The document discusses the key functions and characteristics of constitutions. It notes that the Indian Constitution was drafted by an elected Constituent Assembly over several years, incorporating principles from India's independence movement and borrowing aspects from other constitutions. The Assembly included representatives from across India and involved extensive deliberation. The resulting Constitution established a democratic federal parliamentary system with protections for fundamental rights and directive principles for social justice. It aimed to balance power among institutions while reflecting India's diversity and aspirations for an egalitarian society.

1. CONSTITUTION:
IS A LIVING DOCUMENT?

2. Why do we need Constitution
 Diversity in Indian society: religion, culture, profession, demographics,
economic inequality, geography, etc.…
 Diverse opinion, viewpoints on various matters often arising disputes.
 The first function of a constitution is to provide a set of basic rules that
allow for minimal coordination amongst members of a society.
 The second function of a constitution is to specify who has the power to
make decisions in a society. It decides how the government will be
constituted.
 Monarchy, One Party rule, Autocracy, Democracy
 What laws governing the society and how to decide.
 Indian Constitution bestows this authority to Parliament chosen by the
people in general elections.

3.  Arbitrary use of power by the authority and undermining of
demands and needs of the members of society.
 Third function of a constitution is to set some limits on what a
government can impose on its citizens. These limits are
fundamental in the sense that government may never trespass
them.
 Fundamental Rights puts limit on the power of government and also
lays down provisions about in which scenarios these can be taken
away.
 Indian society marked by inequality, deprivation, caste
discrimination and inequality.
 Individual and society must have necessary conditions to lead a
dignified life and provide opportunities by the state for upliftment of
everyone.
 The fourth function of a constitution is to enable the government to
fulfil the aspirations of a society and create conditions for a just
society.
 This function is performed in Indian Constitution by Directive

4. Fundamental Identity of a People
 Constitution provides collectivity identity to the people as a citizen of the
nation. They are.
 Political identity: governed by the norms and laws of the constitution.
 Moral Identity: norms dealing with individual aspirations, goals and freedom
enshrined in fundamental values of the constitution.
 Constitution around the world are different in terms of form of government
and procedural details.
 Most of the constitution states democracy with enshrined fundamental rights.
 Most countries are marked by diverse groups co-existing with their historical
traditions.
 Indian Constitution respect the diversity but do not uphold any identity over
the other as a criterion for citizenship. It promotes the singular identity as
Indian.

5. The Authority of a Constitution
 What is a constitution?
 Constitution is a compact document that comprises a number of articles
about the state, specifying how the state is to be constituted and what
norms it should follow.
 Written Constitution like India and Unwritten Constitution like England.
 How effective is a constitution?
 What makes it effective?
 What ensures that it has a real impact on the lives of people?
Mode of Promulgation
 How constitution comes into being?
 How constitution was drafted and who had the authority?
 Defunct constitution prepared by military leaders or autocrats.

6.  Bringing different sections of Indian Society together.
 Constitution draws legitimacy from public credibility,
commanding respect from cross-sections of society
reflecting the consensus of time.
 Referendum is where people vote on desirability of the
constitution.
 A successful constitution lays down provisions keeping
considerations for everyone.
 Constitution which preserves the freedom and equality of
all its members are more likely to succeed.

7. Balanced Institutional Design
 Power sharing in constitution to remove it’s concentration and leading subversion.
 Fragmenting power across different institutions to avoid monopoly of power.
 Horizontal Fragment of power in Legislature, Executive and Judiciary, independent
statuary bodies like Election Commission.
 Constitution must strike a balance so that it is neither too flexible nor rigid in
framework.
 Preserving core values of constitution and adapting to new circumstances, this ideal
of constitution has made Indian Constitution as a living document.
 Raising question stating about the authority of Constitution:
 Were the people who enacted the constitution credible?
 Did the constitution ensure that power was intelligently organised so that it was not
easy for any group to subvert the constitution?
 Is the constitution the locus of people’s hopes and aspiration?

