What is a Constitution ?

Constitution of a country lays down the basic structure of the political system under which hits
people are to be governed.
It establishes the main organs of the state-
Legislature
Executive
Judiciary

Defines their powers , demarcates their responsibility and regulates their relationships with
each other and with the people.

In a democracy , sovereignty vests in the people and ideally the people govern themselves .
But, with the growth complexities of administration and the size of the nation, direct democracy
is no more feasible. In the modern representative democracies , people exercise their
inalienable right to decide how and by whom they should be governed.
Every constitution represents the vision and values of its founding fathers and is based on the
social, political and economic ethos and faith and aspirations of the people.
It is wrong to regard a countrys constitution is not only what is written in the text of the
constitution. Constitution is a living organism of functioning institutions.
It keep constantly growing, evolving .

Sources and growth of the constitution

Sources of Indian constitution are diverse and many.

These are both indigenous and foreign .
The founding fathers made it very clear that they were not writing on a clean slate .
They took a mindful decision not to make a complete departure from the past , but to build on
the existing structure and experience of institutions already established.
Even otherwise , the Indian constitution had an natural growth.
It evolved through the various demands for representative responsible governmental
institutions during the nationalist struggle.
Organisation of village panchayats was clearly inspired be the ancient Indian institutions of self
govt.
Fundamental rights was made 1918 IN Bombay session by Indian national Congress
Equality before was demand in year 1925, which also includes
Freedom of speech, assembly and religion etc.
In 1931 at Karachi Congress fundamental duties were included along with fundamental rights.
A parliamentary system with a government responsible to parliament , safeguards for minorities
and central polity contained in the constitution could also be said to have had their sources in
the 1928 Nehru Committee Report.
Finally , nearly 75 % of the constitution can be said be a reproduction of the Government of
India Act- 1935
The basic structure of Polity and provisions regulating UNION-STATE relations, Declaration of
Emergency etc. etc. were largely based on 1935 Act.
Beside the indigenous sources, the constitution assembly had before it several models of
foreign constitution to make Indian constitution better.
In the Constituent Assembly of India there were members from the Congress as well as from
Muslim League.
There were also members from the Scheduled Caste Federation,
the Communist Party of India and Unionist party in the Constituent Assembly.
The Constituent Assembly of India included sections of Christians, Anglo-Indians and Minority
Community.
The final Constituent Assembly of India had two hundred and seven representatives, including
fifteen women.
There were about ninety three members nominated from the princely states and The Congress
secured a huge majority
The Constituent Assembly took almost three years (two years, eleven months and seventeen
days to be precise) to complete its historic task of drafting the Constitution for Independent
India. During this period, it held eleven sessions covering a total of 165 days. Of these, 114
days were spent on the consideration of the Draft Constitution.

The term constitution is a Latin word that denotes an important law.

A constitution is a codified written document which is the system for government.
This text establishes the rules and principles of an autonomous political entity.
The Constitution of India is considered to be the supreme law of land.
It lays down the framework defining fundamental political principles, establishing the structure,
procedures, powers and duties of the government and mentions the fundamental rights,
directive principles and duties of citizens.

It is the longest written constitution of any sovereign nation

A total of 117,369 words in the English language.
However, besides the English version, there is also an official Hindi translation available.
The Indian constitution declares India as a Sovereign, Socialist Democratic, Republic
with a parliamentary system of government.

The Constitution of India was adopted by the Constituent Assembly on 26th November 1949
and it came into force on 26th January 1950.
Every law of the land enacted by the government must conform to the constitution.
India became independent from the colonial rule of the British Empire and a need for a
competent government aroused.
However, during the prominence of the British Raj,
the Government of India Act 1935 was passed
which was the last constitution of India during the British rule.

The act laid down principles stating and granting autonomy to the Indian provinces.
The Government of India act also provided for establishment of an Indian Federation and the
Provincial assemblies include more elected Indian representatives, who in turn could lead
majorities and form governments.
But Governors retained discretionary powers regarding
summoning of legislatures,
giving assents to bills and
administering certain special regions.
This present constitution of India is modeled on the basis of the Government of
India Act.

After the Second World War came to an end, a new government came to power in the United
Kingdom.
A new British government announced its Indian Policy in 1946, at the initiative of British Prime
Minister Clement Attlee.
A cabinet mission was formulated to discuss and finalize plans for the transfer of power from the
British Raj to Indian leadership and providing India with independence.

