unit 1 chapter 1 indian constitution.docx

**Unit- 1** **Making of the Indian Constitution: Constituent Assembly- Composition, Objectives, Preamble and Salient features of the Indian Constitution** **INTRODUCTION** Most countries in the world have a Constitution. The Constitution serves several purposes. First, it lays out certain ideals...

**Unit- 1** **Making of the Indian Constitution: Constituent Assembly- Composition, Objectives, Preamble and Salient features of the Indian Constitution** **INTRODUCTION** Most countries in the world have a Constitution. The Constitution serves several purposes. First, it lays out certain ideals that form the basis of the kind of country that we as citizens aspire to live in. A Constitution tells us what the fundamental nature of our society is. A Constitution helps serve as a set of rules and principles that all persons in a country can agree upon as the basis of the way in which they want the country to be governed. The making of Indian Constitution was in progress even before the country attained independence in 1947. The British enacted some legislations, such as the Government of India, Act 1858; the Indian Council Act, 1861; the Indian Council Act, 1892; the Indian Council Act, 1909; the Government of India Act, 1919; and the Government of India Act, 1935. The Constituent Assembly of India was elected in 1946 to write the Constitution of India. The previous unit introduced you to the process of Constitution development under the British Rule. This unit will introduce you to the composition of the Constituent Assembly, several committees constituted under the Constituent Assembly to facilitate the process of formation of the Constitution of India. **OBJECTIVES** The idea of making the Constitution cannot be attributed to the Constituent Assembly alone. It needs to be seen from the evolutionary perspective. The adoption of the famous Motilal Nehru Resolution in 1924 and 1925, on national demand, was a historic event. It is because the central legislature had, for the first time, lent its support to the growing demand of the future Constitution of India. It also agreed to the opinion that the Constitution of India should be framed by Indians themselves. In November 1927, the Simon Commission was appointed without any Indians represented in it. Therefore, all-party meetings, held at Allahabad, voiced the demand for the right to participate in the making of the Constitution of their country. Earlier on 17 May 1927, at the Bombay session of the Congress, Motilal Nehru had moved a resolution. The resolution called upon the Congress Working Committee to frame the Constitution for India in consultation with the elected members of the central and provincial legislatures, and the leaders of political parties. Adopted by an overwhelming majority with amendments, it was this resolution on the Swaraj Constitution which was later restated by Jawaharlal Nehru in a resolution passed by the Madras Session of the Congress on 28 December 1927. In all-party conference in Bombay on 19 May 1929, a committee was appointed under the chairmanship of Motilal Nehru. The committee established the principles of the Constitution of India. The Report of the Committee, which was submitted on 10 August 1928, later became famous as the Nehru Report. It was the first attempt by Indians to frame the Constitution for their country. The Report depicted the perception of the modern nationalists. It also provided an outline of the Constitution of India. The outline was based on the principles of dominion status and it suggested that the government should be made on the parliamentary pattern. The Report asserted the principle that sovereignty belongs to Indians. It laid down a set of fundamental rights and provided for a federal system with maximum autonomy granted to the units. The residuary powers were given to the central government. A broad parliamentary system with government responsible to the parliament, a chapter on justifiable Fundamental Rights and Rights of Minorities envisaged in the Nehru Report in 1928 largely embodied the Constitution of the independent India. The Third Round Table Conference issued a White Paper outlining the British Government's proposal for Constitutional reforms in India. However, the joint parliamentary committees, which examined this proposal, observed that 'a specific grant of constituent power to authorities in India is not at the moment a practicable proposition'. In its response, the Congress Working Committee in June 1934 declared that the only satisfactory alternative to the White Paper was that the Constitution be drawn out by the Constituent Assembly. They demanded that the members of the Constituent Assembly be elected on the basis of adult suffrage. Significantly, this was the first time that a definite demand for a Constituent Assembly was formally put forward. The failure of the Simon Commission and the Round Table conference gave rise to the ratification of the Government of India Act, 1935. The Congress in its Lucknow Session in April 1936 adopted a resolution in which it declared that no Constitution imposed by an outside authority shall be acceptable to India. The resolution asserted that it has to be framed by an Indian Constituent Assembly elected by the people of India on the basis of adult franchise. On 18 March 1937, the Congress adopted another resolution in Delhi which asserted these demands. After the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939, the demand for a Constituent Assembly was reiterated in a long statement issued by the Congress Working Committee on 14 September 1939. Gandhi wrote an article in the Harijan on 19 November 1939, in which he expressed the view that the Constituent Assembly alone can