Framing the Constitution

2.1 Core concepts

• The Indian Constitution came into effect on 26 January 1950, is the longest in the world, and was framed between December 1946 and November 1949 in an Assembly that held 11 sessions spread over 165 days (NCERT §Intro, pp. 316–317).
• The Constitution was signed in December 1949 after three years of debate; Fig. 12.1 records this signing scene (NCERT §Intro, p. 316).
• Section 1 (“A Tumultuous Time”) places the Assembly’s work against Partition violence, Quit India 1942, the Royal Indian Navy ratings’ rising of spring 1946, the Great Calcutta Killings of August 1946 and the problem of princely states whose constitutional status had become ambiguous when the British left (NCERT §1, pp. 317–318).
• Members of the Constituent Assembly were not elected on universal franchise; provincial elections of winter 1945-46 were followed by the Provincial Legislatures choosing the representatives to the Constituent Assembly (NCERT §1.1, p. 318).
• The Congress swept general seats and the Muslim League most reserved Muslim seats, but the League boycotted the Assembly, the Socialists also initially stayed out, and 82 per cent of Assembly members were ultimately Congressmen — though Congress itself was not single-voiced (NCERT §1.1, pp. 318–319).
• Public opinion shaped the deliberations — linguistic minorities wanted protection of mother tongue, religious minorities sought safeguards, dalits demanded an end to caste oppression and reservation in government bodies (NCERT §1.1, pp. 319–320).
• The Assembly had 300 members; six played dominant roles — Nehru, Vallabhbhai Patel, Rajendra Prasad (the three Congress leaders), and B. R. Ambedkar with K. M. Munshi (Gujarat) and Alladi Krishnaswamy Aiyar (Madras); B. N. Rau (Constitutional Advisor) and S. N. Mukherjee (Chief Draughtsman) gave vital civil-servant assistance (NCERT §1.2, pp. 320–321).
• Ambedkar — a former political opponent of the Congress — was, on Mahatma Gandhi’s advice, asked to join the Union Cabinet as Law Minister and served as Chairman of the Drafting Committee; he was responsible for guiding the Draft Constitution through the Assembly (NCERT §1.2, pp. 320–321).
• The printed record of the discussions runs to eleven bulky volumes; the box on p. 320 lists key committees and their presidents — Rules of Procedure (Rajendra Prasad), Union Powers (Nehru), Union Constitution (Nehru), Provincial Constitution (Patel), Steering (Rajendra Prasad), Drafting (Ambedkar), Flag (J. B. Kripalani), States (Nehru), Advisory (Patel), Fundamental Rights Sub-Committee (Kripalani), Minorities Sub-Committee (H. C. Mookerjee) (NCERT §1.2, p. 320).
• The Objectives Resolution was moved by Nehru on 13 December 1946; it proclaimed India to be an “Independent Sovereign Republic”, guaranteed justice, equality and freedom and assured “adequate safeguards … for minorities, backward and tribal areas, and Depressed and Other Backward Classes” (NCERT §2, p. 322; Source 1, pp. 322–323).
• Nehru explained that the word “democratic” was not used because the word “republic” was thought to contain it; he also said India would move towards a Socialist State (Source 1, pp. 322–323).
• Nehru deliberately located Indian constitution-making within the longer history of the American and French Revolutions and the Russian Revolution, saying “We are not going just to copy” (NCERT §2, pp. 322–324).
• Communist member Somnath Lahiri argued the Assembly was working under the shadow of British guns and that Indian deliberations were still constrained by the British Plan; Nehru replied that governments are the expression of the will of the people (Source 2 and adjoining text, pp. 325–326).
• The earlier Acts of 1909, 1919 and 1935 had gradually enlarged Indian participation in provincial governments; under the 1935 Act the executive was almost entirely responsible to the provincial legislature, but the electorate remained limited to 10–15 per cent of the adult population — there was no universal adult franchise (NCERT §2.1, pp. 326–327).
• Section 3 (“Defining Rights”) opens with B. Pocker Bahadur of Madras pleading on 27 August 1947 for the continuation of separate electorates so that minorities could have meaningful representation (NCERT §3.1, pp. 327–328).
• R. V. Dhulekar, Sardar Patel and Govind Ballabh Pant opposed separate electorates; Patel called them a “poison that has entered the body politic”, while Pant said they were “suicidal” to minorities themselves (NCERT §3.1, pp. 328–329; Sources 3 and 4).
• Begum Aizaz Rasul opposed separate electorates as self-destructive; by 1949 most Muslim members of the Constituent Assembly agreed that separate electorates were against the interests of the minorities (NCERT §3.1, pp. 329–330).
