MINORITY RIGHTS AT NATIONAL LEVEL

India is among the most diverse societies in the world. It has people from all the major religions in the world—Hindus, Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains and Zoroastrians (Parsis). When India gained independence in1947, the political leadership and the framers of the constitution took note of this diversity, and they deliberated on a framework that would provide for a unified but culturally diverse state. The issue of minorities has become an important part of political discourse since the emergence of nation states and the prevalence of the concept of popular sovereignty. The rise of nationalism has given rise to the concept that the political boundaries of a nation should conform to the national characteristics of the peopleliving within them.