The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and Samajwadi Party (SP) have strongly opposed any move by the BJP to amend the Constitution to remove the terms Secularism and Socialism from its Preamble.
Both parties have warned of launching a nationwide agitation if any such “conspiracy” to amend the Constitution is undertaken.
Addressing the media on Saturday, BSP supremo Mayawati cautioned both the BJP and the Congress over what she called an increasing debate surrounding the Constitution.
She said, “It seems the BSP will have to raise its voice against these parties across the country.”
Mayawati stated that Babasaheb Ambedkar gave the country a humanitarian Constitution by dedicating his entire life to it. “However, first the Congress and now the BJP have failed to implement it with full sincerity. Both parties and their supporters have largely promoted their own party ideologies. Unnecessary changes have been made to the Constitution from time to time,” she alleged.
“All the words used in the Indian Constitution and its Preamble reflect the soul of the nation. These were included only after much deliberation and deep thought. Tampering with them now would be grossly inappropriate,” she asserted.
The BSP chief also alleged that both the BJP and Congress say one thing but mean another. She called on all parties to rise above narrow-minded politics and refrain from tampering with the Constitution.
On the issue of language-based politics, Mayawati remarked that such practices are not healthy. “All languages should be respected. It is not right to confront governments or parties over language issues,” she said.
Referring to the controversy over the voter list in Bihar, Mayawati urged the Election Commission to clarify its stance and ensure that political parties are taken into confidence before any new decisions are made.
Commenting on the recent rape of a student in Kolkata, she said that women are not fully safe anywhere in the country, including West Bengal. “The central and state governments must take this issue seriously,” she added.
Meanwhile, Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav also took a strong stand on the matter. Speaking in Lucknow on Saturday, he said, “Those opposing reservations are the same people who oppose the words socialism and secularism in the Constitution.”
“The BJP has opposed these principles since its inception. Today, they spread hatred because they cannot directly attack the Constitution, so instead they target secularism and socialism.”
He further alleged, “The excuse of removing two words is just a pretext. The real goal of the BJP and its allies is to dismantle the entire Constitution.”
“That is why, if we want to save the Constitution, we must remove the BJP from power,” Akhilesh Yadav declared.