) Subject to public order, morality and health and to the other provisions of this
Part, all persons are equally entitled to freedom of conscience and the right freely to
profess, practise and propagate religion

(2) Nothing in this article shall affect the operation of any existing law or prevent the
State from making any law

(a) regulating or restricting any economic, financial, political or other secular activity
which may be associated with religious practice;

(b) providing for social welfare and reform or the throwing open of Hindu religious
institutions of a public character to all classes and sections of Hindus Explanation I
The wearing and carrying of kirpans shall be deemed to be included in the profession
of the Sikh religion Explanation II In sub clause (b) of clause reference to Hindus
shall be construed as including a reference to persons professing the Sikh, Jain or
Buddhist religion, and the reference to Hindu religious institutions shall be construed
accordingly.6

Secularism as contemplated by the Constitution of India has the

following distinguishing features:
(1) The state will not identify itself with or be controlled by any religion;

(2) While the state guarantees to everyone the right to profess whatever religion one
chooses to follow, it will not accord any preferential treatment to any of them.

(3) No discrimination will be shown by the state against any person on account of his
religion or faith.
(4) The right of every citizen, subject to any general condition, to enter any offices
under the state and religious tolerance form the heart and soul of secularism as
envisaged by the constitution. It secures the conditions of creating a fraternity of the

6
Article 25 of constitution of India

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Indian people which assures both the dignity of the individual and the unity of the
nation.7

In Indra V. Raj Narayan 8,the basic feature of the secularism was explained by the
hon'ble supreme court which held that, secularism means' that state shall have no
religion of its own and all persons of the country shall be equally entitled to the
freedom of their conscience and have the right freely to profess, practice and have the
right freely to profess, practice and propagate any religion''. S.R.Bommai V. Union
of India9 The Hon'ble Supreme court while upholding the dismissal of four state
governments ruled by BJP, on the ground of religious conduct, held that ''secular not
only meant that the state should have no religion of its own and should be neutral as
between different religious, but that political party which sought to capture the power,
the religious would come to capture the power, the religions would come to acquire a
secondary or less favourable position.

The Supreme Court has ruled in (Bal Patil and Anr. v. union of India10) that the
State has no religion and State has to treat all religions and religious people equally
and with equal respect without in any manner interfering with their Individual rights
of religion, faith and worship.

7
“Secularism and Constitution of India” Available at:
http://www.legalservicesindia.com/article/1964/Secularism-and-Constitution-of-India.html visited on
19/3/2019
8
1975 AIR, S.C 2299
9
1994 AIR, SC 1981
10
2005(6) SCC 690

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Indian Secularism and the differences from the Western
concept
Indian concept of secularism is a stark contrast to the Western interpretation of
secularism. In the West it is based on three major pillars freedom of religion, the
separation of state and religion, equal citizenship to each citizen regardless of his
or her religion. Although the Indian Constitution follows the two out of three pillars,
but it fails to follow the most important one, as religion actively interferes in the
functioning of state through direct or indirect means. Even though the Constitution of
India is considered to be the supreme law in India, but the intricacies of the Indian
society allow personal laws such as Sharia’s and Hindu Code Bill to exist as long as it
does not affect the Fundamental Rights of an individual and hampering the peace and
harmony of the society.11

The Western variation deals with total non-interference of state and religion in the
functioning of each other. The power wests with the state and it is allowed to curtail
the rights if the religion is causing hindrance in the functioning of state. On the other
hand, India focused on an inclusive form of secularism by allowing the individual to
enjoy their Fundamental Rights while creating an atmosphere of peace and harmony.
The concept is not restricted to the question of how the religious groups are to be
treated. Instead, the essence of secularism lies in forging a positive relation between
the state and religion in the social and cultural realm.12

11
“secularism and its interpretation in India “ Available at: https://www.mapsofindia.com/my-
india/politics/secularism-and-its-interpretation-in-india visited on 18/3/2019
12
Ibid

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 WHAT IS HINDUTVA?
Hindutva, or Hindu fascism, is a majoritarian political ideology and far-right
ethnonationalist movement that uses religion as a justification for atrocities against
Dalits, Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Ravidassias, and Buddhists. Hindutva uses the
claim of faith to distract from its economic agenda to concentrate power, land, and
resources in the hands of the upper oppressor castes.13

Hindutva has transformed Indian domestic politics and foreign policy since the early
1980s, but Hindutva as an ideology and movement has almost a century of
history behind it.

