Review 'socialist', 'secular' in Constitution's preamble, says RSS; Congress hits back

New Delhi: The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) on Thursday called for a review of the words 'socialist' and 'secular' in the preamble of the Constitution, arguing that they were inserted during the Emergency and were not part of the original document drafted under the leadership of B R Ambedkar.

Speaking at an event held in the capital, RSS general secretary Dattatreya Hosabale said the words were added in 1976 when the country was under Emergency, a period during which fundamental rights were suspended, Parliament did not function, and the judiciary became "lame".

“Babasaheb Ambedkar never used these words in the original preamble. Discussions were held later, but no effort was made to remove them. Whether they should continue to remain must now be reconsidered,” Hosabale said. He further questioned, “The preamble is eternal. But is socialism, as an ideology, eternal for India?”

The RSS leader’s remarks came alongside a scathing attack on the Congress party, accusing it of Emergency-era abuses, including the suspension of civil liberties, curbs on the judiciary and media, and forced sterilisations. “Those responsible still walk around carrying copies of the Constitution. They have never apologised,” he said, demanding a formal apology from the Congress. Union Minister Nitin Gadkari was also present at the event.

Congress slams RSS remarks
The Congress swiftly condemned the RSS’s comments, calling them part of a "conspiracy to destroy Ambedkar’s Constitution". Congress general secretary (communications) Jairam Ramesh said the RSS had “never accepted the Constitution of India” and had been critical of Ambedkar, Nehru, and other framers of the document from the very beginning.

In a post on X, Ramesh pointed to recent attempts by the BJP-RSS ecosystem to rewrite or replace the Constitution, referencing Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s campaign call in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections for 400-plus seats to enable constitutional amendments. “The people of India decisively rejected this cry,” he said.

Ramesh also cited the November 2024 judgment by the Chief Justice of India affirming the sanctity of the Preamble and its existing language. “Would it be asking too much to request Hosabale to read it?” he asked.

The Congress's official X handle posted a strongly worded response, accusing the RSS-BJP of being "anti-constitutional" and reaffirming the party’s resolve to protect the founding document. “The RSS is again demanding changes to the Preamble. We won’t allow their intentions to succeed. Jai Samvidhan,” the post said.

The words 'socialist' and 'secular' were inserted into the Preamble during the 42nd Amendment to the Constitution in 1976, under then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi’s government. The amendment remains a point of contention between political and ideological camps, particularly in debates over the Constitution’s “basic structure”.