Indian Constitution: The Constitution of India laid up the framework for the country’s political system. To ensure that the three branches of government have clear lines of authority and accountability, the Constitution spells out how they are to interact with one another and with the general public.
The Constitution of India
Indian Constitution: The Constituent Assembly passed the first Indian Constitution on November 26, 1949, which was drafted and approved by the people of India. It was fully operational on January 26, 1950. There were originally 22 parts, 395 articles, and eight schedules in the Indian Constitution. Amendments to the Constitution are made regularly. As many as 105 modifications have been made in the last 70 years. In addition, there are four new schedules in the Constitution, and the number of articles has increased. The constitutional law of India is unlike any other in the world, both in terms of its substance and its spirit. The primary purpose of the Indian Constitution is to establish a basic framework for social cohesion.
Making of the Constitution of India
M.N.Roy first proposed the notion of an Indian Constituent Assembly in 1934. As a leader in India’s communist movement, he was a trailblazer. A formal request from the Indian National Congress to form an Indian Constitution was made by the Constituent Assembly in 1935. On behalf of the INC in 1938, Jawaharlal Nehru stated that the Constitution of a free India must be drafted by the Constituent Assembly chosen based on an adult vote.
The Constituent Assembly’s work
Indian Constitution: On 9 December 1946, it conducted its inaugural meeting. The Muslim League denied participation in the summit, insisting on a separate state for Pakistan. There were only 211 members in attendance, and Dr. Sachchidananda Sinha was elected as the Assembly’s provisional president. Eventually, Dr. Rajendra Prasad was elected president of the Assembly and H.C Mukherjee, and as vice-presidents V.T. Krishnamachari were elected
The Preamble to the Indian Constitution
The phrase ‘Preamble’ refers to the Constitution’s prologue or introduction. The Constitution’s substance can be found in this document. In India, the Preamble is also known as the “identification card of the constitution.” After Pandit Nehru proposed the ‘Objectives Resolution,’ which India’s Constituent Assembly adopted, three new words—Socialist, Secular, and Integrity—were introduced by the 42nd Constitutional Amendment Act of 1976.
Preamble Components
A look into the Preamble reveals that there are four key components:
- The people of India are the Constitution’s primary source of authority.
- A socialist, sovereign, democratic, secular, and republican government is declared in the Preamble of the Constitution of India.
- The Indian Constitution mentions the following goals: liberty, justice, equality, and brotherhood.
The Committee on the Indian Constitution
The Constituent Assembly established many committees to deal with various aspects of drafting the Indian Constitution. There were eight large committees, and the others were smaller ones.
Major Committees
| Sno | Committee | Chairman |
| 1 | Union Powers Committee | Jawaharlal Nehru |
| 2 | Union Constitution Committee | Jawaharlal Nehru |
| 3 | Provincial Constitution Committee | Sardar Patel |
| 4 | Drafting Committee | Dr B.R. Ambedkar |
| 5 | Advisory Committee on Fundamental Rights, Minorities and Tribal and Excluded Areas | Sardar Patel. |
| 6 | Rules of Procedure Committee | Dr Rajendra Prasad |
| 7 | States Committee (Committee for Negotiating with States) | Jawaharlal Nehru |
| 8 | Steering Committee | Dr Rajendra Prasad |
Drafting Committee
The Drafting Committee was established on August 29, 1947, and is the most important committee. The Drafting Committee is working on a new Indian Constitution. It had seven members in total.
| Sno | Members |
| 1 | Dr. B.R. Ambedkar (Chairman) |
| 2 | N. Gopalaswamy Ayyangar |
| 3 | Alladi Krishnaswamy Ayyar |
| 4 | Dr. K.M. Munshi |
| 5 | Syed Mohammad Saadullah |
| 6 | N. Madhava Rau (He replaced B.L. Mitter who resigned due to ill-health) |
| 7 | T.T. Krishnamachari (He replaced D.P. Khaitan who died in 1948) |
Salient Features of the Indian Constitution
The constitutional law of India is unlike any other in the world, both in terms of its substance and its spirit. Most importantly, the Constitution serves as a set of fundamental principles for society to follow, allowing for some degree of cooperation. Although it borrows from nearly every other country’s Constitution, the Indian Constitution is distinct from those of other countries with similar Indian constitutions. As a result of the numerous amendments that have been made to the Constitution (especially Amendments 7 through 101), many of the original aspects of the Constitution have been altered. This 1976 amendment is referred to as the “Mini-Constitution” because of the numerous and significant alterations to the U.S. Declaration of Independence.
