New Delhi [India], March 29 : India is a secular country as enshrined in the Indian Constitution, and it is a lesson for many other countries where Hinduism is not even recognised, Minister of State for External Affairs Meenakashi Lekhi said.
While addressing a seminar on the "Constitution of India" MoS Lekhi on Tuesday said, "We have more than 1.4 billion people, and that's going to have its own cost. But with all that cost, I must say secularism as enshrined in the constitution of India is a lesson to many other countries where Hinduism is not even recognized as a religion. I, as a Hindu, have a problem."
"I mean, 66-plus odd countries do not recognize Hinduism as a religion, and they are battering me right, left and centre, saying, oh, it's a non-secular country. So I think people need to understand and appreciate how India has pulled through the challenges, and those challenges are being met," she added.
In the seminar, she also stated that India is a secular country where maximum number of people who are followers of Hinduism live.
According to an official release, the seminar was orgsed to commemorate the occasion of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav (75 years of Independence of India) in coordination with the Parliamentary Research and Training Institute for Democracies (PRIDE) in the PRIDE Main Lecture Hall of the Parliament Library Building.
The Seminar was also orgsed in the context of India's Presidency of the Asian African Legal Consultative Orgsation (AALCO), and covered the following themes:
Seven decades of the Indian Constitution; Indian Constitution and Human Rights; Indian Constitution and Internationalism.
The seminar was inaugurated by Minister for State for External Affairs and Culture, Meenakashi Lekhi. AS (L&T), Uma Sekhar welcomed and introduced the speakers. Justice Ranjan Gogoi, Member of Parliament (Rajya Sabha) and former Chief Justice of India; Justice Arun Mishra, Chairperson of National Human Rights Commission and former Supreme Court Judge; and Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel, Chairperson of National Green Tribunal and former Supreme Court judge were the distinguished speakers at the Seminar.
AALCO is an inter-governmental orgsation, headquartered in New Delhi, having 47 member states from Asia and Africa. It serves as an advisory body to member states on matters of international law.
Over the years, AALCO has forged close links with the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and the International Law Commission (ILC).
To have an interactive experience on the freedom struggle of India and the making of its Constitution, as a part of the seminar, a visit to the Parliament of India was arranged for the participants. Over 200 diplomats attending the Seminar also toured the Parliament of India, the official release said.
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