Jammu, October 12(Scoop News)-Jammu and Kashmir High Court has urged the federal government to consider and ensure that all persons and organizations, who attempt to subvert the constitution, are prevented in their tracks by taking recourse to law.
Observing that the “state has no religion”, the Court has directed all the constitutional and statutory authorities in India to “stop” the persons “in their tracks” who attempt to subvert the constitution.
These observations came while disposing of a petition filed by Sanjay Tickoo, president of Kashmir Pandit Sangrash Simiti (KPSS) who had earlier petitioned that uncouth attempts were being made by some “locals and non locals” to change the status of their religious places into commercial units.
Tickoo had prayed for safeguarding Hindu temples and shrines in Kashmir valley saying, “secular character of the constitution would require the state and its authorities to protect the religious places.
The court directed the state government to take all necessary measures for protection of religious places of Kashmiri Pandits observing any person who may be affected in the process shall be afforded opportunity for hearing and thereafter appropriate orders be passed.
“In our constitutional scheme, a citizen of India is only an Indian. No person can claim himself to be a Hindu nationalist, Muslim nationalist, Sikh nationalist, Buddhist nationalist or Christian nationalist”, pronounced Justice Muzaffar Hussain Attar in his observations on Thursday.
“The constitutional provisions are loud and clear and in unambiguous terms forbid using of such expressions”, he added.
Constitutional authorities may take steps, in accordance with the Constitution of India and that of the state and laws of the land, for protecting the religious places of the petitioner including places of cultural heritage, the court said.
The authorities were also directed to consider framing of new laws for accomplishing the purpose in addition to taking appropriate action in terms of existing laws.
There is no need to bring in “secularism in the preamble of the constitution, as the expression has divided people in the country in different pigeon holes of different “isms”.
The Court held: “If India which is created by the constitution, which we the people have given ourselves has to survive then it is only “Indianism” which has to be there and all other “isms” have to disappear from the firmament of the country called “India”.
“As already stated, India belongs to Indians who constitute one nation, The constitution of Inda does not recoganise, these expressions or thoughts are antithesis and abhorrent to the constitution of India, Justice Attar observed.
The court also directed the Chief Election Commission (CEC) to invoke the provisions of law against persons who seek recourse to religious nationalism and pose a threat to the constitution and prevent such people from seeking election to parliament or state legislature.
“CEC is further directed to consider for issuance of executive instructions for disqualifying of such persons from contesting elections to Parliament and State legislatures and barring such organizations or individuals”, it says.
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