The following are some of the most notable aspects of the Indian Constitution:
- The Longest Constitution in Written Form
- Drawn from a Wide Range of Sources
- Flexibility and Rigidity in Balance
- System of Federal Government with a Uniform Bias
- Form of Government: Parliamentary
- Assembling the sovereignty of Parliament with the supremacy of the judiciary
- Judiciary that is both integrated and independent
- The Rights of Man
- Principles for State Policy Direction
- The fundamental responsibilities
- A Secular State
- Adult Film Franchises in Every Country
- Citizenship by Birthright
- Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO)
- Provisions for an Unexpected Emergence
- Governing in a three-tier system
- Cooperative Societies comprise
Sources for the Indian Constitution
Many characteristics of other countries’ constitutions were included in the Indian Constitution to avoid their flaws while making them more suitable to Indian settings. There are many good characteristics in the Indian Constitution taken from different countries’ constitutions and incorporated into the Indian Constitution. Many of the provisions of the Government of India Act of 1935 were also incorporated into the Constitution of India by its framers. The following is a list of countries and some of the traits they’ve adopted or adapted;
| Sources | Features Borrowed |
| Government of India Act of 1935 | -Federal Scheme, -Office of Governor, -Judiciary, -Public Service Commissions, -Emergency provisions and -Administrative details |
| British Constitution | -Parliamentary government, -Rule of Law, -Legislative procedure, -Single citizenship, -Cabinet system, -Prerogative writs, -Parliamentary privileges and -Bicameralism. |
| US Constitution | -Fundamental rights, -Independence of judiciary, -Judicial review, -Impeachment of the president, -Removal of Supreme Court and high court judges -post of vice president. |
| Irish Constitution | -Directive Principles of State Policy, -Nomination of members to Rajya Sabha and -Method of election of the president. |
| Canadian Constitution | -Federation with a strong Centre, -Vesting of residuary powers in the Centre, -Appointment of state governors by the Centre, -Advisory jurisdiction of the Supreme Court. |
| Australian Constitution | -Concurrent List, -Freedom of trade, -Commerce and intercourse, and -Joint sitting of the two Houses of Parliament. |
| Weimar Constitution of Germany | -Suspension of Fundamental Rights during Emergency. |
| Soviet Constitution (USSR, now Russia) | -Fundamental duties and -The ideal of justice (social, economic and political) in the Preamble. |
| French Constitution | -Republic and the ideals of liberty, -Equality and -Fraternity in the Preamble |
| South African Constitution | -Procedure for amendment of the Constitution -Election of members of Rajya Sabha. |
| Japanese Constitution | The procedure was established by Law |
Articles of the Indian Constitution
The Indian Constitution is divided into 22 chapters, each with a particular topic or area of concern. The 7th Constitutional Amendment Act of 1956 dismissed Part VII from the Indian Constitution. Part B states were discussed in Section VII. Also, the 42nd Constitutional Amendment Act of 1976 included parts IV-A and XIV-A; the 74th Constitutional Amendment Act of 1992 had part IX-A, and the 97th Constitutional Amendment Act of 2011 added part IX-B.
| Parts | Subject | Articles |
| I | The Union and its territory | 1 to 4 |
| II | Citizenship | 5 to 11 |
| III | Fundamental Rights | 12 to 35 |
| IV | Directive Principles of State Policy | 36 to 51 |
| IV A | Fundamental Duties | 51-A |
| V | The Union Government | 52 to 151 |
| VI | The State Governments | 152 to 237 |
| VII | The States in Part B of the First Schedule (deleted) | 238 (deleted) |
| VIII | The Union Territories | 239 to 242 |
| IX | The Panchayats | 243 to 243– 0 |
| IX A | The Municipalities | 243-P to 243-ZG |
| IX B | The Co-operative Societies | 243-ZH to 243-ZT |
| X | The Scheduled and Tribal Areas | 244 to 244- A |
| XI | Relations between the Union and the States | 245 to 263 |
| XII | Finance, Property, Contracts and Suits | 264 to 300- A |
| XIII | Trade, Commerce and Intercourse within the Territory of India | 301 to 307 |
| XIV | Services under the Union and the States | 308 to 323 |
| XIV A | Tribunals | 323-A to 323-B |
| XV | Elections | 324 to 329- A |
| XVI | Special Provisions relating to Certain Classes | 330 to 342- A |
| XVII | Official Language | 343 to 351- A |
| XVIII | Emergency Provisions | 352 to 360 |
| XIX | Miscellaneous | 361 to 367 |
| XX | Amendment of the Constitution | 368 |
| XXI | Temporary, Transitional and Special Provisions | 369 to 392 |
| XXII | Short title, Commencement, Authoritative Text in Hindi and Repeals | 393 to 395 |
Schedule for the Indian Constitution
A total of 12 schedules make up the Indian Constitution, which covers various topics. The Constitution’s schedules cover a wide range of issues, including the names of states and union territories, as well as their territorial jurisdiction and extent; provisions relating to the payments, allowances, and privileges of the President, Governor, Lok Sabha Speaker, and Deputy Speaker, Rajya Sabha Chairman and Deputy Chairman, state Legislative Assembly Speaker, and Deputy Speaker; and the Chairman and the Depu The Indian Comptroller and Auditor General, Constitutional Oaths or Affirmation Forms for Various Constitutional Positions Members of several states and scheduled areas and scheduled tribes are given seats in Rajya sabha. Tribal portions in the states of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, and Mizoram are governed by the Union of India. As a result of a split between federal and state authority, Land reform laws and regulations, language recognized by the Constitution, provisions relating to disqualification of Parliament and state legislature members, and panchayats and municipalities all fall under this broad category.
