– Abdul Bari Masoud
India’s Constitution has once again become the epicentre of a deepening ideological battle. The RSS recent call to remove the words “secular” and “socialist” from the Preamble has ignited a political storm, drawing sharp rebukes from Opposition parties, legal scholars, and civil society voices.
Critics see the move not as an isolated suggestion, but as a calculated attempt to shift public attention from the government’s mounting challenges – including the Operation Sindoor and growing diplomatic missteps – by stirring a divisive and emotive debate.
Speaking at a commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Emergency at the Dr. Ambedkar International Centre on June 26, RSS General Secretary Dattatreya Hosabale demanded a national debate on removing the two terms from the Preamble. Both words were inserted into the Constitution during the 42nd Amendment in 1976, amid the Emergency declared by then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.
“Those who imposed the Emergency are now parading with the Constitution in their hands. They have not apologised. If your ancestors did it, apologise on their behalf,” Hosabale said, in a veiled but unmistakable reference to the Congress Party.
The timing of his statement – days after public criticism of India’s foreign policy and the fallout of Operation Sindoor – has raised eyebrows. For many, this is a familiar playbook: shift the national conversation from governance failures to ideological theatrics.
Congress Hits Back
The Congress responded with scathing criticism, accusing the Sangh of trying to dismantle the foundational values of the Republic while hiding behind selective interpretations of history.
“If the BJP and its ideological mentor, the RSS, truly oppose the words ‘secular’ and ‘socialist’, they should begin by deleting them from their own party constitution,” said Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh. “These terms were included in the BJP’s founding document in 1980 – four years after the Emergency. Why didn’t they object then?”
Ramesh called the move a “desperate attempt to distract the public from the regime’s failures – whether in foreign policy, economic distress, or the mishandling of Operation Sindoor.”
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor echoed the sentiment, stating, “The Constitution is not a playground for political games. The RSS is attempting a dangerous revision of India’s founding principles under the guise of reflection. Secularism and socialism are not ideological impositions – they are moral commitments to inclusion and equity.”
Left and Regional Forces Close Ranks
The RSS proposal has galvanised a rare unity among Opposition parties. The CPI(M), a long-standing ideological rival of the Sangh, minced no words in its response.
“This is not a question of semantics. It is an attempt to subvert the soul of the Republic,” the party said in a statement. “The RSS, which kept itself distant from the freedom struggle, now dares to rewrite the values for which martyrs like Bhagat Singh, Ashfaqulla Khan, and Chandrashekhar Azad laid down their lives. Their vision of India was inclusive, plural, and progressive.”
The Trinamool Congress (TMC) joined the chorus of dissent, with MP Mahua Moitra stating, “This isn’t merely a proposal – it’s a warning. Undermining secularism means weakening the state’s neutrality. Dismissing socialism invites unchecked crony capitalism. This government is using ideology to distract from incompetence.”
From the South, Tamil Nadu’s ruling DMK offered an equally forceful rebuttal. Party MP Kanimozhi tweeted, “The RSS never accepted the Constitution. They are now emboldened enough to attack its core values. This must be resisted at every level.”
Strategic Hindutva or Ideological Unmasking?
Observers argue that the RSS’ push is neither spontaneous nor symbolic. It reflects a strategic transition from covert influence to open confrontation with constitutional norms.
“Under the Modi government, the line between the state and the Sangh’s ideology has blurred significantly,” said Professor Zoya Hasan, political scientist and constitutional scholar. “This move is part of a long-term plan to recast India’s constitutional framework in the image of the RSS’s worldview – where pluralism is portrayed as weakness and secularism is derided as appeasement.”
Historian S. Irfan Habib traces the ideological shift to a broader pattern. “The irony is striking. In its early days, the BJP embraced ‘Gandhian socialism’ and never questioned these ideals. Even in 2016, Uma Bharti praised Modi for implementing what she called a ‘Marxist agenda’ of welfare and inclusion. Now, with ideological hardliners in ascendance, there’s an effort to erase that legacy.”
He added: “In 2014, Modi was marketed as a development-oriented leader. That façade helped mask the deeper agenda. In its third term, the government no longer feels the need to hide its ideological core.”
While the words “secular” and “socialist” were added during a period of political repression, their constitutional legitimacy has been consistently upheld. The Supreme Court’s landmark Kesavananda Bharati judgment of 1973 established the “basic structure” doctrine, ruling that certain foundational principles of the Constitution – such as democracy, secularism, and federalism – are beyond amendment.
Senior Advocate Indira Jaising warned, however, that values can be eroded without formal legal changes. “The threat is not just in deleting words from the Preamble. The real danger lies in hollowing them out through policy decisions, silence in the face of hate, and public discourse that mocks inclusion,” she said.
The Constitution as Ideological Battleground
At its core, the current debate is about India’s future. Can a multi-religious, multi-ethnic democracy sustain itself without secularism? Can deepening inequality be addressed without a guiding commitment to socialism – even in a modern, flexible sense?
What was once a national consensus – the Constitution as a moral and legal compass – is now being fiercely contested. In today’s India, constitutional values are no longer neutral ground; they are battlegrounds for competing visions of the nation.
“The RSS’ call to revise the Preamble signals a broader ideological offensive,” said a senior political analyst. “It’s not just about what’s written in the Constitution – it’s about reshaping what the Constitution means in public consciousness.”
As India moves toward key state elections and navigates a fragile global landscape, the ideological contest over its constitutional soul is intensifying. With polarisation deepening, the question remains: will India reaffirm the inclusive, democratic spirit of its founding document – or will it drift toward a narrower, exclusionary identity?
Nevertheless, no government since Independence followed secularism in letter and spirit. All the official functions and events have been conducted according to the customs and traditions of a particular religion.
