Archive · 24 Jul 2025
India Reaffirms Stance on 'Socialism' and 'Secularism' in Preamble
India's government said it isn't planning to take out the words 'socialism' and 'secularism' from the introduction to its Constitution.
These words were added a long time ago.
Some people have recently talked about removing them, which caused some discussion.
The government explained that changing this part of the Constitution would require a lot of thought and agreement from everyone.
The Supreme Court has also said in the past that it won't remove the words.
The government's current stance is to keep them.
The Indian government stated it has no plans to remove 'socialism' and 'secularism' from the Constitution's Preamble.
The government's position was clarified in response to discussions about amending the Preamble.
The law minister indicated that any changes would need thorough discussion and consensus.
A debate was sparked by an RSS leader's call for a review of the terms.
'Socialist,' 'secular,' and 'integrity' were added to the Preamble in 1976.
- Who
- The Bharatiya Janata Party-led central government, clarified by Union law minister Arjun Ram Meghwal.
- What
- The Indian government's stance on the terms 'socialism' and 'secularism' in the Constitution's Preamble.
- When
- The announcement was made on Thursday in response to recent discussions.
- Where
- In the Parliament.
- Why
- To clarify the government's position amidst discussions about amending the Preamble.
Proponents of Retaining Terms
Those Seeking Review/Removal
Debate
Proponents of Retaining Terms
Values of socialism and secularism should be upheld in the constitution.
Those Seeking Review/Removal
Calls for debate or removal of those terms.
- Government Stance
- No current plan to remove 'socialism' and 'secularism'.
- Words in Preamble
- 'Socialist,' 'secular,' and 'integrity'.
- Amendment Year
- 1976
- Law Minister
- Arjun Ram Meghwal
- Emergency Period
- June 25, 1975 to March 21, 1977