The Supreme Court of India on this Monday ruled that elections would be declared void if votes were asked in the name of caste, creed, or religion. A seven-judge constitution bench, said this while hearing a range of petitions in the 1996 Hindutva case. In that case an earlier apex court bench observed that Hinduism is a way of life, ruled 4:3 in the case.
The Court termed that election is a secular exercise. Therefore the due process should be followed in this regard. The bench said that the candidate would be disqualified if he/she was found violating Supreme Court order. The bench further added that the relationship between man and God is an individual choice. The state is disallowed to interfere in any such activity.
