Indian Constitution : An overview

 

Indian Constitution

 

The Indian Constitution is the supreme law of India that lays down the framework for the political system, governance, rights and duties of the citizens and the institutions of the country. It is the longest-written national constitution in the world, with 448 articles, 12 schedules, 5 appendices and 105 amendments.

 

History and Background

 

The Indian Constitution was adopted by the Constituent Assembly of India on 26 November 1949 and came into effect on 26 January 1950, marking the transition of India from a British dominion to a sovereign, democratic republic.

 

Under the Cabinet Mission Plan, the Constituent Assembly was elected by the provincial assemblies in 1946. It had 389 members, representing different regions, communities, interests and political parties. The Assembly held its first session on 9 December 1946, with Dr. Sachchidananda Sinha as the interim president. Later, Dr. Rajendra Prasad was elected as the permanent president of the Assembly.

 

The Assembly appointed a drafting committee on 29 August 1947, with Dr. B.R. Ambedkar as the chairman. The drafting committee prepared a draft constitution based on the principles and provisions of various sources, such as:

 

·       The Government of India Act 1935

·       The Indian Independence Act of 1947

·       The constitutions of other countries, such as the United States, Canada, Australia, Ireland, France, Germany and Japan

·       The reports of various committees and commissions

·       The resolutions and debates of the Constituent Assembly

·       The suggestions and opinions of various experts and public

 

The draft constitution was published in January 1948 and was open for public comments and suggestions. The Assembly discussed and debated the draft constitution for a total of 114 days, spread over three years. The final draft constitution was adopted on 26 November 1949, with 284 members signing it. It was written in two languages: English and Hindi. The original copies of the constitution are kept in a helium-filled case in the Parliament House in New Delhi.

 

Features and Structure

 

The Indian Constitution is a blend of rigidity and flexibility, federalism and unitarism, parliamentary and presidential systems, and borrowed and original features. Some of the salient features of the Constitution are:

It declares India as a sovereign, socialist, secular and democratic republic that assures its citizens justice, equality, liberty and fraternity.

It grants fundamental rights to the citizens to protect their civil and political liberties against any arbitrary action of the state. These rights include the right to equality, the right to freedom, the right against exploitation, the right to freedom of religion, cultural and educational rights and the right to constitutional remedies.

It lays down directive principles of state policy to guide the state in making laws and policies that promote social welfare and justice. These principles include the promotion of international peace and security, a uniform civil code for all citizens, protection of the environment and wildlife, promotion of education and public health etc.

It imposes fundamental duties on the citizens to respect the constitution, national flag and anthem, uphold the unity and integrity of the nation, protect public property and natural resources etc. These duties were added by the 42nd Amendment in 1976.

It provides for a parliamentary form of government at both the centre and the states, with a bicameral legislature at the centre (consisting of Rajya Sabha or Council of States and Lok Sabha or House of People) and a unicameral or bicameral legislature at the states (depending on their size). The executive power is vested in the President at the centre (who acts on the advice of the Prime Minister-led council of ministers) and the Governor at the states (who acts on the advice of the Chief Minister-led council of ministers). The judiciary is independent of both the executive and legislature and consists of Supreme Court at the apex level followed by High Courts at the state level and subordinate courts at the district level.

It establishes a federal system with a strong centre that distributes legislative powers between the centre and states through three lists: Union List (subjects on which only the centre can make laws), State List (subjects on which only states can make laws) and Concurrent List (subjects on which both centre and states can make laws). The residuary powers (subjects not mentioned in any list) are vested in the centre. The constitution also provides for forming new states, altering existing states' boundaries, and inter-state relations.

It incorporates a system of checks and balances among the three organs of the government through various mechanisms, such as judicial review, parliamentary control over the executive, the president's veto power, emergency provisions etc. The constitution also provides for the protection of the rights and interests of the minorities, scheduled castes, scheduled tribes, backward classes and women through various provisions, such as reservation of seats in legislatures and public services, special safeguards and commissions etc.

 

The structure of the Constitution can be summarized in the following table:

Part	Subject	Articles
I	The Union and its Territory	1-4
II	Citizenship	5-11
III	Fundamental Rights	12-35
IV	Directive Principles of State Policy	36-51
IVA	Fundamental Duties	51A
V	The Union	52-151
VI	The States	152-237
VII	States in the B part of the First Schedule (repealed)	238
VIII	The Union Territories	239-242
IX	The Panchayats	243-243O
IXA	The Municipalities	243P-243ZG
IXB	The Co-operative Societies	243ZH-243ZT
X	The Scheduled and Tribal Areas	244-244A
XI	Relations between the Union and the States	245-263
XII	Finance, Property, Contracts and Suits	264-300A
XIII	Trade, Commerce and Intercourse within the Territory of India	301-307
XIV	Services under the Union and the States	308-323
XIVA	Tribunals	323A-323B
XV	Elections	324-329A
XVI	Special Provisions Relating to Certain Classes	330-342
XVII	Official Language	343-351
XVIII	Emergency Provisions	352-360
XIX	Miscellaneous	361-367
XX	Amendment of the Constitution	368
XXI	Temporary, Transitional and Special Provisions	369-392
XXII	Short Title, Commencement, Authoritative Text in Hindi and Repeals	393-395

 

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