Question

Give reasons why we should accept the constitution made by the Constituent Assembly more than fifty years ago.

Answer 1

(i) The Constitution of India does not reflect the views of its members alone. It expresses a broad consensus of its time. Many countries of the world have had to rewrite their constitution afresh because the basic values were not accepted to all major social groups or political parties. In some other countries, the constitution exists as a mere piece of paper. No one actually follows it. The experience of our constitution is different. Over the last half a century, several groups have questioned some provisions of the constitution. But no large social group or political party has ever questioned the legitimacy of the constitution itself.

(ii) The Constituent Assembly represented the people of India. There was no universal adult franchise at that time. So, the Constituent Assembly could not have been chosen directly by all the people of India. It was elected mainly by the members of existing Provincial Legislatures. This ensured a fair geographical share of members from all the regions of the country.

(iii) The Constituent Assembly was dominated by the Indian National Congress, the party that led India's freedom struggle. But the Congress itself included a variety of political groups and opinions. The Assembly had many members who did not agree with the Congress.

(iv) In social terms too, the Assembly represented members from different languages, groups, castes, classes, religions and occupations.

(v) The manner in which the Constituent Assembly worked gives sanctity to the constitution. The Assembly worked in a systematic, open and consensual manner. First, some basic principles were decided and agreed upon. Then a Drafting Committee prepared a draft constitution for discussion. Several rounds of thorough discussion took place on the Draft Constitution, clause by clause. More than two thousand amendments were considered. The members deliberated for 114 days spread over three years. Every document presented and every word spoken in the Constituent Assembly has been recorded and preserved. These are called 'Constituent Assembly Debates'. These debates provide the rationale behind every provision of the Constitution.