CONSTITUTION:

WHY AND HOW

CLASS XILESSON I

DIVYA BHARDWAJA P S BIRPUR

Meaning of Constitution:

A constitution is a body of fundamental principles according to which a state is constituted or governed . The constitution is a compact document that comprises of a number of articles about the state.

Constituent Assembly

The constitution of India

was framed by a

constituent assembly which

was established in 1946

under the Cabinet Mission

Plan of 1946

Functions of a Constitution i) To provide a set of basic rules that allow for

minimal degree of coordination and assurance amongst members of a society.

ii) To specify who has the power to make decisions in the society.

iii) To set limitations on the government.

iv) To enable the government to fulfill the aspirations of a society and create conditions for a society.

v) To express the fundamental identity of the people.

Why do we need a constitution?

i) Constitution defines and limits the powers of the government.

ii) Constitution defines the powers and functions of the various organs of the government.

iii) Constitution defines the rights of the citizen and their relationship with government.

Main features of the Constitution

i) It is a blend of rigidity and flexibility.

ii) It is federal in form but unitary in spirit. It

has federal as well as unitary features.

Iii) The Constitution of India is supreme

which is respected and accepted by all

the institutions and citizens of India

Sources of Indian Constitution

The main source of the Indian

Constitution are the Govt. of India

Act 1935, the British Constitution, the

American Constitution, the

Constitution of Canada, the

Constitution of Ireland, the French

Constitution etc.

The main federal features of the Indian Constitution

i) It is a flexible and written.

ii) There is a distribution of powers between Centre and State.

iii) There is supremacy of the judiciary.

iv) Bi- cameral legislature.

Committees of the Constituent Assembly and Chairs The Constituent Assembly had major

committees on different subjects.

Committee on the Rules of Procedure: Rajendra Prasad

Drafting Committee: B.R. Ambedkar

Steering Committee: Rajendra Prasad

Finance and Staff Committee: RajendraPrasad

Credential Committee: Alladi KrishnaswamiAiyyar

House Committee: B. Pattabhi Sitaramayya

Order of Business Committee: K. M. Munshi

Ad Hoc Committee on National Flag: Rajendra Prasad

Committees of the Constituent Assembly and Chairs Committee on Functions of Constituent Assembly: G.V.

Mavlankar States Committee: Jawaharlal Nehru Advisory Committee on Fundamental Rights, Minorities and

Tribal and Excluded Areas: Vallabhbhai Patel Minorities Sub-Committee: H. C. Mookherjee Fundamental Rights Sub-Committee: J. B. Kriplani North-East Frontier Tribal Areas and Assam Excluded &

Partially Excluded Areas Sub-Committee: Gopinath Bardoloi Excluded and Partially Excluded Areas (Other than Those in

Assam) Sub-Committee: A. V. Thakkar Union Powers Committee: Jawaharlal Nehru Union Constitution Committee: Jawaharlal Nehru

Nature of Political Philosophy of the Constitution

Political Philosophy of the Indian Constitution is that it is liberal, democratic, egalitarian, secular and federal, open to community values, sensitive to the need of religious and linguistic minorities as well as historically disadvantaged groups and committed to building a common national identity.

Objectives of Indian Constitution

The Preamble outlines the

objectives of the Indian

Constitution..

These objectives are:

i) Justice ii) Liberty

iii) Equality iv) Unity

v) Fraternity vi) Integrity of nation.

Need to adopt political philosophy It is very important to study the philosophy of the

constitution. There is a connection between laws and moral values. We need to adopt a political philosophical approach to the constitution due to following reasons:

i) We need to understand the conceptual structure of the constitution.

ii) We must have a better grasp of the set of ideals embedded in the constitution.

iii) A philosophical treatment of a value is incomplete if a detailed justification for it is not provided.

Important Achievement

The sharing in vision or the philosophy of the constitution is a valuable outcome of the working of the constitution. In 1950, making of this constitution was a great achievement. Today keeping alive the philosophical vision of that constitution may be our important achievement.