Express News Service
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday listed a plea by former Rajya Sabha MP Dr Subramanian Swamy seeking to delete the words “socialist” and “secular” in the Preamble of the Constitution with a similar plea that is to come up before CJI UU Lalit on September 23.
The words ‘socialist’ and ‘secular’ were inserted in the Preamble of the Constitution under the 42nd Constitutional amendment moved by the Indira Gandhi government in 1976. The amendment changed the description of India in the Preamble from a “sovereign, democratic republic” to a “sovereign, socialist, secular, democratic republic.”
The petition where Swamy had argued that it was not possible for the policymakers to vary, alter or repeal the Preamble as it was not equivalent to an ordinary statute was listed before the bench of Justices Indira Banerjee and MM Sundresh.
Considering that a similar plea was pending before CJI’s court, the bench in their order said, “Subramanian Swamy, the petitioner appearing in-person, submits that an identical writ petition being W.P.(C) No. 645 of 2022, is pending before the first Bench of this Court. Let this writ petition be tagged with Writ Petition (C) No. 645 of 2022.”
Swamy in the petition stated that the Preamble not only formed the essential features of the Constitution but also the fundamental conditions based on which various groups and interests adopted the Constitution with the hope to create one unified integrated community.
It was also contended that insertion was against the rights to freedom of religion, the concept of judicial review which formed an integral part of the basic structure of the Constitution. “The edifice of our Constitution is built upon and stands on several props, remove any of them, the Constitution collapses.
Lastly, it is submitted that the Constitution has conferred a limited amending power on the Parliament, the Parliament cannot under the exercise of that limited power enlarge that very power into absolute power,” the petition has stated.
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Allows transfer of criminal case against Unnao rape survivor
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Sanskrit as national language: Court rejects petition
The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed a petition that sought to declare Sanskrit as the national language. The bench of Justices MR Shah and Krishna Murari stressed the fact that the national status of a language was a policy decision that would require an amendment to the Constitution.
J&K pandit killing: ‘Ask union govt for SIT probe’
The Supreme Court on Friday granted liberty to NGO “We the Citizens” to approach the Union government and UT administration with its pleas seeking probe by SIT into the targeted killings of Kashmiri Pandits and Sikhs in Jammu & Kashmir. “It’s purely in the domain of the executive,” the SC bench said.
Junks Suvendu plea on transfer of election plea
The Supreme Court on Friday rejected BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari’s plea seeking transfer of the election petition filed by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee out of the State of West Bengal. The bench opined that it could not allow choice of HCs as that would send a ‘wrong’ message to the HC.
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday listed a plea by former Rajya Sabha MP Dr Subramanian Swamy seeking to delete the words “socialist” and “secular” in the Preamble of the Constitution with a similar plea that is to come up before CJI UU Lalit on September 23.
The words ‘socialist’ and ‘secular’ were inserted in the Preamble of the Constitution under the 42nd Constitutional amendment moved by the Indira Gandhi government in 1976. The amendment changed the description of India in the Preamble from a “sovereign, democratic republic” to a “sovereign, socialist, secular, democratic republic.”
The petition where Swamy had argued that it was not possible for the policymakers to vary, alter or repeal the Preamble as it was not equivalent to an ordinary statute was listed before the bench of Justices Indira Banerjee and MM Sundresh.
Considering that a similar plea was pending before CJI’s court, the bench in their order said, “Subramanian Swamy, the petitioner appearing in-person, submits that an identical writ petition being W.P.(C) No. 645 of 2022, is pending before the first Bench of this Court. Let this writ petition be tagged with Writ Petition (C) No. 645 of 2022.”
Swamy in the petition stated that the Preamble not only formed the essential features of the Constitution but also the fundamental conditions based on which various groups and interests adopted the Constitution with the hope to create one unified integrated community.
It was also contended that insertion was against the rights to freedom of religion, the concept of judicial review which formed an integral part of the basic structure of the Constitution. “The edifice of our Constitution is built upon and stands on several props, remove any of them, the Constitution collapses.
Lastly, it is submitted that the Constitution has conferred a limited amending power on the Parliament, the Parliament cannot under the exercise of that limited power enlarge that very power into absolute power,” the petition has stated.
ALSO IN TOP COURT
Order in TN job scam reserved
The Supreme Court on Friday reserved order in plea challenging Madras HC’s order of quashing criminal proceedings against four persons, including V Senthil Balaji, current Tamil Nadu Minister of Electricity in the 2015 job scam whereby the accused had taken bribes from job aspirants on the false promise of appointment to the Metro Transport Corporation (MTC) in various posts. The order was reserved by the bench of Justices Abdul Nazeer and V Ramasubramanian.
Allows transfer of criminal case against Unnao rape survivor
The Supreme Court on Friday allowed the transfer of a criminal case filed by the father of one of the accused men facing charges in Unnao rape from UP trial court to Delhi. The petition where the victim had also sought for stay on the non-bailable warrants issued by the Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Unnao, against her was listed before the bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dinesh Maheshwari.
Sanskrit as national language: Court rejects petition
The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed a petition that sought to declare Sanskrit as the national language. The bench of Justices MR Shah and Krishna Murari stressed the fact that the national status of a language was a policy decision that would require an amendment to the Constitution.
J&K pandit killing: ‘Ask union govt for SIT probe’
The Supreme Court on Friday granted liberty to NGO “We the Citizens” to approach the Union government and UT administration with its pleas seeking probe by SIT into the targeted killings of Kashmiri Pandits and Sikhs in Jammu & Kashmir. “It’s purely in the domain of the executive,” the SC bench said.
Junks Suvendu plea on transfer of election plea
The Supreme Court on Friday rejected BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari’s plea seeking transfer of the election petition filed by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee out of the State of West Bengal. The bench opined that it could not allow choice of HCs as that would send a ‘wrong’ message to the HC.