Indian Judge Issues Opinion Questioning Country's Secular Principles

In India, controversial Allahabad High Court Justice S.N. Srivastava has provoked widespread criticism by including a sentence in a recent decision declaring: "it is the duty of every citizen of India under Article 51-a of the Constitution of India, irrespective of caste, creed or religion, to follow dharma [the right way of living] as propounded by the [Bhagvad] Gita." The judge's statement came in the context of a case in which a Varanasi priest challenged the sale of temple property by his brother. A broad spectrum of experts say that the statement is inconsistent with India's constitutional secularism. The controversial decision was handed down just days before the justice who authored it retired. Calcutta's Telegraph reported on the decision yesterday.