Tag: Indian Constitution

Preamble of Indian Constitution

 The Preamble of the Indian Constitution is an introductory statement that outlines the fundamental principles and objectives of the Constitution. It is a concise and powerful statement that reflects the aspirations and values of the Indian people. The Preamble is an integral part of the Constitution and serves as a guide to interpreting its provisions. It was adopted by the Constituent Assembly on 26th November 1949, and came into effect on 26th January 1950, when the Constitution was enacted.


Source – Timesofindia

The Preamble begins with the words “We, the people of India,” which reflects the democratic nature of the Indian Constitution. The use of the phrase “We, the people” signifies that the Constitution derives its authority from the people of India, who are the ultimate source of power in the country. The Preamble contains several important keywords, which are discussed below.

  1. Sovereign: The term sovereign means that India is a self-governing nation, and its government is not subject to external control or influence. It implies that the Indian Constitution is the supreme law of the land, and all citizens and institutions must respect its provisions.

  2. Socialist: The term socialist reflects the commitment of the Indian Constitution to the principles of social justice and equality. It emphasizes the need to eliminate poverty, inequality, and exploitation, and to promote the welfare of all citizens.

  3. Secular: The term secular means that the Indian Constitution guarantees freedom of religion to all citizens, and the State does not endorse or promote any particular religion. It implies that the State is neutral in matters of religion and treats all religions equally.

  4. Democratic: The term democratic signifies that the Indian Constitution is based on the principles of democracy, which includes free and fair elections, the rule of law, and the protection of individual rights and freedoms. It implies that the government is accountable to the people, and the people have the right to participate in the decision-making process.

  5. Republic: The term republic means that India is a sovereign state, and its head of state is elected by the people. It implies that the Indian Constitution provides for a representative government that is accountable to the people.

  6. Justice: The term justice reflects the commitment of the Indian Constitution to the principles of social, economic, and political justice. It implies that the State must ensure that all citizens have access to justice, and that there is no discrimination based on caste, gender, religion, or any other grounds.

  7. Liberty: The term liberty signifies that the Indian Constitution guarantees freedom of speech, expression, assembly, and association to all citizens. It implies that the State must respect and protect the rights of individuals to live their lives as they see fit, as long as they do not infringe on the rights of others.

  8. Equality: The term equality reflects the commitment of the Indian Constitution to the principle of equal treatment under the law. It implies that all citizens are equal before the law, and there is no discrimination based on caste, gender, religion, or any other grounds.

  9. Fraternity: The term fraternity means a sense of brotherhood. The constitution of India promotes the feeling of fraternity by the system of single citizenship.

Presidential Election

Recently, President election has been the talk of the town with Droupadi Murmu being elected as the India’s 15th President. Ms. Murmu becomes the second woman president and the first member of tribal community to do so as well as youngest president. She was the former Governor of Jharkhand and hails from the Santhal tribe and was born in Mayurbhanj in Odisha.

Coming to it lets know about how the election is conducted and it’s procedures:

The executive power of the Indian Union is vested with the President. The President is the head of the State and the supreme commander of the Defence Forces of India. The President exercises his powers on the advice of the Prime Minister and the Council of Ministers. According to the 42nd Amendment it is necessary for the President to exercise his/her functions with the advice of Council of Ministers.

Qualifications for Election:

A person shall be eligible for election as president if he/she :

  • is a citizen of India;
  • has completed the age of 35 years;
  • is qualified for election as a member of the Lok Sabha.
  • should not hold office of profit.

Whenever the office becomes vacant, the new president is chosen by an electoral college  consisting of:

the elected members of both houses of Parliament , the elected members of the State Legislative Assemblies of all States and the elected members of the legislative assemblies of union territories with legislatures, i.e. National Capital Territory of Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir and the Union Territory of Puducherry.

The nomination of a candidate for election to the office of the president must be subscribed by at least 50 electors as proposers and 50 electors as seconders. Each candidate has to make a security deposit of ₹15,000 (US$190) in the Reserve bank of India. The security deposit is liable to be forfeited in case the candidate fails to secure one-sixth of the votes polled.

The election is held in accordance with the system of proportional representation (PR) by means of the instant runoff vote (IRV) method .The voting is done by secret ballot  system. The manner of election of President is provided by Article 55 of the Constitution.

The actual calculation for votes cast by a particular state is calculated by dividing the state’s population by 1000, which is divided again by the number of legislators from the State voting in the electoral college. This number is the number of votes per legislator in a given state.

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Best Custom Knife: How to Choose the Perfect Blade for You

A best custom knife is the one that fits your tasks, your hand, and your budget without useless extras. Everything below is about how to reach that state consciously. What will you actually do with the knife? A clear purpose narrows your choices for knife type, steel, and geometry by 3–5 times and saves money…

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Every elected member of the parliament enjoys the same number of votes, which may be obtained by dividing the total number of votes assigned to the members of legislative assemblies by the total number of elected representatives of the parliament.