The term “Hindutva” comes from V.D. Sarvarkar, a Maharashtrian Brahmin who
would later become president of the ethnonationalist Hindu Mahasabha (1937–1942).
Savarkar’s 1923 book, Hindutva: Who is a Hindu? argued that ancient “Aryans”
who settled in India formed a nation now known as Hindus. Sarvarkar argued that
Hindutva, or, nationalist “Hinduness,” stems from 1) geographical unity, 2) racial
features, and 3) a common culture, all of which combine to unite Hindus against all
“others.” Savarkar’s book was a strong influence on the founders and leaders of
today’s Hindu fascist organizations.14

HINDUTVA POLITICS, A THREAT TO INDIAN

SECULARISM?
The Hindu right-wing in India is busy trying to change the social fabric of the nation
and turn it into a Hindu nation—run by the upper-caste Hindus. The goal now for
them is to gain traction by changing the constitution. On August 27, Sanatan Sanstha,
a Hindutva outfit in India, relatively unknown till a few years ago, held a press
conference in Mumbai to demand removal of the word ‘secular’ from the Indian
constitution.15

13
“Hindu Fascism 101: What is Hindutva?” Available at: https://medium.com/@stophindutva/hindu-
fascism-101-what-is-hindutva-75105e71f5e1 visited on 20/3/2019
14
Ibid
15
Ibid

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The reason for such a demand, they believe, is because a secular constitution
necessarily puts the people from the country’s majority religion at a disadvantage.
The Hindu right-wing Party rose to power at the centre in 2014, working on the fear
that somehow India’s Hindu majority, who account for almost 80 percent of the
population, are at risk of being taken over and dominated by minorities.

Understandably, working on this ideology of hate, there has been a tremendous rise in
violence against the minorities (Muslims, Dalits, and Christians, in particular).

Violence against minorities16

September 28, 2015: Mohammad Akhlaq was attacked by a mob, dragged out of his
house in Dadri and killed on suspicion of keeping beef and consuming it.

June 22, 2017: Fifteen-year-old Junaid was stabbed to death by a mob that attacked
him and his brothers aboard a train. The mob hurled religious insults and called the
brothers “beef eaters” and “anti-nationals” before killing Junaid.

June 29 2017: A mob beat up and killed Asgar Ansari, a 45-year-old Muslim trader
in the eastern state of Jharkhand, for allegedly carrying beef in his car. Three days
earlier, a Muslim dairy owner, Usman Ansari, was beaten up and his house set on fire;
a cow carcass was reportedly found near his house.

According to an India Spend analysis, since 2010, 97 per cent of beef-related violence
took place after 2014.

The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data for 2015 and 2016 showed that the
number of crimes reported against Dalits had risen from 38,670 to 40,801, with Uttar
Pradesh, Bihar and Rajasthan―states ruled by the Hindutva politicians―with most
instances of crimes against people belonging to Scheduled Caste. Over the decade to
2016, crime rate against Dalits rose by 25 per cent―from 16.3 crimes per 100,000
Dalits reported in 2006, to 20.3 crimes in 2016.

Many cases of atrocities against Dalits were reported. Here are a few that instigated
widespread protests across the country:

16
BJP and its Hindutva politics―the slow saffronisation of India” Available at:
https://www.theweek.in/news/india/2018/04/25/bjp-and-its-hindutva-politics-the-slow-
saffronisation-of-india.html visited on 20/3/2019

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August 15, 2016: Four Dalit men, who were skinning dead cows in Una of Gir-
Somnath district in Gujarat, were beaten up with sticks and iron pipes and flogged
publicly. State-wide protests were seen in the following months seeking justice to the
victims and highlighting the need for upliftment of Dalits.

