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Is Indian Constitution Secular ?
An eleven member bench of Supreme Court of India, headed by Chief Justice, observed on 8-8-2005 that Sikhs, Jains and Bodhis are part of wider Hindu community. This judgement is based on the provisions of explanation II of sub clause 2 (b) of Article 25 of the Constitution of India. Thus Constitution of India exterminates three independent religions and assimilates all these three religions into Hinduism. So Sikhs are Hindus for all legal purposes and all Hindus laws are applicable to Sikhs. Sikhs cannot have Sikh Personal Law, as they are Hindus Under Article 25. The authority vested in Article 25, converts Sikhs into Hinduism, thus legally, Sikhism is a sect of Hinduism and not an independent sovereign religion.
Government of India constituted National Commission to review the working of the Constitution. This commission was headed by Chief Justice M.N. Venkata Chaliah and consisted of 11 eminent legal personalities. This Commission accepted the Sikh view and recommended in its report (Para 3.23.2) for amendment in Article 25. The recommendation of NCRWC is lying with the Government of India for about a decade.
Sikhism is an independent religion. Sikhism has its own revealed scripture, social system, language, religious code and distinctively physical appearance, so qualifies as an independent religion as per internationally accepted norms. International organisations accept Sikhism as an independent religion. Rationalism does not allow to club Sikhs with Hindus.
Prophet is the ultimate authority of a religion. Sikh Prophet has catagorically declared in Sikh scripture that Sikhs are neither Hindus nor Muslims. I am sure that members of Constituent Assembly were not aware of this declaration of Sikh Prophet. So they inadvertently inserted Explanation II to Article 25. I hope if this error is brought in the notice of Indian Parliament, Article 25 would be amended.
It is left to the intellectuals, scholars, thinkers and rationalists to decide that a Constitution which exterminates three independent religions into a majority religion is secular or communal.
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