Kozhikode (Kerala) [India], June 28 : CPI(M) General Secretary MA Baby on Saturday has strongly criticised recent remarks by RSS General Secretary Dattatreya Hosabale, who called for the removal of the words "secularism" and "socialism" from the Preamble of the Indian Constitution.
Speaking to ANI, Baby said that the CPI(M) Polit Bureau had already issued a statement condemning the RSS's position.
"Socialism and secularism are not mere additions -- they are core values embedded across the Constitution," he asserted.
While acknowledging that the terms were explicitly inserted during the 42nd Constitutional Amendment in the Emergency period, Baby emphasised that the spirit of both ideals was already present from the very beginning.
"If you read the Constitution carefully, especially the Directive Principles of State Policy, you will see that it is fundamentally aimed at building a secular and egalitarian society," he explained.
He also pointed out that the Supreme Court, as the constitutional interpreter, has affirmed that both secularism and socialism are part of the basic structure of the Constitution and therefore cannot be amended or removed.
Criticising the ideological roots of the RSS, Baby said, "The RSS never accepted the Indian Constitution. When the Constituent Assembly adopted it, their mouthpiece, Organiser, dismissed it as being filled with foreign influences and even suggested it should be based on the Manusmriti instead."
Calling this agenda dangerous, Baby warned, "Now the cat is out of the bag. What the RSS really wants is to dismantle the Constitution that upholds equality, fraternity, and secularism, and replace it with Manuvaad. But Indian society will not accept such a regression."
He concluded by stating that the Left will actively mobilise public opinion to defend the Constitution and resist what he described as the RSS's regressive vision for India.
Earlier, RSS general secretary Hosabale suggested reconsidering the inclusion of the terms "socialist" and "secular" in the Preamble of the Indian Constitution.
Hosabale was addressing an event on the 50th anniversary of the emergency, held at the Dr Ambedkar International Centre, jointly organised by the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (under the Ministry of Culture) and the Ambedkar International Centre.
Speaking at the event, he emphasised that the emergency wasn't just a misuse of power but an attempt to crush civil liberties. Millions were imprisoned, and freedom of the press was suppressed.
He remarked that during the emergency, terms like "socialist" and "secular" were forcibly inserted into the Constitution -- a move that needs to be reconsidered.