Guwahati: BJP-ruled Assam’s Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, who is known for his controversial statements and remarks, stated on Saturday that it is a golden time to remove the terms “socialism” and “secularism” from the Indian Constitution.
He suggested that India must take secularism from Bhagwat Gita instead of adopting it from the British or American constitutions.
He said that the addition of socialism and secularism to the Constitution via the 42nd Amendment under Prime Minister Indira Gandhi completely transformed it.
According to him, RSS and other intellectuals in India had said that fifty years after the Emergency, it was the golden time to remove the two terms from the Constitution.
“Fifty years after the Emergency, be it the RSS or be it several intellectuals in the country, they have said that this is the golden time to remove the words socialism and secularism from the Constitution. We are a mature democracy… We don’t need to adopt the terminology of secularism from the British or American constitutions; we will take our secularism from the Bhagwat Gita,” The Indian Express quoted the BJP chief minister, who is known for his hate-filled and sectarian speeches.
He claimed that during the framing of the Constitution, Dr BR Ambedkar said that there is no question of mentioning the word secularism.
According to Himanta Sarma, secularism, added through the 42nd Amendment, is a Western concept. He said when he is a hardcore Hindu, how could he be secular.
Further, he claimed that socialism was not part of Indian civilization, nor was it the economic ideal of Mahatma Gandhi.