produce a Constitution for the country which truly and completely represents the will of Indians. It declared that the Constituent Assembly was the only way out to arrive at the solution of communal and other problems of the country. The demand was partially considered by the British Government in the 'August Offer of 1940'. In March 1942, the British Government sent the Cripps Mission to India with a draft declaration which needed to be implemented at the end of the Second World War. The main proposals of the Mission were: (i) the Constitution of India was to be framed by an elected Constituent Assembly of the Indian people; (ii) the Constitution should give dominion status to India, i.e., equal partnership of the British Commonwealth of Nations; (iii) there should be an Indian union, comprising all the provinces and Indian states; and (iv) any province or Indian state, which was not prepared to accept the Constitution would be free to retain its Constitutional position existing at that time. With such provinces, the British Government could enter into separate Constitutional arrangements. However, the Cripps Mission was a failure and no steps were taken for the formation of the Constituent Assembly until the World War in Europe came to an end in May 1945. In July, when the new labour government came to power in England, Lord Wavell affirmed that His Majesty's intention was to convene a Constitutional making body as soon as possible. In 1946, the British Cabinet sent three members, including Cripps to make another serious attempt to solve the problem. However, the Cabinet delegation rejected the claim for a separate Constituent Assembly and a separate state for the Muslims. It forwarded the following proposals: \(i) There would be a Union of India, comprising both British India and states, and having jurisdiction over the subjects of foreign affairs, defence and communications. All residuary powers would belong to the provinces and the states. \(ii) The Union should comprise an executive and a legislature having representatives from the provinces and states. To explain the actual meaning of the clauses of the proposals of the Cabinet Mission, the British Government published the following statement: On 6 December 1946 'Should a Constitution come to be framed by the Constituent Assembly in which large section of the Indian population had not been represented? His Majesty's government would not consider imposing such a Constitution upon any restrictive part of the country.' The British Government for the first time pondered over the likelihood of forming two constituent assemblies and two states. The Cabinet Mission recommended a basic framework for the Constitution and laid down a detailed procedure to be followed by the Constitution making body. In the election for the 296 seats, the Congress won 208 seats including all the General seats except nine. The Muslim League won 73 seats. With the Partition and independence of the country on 14 and 15 August 1947, the Constituent Assembly of India was said to have become free from the fetters of the Cabinet Mission Plan. Following the acceptance of the plan of 3 June, the members of the Muslim League from the Indian dominion also took their seats in the Assembly. The representatives of some of the Indian states had already entered the Assembly on 28 April 1947. By 15 August 1947, most of the states were represented in the Assembly and the remaining states also sent their representatives in due course. The Constituent Assembly, thus, became a body fully representative of the states and provinces in India, free from external authority. It could change any law made by the British Parliament. Composition of the Constituent Assembly The Constituent Assembly was first held to meeting 9 December 1946. It included provinces comprising Pakistan and Bangladesh today, and represented the princely states of India as well. Further, the delegations from provinces of Sind, East Bengal, West Punjab, Baluchistan and the North West Frontier Province in June 1947 formed the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan in Karachi. After India became independent, the Constituent Assembly became the Parliament of India. The Constituent Assembly was indirectly elected by the Provincial Legislative Assembly members (Lower House only), as per the scheme of the Cabinet Delegations. The prime features of the scheme were:  Every Indian state or group of states and the province were allotted a specific number of seats relative to their populations respectively. Due to this, the provinces were needed to elect 292 members and the Indian states were assigned a minimum number of 93 seats.  Each provincial seat was distributed amongst three major communities---Muslim, Sikh and General proportional to their respective populations.  Within the Provincial Legislative Assembly, each community member electedhis own representatives through proportional reorientation with single transferable vote.  