Secularism and Religious Freedom

Abstract

This chapter examines tensions arising from the constitutional provisions with regard to secularism and freedom of religion in India. In particular, it considers Articles 25, 26, and 28 of the Indian Constitution and how the Indian Supreme Court has dealt with cases relating to these Articles. After providing an overview of the Essential Practices doctrine as used by the Supreme Court to distinguish between the secular and religious, especially in the case of Hinduism, the chapter considers the Court’s position on the right to teach religion in educational institutions. It argues that Indian secularism, as interpreted by the courts, has failed to entirely live up to what the framers of the Constitution envisioned it to be.

Reformulating the empowerment process through women entrepreneurship in a collective context

“…These findings support the notion that entrepreneurship has the inherent empowering dimension to support people to achieve what they wish to (Calás et al. , 2009; Sen, 2001). These women think not just about themselves but about the issues they see within their society while pursuing their own ventures, which is common in this collective context.…”

“…Family, tribe and nation provide the cumulative reputation for Emiratis and are a definitive power source, and, in contrast to many people and entrepreneurs in all nations, Emirati Muslim women are remarkably confident and self-assured. They also demonstrated the virtue of persistent hard work that helps to realize self-achievement (Sen, 2001). They have set up businesses, have aimed to help others through their business and have also tackled problems in the business.…”

“…, 2019). The concept of entrepreneurship has an inherently empowering dimension associated with the promotion of human welfare through development of capabilities that people can use to practically achieve the doing and being they wish to (Sen, 2001; Nussbaum, 2011). Empowerment aims at changing power relations and overcoming power asymmetries (Pettit and McGee, 2019) in favour of those who previously exercised little power over their own lives (Sen, 2001).…”

A Framework for the Development of Human Centred ICT4D Initiatives: A Capability Approach Perspective

“…Development is conceptualized as human development when viewed through the lens that is the CA, effectively moving away from the traditional theories that assesses development solely in economic terms. From this stance, development is essentially viewed as having, or obtaining, freedom (Sen, 1999).…”

Income Inequality and Psychiatric Admission in a Rich Country: Happiness Does Not Guarantee Mental Health Equity

“…Furthermore, living in a happy country does not guarantee better mental health compared with less happy countries. Although there is a need to dive deep under the skin of these observations and to engage with theoretical concepts such as Amartya Sen’s capability framework and investigate the mechanisms through which macroeconomic policies affect and interact with other social and cultural determinants of individual and population mental health, there is also much we can do to respond to the current observations. The most instructive recommendation in this study is that “the finding that individuals with low income are overrepresented in first hospitalizations, regardless of their diagnosis or dominant service provider institutions at the time, should be taken into account even in countries with relatively low income inequality and universal welfare policies.” This evidence points to the policy imperative of 2 types of interventions: (1), interventions at the population level that intend to reduce social distance (for example, through the creation of opportunities that enable greater levels of interactions between diverse income groups); and (2) interventions that specifically target low-income populations, in particular persons who are vulnerable, to reduce the stressors and risk factors associated with poverty (for example, through opportunities for adult education), reduce economic insecurity (for example, through policies that promote a universal basic income), and improve access to community-based mental health care.…”