Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, Sept 5: The Supreme Court on Monday sought statements from the Central Government and the Election Commission of India in response to a petition alleging that political parties use religious names and symbols.
A bench of Justices MR Shah and Krishna Murari also allowed petitioner Syed Waseem Rizvi the right to implead the political parties seeking relief.
During the hearing, Senior Advocate Gaurav Bhatia, counsel for petitioner, claimed that there are political parties whose names and emblems contravene the Representation of People Act, 1951 (RP Act), and some of them even use crescent moon and stars as their flags.
The bench questions whether the RP Act would apply if votes were sought based on religious views. The counsel responded by citing Section 123(3)(A) of the Act and the Supreme Court’s decision in the Abhiram Singh case.
Political parties cannot have a religious connotation, and the SR Bommai case declared secularism to be a fundamental element, according to the counsel.
Rizvi said in his petition that using religion to sway voters is expressly prohibited by Section 123 of the RP Act. According to the petitioner, the Act forbids a candidate or his agent from combining political benefits with religious beliefs.
The democratic form of government is one of the basic structures of the Constitution of India which is not subject to amendment, the plea further said.
