Article- 75 years of the Constitution, the full story of the historical document of India

New Delhi: The ‘Constitution’ of the Indian was prepared by the divisive conditions of the world war, the partition of India and the unprecedented population migration. Hundreds of members of the Constituent Assembly finalized it after about five years of intensive consultation. The first meeting of the Constituent Assembly was held on 9 December 1946, which laid the foundation for the future of India. The process of constitution making was complex, in which various committees played an important role.

• The Advisory Committee headed by Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel prepared a draft fundamental rights. Other committees considered aspects of the government’s structure and center-state power division. The proposals of these committees were discussed and voted from December 1946 to August 1947.
• In October 1947, B.R. The draft committee headed by Ambedkar prepared a detailed draft of the Constitution, in which Sir B.N. The format constitution prepared by Rau was used. The proceedings of the format committee are available in public records, which reflects members’ skills and intensive thinking.
• On November 4, 1948, the ‘Draft Constitution’ was introduced in the Constituent Assembly. Until November 1949, the assembly debated and voted each provision. On 26 November 1949, the Constituent Assembly adopted the Constitution. This constitution came into force on 26 January 1950, making India an independent nation from a colonial nation. India officially became an independent republic.

In the last 75 years, the Indian Constitution has faced many challenges. The Constitution empowered the Supreme Court to interpret the Constitution. An important result of this was the development of the ‘Basic Structure Principle’. In the early years, it was believed that Parliament had full power of constitutional amendment. But in 1973, the Supreme Court set limits of constitution amendment in the Keshavanand Bharti case. Thus the ‘Basic Structure Principle’ was born, according to which the fundamental symptoms of the Constitution, such as secularism, communication, separation of powers, democratic basis and fundamental freedom, cannot be replaced.

Another important fight was fought on the interpretation of the rights of life and personal freedom, Article 21,. Many members in the Constituent Assembly considered it weak, but through judicial interpretations it became an important fundamental right. When the Constitution came into force, it was the longest constitution in the world, with 395 articles and 8 schedules.

• The first meeting of the Constituent Assembly on 9 December 1946 was a historic moment. This was the first time the people of India were deciding their future by becoming the master of their fate. The process of constitution making was complex and multi-level. Various committees worked on various aspects of it.
• The Advisory Committee headed by Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel prepared the first draft of fundamental rights. This helped the gathering to understand what rights should be given to the people to the Constitution. Other committees considered subjects such as the structures of the government, division of powers between the Center and the states, etc. From December 1946 to August 1947, the proposals of these committees were discussed and voted.
• In October 1947, Dr. BR The draft committee headed by Ambedkar began to prepare a detailed format of the Constitution. Sir BN The format constitution prepared by Rau made this task easy. The proceedings of the format committee are publicly available, which reflects members’ skills and high ideas.

Understand the importance of the Preamble of the Constitution

Today, there have been more than 100 amendments in the Constitution, and include many new articles, chapters and parts. Among all the provisions, the preamble of the Constitution is best indicated what the constitution means. It begins with the words ‘Hum, the people of India’ and guarantees a system based on justice, freedom, equality and fraternity. This shows that the people of India are giving this constitution themselves. These words and their ideals symbolize the struggle of all those who fought for independent India and sacrificed their own. This is the foundation of the ideal constitution.

(The author is a lawyer in the Supreme Court and the Delhi High Court.)