New Delhi, June 28 (IANS) In a strongly worded speech resonating with the ideological spectrum of the RSS, Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar on Saturday launched a blistering critique of the 1976 amendment to the Constitution鈥檚 Preamble, calling it a 鈥渘asoor鈥 (festering wound) and an 鈥渦npardonable insult to the Sanatan soul of India.鈥
Speaking at a book release function at the Vice President鈥檚 residence, the VP said, 鈥淭he Preamble is the soul of the Constitution. It was disfigured during the darkest phase of Indian democracy 鈥 the Emergency 鈥 when terms like 鈥楽ocialist鈥, 鈥楽ecular鈥, and 鈥業ntegrity鈥 were inserted under coercion.鈥
Calling the 42nd Amendment 鈥渁n unjust and illegitimate act,鈥 the VP said, 鈥淲e altered something that should never have been changed. And that too, not by the will of the people but at a time when the people, the source of power, were behind bars.鈥
Resonating with long-standing RSS criticism of the secular and socialist labels, the Vice President remarked that no other country in the world has tampered with the Preamble of its Constitution and described the 1976 additions as 鈥渁 betrayal of our civilisational ethos and the intentions of our Constitution makers.鈥
Quoting from landmark Supreme Court judgments like Kesavananda Bharati and Golaknath, he reminded the audience that the apex court has always treated the Preamble as the guiding light of the Constitution.
Referring to B.R. Ambedkar as a 鈥渧isionary who lives in our soul,鈥 the Vice President said the sanctity of the Constitution must be preserved and warned against the growing political polarisation and caste-based divisions that threaten India鈥檚 unity.
The remarks given by the Vice President are likely to intensify the ongoing debate around restoring the 鈥榦riginal Preamble鈥, a demand growing louder in saffron circles.
RSS General Secretary Dattatreya Hosabale on Thursday triggered a political storm when he demanded the removal of the terms 鈥榮ocialism鈥 and 鈥榮ecularism鈥 from the Preamble of the Constitution, alleging that they were inserted 鈥渇orcibly鈥 during the Emergency period.
Since then, opposition parties, including Congress and other national and regional parties, have upped their ante against the RSS for pushing a narrative which has long been brewing in the saffron camps for decades.