Bengaluru: Amid the growing ‘intolerance’ controversy in the country, Prof Babu Mathew of NLSIU noted it was ironical that after six decades of Independence, India was questioning what a citizen can eat, where a citizen can pray and whom he or she can make love to.
The strengths, drawbacks and uniqueness of the Constitution of India were discussed and debated at the inaugural of ‘We The People.. Forum for Popularising Constitution on Thursday. The event was conceptualised and organised by the Aam Aadmi Party. Activists, members of citizen welfare groups and representatives from 20 organisations voiced their opinions about the Constitution.
Further, Mr Mathew said everyone loves to believe Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru was a socialist but it was just false. “Nehru rejected the scientific social views. He may have abolished the zamindari system but he believed a tiller could become a land owner. I object to him being called a socialist,” he said
Speaking on the occasion, LGBT activist and Ondede founder Akkai Padmashali, questioned, “The Section 36(A) of the Karnataka Police Act makes me a criminal. The Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code makes me a criminal. Even to address you all, I need the police permission. Why should my personal business become a concern for constitutional morality?”
Stressing that the laws for transgenders in India were violating human rights, Akkai demanded, “The patriarchs have decided men are first gender, women are second gender and the transgenders are the third gender. Akkai asserted that a community was struggling for its identity but in the name of constitutional morality, the sexual minorities were ill treated."
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