8. Process of Constitution making
 Constitution was made by the Constituent Assembly which had been
elected for undivided India. It held its first sitting on 9 December 1946,
and re-assembled for undivided India on 14 August 1947.
 Constituent Assembly was composed according to plan proposed by the
committee of the British cabinet, known as the Cabinet Mission.
 Its members were chosen by indirect election by the members of the
Provincial Legislative Assemblies that had been established under the
Government of India Act, 1935.
 Representatives of 292 Provinces and 93 Princely states, were allotted
seats proportional to their respective population roughly in the ratio of
1:10,00,000.
 Seats distributed in provinces based on the populace of Muslim, Sikh and
general.

9. Composition of Constituent Assembly
 Owing to Partition plan of 3 June 1947, members from the erstwhile
Pakistan left the constituent Assembly. Members of Constituent
Assembly reduced from 299 to 284 present on 26 November 1949
who appended their signature to finally passed Constitution.
 Constitution was prepared in the backdrop of partition violence.
 Citizenship secured minority rights and didn’t keep religion or such
criteria for citizenship.
 Members of all religion given representation along with oppressed
classes (31 Members), backward tribes (6 Members), and other
communities.
 In terms of Political Parties, Congress dominated with over 82%
seats in constituent assembly.

10. Principle of Deliberation
 Participation from diverse section of society looking at the
concern of nation at large rather than their own identity and
community.
 In constituent assembly, differences of principles on various
provisions to be included in the constitution.
 Universal Suffrage is the only provision in Indian Constitution
which passed without much debate.
 Constituent Assembly members engaged in public reason,
giving consideration to diverse views. Each clause of the
constitution underwent careful scrutiny and discussion.

11. Procedures
 The Constituent Assembly had eight major Committees on different
subjects. Usually, Jawaharlal Nehru, Rajendra Prasad, Sardar Patel
or B.R. Ambedkar chaired these Committees.
 Despite the political and ideological differences amongst the leaders
they worked closely on Constitution.
 These committees drafted the provisions of the Constitution which
were then subjected to debate by the entire Assembly. These then
were taken up for consideration and where required voted upon.
 The Assembly met for one hundred and sixty six days, spread over
two years and eleven months. Its sessions were open to the press
and the public alike.

12. Inheritance of Nationalist Movement
 Principles of constitution inherited from nationalist movement.
 Summary of these is reflected in the Objectives Resolution (the
resolution that defined the aims of the Assembly) moved by
Nehru in 1946.
 Based on this resolution, our Constitution gave institutional
expression to these fundamental commitments: equality, liberty,
democracy, sovereignty and a cosmopolitan identity.
 Indian Constitution is not merely comprising rules and
procedure but also a moral commitment to establish a
government that will fulfil the many promises that the nationalist
movement held before the people.

13. Objective Resolution (1946)
 India is an independent, Sovereign and Republic.
 India shall be a union.
 Autonomous territorial units exercising all powers and functions at the govt. and
admin.
 All powers and authority of sovereign and independent India and its constitution
shall flow from the people.
 Citizen to be guaranteed and secured social, economic and political justice equality
of status and opportunity.
 Safeguard to minorities, backward and tribal areas, depressed and other backward
classes.
 The territorial integrity of the Republic and its sovereign rights on land, sea and air
shall be maintained according to justice and law of civilized nations.
 Uphold world peace and welfare of mankind.

14. Institutional Arrangements!
 The basic principle behind, is that government must be
democratic and committed to the welfare of the people.
 The Constituent Assembly spent a lot of time on
evolving the right balance among the various
institutions like the executive, the legislature and the
judiciary. This led to the adoption of the parliamentary
form and the federal government, which would
distribute governmental powers between the
legislature and the executive on the one hand and
between the States and the central government on the

15. Provisions borrowed in Indian Constitution
British Constitution 1. First past the post system
2.Parliamentary form of gvt.
3.Rule of Law
4.Speaker and his role
5.Law making procedure
United States Constitution 1.Fundamental Right
2.Powers of judicial review & 3.Independence of Judiciary
French Constitution 1.Principles of Liberty, Equality & Fraternity
Irish Constitution 1.Directive Principles of state policy
Canadian Constitution 1.A quasi - federal form of govt. ( A federal system with a strong
central government)
2. The idea of Residual Power