India marks 75 years of Constitution

Government of India announces the commencement of a historic year-long celebration to commemorate the 75 years of the adoption of the Constitution of India, a milestone that reflects the remarkable journey of our democracy and the enduring legacy of our founding principles and Constitutional values starting on Constitution Day (Samvidhan Diwas), 26th November 2024.

Key-highlights

• These celebrations are being conducted under the campaign tagline “Hamara Samvidhan, Hamara Swabhimaan”and aim to honour the contributions of the Constitution’s makers while reiterating the core values enshrined in it.
• Constitution Day, or 'Samvidhan Divas,' is observed annually on November 26to mark the adoption of the Constitution of India.
• On this day in 1949, the Constituent Assembly of India adopted the Constitution, which came into force on January 26, 1950.
• On November 19, 2015, the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment announced the Government of India's decision to observe November 26 as 'Constitution Day' each year, with the aim of promoting the values enshrined in the Constitution among citizens.

Constitution of India

• India, also known as Bharat, is a Union of States. It is a Sovereign Socialist Secular Democratic Republic with a Parliamentary system of government.
• Adoption and Enforceability: The Constitution of India was adopted by the Constituent Assembly on 26th November, 1949 and came into force on 26th January, 1950.
• Structure of Government: The Constitution provides for a Parliamentary form of government that is federal in structure with certain unitary features.
  • The constitutional head of the Executive of the Union is the President.
• Parliament of India: As per Article 79, the Parliament of the Union consists of:
  • The President
  • The Council of States (Rajya Sabha)
  • The House of the People (Lok Sabha).
• Council of Ministers:
  • Article 74(1) of the Constitution mandates that there shall be a Council of Ministers headed by the Prime Minister, which aids and advises the President in the exercise of his/her functions.
  • The real executive power is vested in the Council of Ministers, with the Prime Minister at its head.

Key-features of Indian Constitution:

• Lengthiest: The Constitution of India is the lengthiest of all the written Constitutions of the world. It is a very comprehensive, elaborate and detailed document.
  • The Indian Constitution originally consisted of 395 articles divided into 22 Parts and 9 Schedules. Presently, it consists of a Preamble, 448 articles (as of the 105th Constitutional Amendment), divided into 25 Parts and 12 Schedules.
• Parliamentary system: The Constitution of India has opted for the British Parliamentary system of Government. The Parliamentary system is based on the principle of co-operation and co-ordination between the legislative and executive organs while the Presidential system is based on the doctrine of separation of powers between the two organs.
• Flexible: Indian Constitution has a unique blend of rigidity and flexibility.
• Fundamental Rights: The Constitution guarantees fundamental rights. Part III of the Indian Constitution guarantees six fundamental rights to all the citizens—
  • Right to Equality (Articles 14-18)
  • Right to Freedom (Articles 19-22)
  • Right against Exploitation (Articles 23-24)
  • Right to Freedom of Religion (Articles 25-28)
  • Cultural and Educational Rights (Articles 29-30)
  • Right to Constitutional Remedies (Article 32)
• Directive Principles of State policy: The Directive Principles of State Policy contained in Part of the Constitution set out the aims and objectives to be taken by the state in the governance of the country.
• Fundamental Duties: By Forty-second Amendment Act, Part IVA has been added to the Constitution which enumerates certain fundamental duties of the citizens. Originally, ten duties were enlisted in clause (a) to (j) of article 51A. Clause (k), which imposes duty on parents/wards has been added by the Constitution (86th Amendment) Act, 2002.
• Federal system of Government: Article 1 describes that India “is a Union of States” which implies two things:
  • Firstly – Indian federation is not the result of an agreement by the States
  • Secondly – no State has the right to secede from the federation
• The Constitution of India establishes a federal system of Government. It contains all the usual features of a federation viz., two governments, division of powers, written Constitution, Supremacy of the Constitution, rigidity of Constitution, independent judiciary and bicameralism.

• Adult Suffrage: In India every person, male or female, who has obtained the age of 18 years, is entitled to vote in elections to Parliament or State Legislatures. Originally this age limit was 21 years but after the 61st Amendment Act, 1988 it was reduced to 18 years.
• Independent Judiciary: Independence of Judiciary is essential for impartial adjudication of disputes between individuals, between Union and State, between Union/State and individuals, between Union and States or between States inter se.
• A Secular State: The Constitution of India stands for a secular State. Hence, it does not uphold any particular religion as the official religion of the Indian State. The term ‘Secular’ was added to the Preamble of the Indian Constitution by the 42nd Amendment Act, 1976. Articles 25-28 of the Constitution give concrete shape to this concept of secularism.
• Single Citizenship: Every citizen is the citizen of India and enjoys the same rights of citizenship no matter in which State he resides.
• Separation of Powers: This doctrine was for the first time properly formulated by the famous Jurist Montesquieu in his Escript Des Lois and exercised great influence on the French legal system. Doctrine of separation of powers implies that powers of the three organs of the government viz., Legislative, Executive and Judiciary should be kept separate from each other.