Now, Sanatan Sanstha demands that word secular be removed from Constitution

New Delhi, Aug 28: Right wing group Sanatan Sanstha has demanded that the word 'secular be removed from the Constitution, claiming that it puts Hindus at a disadvantage.

Union Minister and RPI (A) leader Ramdas Athawale has reportedly opposed this demand and said that the word 'secular'' has kept the country integrated.

According to reports, Sanatan Sanstha spokesperson Chetan Rajhans said that injustice is being meted out to Hindus under the garb of being secular, adding, "Ours is a very constitutional demand."

"Hindus are at a disadvantage under the current Constitution. There are commissions for the minorities, here is no such thing for Hindus," said Rajhans, as per a TOI report.

Rajhans blamed the Emergency and Indira Gandhi for the inclusion of the term 'secular' in Constitution in 1976. "The inclusion happened under political pressure. It is time we drop the word," Rajhans said.

"Notwithstanding anybody's demand, the word will remain in the Constitution forever," Athawale told reporters while responding to Sanatan Sanstha's demand.

Sanatan Sanstha's name had cropped up during the investigation into journalist Gauri Lankesh's murder. It was alleged that the shooters of Lankesh were linked to the Sanatan Sanstha. Rajhans denied that any of the persons arrested in connection with the murders of rationalist Narendra Dabholkar and Gauri Lankesh have anything to do with Sanatan Sanstha.

The CBI claimed a few days back that The killings of journalist Gauri Lankesh in Bengaluru last year and rationalist Narendra Dabholkar in Pune in 2013 were "linked".