After the Second World War came to an end, a new government came to power in the United
Kingdom. A new British government announced its Indian Policy in 1946, at the initiative of
British Prime Minister Clement Attlee. A cabinet mission was formulated to discuss and finalize
plans for the transfer of power from the British Raj to Indian leadership and providing India with
independence.

The main aim of the Cabinet mission was to discuss the framework of the Constitution of India
and lay down the procedure to be followed by the constitution drafting body.
The constitution was drafted by the Constituent Assembly and it was elected by the elected
members of the provincial assemblies. Sachidanand Sinha was chosen as the first president of
the Constituent Assembly and later Rajendra Prasad was elected president of the Constituent
Assembly.

The Constituent Assembly of India consisted of the prominent figures of the nation including
Jawaharlal Nehru, C. Rajagopalachari, Rajendra Prasad, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Maulana
Abul Kalam Azad as well as Shyama Prasad Mukherjee.
The assembly also comprised of members from the Anglo-Indian community, scheduled
classes, Parsis community and the Gorkha Community.
Women members were also represented the constituent assembly and Sarojini Naidu was a
well-known women member.

The constituent assembly met on August 14, 1947 and various decisions were taken in the
committee.
The concept of Indian Flag was taken in the assembly meeting.
A flag with three colours, Saffron, White and Green with the Ashoka Chakra was selected.
Furthermore, the National Emblem of India was decided and it has been taken from the
Sarnath Lion Capital of Ashoka.
The Indian Government adapted it on 26th January 1950 when the country became a republic.

In addition to that it was decided to form a drafting committee with Dr. B. R. Ambedkar as the
Chairman along with six other members.
A Draft Constitution was prepared by the Drafting Committee of Indian Constitution and
submitted to the Assembly on November 4, 1947.
The assembly finally took over a period of 2 years, 11 months and 18 days before adopting the
Constitution.

Components of Indian Constitution

External Inputs
Features of Indian Constitution : The Constitution of India has adopted following features
from other constitutions.
British Constitution
* Parliamentary form of government
* The idea of single citizenship
* The idea of the Rule of law
* Institution of Speaker and his role
* Law making procedure
United States Constitution
* Charter of Fundamental Rights,
* Federal structure of government
* Power of Judicial Review and independence of the judiciary
* President as supreme commander of armed forces.
French Constitution
Liberty, Equality and Fraternity
Canadian Constitution
A quasi-federal form of government (a federal system with a strong central government)
Australian Constitution
Freedom of trade and commerce within the country and between the states
Power of the national legislature to make laws for implementing treaties,
Malaysian Constitution
The idea of the Concurrent list
Japan Constitution
Fundamental Duties
Weimar Constitution
Emergency Provision u/a 356
A written constitution:
The Republic of India has a written and enacted constitution; it contained 409 Articles, twelve
schedules and three appendices.
In its present form it covers 254 pages. Like the constitution of the United States of America,
Canada and France, India too has a written constitution, though it differs from those
documents in many respects.

The Longest Known Constitutions

The constitution of India has the distinction of being the most lengthy and detailed
constitutional document the world has so far produced.
The original constitution contained as many as 395 Articles and 8 schedules.
It has been the endeavor of the framers of the constitution to provide for the solution of all the
problems of administration and governance of the country.
Thus, whole the U.S. Constitution originally compresses only 7 Articles, the Australian 128
Articles, the Canadian 147 Articles.
Sovereign Democratic Republic
The preamble of the constitution declares India to be a sovereign(independent) democratic
Republic
The word Democratic signifies that the real power come from the people.
The constitution introduces the country the right to elect their representatives for the union
Parliament and state legislatures at the time of elections to be held every five years.
The world Republic is used to denote that the state is headed not by a permanent head like
the queen of Britain but by a President indirectly elected by the people.
Both Rigid and Flexible
The Indian constitution is partly rigid and partly flexible.
The procedure said down by the constitution for its amendment is neither very easy, as in
England, nor very rigid as in the United States.
It is only the amendment of few of the provisions of the constitution that requires notification by
the state legislatures.
The rest of the constitutions may be amended by the special majority of the union Parliament
i.e. a majority of not less than 2/3 of the members of each.
The very fact that within a period of 56 years the constitution had been amended 97 times
proves that the constitution is flexible.
Cabinet Government
The constitution establishes cabinet type of Government both of the centre and the states. The
most distinctive feature of a Cabinet system of government is the complete and continuous
responsibility of the executive to the legislature.
The cabinet is composed of the Prime Minister, who is the chief of the executive and his senior
colleagues who share the responsibility with him for the formulation and execution of the
policies of the Government.
Under the Cabinet system the Head of the cabinet occupies a position of great dignity, but
practically all authority nominally vested in him is exercised by the cabinet.
Secular State
A secular state has negative and positive aspects.
Negatively, it is the exact opposite to a communal state which officially identified it self with a
particular religion.
In a secular state, on the other hand there is no official or state religion. In its positive aspects
a secular state treats all its citizens alike and gives them equal opportunities.
The state has no official religion. No discrimination can be made on the basis of religion, faith,
caste, color and sex.
Every citizen is equal before law.

