BENGALURU: The
Karnataka government
has made it mandatory for students and teachers in all educational institutions of the state to read aloud the preamble to the Constitution during morning assembly, and also take an oath to adopt the principles enshrined in the document in their daily lives.
“The reading has been made compulsory to make children aware of the ideals and principles behind their constitutional responsibilities,” said state social welfare minister C
Mahadevappa
.
Speaking at an event involving the reading of the preamble on the footsteps of Vidhana Soudha to mark International Day of Democracy, chief minister
Siddaramaiah
said his government was making special efforts to create awareness on democracy, the Constitution and its preamble among students, since the survival of the Constitution was paramount for democracy to survive.
“If the constitution survives, democracy will survive. If democracy survives, we all will survive. So, it is the duty of every individual to read, understand and protect our Constitution,” he said. “This is the need of the hour, as efforts are being made by some forces to destroy the Constitution,” he added.
Siddaramaiah claimed that “anti-constitutional forces” were conspiring to implement Manusmriti in the country, and one should be “aware and careful” about this. “The destruction of the Constitution and implementation of Manusmriti will mean pushing 90% of the population into slavery,” he said.
Around 2.3 crore people from India and abroad joined the Karnataka CM in reading the preamble at the event.
