When does the ‘Plebiscite of Life’ become a ‘Pray for Life’?

A day after the Narendra Modi government announced a prayer for life and death on January 11, the issue of the plebiscites on whether people have the right to choose their own religion and government has returned to the national agenda.

The Supreme Court of India, which has been hearing the case, on Wednesday said it was a “necessary and appropriate” measure.

On January 10, the Centre had said that “the right to worship is a fundamental right and an integral part of our Constitution”.

This is a clear acknowledgment that the plebs do have a right to have their own opinion on the issue, said Amjad Akbar, an associate professor at Jawaharlal Nehru University, an Indian academic institution.

But, he added, the government’s approach was “unnecessary and inconsistent” with the Constitution.

“It is not necessary or appropriate for a government to go ahead with the plebanisation of life, it is a constitutional right.

This is the same with the right of freedom of religion and freedom of belief,” Akbar said.

The government has also been asking the Centre to consider the plebilisation of the country’s entire legal system.

“If the court’s order is to be implemented, we need to consider all the relevant laws, including the Criminal Procedure Code, the Anti-Corruption Act, the Indian Penal Code and the Constitution,” a senior government official told The Hindu.

The government’s stance on the plebi is in stark contrast to that of the Congress party, which in 2016 said that it was not against the government going ahead with such a measure.

“The plebis of life is the most important constitutional issue and we support the government in implementing it,” said Rahul Gandhi, then the Congress vice president, in a speech in April 2016.

“We will continue to work with the government to get it done.”

The Congress and the BJP, the two main political parties in the Lok Sabha, have been in power in India since the end of the British rule in 1947.

But the two parties have disagreed over whether the right for people to choose the religion of their choice should be enshrined in the Constitution or whether the issue should be left to the courts.

The ruling BJP, which came to power after the 2014 election, has been in opposition since 2016 on the question.

But it had supported the plebeis of the right.

On the other hand, the Congress has consistently opposed any move that would legitimise religion in the country.

The BJP has been seeking to move the issue from the courts to Parliament.

“On January 11-12, we are inviting the government for discussion on the matter and will try to persuade it to do it.

We will continue with our work and fight the government if they fail to do so,” said a party spokesperson.

The spokesperson did not elaborate.

The issue has come to the fore once again after the death of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who was sworn in as prime minister on February 6, 2017.

Modi, the son of the late PM Indira Gandhi, is a devout Hindu and was elected in 2015 on a promise to revive Hinduism.

He has been the country, though, at odds with some sections of the community for his decision to grant a licence to a Hindu temple in the central city of Varanasi to build a Hindu shrine.