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COMPARISION OF THE INDIAN CONSTITUTIONAL SCHEME WITH THAT OF OTHER COUNTRIES

The Constitution is a national rulebook that codifies the rule of law. It establishes the various institutions of government, namely the administrative, legislative and judicial frameworks and their main functions. It also establishes relationships between the government and those known as citizenship. The architects of the Indian Constitution passed all the major constitutions of the world that existed at the time before making their own drafts. The Indian Constitution is often referred to as a “bag of borrowings” because it is voluntarily drawn from another country. The Constitution is a national rulebook that codifies the rule of law.

INDIAN CONSTITUTION AS A BAG OF BORROWINGS

The Constitution of India provides for a parliamentary government, which has a federal structure with certain unified characteristics. The composition is written in part, by convention, and by judicial interpretation. Derived from various sources. Mainly from the Government of India Act 1935.

From Ireland: Directive Principles of state Policy, Representative of ability in Rajya sabha, Electoral System of the President of India, How to Nominate Members of Rajya sabha.

From the United States: Fundamental Rights;

From England: Parliamentary form of government.

From Germany: Emergency provision;

From South Africa: Amendment procedures for a majority of two-thirds in parliament, and elections for Rajya Sabha members.

Therefore, the Constitution of India is one of the longest known constitutions in the world due to the above characteristics.

COMARISIONS WITH OTHER COUNTRIES

INDIA AND FRANCE

SIMILARITY

Written Constitutions: India and France, however, have a written constitution; France has changed its constitution quite often due to instability. Currently, it is the 5th constitution in the history of France.

Government Type: Both countries elect leaders for their respective terms.

Amendment Process: The French Constitution can be amended with a 60% majority similar to the Indian amendment process. Republic: Both countries are Republics with elected Heads of State.

Ideas: India borrowed the ideas of freedom, equality and brotherhood from the Preamble of the French Constitution. Emergency provisions: Both countries have the right to emergency provisions.

DIFFERENCES

Political model: France adopts a semi-presidential system with the president having more power than the prime minister while India adopts a parliamentary form of government with more powers vested in the prime minister. Term of Head of Government: Prime Minister of India has a term of 5 years while the President of France has a term of 7 years. Philosophical Aspects: There are no provisions relating to due process or fair trial in the French Constitution. France has adopted complete separation of state and religion, while India has more distance in principle but not total separation. France operates under a unitary model, not federalism like in India. Judicial structure: The judiciary plays no role in conducting elections in India while in France the judiciary plays an important role. The French courts are divided into two divisions namely judicial courts and administrative courts, but in India there is no such structure.

INDIA AND CANADA

SIMILARITIES

Unitary / Federal: Both have a federal structure. Like India, Canada has residual powers at the center.

Appointment of Governors: The central government appoints governors for the states and provinces. Composition of the Executive Board: Members are elected the first past the post system. Both have governments that are jointly accountable to the lower house.

Judicial structure: The appointment and advisory jurisdiction of the Supreme Court is the same as in India.

Legislative structure: Laws promulgated by Parliament apply to the whole country.

DIFFERENCES

Written/Unwritten Constitution: Canada is guided by both written and unwritten laws, while India is guided by its written Constitution. Political Setup: Canada has a monarchy while India has a president as head of state. Executive Configuration: The Governor-General is appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister, while in India the president is indirectly elected. Nationality: There is a dual citizenship provision in Canada while India does not grant dual citizenship. Judicial structure: The country has several legal systems while India does not.

INDIA AND GERMANY

SIMILARITIES

Republic: Both countries are Republics with elected Heads of State. Political Structure: Both have a parliamentary form of government in which the prime minister/prime minister is the head of government and the president has mainly ceremonial and supervisory functions. India borrowed on emergency provisions from Germany. Both have federal systems. Both are characterized by fundamental rights.

DIFFERENCES

Germany has a rigid Constitution while India has a flexible and rigid Constitution. Nationality: Dual citizenship is allowed under certain circumstances

INDIA AND JAPAN

SIMILARITIES

Both have written constitutions. Legislative structure: Both have Parliament as the supreme legislative body. Both have two houses in Parliament, with the lower house having more power than the upper house. As in India, the no-confidence movement led to the dissolution of the Lok Sabha.

Philosophical Aspects: Constitutional supremacy and judicial review. Both countries have a statutory procedure. Executive Configuration: Similar to India, the Prime Minister in Japan can belong to either House. The Council of Ministers is accountable to the House of Commons, as in India. Judicial configuration: The appointment, dismissal and fixed retirement age of judges in Japan is similar to that in India.

