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(The article was originally published in Indian Express on January 25, 2025 as a part of Dr Madhav’s column titled ‘Ram Rajya’. Views expressed are personal.)
This year marks 75 years of the adoption of India’s Constitution. The government has planned year-long programmes with the slogan “Hamara Samvidhan, Hamara Swabhiman” — our constitution, our pride. At a grand inaugural event held in the Central Hall of Parliament on November 26, 2024, President Droupadi Murmu called the Constitution the “holiest book of our country”.
The making of the Constitution was an inspiring saga every Indian should be proud of. Four aspects of our Constitution should invoke that pride — the struggle that preceded its making, the making itself, the content, and the journey in the last 75 years.
The struggle for having our own Constitution began at least 25 years before the formation of the Constituent Assembly. The first ever Government of India Act of 1858 came after the 1857 War of Independence. No Indian was involved in that process. Six decades later, came a new version, the Government of India Act 1919. By then, the Congress had emerged as a rallying point for all nationalists. It raised a strong voice against the Act, demanding that not the British government but the Indian legislature should have the authority to draft its own constitution.
The Swaraj Party, the parliamentary wing of the Congress, raised the issue in the Legislative Assembly in 1924 demanding that a roundtable conference be convened to negotiate constitutional reforms. Instead of giving a sympathetic ear to the demand, Secretary of State for India, Lord Birkenhead, challenged Indian leaders to “produce a constitution which carries behind it a fair measure of general agreement among the great people of India.” He also decided to further taunt them by appointing an all-British Simon Commission for the review of constitutional measures needed for India.
The Congress leadership accepted the challenge. Motilal Nehru led an all-party conference to draft a constitution that also had Subhas Chandra Bose, Annie Besant, M R Jayakar, Jawaharlal Nehru and a couple of Muslim League representatives. It came out with a draft constitution in 1928, popularly known as the “Nehru Report”. It contained 22 chapters and 88 articles and dealt with important subjects like fundamental rights, a bicameral parliament, division of powers, judicial independence and centre-state relations. It unequivocally declared that universal adult franchise will be the model for India with every citizen 21 years of age and above securing voting rights. A leading newspaper exclaimed that while Birkenhead got a befitting reply, “…we have drawn the Magna Carta of our liberty”. A call was given at the Lahore Congress session in December 1929 to celebrate the “day of independence” on January 26, 1930. It was to commemorate that occasion that January 26, 1950 was chosen for the adoption of the Indian Constitution.
The Swaraj Party passed a resolution in May 1934 demanding that a Constituent Assembly be convened to frame an “acceptable constitution”. The Indian people heard about the Constituent Assembly for the first time then.
The next decade saw the Congress waging battles both in the streets as well as on the constitutional front. Jawaharlal Nehru was categorical that the Constituent Assembly would function as a “completely sovereign body”. The British finally submitted to that through the India Independence Act, 1947.
The Constituent Assembly met for the first time on December 9, 1946. The Draft Constitution was placed before it on February 21, 1948. A revised version was placed on November 4. Its second reading happened clause-by-clause, and the final draft was approved on November 26, 1949.
Unlike today, there were no time limits to the speeches of the Assembly members. In total, the members spoke 3.6 million words. A total of 7,635 amendments were moved, of which 2,473 were discussed. The Constitution that came out of this hard work contained 395 articles and eight schedules. Ambedkar had to shoulder much of the burden of drafting it and incorporating thousands of amendments. Rajendra Prasad, chairman of the Assembly, acknowledged this, saying, “I have realised as nobody else could have, with what zeal and devotion the members of the Drafting Committee and especially its Chairman, Dr Ambedkar, despite his indifferent health, have worked.”
While moving the Objectives Resolution in December 1946, Jawaharlal Nehru passionately appealed that it was more than just a resolution but a “declaration”, a “firm resolve”, a “pledge”, and finally, a “dedication”. That was what the 299 members of the Assembly did through the 35 months of the Constitution’s making. The journey of the last 75 years witnessed many important constitutional reforms like the Hindu Code Bill, the incorporation of Fundamental Duties, the introduction of decentralisation and the Panchayati Raj system, ending centralised planning, and the abrogation of Article 370.
Some criticise it as a “colonial constitution”. However, a closer look reveals that the Constitution contained most elements of the Nehru Report of 1928. President Murmu called it “the outcome of our long freedom struggle”.
The Constitution has served our country efficiently and effectively for 75 years. While allegations and counter-allegations about who was a protector and who was a detractor abound due to political expediency, the social and religious minorities and other marginalised people see it as a great guarantor of their rights and freedoms. Our Constitution has been successful in building the spirit of “One Nation, One People”.
Ultimately, the Constitution is only a statement of intent. The constitutional morality — acting in its spirit — of those who manage it is critical. Ambedkar warned that “constitutional morality is not a natural sentiment. It needs to be cultivated.” On this occasion, let the nation dedicate itself to the task of cultivating that morality.