• N. G. Ranga argued that the term minorities should be defined in economic terms — the real minorities were the poor, downtrodden, the tribals dispossessed by merchants and money-lenders, and rights would need much more than the Resolution (NCERT §3.2, pp. 330–331; Source 6).
• The tribal leader Jaipal Singh, an Adibasi orator, welcomed the Objectives Resolution but stressed that tribals had been “disgracefully treated, neglected for the last 6,000 years”; he asked not for separate electorates but for reservation of seats in the legislature (NCERT §3.2, pp. 332).
• Section 3.3 deals with the Depressed Castes — J. Nagappa pointed out that Depressed Castes were not numerically a minority (20–25 per cent of the population); their suffering was due to systematic marginalisation; after Partition Ambedkar too dropped his earlier demand for separate electorates for Depressed Castes (NCERT §3.3, pp. 332–333).
• The Constituent Assembly finally recommended that untouchability be abolished, Hindu temples be thrown open to all castes, and seats in legislatures and jobs in government offices be reserved for the lowest castes (NCERT §3.3, p. 333).
• Hansa Mehta of Bombay (Source 8) demanded justice for women — not reserved seats or separate electorates — but social, economic and political justice and equality (NCERT §3.3, p. 333; Source 8).
• Section 4 (“The Powers of the State”) records that the Draft Constitution provided three lists — Union, State and Concurrent — with many more items under exclusive Union control than in other federations and Article 356 giving the Centre power to take over a state administration on the Governor’s recommendation (NCERT §4, p. 334).
• The Constitution also created a complex fiscal federalism — customs and Company taxes wholly to the Centre, income tax and excise duties shared, estate duties wholly to the states; states could levy land/property taxes, sales tax and the “hugely profitable tax on bottled liquor” (NCERT §4, p. 334).
• K. Santhanam of Madras argued that overloading the Centre would not strengthen it and that the proposed allocation would impoverish provinces; an Orissa member warned that “the centre is likely to break” (NCERT §4.1, pp. 334–335; Source 9).
• Ambedkar declared he wanted a Centre much stronger than under the Government of India Act 1935; Gopalaswami Ayyangar and Balakrishna Sharma supported a strong Centre to control communal violence, mobilise resources and defend the country (NCERT §4.2, pp. 335–336).
• Before Partition the Congress had agreed to grant considerable autonomy to provinces to assure the Muslim League; after Partition the nationalists shifted, and the Constitution showed a distinct bias towards the rights of the Union over those of its constituent states (NCERT §4.2, pp. 335–336).
• Section 5 (“The Language of the Nation”) — by the 1930s the Congress had accepted Hindustani (a blend of Hindi and Urdu) as the national language; Mahatma Gandhi felt it could unify Hindus and Muslims and north and south because it was a composite multi-cultural language (NCERT §5, p. 336).
• From the late 19th century, Hindi was being Sanskritised and Urdu Persianised; as communal conflicts deepened, language became associated with religious identities (NCERT §5, p. 336).
• R. V. Dhulekar of the United Provinces aggressively pleaded that Hindi (not Hindustani) be used as the language of constitution-making and even said members who did not know Hindustani should leave (NCERT §5.1, p. 337).
• On 13 September 1949 the Language Committee’s compromise was reported — Hindi in the Devanagari script would be the official language; for the first fifteen years, English would continue for all official purposes; each province could choose one of the regional languages for provincial work (NCERT §5.1, p. 337).
• G. Durgabai from Madras (§5.2) reported strong southern opposition; T. A. Ramalingam Chettiar warned that pushing Hindi aggressively would leave bitter feelings; Shankarrao Deo of Bombay supported Hindustani but warned against “raising suspicions” (NCERT §5.2, pp. 338–339).
• Two central features won broad agreement — universal adult franchise (a vote to every adult Indian, unprecedented in scale) and an emphasis on secularism, expressed in Fundamental Rights Articles 25–28 (freedom of religion), 29–30 (cultural and educational rights) and 14, 16, 17 (rights to equality) (NCERT §Conclusion, pp. 339–340).
• The Indian variant of political secularism is described as “no absolute separation of State from religion, but a kind of judicious distance between the two” (NCERT §Conclusion, p. 340).
• Timeline highlights — 16 May 1946 Cabinet Mission announces constitutional scheme; 16 August 1946 Muslim League’s Direct Action Day; 9 December 1946 Constituent Assembly begins its sessions; 29 January 1947 Muslim League demands dissolution of the Constituent Assembly; December 1949 Constitution is signed (NCERT Timeline, p. 341).