May 7, 2017: A Dalit groom, Prakash Bansal, was allegedly beaten up for “daring” to
take a decorated car to his wedding venue at Deri village in Chhatarpur district of
Madhya Pradesh.

September 30, 2017: Five Dalits were beaten up during the Vijayadashami
procession in Gagur, Karnataka after their entry into a temple was barred by upper
caste members and violence broke out.

Open hostility to minorities

November 20, 2017: Nityanand Rai, a right-wing party MP from Bihar, openly
threatened to chop off anyone’s finger that points at Narendra Modi in criticism.

November-December 2017: The Karni Sena in Rajasthan led a campaign of violence

and destruction, alleging that the period drama Padmavati (later changed
to Padmaavat) directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali maligned the Rajput pride. The
group assaulted the filmmaker, indulged in vandalism of public property, carried out
violent protests and even attacked a school bus full of children. Surajpal Amu, a
senior right-wing party leader from Haryana offered a bounty of Rs 10 crore on the
heads of Bhansali and actor Deepika Padukone. Amu, also the party's chief media
coordinator threatened to break the legs of Ranveer Singh, who plays the role of
Alauddin Khilji in the movie.

Per the Constitution, the state is equidistant from all religions, and every citizen is
equal in the eyes of the law and enjoys same rights. The right-wing party—even the
top brass leaders—has regularly distanced itself from the word. It is seen by the party
as a dirty word and a dirty ideology, practiced by intellectuals (another dirty word,
under the current regime). The effort now is to mainstream fundamentalism and
change the structure of Indian society as one knows it. Why must the word secular put
the majority Hindus at a disadvantage, unless the goal is to put the minorities at a
special disadvantage?

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Incidentally, Sanatan Sanstha is not representative of the Hindu religion. It is a
fragment of the Sanatan dharma school of thought, who believe in idol worship and
not all belonging to Sanatan Dharma are either members of the group or adhere to
their philosophy. Although the people who do follow them have been accused of
various terrorist activities in the country recently, most prominently for the murders of
rationalist thinker Narendra Dabholkar and journalist Gauri Lankesh.

This is where it becomes dangerous. Even as the circumstances deteriorate in India in

terms of civil liberties, especially right now, when the government seems to be on a
hunt for dissenters—a number of civil right activists and lawyers were arrested on
August 28—there is a hope for recourse through the courts, even if only in principle.
The government wants to change this once and for all. That is why a seemingly
problematic organization with alleged terrorist links has the courage to speak out
about changing this nation’s ethos.

Sanatan Sanstha’s spokesperson Chetan Rajhans said that no other nation puts their
majority religion at disadvantage. It is a suggestion contrary to the idea of India, as it
was envisioned by the forefathers and as many citizens still seek. India was to be an
inclusive nation—not a fundamentalist nation, and certainly not a theocracy.

Hindu fascists want to make India a Hindu rashtra (Hindu nation) and refer to
India’s territory as ‘Bharat’ (a Sanskrit name with references in the Puranas), which
they claim is their “motherland” and “holy land,” or a spiritual homeland for Hindus.
They claim to be the land’s “original” inhabitants and they demonize India’s
religious and cultural minorities as “others” and “foreigners” excluded from
belonging to their Hindu nation.

Hindutva’s proponents uphold their racist domination through an oppressive

caste system. Hindutva promotes a “common culture” of Sanskrit rooted in
Brahmanical traditions that present a hierarchy of castes and upper caste domination
as “natural.” The emphasis on Hindu dharma as the moral code asserts caste duties
and roles as governing India’s society and economy, and is used to exert control over
Dalit Bahujan lives and labor. This rationale also requires minorities to assimilate as
unequal subordinates in Hindu society. In this way, Hindu fascists use the cover of
religion and culture to consolidate their hold on land, wealth and other resources to
secure political and economic power for oppressor upper caste Hindu

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CITIZENSHIP AMENDEMENT BILL 2016

The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016 aims to provide citizenship to those who had
been forced to seek shelter in India because of religious persecution or fear of
persecution in their home countries. They are primarily Hindus, Sikhs, Jains,
Buddhists, Parsis and Christians from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh. This is a
drastic change from the provisions of the Citizenship Act of 1955 that label a person
an “illegal immigrant" if he or she has entered India without travel documents or has
overstayed the date specified in the documents.

