NCERT Solutions for Class 11 Political Science Chapter 18 - Secularism
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71. Which of the following do you feel are compatible with the idea of secularism? Give reasons.
(i) Absence of domination of one religious group by another.
Ans. This is correct. There should be influence of all religious communities in social, political and economic affairs in the state.
(ii) Recognition of a state religion.
Ans. It is against the idea of establishment of the secular state.
(iii) Equal state support to all religions.
Ans. This is correct. Secular states protect the rights of all the religious denominations in their state.
(iv) Mandatory prayers in schools.
Ans. This is correct. Prayers are the way of remembering God so they should not be seen associated to one particular religion.
(v) Allowing separate educational institutions for any minority community.
Ans. This is correct. In India constitution gives rights to the minorities to maintain their separate educational institutions.
(vi) Appointment of temple management bodies by the government.
Ans. This is correct. It can be seen as a positive interference of the government in religious matters for proper management of the temples which ultimately help the devotees.
(vii) Intervention of state to ensure entry of Dalits in temples.
Ans. This is correct. It is done by the government to ensure that there are end to the intra-religious domination from the society.
72. What do you understand by secularism? Can it be equated with religious tolerance?
Ans. Secularism is the idea of giving equal respect and treatment to all the religions inhabiting the state. It treats all the religion as equal and also grants the freedom to the people of the country to follow the religion of their choice.
Secularism cannot be equated with religious tolerence as tolerance may be compatible with religious domination by one group. However, religious tolerance is one of the component of secularism.
73. Do you agree with the following statements?
Give reasons for supporting or opposing any of them.
(i) Secularism does not allow us to have a religious identity.
Ans. This statement is incorrect. Secularism provides all the people residing in the state to have the freedom to choose the religion of their choice and carry a religious identity. However it also ask them to have respect towards the other faiths as well and do not dishonour them by any means.
(ii) Secularism is against inequality within a religious group or between different religious groups.
Ans. This is correct. Secularism is against the idea of the domination of the majority religion in the state and grants equal respect, freedom and protection to all the religions in the country. It condemns all sorts of inequality in the nation within the religious group and other denominations of the religion.
(iii) Secularism has a western-Christian origin. It is not suitable for India.
Ans. This is incorrect. India has been a land of diverse religions from thousands of religions.
Three major religions of the world Buddhism, Hinduism and Jainism have originated in India.
74. Indian secularism focuses on more than the religion-state separation. Explain.
Ans. The Indian secularism has maintained the rights to interfere in the religious matters when it deems necessary to maintain the unity and security of the state.
(a) The caste hierarchies sanctioned by the religions in India are not tolerable by the state that led to its intervention.
(b) The secular state does not guarantee to show every aspect of every religion with equitable respect.
(c) It can criticise some aspects of every religion.
75. Explain the concept of principled distance.
Ans. As per the principled distance ideology the state should not intervene much in the matters of the religion. It should only intervene when the matter is very sensitive and action taken by the state should not be coercive. In general the state should avoid interfering in the religious matters unnecessarily.
