Paragraph numbers below are the court’s original numbering, recovered from the source text.
6. In State of Karnataka v. Praveen Bhai Thogadia (Dr.),3, this Court proclaimed: “9. Our country is the world’s most heterogeneous society with a rich heritage and our Constitution is committed to high ideas of socialism, secularism and the integrity of the nation. As is well known, several races have converged in this subcontinent and they have carried with them their own cultures, languages, religions and customs affording positive recognition to the noble and ideal way of life — “unity in diversity”. Though these diversities created problems in early days, they were mostly solved on the basis of human approaches and harmonious reconciliation of differences, usefully and peacefully. That is how secularism has come to be treated as a part of fundamental law, and an unalienable segment of the basic structure of the country’s political system. As noted in S.R. Bommai v. Union of India [(1994) 3 SCC 1] freedom of religion is granted to all persons of India. Therefore, from the point of view of the State, religion, faith or belief of a particular person has no place and given no scope for imposition on individual citizen. Unfortunately, of late, vested interests fanning religious fundamentalism of all kinds vying with each other, are attempting to subject the constitutional machineries of the State to great stress and strain with certain quaint ideas of religious priorities, to promote their own selfish ends, undeterred and unmindful of the disharmony it may ultimately bring about and even undermine national integration achieved with much difficulties and laudable determination of those strong-spirited savants of yesteryear. Religion cannot be mixed with secular activities of the State and fundamentalism of any kind cannot be permitted to masquerade as political philosophies to the detriment of the larger interest of society and basic requirement of a welfare State. Religion sans spiritual values may even be perilous and bring about chaos and anarchy all around. It is, therefore, imperative that if any individual 3 (2004) 4 SCC 684 ASHWINI KUMAR UPADHYAY v. UNION OF INDIA & ORS. [K. M. JOSEPH, J.] or group of persons, by their action or caustic and inflammatory speech are bent upon sowing seeds of mutual hatred, and their proposed activities are likely to create disharmony and disturb the equilibrium, sacrificing public peace and tranquillity, strong action, and more so preventive actions are essentially and vitally needed to be taken. Any speech or action which would result in ostracization of communal harmony would destroy all those high values which the Constitution aims at. Welfare of the people is the ultimate goal of all laws, and State action and above all the Constitution. They have one common object, that is to promote the well-being and larger interest of the society as a whole and not of any individual or particular groups carrying any brand names. It is inconceivable that there can be social well-being without communal harmony, love for each other and hatred for none. The core of religion based upon spiritual values, which the Vedas, Upanishads and Puranas were said to reveal to mankind seem to be:”Love others, serve others, help ever, hurt never” and “sarvae jana sukhino bhavantoo”. One-upmanship in the name of religion, whichever it be or at whomsoever’s instance it be, would render constitutional designs countermanded and chaos, claiming its heavy toll on society and humanity as a whole, may be the inevitable evil consequences, whereof.” (Emphasis Supplied)
7. In M.P. Gopalakrishnan Nair v. State of Kerala4, this Court declared: “20. It is now well settled: (i) The Constitution prohibits the establishment of a theocratic State. (ii) The State is not only prohibited to establish any religion of its own but is also prohibited to identify itself with or favouring any particular religion. (iii) The secularism under the Indian Constitution does not mean constitution of an atheist society but it merely means equal status of all religions without any preference in favour of or discrimination against any one of them.”
8. We are of the view that the questions of law raised by petitioner do not arise. 4 (2005) 11 SCC 45
9. The present and future of a country cannot remain a prisoner of the past. The governance of Bharat must conform to Rule of law, secularism, constitutionalism of which Article 14 stands out as the guarantee of both equality and fairness in the State’s action.
10. The founding fathers contemplated India to be a republic which is not merely to be conflated to a body polity having an elected President which is the conventional understanding. But it also involves ensuring rights to all sections of people based on it being a democracy. It is important that the country must move forward. For achieving the sublime goals which are enshrined in Part IV – that is the Directive Principles, but bearing in mind the fundamental rights also guaranteed in Part III of the Constitution, which have been described as the two wheels of the chariot of the State, both of which are indispensable, for the smooth progress of the nation, actions must be taken which bond all sections of the society together.
11. The history of any nation cannot haunt the future generations of a nation to the point that succeeding generations become prisoners of the past. The golden principle of fraternity which again is enshrined in the preamble is of the greatest importance and rightfully finds its place in the preamble as a constant reminder to all stakeholders that maintenance of harmony between different sections alone will lead to the imbibing of a true notion of nationhood bonding sections together for the greater good of the nation and finally, establish a sovereign democratic republic.We must constantly remind ourselves that courts of law, as indeed every part of the ‘State’, must be guided by the sublime realisation, that Bharat is a secular nation committed to securing fundamental rights to all sections as contemplated in the Constitution.
12. We are, therefore, of the view that the reliefs which have been sought for should not be granted by this Court acting as the guardian of fundamental rights of all under Article 32 of the Constitution of India and bearing in mind the values which a Court must keep uppermost in its mind – the preamble gives us clear light in this direction.
13. The writ petition is dismissed. Divya Pandey Writ petition dismissed. (Assisted by : Roopanshi Virang, LCRA) ASHWINI KUMAR UPADHYAY v. UNION OF INDIA & ORS. [K. M. JOSEPH, J.]