Independence of Judiciary
The framers of the constitution were aware that democratic freedoms were meaningless in the
absence of an independent machinery to safeguard them.
No subordinate or agent of the Government could be trusted to be just and impartial in judging
the merits of a conflict in which the Government itself was a party.
Similarly, a judiciary subordinates either to the centre or the states could not be trusted as an
impartial authority of conflicts and controversies between the centre and the states. These
were the compelling reasons for the creation of an independent judiciary as an integral part of
the constitution and for the adoption of judicial independent as a basic principle of the
constitution.

Fundamental Rights
Like the constitution of the United States of America, the constitution of India also includes a
separate chapter guaranteeing fundamental Rights to all the citizens.
These rights are justifiable and firm. They are binding on the legislature as well as on the
executive.
If any of the rights is violated, a citizen has the right to seek the protection of the judiciary.
Act of the legislature or odder of the executive can be declared rule and void if it violates any of
the fundamental rights guaranteed to the citizens by the constitutions.

The Constitution offers all citizens, individually and collectively, some basic freedoms. These
are guaranteed in the Constitution in the form of six broad categories of Fundamental Rights,
which are reasonable. Article 12 to 35 contained in Part III of the Constitution deal with
Fundamental Rights. These are:
Right of Equality
1. Equality before Law.
2. Prohibition of discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth.
3. Equality of opportunity in matters of public employment.
4. Abolition of Un-touchability.
5. Abolition of Titles.
Right of Freedom
6. Freedom of Speech.
7. Protection in respect of conviction for offences.
8. Protection of life and personal liberty.
9. Protection against improper arrest and detention.
Right against Exploitation
10. Prohibition of traffic in human beings and forced labour.
11. Prohibition of employment of children.
Right to Freedom of Religion
12. Freedom of conscience and free profession, practice and propagation of religion.
13. Freedom to manage religious affairs.
14. Freedom as to payment of taxes for promotion of any particular religion.
15. Freedom as to attendance at religious instruction or religious worship in educational
institutions.
Cultural and Educational Rights
16. Protection of interests of minorities.
17. Right of minorities to establish and administer educational institutions.
right to constitutional remedies for enforcement of Fundamental Rights

Fundamental Duties
The 42nd Amendment Act introduced Fundamental duties to separate the fundamental rights
Even thought the duties as such cannot be judicially enforced.
It is an attempt to balance the individuals civic freedoms with has civic duties and thus to fill a
serious gap in the constitution.

Fundamental Duties
Fundamental Duties prescribed by the Constitution under PART [IV-A]
To abide by the Constitution and respect its principles and institutions, the National Flag and
the National Anthem.
To appreciate and follow the noble principles which inspired our national struggle for freedom.
To uphold and protect the sovereignty, unity and integrity of India.
To defend country and render national service when called upon to do so.
To promote harmony and the spirit of common brotherhood amongst all the people of India
going beyond the religious, linguistic and regional or sectional diversities; to renounce
practices derogatory to the dignity of women.
To value and preserve the rich heritage of our complex culture.
To protect and improve the natural environment including forests, lakes, rivers and wild life,
and to have compassion for living creatures.
To develop the scientific temper, humanism and the spirit of inquiry and reform.
To safeguard public property and to reject violence.
Directive principles of
state policy
This feature has been taken from the Irish constitution.
Directive principles are Fundamental in the governance of the country and that it shall be
the duty of the state to apply these principles in making laws.
Concept came from the concept of welfare.
The philosophy behind the Directive principles is that the state and every one of the agencies
are commanded to follow certain fundamental principles while they frame their policies
regarding the various fields of state activity.
To resolve the conflict between the rights of the individual and the needs of the community