Constitution has always embodied principles of secularism & socialism: Justice Chelameswar
Justice Chelameswar was inaugurating a law lecture series conducted by the Ernakulam Govt Law College Old Students' Association (ELCOSA) as part of the sesquicentennial celebrations of legal education in Kerala and Govt Law College, Ernakulam. Speaking on the topic 'Clamour for Removal of Secularism and Socialism: Whether Justified', Justice Chelameswar discussed various aspects of the principles of secularism and socialism, including their historical evolution.
"The Constitution is a continuous process; it is not something that falls from heaven overnight but comes from the experience of life. Don't read the Constitution as a document written on paper with ink. Please read it as a document written in the blood of martyrs in Jallianwala Bagh. Then you understand what the Constitution exactly conveys," he said.
Justice Chelameswar further noted that while it is legally permissible to amend the Preamble of the Constitution to change the terms 'secularism' and 'socialism,' the real question is what necessity there is to change them.
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"We human beings make the nation. It is for us, collectively, to determine whether we should live in a truly secular society, one in which we are willing to see all human beings simply as human beings and not define them by their cultural practices.
The ultimate question is, would you like to live in a country where you have no freedom of conscience and no liberty," he observed.
Justice K M Joseph, former Supreme Court judge, in his presidential address, said that any attempt to remove the word 'secularism' from the Preamble would be an act of mischief. The problems arise not from religions but from the practice of politicians using religion to gain power, he added. Minister for law and industries P Rajeeve, was the special guest at the event.
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