The selection method for Indian representatives had to be determined through consultation. In all, the Constituent Assembly was to have 389 members but Muslim League boycotted the Assembly. Only 211 members attended its first meeting on 9 December 1946. Apart from that, the Partition Plan of 3 June 1947 gave rise to the setting up of a separate Constituent Assembly for Pakistan. The representatives of Bengal, Punjab, Sind, North Western Frontier Province, Baluchistan, and the Sylhet district of Assam had to join Pakistan. Due to this, on 31 October 1947, when the Constituent Assembly reassembled, the House membership was lessened to 299. Out of these, 284 members were actually present on 26November 1949 and signed the Constitution to regard it as finally passed. **Committees of Constitution Assembly** The salient principles of the proposed Constitution were outlined by various committees of the Assembly. There were twenty-two major committees formed by the Constituent Assembly to handle different tasks of the making of the Constitution. Out of these, ten focused on procedural affairs and twelve on substantive affairs. The reports of these committees created the basis for the first draft of the Constitution. **1. Committees on Procedural Affairs** The committees on procedure affairs were: \(i) The Steering Committee (Chairman: Dr K.M. Munshi) \(ii) The Rules of Procedure Committee (Chairman: Dr Rajendra Prasad) \(iii) The House Committee \(iv) The Hindi-translation Committee \(v) The Urdu-translation Committee \(vi) The Finance and Staff Committee \(vii) The Press Gallery Committee \(viii) The Committee based on the Indian Independence Act of 1947 \(ix) The Order of Business Committee \(x) The Credential Committee **2. Committees on Substantial Affairs** The committees on Substantial affairs were: \(i) The Drafting Committee (Chairman: B. R. Ambedkar) \(ii) The Committee for negotiating with States (Chairman: Dr Rajendra Prasad) \(iii) The Union Constitution Committee (Chairman: Jawaharlal Nehru) \(iv) The Provincial Constitution Committee (Chairman: Sardar Patel) \(v) A Special Committee to examine the Draft Constitution (Chairman: Sir Alladi Krishnaswami Iyer) \(vi) The Union Powers Committee (Chairman: Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru) \(vii) The Committee on Fundamental Rights and Minorities (Chairman: Sardar Patel) \(viii) The Committee on Chief Commissioners Provinces \(ix) The Commission of Linguistic Provinces \(x) An Expert Committee on Financial Provisions \(xi) Ad-hoc Committee on National Flag \(xii) Ad-hoc Committee on the Supreme Court During its entire sitting, the Constituent Assembly had 11 sessions and 165 days of actual work. After three years of efforts, the historic document, i.e., the Constitution of the free India was adopted by the Assembly on 26 November 1949. It came into force on 26 January 1950. The draft Constitution had 315 Articles and 13 Schedules. The final form of the Constitution, as it was originally passed in 1949, had 395 Articles and eight Schedules. This shows that the original draft had undergone considerable changes. In fact, there were over 7000 amendments which were proposed to be made in the Draft Constitution. Of these 2473 were actually moved, debated and disposed of. It was indeed a great democratic exercise as discussion, debates and deliberation were encouraged. There was also a great tolerance of criticism. It was truly a full-fledged democratic procedure which helped in the making of the Constitution. **ENACTMENT OF THE CONSTITUTION** The Constitution of India was made by the Constituent Assembly which represented nearly all shades of opinions existing at that time in the country. The first session of the Constituent Assembly was held on 9 December 1946 and the assembly finally passed the Constitution on 26 November 1949. However, the Constitution was inaugurated only on 26 January 1950, which was the twentieth anniversary of the day on which the Indian National Congress adopted the Resolution on Purna Swaraj and had ever since become the Republic Day of India. Most members of the Constituent Assembly (e.g. Jawaharlal Nehru, Patel, Azad, Ambedkar, Sitaramayya, Ayyar, N. G. Ayyangar, etc.) belonged to an extremely small, westernized professional middle-class, moulded by the 19th century English education system and sustained a radical social perspective based largely on the European experience in the 20th century. This was particularly true of those 20-member core group that comprised the most influential members of the Constituent Assembly. The ideology of the members of the Assembly clearly reflected on the Constitution of India. A study of the Constitution shows that it embodies the liberal-democratic ideology to a very large extent. However, the Constitution also depicts slight socialist and Gandhian leanings. The members of the Assembly drafted the Constitution that expressed the aspirations of the nation. They skillfully selected and modified the provisions that they borrowed from other Constitutions, helped by the experts. The Assembly members also applied to their task with great effectiveness two wholly Indian concepts, consensus and accommodation. Accommodation was applied to the principles to be embodied in the Constitution. For example, India's membership in the Commonwealth reconciled the incompatibles of republicanism and monarchy. The solution of the panchayat question was also based on accommodation. Consensus was the aim of the decision-making process, the single most important source of the Assembly's effectiveness. **Indian Constitution: Preamble and salient features** The first historical session of Indian Constituent Assembly held its meeting on 9 December 1946 under the chairmanship of Dr. Sachidananda Sinha. On 11 December, it elected Dr. Rajendra Prasad as its permanent president. The membership of the Constituent Assembly included all eminent Indian leaders. Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru introduced the objectives Resolution on 13 December 1946. After a full discussion and debate, the Constituent Assembly passed the objectives Resolution on 22 January 1947. It clearly laid down the ideological foundations and values of the Indian Constitution and it guided the work of the Constituent Assembly. When on 15 August 1947, India became independent; the Constituent Assembly became a fully sovereign body and remained so till the inauguration of the Constitution of India. During this period, it acted in a dual capacity: first as the Constituent Assembly engaged in the making of the Indian Constitution, and secondly as the Parliament of India, it remained involved in legislating for the whole of India. For conducting its work in a systematic and efficient manner, the Constituent Assembly constituted several committees which were to report on the subjects assigned to them. Some of these committees were committees on procedural matters while others were committees on substantive matters. The reports of these committees provided the bricks and mortar for the formulation of the Constitution of India. In the making of the Constitution, a very valuable role was played by the Drafting Committee. The Committee was constituted on 29 August 1947 with Dr. B. R. Ambedkar as its chairman. The Drafting Committee submitted its report (draft) to the Constituent Assembly on 21 February 1948 and the Constituent Assembly held debates on it. On the basis of these discussions, a new draft was prepared by the Drafting Committee and submitted to the Assembly on 4 November 1948. From 14 November 1949 to 26 November 1949 the final debate was held on the draft. 26 November was observed as the Independence Day every year as long as the British Rule in India. Later, in order to perpetuate the memory of the great pledge of the 'Purna Swaraj Day' 26 January 1950 was chosen to be the day of the commencement of our Constitution and was declared as Republic with Dr. Rajendra Prasad as its first president. On completion of the constitution-making task of the Constituent Assembly, Dr. Rajendra Prasad said: 'I desire to congratulate the Assembly on accomplishing a task of such tremendous magnitude. It is not my purpose to appraise the value of the work that the Assembly has done or the merits and demerits of the Constitution which it has framed, I am content to leave that to others and posterity.' **Preamble to the Constitution of India:** Preamble to the [Constitution of India](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constitution_of_India) is a brief introductory statement that sets out the guiding purpose and principles of the document, and it indicates the source from which the document derives its authority, meaning, and the people. The hopes and aspirations of the people as well as the ideals before our nation are described in the preamble in clear words. It may be considered as the heart and soul of Constitution. The preamble can be referred to as the preface which highlights the entire Constitution. It was adopted on 26 November 1949 by the [Constituent Assembly](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constituent_Assembly_of_India) and came into effect on [26th January 1950](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republic_Day_(India)). The Constitution of India begins with a Preamble which describes the nature of the Indian State and the objectives it is committed to secure. K.M. Munshi describes the Preamble as the political horoscope of the constitution. Thakur Dass Bhargawa says Preamble is the most precious part and the soul of the constitution. The preamble is based on the Objectives which was drafted and moved in the Constituent Assembly by Jawaharlal Nehru on 13 December 1946. B.R Ambedkar said about the preamble: "It was, indeed, a way of life, which recognizes liberty, equality, and fraternity as the principles of life and which cannot be divorced from each other: Liberty cannot be divorced from equality; equality cannot be divorced from liberty. Nor can liberty and equality be divorced from fraternity. Without equality, liberty would produce the supremacy of the few over the many. Equality without liberty would kill individual initiative. Without fraternity, liberty and equality could not become a natural course of things." The [Supreme Court of India](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supreme_Court_of_India) originally stated in the BeruBari case presidential reference that the preamble is not an integral part of the [Indian constitution](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constitution_of_India), and therefore it is not enforceable in a court of law. However, the same court, in the 1973 [Kesavananda](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kesavananda_Bharati_vs._The_State_of_Kerala) case, overruled earlier decisions and recognised that the preamble may be used to interpret ambiguous areas of the constitution where differing interpretations present themselves. In the 1995 case of Union Government Vs LIC of India, the Supreme Court once again held that the Preamble is an integral part of the Constitution. As originally enacted the preamble described the state as a \"[sovereign](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sovereignty) [democratic](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democracy) [republic](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republic)\", to which the terms \"Secular\" and \"Socialist\" were later added by the 42nd Amendment. The preamble-page, along with other pages of the original [Constitution of India](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constitution_of_India), was designed and decorated by the renowned painter [Beohar Rammanohar Sinha](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beohar_Rammanohar_Sinha) of [Jabalpur](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jabalpur) who was at [Shantiniketan](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shantiniketan) with acharya [Nandalal Bose](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nandalal_Bose) at that time. Nandalal Bose endorsed Beohar Rammanohar Sinha\'s artwork without any alteration whatsoever. As such, the page bears Beohar Rammanohar Sinha\'s short signature Ram in [Devanagari](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Devanagari) lower-right corner. The calligraphy was done by Prem Behari Narain Raizada. +-----------------------+-----------------------+-----------------------+ | **"** | **WE, THE PEOPLE OF | **"** | | | INDIA**, having | | | | solemnly resolved to | | | | constitute India into | | | | a **SOVEREIGN | | | | SOCIALIST SECULAR | | | | DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC** | | | | and to secure to all | | | | its citizens: | | | | | | | | **JUSTICE**, social, | | | | economic and | | | | political; | | | | | | | | **LIBERTY** of | | | | thought, expression, | | | | belief, faith and | | | | worship; | | | | | | | | **EQUALITY** of | | | | status and of | | | | opportunity; and to | | | | promote among them | | | | all | | | | | | | | **FRATERNITY** assuri | | | | ng | | | | the dignity of the | | | | individual and the | | | | unity and integrity | | | | of the Nation; | | | | | | | | IN OUR CONSTITUENT | | | | ASSEMBLY this 26th | | | | day of November, | | | | 1949, do HEREBY | | | | ADOPT, ENACT AND GIVE | | | | TO OURSELVES THIS | | | | CONSTITUTION. | | +-----------------------+-----------------------+-----------------------+ [**Sovereign**](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sovereign) India is a sovereign state in the sense that she is internally supreme and externally independent. Internally supreme in the sense that the Central government or the Indian Constitution controls all other states and she is externally independent in the sense that India is not under the control of any other foreign countries. She is free to conduct external relations with other countries of the world. According to preamble, the constitution of India has been pursuance of the solemn resolution of the people of India to constitute India into a 'Sovereign Democratic Republic', and to secure well defined objects set forth in the preamble. Sovereignty denotes supreme and ultimate power. It may be real or normal, legal or political, individual or pluralistic. In monarchial orders, sovereignty was vested in the person of monarchs. But, in republican form of governments, which mostly prevail in the contemporary world, sovereignty is shifted to the elected representatives of the people. According to D.D Basu, the word 'sovereign' is taken from article 5 of the constitution of Ireland. 'Sovereign or supreme power is that which is absolute and uncontrolled within its own sphere'. In the words of Cooley, "A state is sovereign when there resides within itself supreme and absolute power, acknowledging no superior". Sovereignty, in short, means the independent authority of a state. It has two aspects- external and internal. External sovereignty or sovereignty in international law means the independence of a state of the will of other states, in her conduct with other states in the comity of nations. Sovereign in its relation between states and among states signifies independence. The external sovereignty of India means that it can acquire foreign territory and also cede any part of the Indian territory, subject to limitations(if any) imposed by the constitution. On the other hand, internal sovereignty refers to the relationship between the states and the individuals within its territory. Internal sovereignty relates to internal and domestic affairs, and is divided into four organs, namely, the executive, the legislature, the judiciary and the administrative. Though India became a sovereign country on 26th January, 1950, having equal status with the other members of the international community, she decided to remain in the Commonwealth of Nations. Pandit Nehru declared that India will continue -- "her full membership of the Commonwealth of Nations and her acceptance of the King as the symbol of the free association of the independent nations and as such the Head of the Commonwealth". Her membership of the Commonwealth of Nations and that of the United Nations Organization do not affect her sovereignty to any extent. It is merely a voluntary association of India and it is open to India to cut off this association at her will, and that it has no constitutional significance. **Socialist** Before the term was added by the 42^nd^ Amendment in 1976, the Constitution had a socialist content in the form of certain Directive Principles of State Policy. The term socialist here means democratic socialism i.e. achievement of socialistic goals through democratic, evolutionary and non-violent means. Socialist state basically means that wealth is generated socially and should be shared equally by society through distributive justice. It shall not be concentrated in the hands of few. Government should regulate the ownership of land and industry to reduce socio-economic inequalities. [**Secular**](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secular) Secular means the relationship within between the government and the people which is determined according to constitution and law. By the 42^nd^ Amendment in 1976, the term \"Secular\" was also incorporated in the Preamble. There is no difference of religion i.e. all religion is equally respected and moreover there is no state religion. All the citizens of India are allowed to profess, practise and propagate any religion. Explaining the meaning of secularism as adopted by India, Alexander Owics has written, \"Secularism is a part of the basic of the Indian Constitution and it means equal freedom and respect for all religions. [**Democratic**](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democracy) The people of India elect their governments by a system of universal adult franchise; popularly known as \"one man one vote\". Every citizen of India, 18 years of age and above and