No harm in taking oath in name of Allah: Supreme Court

New Delhi, Nov 16 (IANS) There is no harm if elected legislators and parliamentarians take oath in the name of Allah, the Supreme Court has observed.

A bench headed by Chief Justice K.G. Balakrishnan made the observation Friday while dismissing a public interest lawsuit questioning the legality of the oath of office taken in the name of Allah by 13 Kerala assembly legislators in 2006.

The bench, which also included Justice R.V. Raveendran, dismissed the petition, saying "What's the problem if one takes the oath in the name of Allah?"

"Allah is an Arabic word. Translated into English, it means god and the constitution permits one taking oath in the name of god," the chief justice told Madhu Parmala, while dismissing her petition.

The petitioner had contended that at the time of filing of nomination papers, the 13 MLAs had sworn in the name of god about the veracity of the facts mentioned.

But after their election, they took oath in the name of Allah, which the petitioner contended rendered their oath constitutionally invalid. She said that without taking a constitutionally valid oath they could not be treated as members of the assembly.

Dismissing her contention, the bench said: "If a person cannot read English and the prescribed form of oath is translated into the language he or she understands, will it be a violation of the constitution."

The chief justice chided the petitioner, saying, "You too have filed this petition for popularity."