SSC
The word 'Secular' was added to the Preamble of the Indian Constitution in:
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Answer: Option B — 1976
Detailed Solution
The words "Socialist" and "Secular" were added to the Preamble of the Indian Constitution by the 42nd Constitutional Amendment Act, 1976, passed during the Emergency under Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. The same amendment also changed the phrase "unity of the Nation" to "unity and integrity of the Nation".
After the amendment, the Preamble describes India as a "Sovereign, Socialist, Secular, Democratic Republic". The 42nd Amendment is the only amendment so far to have changed the Preamble.
"Secular" in the Indian context means that the State has no official religion of its own. It treats all religions equally, gives equal respect to all religions ("sarva dharma sambhava"), and does not discriminate against citizens on the basis of religion. This is a positive concept of secularism, unlike the Western idea of a strict wall of separation between religion and the State.
Even before 1976, the Constitution was secular in spirit. Provisions supporting secularism include:
Article 14: equality before the law.
Article 15: no discrimination on grounds of religion.
Article 16: equality of opportunity in public employment.
Articles 25-28: freedom of conscience and religion, freedom to manage religious affairs, freedom from paying taxes for promoting any particular religion, and freedom from compulsory religious instruction in state-funded institutions.
Articles 29-30: rights of minorities to conserve their culture and set up educational institutions.
Article 44: the Directive Principle for a Uniform Civil Code.
The Supreme Court, in the S.R. Bommai case (1994), held that secularism is a part of the basic structure of the Constitution. In the Kesavananda Bharati case (1973), the Court had already held that the Preamble is a part of the Constitution and can be amended, but its basic features cannot be destroyed. In November 2024, the Supreme Court dismissed petitions challenging the addition of "socialist" and "secular" to the Preamble.
Why not the other options?
- ✗1950 is when the Constitution came into force, without these words.
- ✗1971 is the year of the 24th, 25th and 26th Amendments.
- ✗1978 is the year of the 44th Amendment, which did not remove these words.
Quick tip
Remember: "Socialist", "Secular" and "Integrity" added by the 42nd Amendment (1976), the only amendment to the Preamble; secularism = basic structure (S.R. Bommai, 1994).
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Preamble & Salient Features — Preparation
This question tests your understanding of Preamble & Salient Features, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.
This topic covers the Preamble of the Indian Constitution, the meaning of its key words (sovereign, socialist, secular, democratic, republic, justice, liberty, equality and fraternity), and the salient features of the Constitution, such as its federal structure with a unitary bias and the parliamentary form of government. Remember that the words 'socialist', 'secular' and 'integrity' were added by the 42nd Amendment in 1976, the only time the Preamble has been amended. Questions also test landmark cases on the Preamble: the Supreme Court held in the Kesavananda Bharati case (1973) that the Preamble is part of the Constitution. Practise the Preamble and salient features questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.