not otherwise debarred by law, is entitled to vote. The word \'democratic\' not only refers to **political** but also to **social** & **economic** democracy. [**Republic**](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republic) In a republic form of government, the head of the state is an elected person and not a heredity monarch. This word denotes a government where no one holds a public power as proprietary right. As opposed to a [monarchy](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monarchy), in which the head of state is appointed on hereditary basis for a lifetime or until he abdicates from the throne, a democratic [republic](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republic) is an entity in which the head of state is elected, directly or indirectly, for a fixed tenure. [**Justice**](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justice) India seeks to secure social, economic and political justice for its people. \(i) Social Justice: Social Justice means the absence of socially privileged classes in the society and no discrimination against any citizen on grounds of caste, creed, colour, religion, sex or place of birth. India stands for eliminating all forms of exploitations from the society. \(ii) Economic Justice: Economic Justice means no discrimination between man and woman on the basis of income, wealth and economic status. It stands for equitable distribution of wealth, economic equality, end of monopolistic control over means of production and distribution, decentralisation of economic resources, and securing of adequate opportunities to all for earning their living. \(iii) Political Justice: Political Justice means equal, free and fair opportunities to the people for participation in the political process. It stands for the grant of equal political rights to all the people without any discrimination. The Constitution of India provides for a liberal democracy in which all the people have the right and freedom to participate. [**Liberty**](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberty) The idea of Liberty refers to the freedom on the activities of Indian nationals. This establishes that there are no unreasonable restrictions on Indian citizens in term of what they think their manner of expressions and the way they wish to follow up their thoughts in action. This is found to be an important tool in ensuring democratic framework. However, liberty does not mean freedom to do anything, and it must be exercised within the constitutional limits. This is second provision. [**Equality**](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_equality) This envisages that no section of the society enjoys special privileges and individuals are provided with adequate opportunities without any discrimination. All are equal in front of law. Again, there are three dimensions of Equality - Political, Economic & Civic. [**Fraternity**](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fraternity) This refers to a feeling of brotherhood and a sense of belonging with the country among its people. It embraces psychological as well as territorial dimensions of National Integration. It leaves no room for regionalism, communalism, casteism etc, which hinders the Unity of the State. The inclusion of the word \"Fraternity\" was proposed by Dr. B.R Ambedkar. The Preamble declares that fraternity has to assure two things\-- the dignity of the individual and the unity and integrity of the nation. The word \'integrity\' has been added to the Preamble by the 42nd Constitutional Amendment (1976) \... **Features of the Indian Constitution:** The Constitution of India is considered as a distinctive constitution around the globe. It is the largest written liberal democratic constitution of the world. It offers for a mixture of federalism and Unitarianism, and flexibility and with rigidity. The Constitution of India was outlined by a Constituent Assembly. This Assembly was an indirectly chosen body. It had laid down certain ideals to be included in the Constitution. These ideals included commitment to democracy, guarantee to all the people of India, Justice, equality and freedom. It had also proclaimed that India will be a Democratic Republic. Reports suggested that the Constituent Assembly held its first sitting on the 9th December, 1946. It reassembled on the 14th August, 1947, as the sovereign Constituent Assembly for the Dominion of India. Constitution of India is the supreme law of India. It lays down the framework defining fundamental political principles, establishing the structure, procedures, powers and duties, of the government and spells out the fundamental rights, directive principles and duties of citizens. Passed by the Constituent Assembly on 26 November 1949, it came into effect on 26 January 1950. The date 26 January was chosen to commemorate the declaration of independence of 1930. Since its inauguration on 26th January 1950, the Constitution India has been efficaciously guiding the path and development of India. With the help of Article 368, Parliament can amend the constitution. Every part of constitution can be modified by the Parliament except "basic structure" of the constitution as held by the Supreme Court. Any law which violates the basic structure of the constitution is declared unconstitutional & invalid by the court. Indian Constitution can be said as the hugely written constitution in the world because of its contents. In its innovative form, it consisted of 395 Articles and 8 Schedules to which additions have been made through subsequent amendments. At present, it contains 395 Articles and 12 Schedules, and more than 80 amendments. There are many factors responsible for the long size of the constitution. One major factor was