Question

State whether true or false: The Constituent Assembly was made up of members of the Congress party.

Answer 1

Answer: The given statement is false. The Constituent Assembly of India had participants from different political parties from all over India.

• The Constitution of India was framed as a result of discussions among members of the constituent assembly.
• To decide the country’s political future, there were a series of meetings among 300 Indians, between December 1946 and November 1949.
• Spread over three years, the members of the constituent assembly debated for 114 days.
• The draft constitution was prepared for discussion.
• Clause by clause there was discussion on the draft constitution.
• The number of amendments that were considered was more than two thousand.
• The Constitution of India was adopted on 26th January 1950.
• Many days were spent by the Constituent Assembly discussing the division of powers between the State Governments and the Central Government.
• Some of the members were of the opinion that more powers should be given to the Centre. They argued that only a centre with sufficient power will be able to think and plan about the development and well-being of the entire nation.
• Other members of the Constituent Assembly were of the opinion that only provinces should be given greater freedom and autonomy.
• Hence the Constituent Assembly came up with the Union List, Concurrent List and State List.
• All the citizens were guaranteed equality before law, irrespective of religion or caste, this was one of the most important features of the Constitution of India.
• Special privileges were offered to the most disadvantaged and poorest sections of Indians by the Constitution of India.
• The Constitution of India adopted the Universal Adult Franchise. Franchise means the right to vote. In the state and national elections, all Indians above the age of 21 years would be allowed to vote. Currently, any Indian citizen above the age of 18 years old is eligible to vote in the elections.
• This was a revolutionary step as Indians were never allowed to choose their own leaders before this provision was granted by the Constitution of India.