The absence of the words "socialist, secular" in English copies of the Constitution distributed to MPs yesterday has provoked a massive controversy a day after the special session officially moved to parliament's new building.
The opposition has called it an "attack" on the Constitution.
Reacting to the charge, Law Minister Arjun Meghwal said the copies featured the "original version" of the Preamble of the Constitution. "When the Constitution came into being, it did not have the words 'socialist, secular'. These words were included in the 42nd amendment of the Constitution in 1976," he pointed out.
The comment fueled more protests as the opposition accused the government of sneaking in a big change without following due process.
"The new copies of the Constitution that were given to us, the one we held in our hands and entered (the new Parliament building), its Preamble doesn't have the words 'socialist secular'," Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said, questioning the intentions of the ruling BJP.
"We know that the words were added after an amendment in 1976, but if someone gives us the Constitution today and it doesn't have those words, it is a matter of concern. Their intention is suspicious. It has been done cleverly. This is a serious matter and we will raise this issue," he said.
"I doubt their intentions as their heart does not seem to be clear on this," added Mr Chowdhury, the leader of the Congress in Lok Sabha.
Binoy Viswam of the CPI-M called the omission a "crime".
Copies of the Constitution were distributed in a gift bag handed to MPs on the opening day of the new parliament building.
The preamble of the Constitution originally described India as a "sovereign, democratic republic".
During the Emergency imposed by the Indira Gandhi-led Congress government, several changes were pushed through the 42nd amendment, and this included adding the words "socialist" and "secular" between "sovereign" and "democratic" and changing "unity of the nation" to "unity and integrity of the nation".
In 1978, many of the changes were reversed but the amended preamble stayed.
In 1994, the Supreme Court said "secularism" is part of the basic structure doctrine, which means that certain basic characteristics cannot be erased.
Once an amendment is notified, the old Constitution should cease to be printed, opposition leaders said. Any change to the Constitution, therefore, would be tampering, they asserted.
"You Don't Want India To Be Secular?": Supreme Court On Preamble Petitions Will Discuss with Allies: Law Minister Arjun Meghwal On Uniform Civil Code Sitting In America, Rahul Gandhi Conspired To End Quota In India: Union Minister Air India Flight From Paris Diverted To Jaipur, Fliers Sent To Delhi On Bus Explained: Why Delhi's AQI Was 494 Today But International Monitor Said 1,600 Ukraine Hits Russia With Long-Range US Missile After Biden's Approval Amid Concerns Of World War 3, Sweden Gives Citizens Survival Tips "Exposed": BJP Alleges Bitcoin Scam In Maharashtra Poll, Supriya Sule Reacts What Iraq Plans To Do For The 1st Time Since Saddam Hussein's Rule In 1987 Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.