that the framers of the constitution copied provisions form several sources and several other constitutions of the world. They have followed and reproduced the Government of India Act 1935 in providing matters of administrative detail. It was needed to make provisions for a typical problems of India like scheduled castes, Scheduled Tribes and backward regions. In Indian constitution, provisions were made for elaborate centre-state relations in all aspects of their administrative and other activities. The size of the constitution became large, as provisions regarding the state administration were also included. Additionally, a detail list of individual rights, directive principles of state policy and the details of administration procedure were laid down to make the Constitution clear and unambiguous for the ordinary citizen. Therefore, the Constitution of India became an exhaustive and lengthy one. India has implemented the Parliamentary system as established in Britain. In this system, the executive is responsible to the legislature, and remains in power only as long as it enjoys the confidence of the legislature. The president of India, who remains in office for five years is the nominal, titular or constitutional head. The Union Council of Ministers with the Prime Minister as its head is drawn from the legislature. It is jointly responsible to the House of People (Lok Sabha), and has to resign as soon as it loses the confidence of that house. The President, the nominal executive shall exercise his powers according to the advice of the Union Council of Ministers, the real executive. In the states also, the government is Parliamentary in nature. The Constitution of India identifies only single citizenship. In the United States, there is provision of dual citizenship. In India, people are citizens of India only, not of the respective states to which they belong. This provision would help to promote harmony and integrity of the nation. India is a secular state, because it does not discriminate between individuals on the basis of religion. Neither it encourages nor discourages any religion. In contrast, right to freedom of religion is ensured in the Constitution and people belonging to any religious group have the right to acknowledge, practice or propagate any religion they like. **The salient features of the Constitution of India are as under:** The Constitution of a state is not only the fundamental law of the state, but it is also like a mirror of its social, political and economic systems. The Constitution of a State is different from the Constitution of another State. Each Constitution grows and develops within a particular environment. The Constitution of India is unique in many ways. Several special features of the Indian Constitution distinguish it from many other constitutions of the world. The salient features of the Indian Constitution of India described as follows: ·** Written Constitution: **The Constitution of India is a written document. To draft the Indian Constitution, a Drafting Committee was constituted by the Constituent Assembly under the Chairmanship of Dr. B. R. Ambedkar. The Constituent Assembly was a representative body which is indirectly elected by the people. It consisted of 389 members out of whom 296 members were elected from British India and 93 members were the 'representatives of Native States'. The elections to the Constituent Assembly were held in 1946 and Dr. Rajendra Prasad was elected the President of the Constituent Assembly. The Drafting Committee prepared the draft of the Constitution. After long efforts, the new Constitution was finally adopted on November 26, 1949. Thus, the Indian Constitution came into force on January 26, 1950. · **The Lengthiest Constitution:** The Indian Constitution is the lengthiest, bulkiest and most detailed Constitution in the World. It contains 395 Articles (divided into 22 parts) and 8 Schedules at the time of its enforcement. At present, it has 444 Articles, divided into 24 parts and 12 Schedules. The Constitution of India contains a detailed list of Fundamental Rights, Directive Principles of State Policy, distribution of Powers between Centre and the States, Official Languages, Election and many other provisions over and above laying out the provisions regarding the executive, legislature and judiciary. ·** Partly rigid and partly flexible: **The Constitution of India is neither too rigid nor too flexible. A flexible constitution is that in which its provisions may be amended or modified by ordinary legislative process, whereas, in the case of a rigid constitution, a special procedure is required to be followed for the amendment or revision of its provisions. The Indian Constitution follows three methods for amendment. Firstly, some of the provisions can be amended by a simple majority of the Parliament. Secondly, some provisions may be amended by a special majority of the Parliament and thirdly, some other provisions which are federal in character may be amended only with a joint initiative of both the Parliament and the State legislature. The framers of the Indian Constitution adopted this system so that the Indian Constitution can adopt itself to the changing circumstances while still retaining its basic characteristics. Because of all these provisions, the Indian Constitution is characterized by the mixture of flexibility and rigidity. **Supremacy of the Constitution: **The Constitution of India is the supreme law of the country. All the three organs of the Government i.e.: the Executive, Legislature and Judiciary function under the Constitution of India and are controlled by it. They cannot violate the Constitution. **Mixture of Federal and Unitary features:** The Constitution of India establishes India