Composition | Secularism in India

The word 'secular' is used when talking about the Church. In the past, religion was very powerful, and the government was influenced by the Church or religious leaders. So, secular means not influenced by religion. In India, it generally means having a non-religious approach. In 1947, the country was divided based on religion. Pakistan and later Bangladesh chose to be Islamic states. But free India emerged as a secular democratic country among other nations. According to our Constitution, the government does not favor any particular religion. This means that India doesn't have an officially recognized state religion. Every citizen of India has the freedom to follow their own faith without interference from the government. Although Hindus make up the majority in India, Sri Nehru, our First Prime Minister, took a brave step to remove religious bias from society.

The administration of India is supposed to be free from any religious bias. Here in India, people of any religion can hold the highest positions in the government. All citizens have equal opportunities to compete and succeed. People from different religions like Dr. Rajendra Prasad, Dr. Radhakrishnan, Dr. Zakir Hussain, Fakuruthlin, All Ahammed, Zail Singh, and Sri K. R. Narayan have held prestigious positions such as President and Vice-President. Similarly, our Union State ministers, Governors, Ambassadors, and administrators come from various communities like Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Christians, Parsecs, and more. India enjoys a good level of communal harmony, showing the principle of unity in diversity.

However, there are fundamentalists and other groups that create problems between different communities. These troublemakers are often paid by foreign governments. The government needs to strongly and fairly deal with these individuals. They aim to harm India's reputation. But we should not be complacent and must remain vigilant to remove troublemakers. School books, especially history books, should promote secularism. The Indian government is making efforts to separate religion from politics. There are still political parties in India that are based on religious divisions. Some parties adopt an anti-Muslim stance to gain more Hindu votes, while others try to please Muslims to gain their support. Fortunately, the idea of secularism is growing, and secular forces are becoming stronger in India.

To promote secularism, citizens need to be more friendly and tolerant towards each other. The responsibility of the media—newspapers, magazines, cinema, theater, radio, television, etc.—is even greater. They need to educate the public in the right way. All religions share common values. It should be understood that there is one God, known by different names. Pandit Nehru succinctly said, "Although we follow different religions, we are all children of Mother India."