DIFFERENCES

Japan has a rigid Constitution while India has a flexible and rigid Constitution. The Japanese constitution provides for a unified state. Executive structure: ministers are appointed by the prime minister, but in the case of India, it is appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister. In Japan, their parliament elects the Prime Minister from the majority party, while in India this is not the case. Political Structure: Japan is a constitutional monarchy while India is a republic. In Japan, all international treaties must be ratified by the Diet, which is not the case in India. Judicial structure: judges are appointed by the Diet, but in India Parliament has no role.

INDIA AND AUSTRALIA

SIMILARITIES

Both have written Constitution. India and Australia have federal parliamentary states with states and territories. Legislative Configuration: There is a provision to read a second time and forward it to a committee that can propose similar recommendations for India. India borrowed the concurrent list from Australia. The two countries have scheduled a joint session to resolve the deadlock between the two houses. Judicial structure: The Supreme Court is the court of last resort in Australia for all cases, as well as in India. Both countries have independent judiciary and emphasize separation of powers. The procedure for appointing and removing judges in Australia is the same as in India.

DIFFERENCES

Unlike India, emergency laws are different in each Australian state. There is a dual citizenship provision in Australia, which was added on 4 April 2002. Political structure: In Australia, the head of government in the Queen’s Commonwealth is represented. by a Governor-General. Legislative structure: The Australian Constitution can only be amended with voter approval through a national referendum in which all adult electors must vote. The Senate is elected by list system while in India it is elected by a single transferable vote. House legislators are elected for 3 years in Australia while in India they are elected for 5 years.

INDIA AND THE USA

SIMILARITIES

The two countries have a written Constitution. Both countries have the concept of fundamental rights. Both countries have a preamble as an introduction. Both countries have vice president offices. Legislative setting: Both countries have state representation in the legislature. Both countries have planned for the removal of the president, that is, the impeachment process. Philosophical Aspects: The concept of judicial review in India is borrowed from the United States. The procedural concept established by law in India was borrowed from the United States. There is a separation of powers between the different organs of government. There is a federal system in the United States similar to India. The United States has constitutional supremacy similar to that of India.

DIFFERENCES

USA has a rigid constitution while India has a rigid and flexible constitution. Political Setup: USA has a presidential form of government while India has a parliamentary form of government. Composition of the executive: In the United States the president is elected directly by the people while in India the president is elected indirectly. Amendment : The US Constitution has only been amended 27 times in 200 years. The remaining power belongs to the States while in India it belongs to the Union. Judicial structure: In India, judges reach retirement age while in the US judges can hold office until they are in good health. Each state has its own Constitution and its own Supreme Court, India’s case absent. USA offers dual citizenship which is not available in case of India.

INDIA AND UK

SIMILARITIES

Type of Government: Both have a parliamentary form of government. India adopted the rule of law from Britain. Executive Configuration: Both countries have a Cabinet System presence. Both countries have two heads of government present. Both countries have multi-party representation in Parliament. Possibility of Amendment: British law can be passed, amended and repealed by a simple majority as in India. Judicial configuration: The Removal of judges is the same as in India.

DIFFERENCES

The United Kingdom has an unwritten constitution, only a fraction of which is mentioned in a written document while India has a written constitution. The UK has a flexible constitution and it is a unified state. Political Structure: The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy while India is a republic. Offers dual citizenship in the UK. In the UK, the prime minister must be elected to the lower house, while in India he can be in either house of parliament. Legislative setup : In the UK there is a convention that once a president is always president, so a former president has no political party whereas in India the president is always a member of the party . Parliament has supremacy in the UK while the Indian Constitution has supremacy.

INDIA AND RUSSIA

SIMILARITIES

Executive structure: In both countries, the Prime Minister is appointed by the President. Legislative configuration: The lower house is more powerful, like in India. Both have provisions for fundamental rights.

DIFFERENCES

Political model: Russia has a semi-presidential system of government while India has a parliamentary form of government. Executive Configuration: Russia The Prime Minister performs the duties of the President in the event of resignation or resignation, while the same responsibility rests with the Vice President in the case of India. In Russia, the president cannot serve more than two consecutive terms, but in India there is no such limit. President is more powerful in Russia while prime minister enjoys more power in case of India. The term of the President of Russia is 6 years while the President of India is 5 years. Legislative setup: members of the House of Representatives in Russia are selected according to the proportional representation system while in India they are selected according to a back-and-forth system. Judicial structure: There is no single integrated justice system in Russia as in India.

CONCLUSION

Although many of India’s constitutional features have been adopted by other countries, it is an attempt to ensure that the government is efficient, fair, and accountable. It makes sure that the government follows the law. It establishes a system of checks and balances to ensure that when laws are enacted or amended, the government follows the appropriate legislative process.