The Bill also seeks to reduce the requirement of 11 years of continuous stay in the
country to six years to obtain citizenship by naturalisation.17

The citizenship amendment bill, which was passed by the Lok Sabha, has led to
political backlash in Assam and caused unrest in the rest of the North-east, with
protests by ethnic Assamese groups. Assamese organizations say that as a result of the
bill the burden of illegal migrants will be passed on to the state alone. The bill drew
flak from opposition parties in the Rajya Sabha for excluding Muslims from countries
such as Nepal and Sri Lanka. These parties are likely to push for the citizenship
amendment bill to be referred to a select committee before it is discussed in the Rajya
Sabha.18

It is perhaps one of the most pernicious bills to be ever introduced in the Indian
Parliament. It is a bill that goes against the Indian Constitution, the very idea of India.
For the first time in the history of Indian republic, our citizenship is being defined in
religious terms. This goes against Article 15 of our Constitution that says you cannot
discriminate on the basis of religion. More than that, it goes against the very
foundation of our Republic. India was formed by a partition and the idea that caused
India’s partition was the idea of the two-nation theory—That Muslims should have a
separate nation called Pakistan and Hindus should have a nation called India. Our
Constitution and our national movement rejected it. India was not for Hindus. So, it is
a fundamental attack on the very idea of India. It is a theory that was endorsed by

17
“Why citizenship amendment bill has created a row” available at:
https://www.livemint.com/Politics/8s04csNIIp4FDDhKoMGPcP/Why-citizenship-amendment-bill-has-
created-a-row.html visited on 21/3/2019
18
Ibid

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Jinnah and incidentally by Savarkar as well. It is shocking beyond belief that
something like this could be passed in any House of Parliament. It is the duty of every
Indian to oppose it.19

CONCLUSION

As individuals we may be Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi – or

we may choose to be none of these. But as far as the Indian Union is concerned, we
are Indians first and foremost, citizens of a secular state, and that should be our
primary identity. Conceding or cementing patriarchal practices that underpin all
religions not only flies in the face of individual fundamental rights, it also reinforces
the multiple patriarchies that operate in families, in society, in politics. As a result,
competitive patriarchy is what often surfaces, with tacit political sanction.

For all its limitations, the secular option is the only one that offers the possibility of
realising substantive equality for all those, but especially women, who are
marginalised and discriminated against. This is not to say that patriarchies will vanish
overnight or be rendered ineffective; but that by maintaining a separation of religion
and politics, some of the more strident among them will be neutralised.

We need a genuinely secular space in which informed discussions can take place on

complex issues of identity and allegiance; a space in which an individual has the right
to exit his or her religious community if they wish to and is assured the protection of
the state; a space in which we are not required to exercise a false choice between self
and community, or between religious conviction and personal freedom.

We need a genuinely secular space in which progressive social change is enabled, not
impeded; in which conservative trends are discouraged; in which those on the margins
are drawn in, not pushed over the edge.

19
“Citizenship bill an attack on the very idea of India: Yogendra Yadav Available at:
https://www.livemint.com/Politics/T6havyT7pf7WQiPANaNxZJ/Citizenship-bill-an-attack-on-the-very-
idea-of-India-Yogend.html visited on 20/3/2019

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 BIBLIOGRAPHY

Primary sources

1.The Constitution of India 1949

2.The Citizenship Act of 1955

Secondary sources

Websites referred:

1. www.mapsofindia.com

2. www.legalservicesindia.com

3. http://medium.com
4. www.theweek.com
5. www.livemint.com

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