2.2 Definitions to memorise

2.3 Diagrams / processes to remember

• Fig. 12.1 — The Constitution being signed in December 1949 after three years of debate (p. 316).
• Fig. 12.2 — Images of desolation and destruction that haunted Constituent Assembly members (p. 317).
• Fig. 12.3 — Nehru speaking in the Constituent Assembly at midnight on 14 August 1947, with the “tryst with destiny” passage (p. 318).
• Fig. 12.4 — The Constituent Assembly in session, with Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel sitting second from right (p. 319).
• Fig. 12.5 — B. R. Ambedkar presiding over a discussion of the Hindu Code Bill (p. 321).
• Fig. 12.6 — Members of the Interim Government with front row identifying Baldev Singh, John Mathai, C. Rajagopalachari, Nehru, Liaquat Ali Khan, Vallabhbhai Patel, I. I. Chundrigar, Asaf Ali, C. H. Bhabha (p. 325).
• Box on p. 320 — “Important Committees of the Constituent Assembly and Presidents” listing all the committees and their chairs.
• Box on pp. 332 — “List of women members of the constituent assembly” naming 15 women including Ammu Swaminathan, Annie Mascarene, Begum Aizaz Rasul, Dakshayani Velayudhan, Hansa Mehta, Sarojini Naidu, Sucheta Kripalani, Vijayalakshmi Pandit.
• Fig. 12.9 — Ambedkar and Rajendra Prasad greeting each other at the time of the handing over of the Constitution (p. 340).
• Timeline box on p. 341 — Key dates from 26 July 1945 (Labour Government in Britain) to December 1949 (Constitution is signed).

2.5 Timeline / Key events

2.4 Common confusions / NTA trap points

• “Constitution came into force” = 26 January 1950, but Constitution was signed in December 1949 and adopted through three years of debate beginning 9 December 1946 — distractors often switch these dates.
• The Constituent Assembly was not elected by universal adult franchise; members were chosen by Provincial Legislatures (themselves elected on a restricted franchise of 10–15 per cent of adults) — NTA frequently swaps this with “universal adult franchise”.
• Nehru introduced the Objectives Resolution on 13 December 1946 — distractors swap this with the date of signing or the date of first sitting (9 December 1946).
• Ambedkar chaired the Drafting Committee; Rajendra Prasad presided over the Assembly. Munshi and Alladi Krishnaswamy Aiyar were on the Drafting Committee as lawyers — NTA likes to swap these committee roles.
• Patel chaired the Provincial Constitution Committee and the Advisory Committee (per the box on p. 320), not the Drafting Committee.
• “Hindi in the Devanagari script” was declared the official language (not the “national” language) — distractors often substitute “national”.
• The transition to Hindi was to be gradual with English continuing for fifteen years for all official purposes — distractors may write “ten years” or claim immediate replacement.
• Begum Aizaz Rasul opposed separate electorates — distractors paint her as a supporter; B. Pocker Bahadur was the one defending separate electorates.