as a partly Federal and partly unitary government. The word 'Federalism' is not mentioned anywhere in the Constitution. It describes India as a 'Union of States'. Because of the peculiar features of the Indian Constitution, some experts describe it as a 'quasi-federal state'. Indian federalism is also known as 'co-operative federalism'. Some of the federal features included in the Indian Constitution are written constitution, supremacy of the constitution, division of powers and distribution of powers between the centre and the states, a strong judiciary, bicameral legislature etc. But, India cannot be called a true federation because some non-federal features or unitary features like- a strong centre, some rigid methods of amendment of the constitution, single citizenship, common All- India services, uniformity of judiciary, emergency provisions enjoyed by the President, appointment of Governors in the States, are distinctly noticed in the Constitution. Therefore, the Constitution of India is a mixture of federal and unitary features. **Parliamentary Government: **The Constitution of India provides for a Parliamentary form of Government on the British model. In the Parliamentary form of Government, the Head of the State is nominal, whereas the Prime Minster who is the leader of the majority in the Parliament is the real executive. In India, the President only the nominal head of our country and the real and actual powers of the government are exercised by the Prime Minister. **Secularism: **Secularism is another important feature of the Indian Constitution. The word has been included in the Preamble by the 42nd Amendment in 1976. India does not recognize any religion as the state or official religion and treats all religions equally. All the people of India are given the liberty of thought, expression, belief and worship and there is no discrimination on the grounds of religion, caste or community. **Provision of Fundamental Rights: **The Fundamental Rights are contained in Part-III of the Constitution from Articles 12 to 35. The framers of the Constitution derived inspiration from the 'Bill of Rights' from the Constitution of the U.S.A. Fundamental Rights are justiciable in the sense that a person can approach the court in case of violation of his or her Fundamental Rights. The Supreme Court of India is the Guardian of the rights and liberties of the people. They are not absolute. The Government can impose reasonable restrictions on them. The significance of the Fundamental Rights is that they protect the liberty and the freedom of the citizens against encroachment by the state. Originally, the Constitution provided for seven Fundamental Rights. But the Right to Property was abolished by the 44th Constitutional Amendment Act of 1978. At present, there are six Fundamental Rights. **Fundamental Duties:** Fundamental Duties are incorporated in Article 51A of Part IVA of the Constitution by the 42nd Constitutional Amendment Act of 1976. The original Constitution did not contain the fundamental duties. The Fundamental Duties are very important. For the overall development of the country, these Duties must be performed by the citizens of India. These duties are not legally binding upon the citizens. Some of the duties include abiding by the Constitution, to defend the country and render national service, to develop the scientific temper, the safeguard public property, etc. **Directive Principles of State Policy:** Another distinctive feature of the Indian Constitution is the Directive Principles of State Policy described in Part IV of our Constitution from Articles 36-51. These Directive Principles are fundamental in the governance of our Country and it is the duty of the state to apply these principles in making laws. These principles aim at securing social and economic freedoms by appropriate state action. **Independent and impartial Judiciary: **A basic feature of the Indian Constitution is independence of the judiciary. The judiciary is separated from the other two organs i.e. executive and legislature. The tenure of the Judges of the Supreme Court and High Court is fixed and the judges cannot be removed by simple procedure. Independence of judiciary is very is very essential for the success of democracy. **Division of Powers between the Centre and the States: **Another important feature of the Indian Constitution of India is the division of powers between the Central and State Government in terms of the Union List, the State List, and the Concurrent List. This important provision is incorporated in the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution. **Universal Adult Franchise: **The Universal Adult Franchise is introduced by the Constitution and thus, all adult citizens above the age of 18 years, irrespective of their religion, caste, race, color and sex are entitled to participate in the election process. **Single Citizenship:** To promote the feeling of unity and oneness among the people of India, the framers of the Indian Constitution provided for a single citizenship for its citizens. In the Federation like the United States of America single citizenship is a very important federal feature, unlike India. **Emergency Powers**: The emergency powers are introduced in the Indian Constitution so that the whole nation can meet with any emergency situation the country may be faced with. The emergency powers are vested in the hands of the President of India. There are three kinds of Emergency powers. These are-National Emergency (Article-352), Emergency in a State (Article 356) and Financial Emergency (Article 360).\ The above are some the important salient features of the Indian Constitution which makes it one of the most unique and distinct constitutions in the world.