Conceptual Stretching and Contestation: The Case of ‘Indian Secularism’

The paper explores the concept of secularism in the context of contemporary India. Arguing that there is no such monolithic entity as (Western) 'secularism', the paper sets out on the observation that Indian secularism needs to be acknowledged and analysed as a concept in its own right. Based on this premise, significant events in India's secular history are discussed: the Shah Bano case and the destruction of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya in 1992 mark the recent moments of rupture. It is argued that Ayodhya and its aftermath(s) are to be located in the trajectory of political ambiguity. With the Constitution allowing for different sets of Personal Laws while simultaneously striving towards a Uniform Civil Code, secularism is still process rather than product. It has been interpreted differently, either as ‘equiproximity’ (sarva dharma sambhava), or as ‘equidistance’ (dharma nirpeksha) of the state towards the many religions in the country. This shifting position of the state has made it possible for nationalist groups to accuse India of being ‘pseudo-secular’ and undemocratic, thus rendering secularism a contentious point around which much of the communal politics of India revolves. However, it is also this fluidity which makes it possible for the concept to be 'stretched', and for it to be negotiated and re-negotiated, thus keeping it dynamic and avoiding any one monopoly of interpretation, which is an important parameter in a multicultural society.