| Numbers | Subject Matter |
| First Schedule | 1. Names of the States and their territorial jurisdiction. 2. Names of the Union Territories and their extent. |
| Second Schedule | Provisions relating to the emoluments, allowances, privileges and so on of: 1. The President of India 2. The Governors of States 3. The Speaker and the Deputy Speaker of the Lok Sabha 4. The Chairman and the Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha 5. The Speaker and the Deputy Speaker of the Legislative Assembly in the states 6. The Chairman and the Deputy Chairman of the Legislative Council in the states 7. The Judges of the Supreme Court 8. The Judges of the High Courts 9. The Comptroller and Auditor General of India. |
| Third Schedule | Forms of Oaths or Affirmations for: 1. The Union ministers 2. The candidates for election to the Parliament 3. The members of Parliament 4. The judges of the Supreme Court 5. The Comptroller and Auditor General of India 6. The state ministers 7. The candidates for election to the state legislature 8. The members of the state legislature 9. The judges of the High Courts |
| Fourth Schedule | Allocation of seats in the Rajya Sabha to the states and the union territories. |
| Fifth Schedule | Provisions relating to the administration and control of scheduled areas and scheduled tribes. |
| Sixth Schedule | Provisions relating to the administration of tribal areas in the states of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram. |
| Seventh Schedule | Division of powers between the Union and the States in terms of List I (Union List), List II (State List) and List III (Concurrent List). Presently, the Union List contains 98 subjects (originally 97), the State List contains 59 subjects (originally 66) and the Concurrent List contains 52 subjects (originally 47). |
| Eighth Schedule | Languages recognized by the Constitution. Originally, it had 14 languages but presently there are 22 languages. They are:Assamese, Bengali, Bodo, Dogri (Dongri), Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri, Konkani, Mathili (Maithili), Malayalam, Manipuri, Marathi, Nepali, Odia, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Santhali, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu and Urdu. Sindhi was added by the 21st Amendment Act of 1967; Konkani, Manipuri and Nepali were added by the 71st Amendment Act of 1992; and Bodo, Dongri, Maithili and Santhali were added by the 92nd Amendment Act of 2003. Oriya was renamed as ‘Odia’ by the 96th Amendment Act of 2011. |
| Ninth Schedule | Acts and Regulations (originally 13 but presently 282)32 of the state legislatures dealing with land reforms and abolition of the zamindari system and of the Parliament dealing with other matters. This schedule was added by the 1st Amendment (1951) to protect the laws included in it from judicial scrutiny on the ground of violation of fundamental rights. However, in 2007, the Supreme Court ruled that the laws included in this schedule after April 24, 1973, are now open to judicial review |
| Tenth Schedule | Provisions relating to disqualification of the members of Parliament and State Legislatures on the ground of defection. This schedule was added by the 52nd Amendment Act of 1985, also known as Anti-defection Law |
| Eleventh Schedule | Specifies the powers, authority and responsibilities of Panchayats. It has 29 matters. This schedule was added by the 73rd Amendment Act of 1992. |
| Twelfth Schedule | Specifies the powers, authority and responsibilities of Municipalities. It has 18 matters. This schedule was added by the 74th Amendment Act of 1992. |
FAQS
Indian Constitution: Who Wrote It?
An Indian Draft Constitution was prepared on August 29, 1947, by B.R. Ambedkar, Chairman of the Drafting Committee.
What is the total number of schedules in the Indian Constitution?
In the Indian Constitution, there were initially eight schedules, but four different schedules were added when the Constitution was amended. All 12 schedules are now included in the Constitution.
According to Indian Constitutional law, what is included in Schedule 8 of the 8th?
According to the Indian Constitution, “Languages recognized by the Constitution” are listed under Schedule 8. The Indian Constitution includes 22 languages.
Part V of the Indian Constitution deals with what topic?
Part V of the Indian Constitution contains information on the Union Government, which includes the Executive, Parliament, the President’s Legislative powers, the Union judiciary, and the Comptroller and Auditor of India.
What does the term “Secular” mean?
All religions are served equally by the state, which is the true meaning of the term “secular.”
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