In this article, we will learn about the enactment of the Indian constitution. The making of the Indian constitution will also be discussed step-by-step. This article will help the students of Civics and Political Science in understanding the various important thing of the country according to which the whole nation is working.
Making of The Indian Constitution
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The constitution of a country is composed and written by a body as per the requirements of the nation which is called as Constituent Assembly. To draft the constitution is the sole purpose of the constituent assembly. Indian Constitution is also drafted by the constituent assembly. The timeline of how the Indian constitution was enacted is written below:
Time Period |
Framing of the Constitution |
1922 |
A joint meeting by Annie Besant decided to call for a convention for the framing of the constitution. |
1925 |
Commonwealth of India Bill was introduced in British Parliament. It is considered as one of the major efforts taken by Indians for the constitution. |
1928 |
Motilal Nehru Report came which is considered as a first major effort for the full-fledged constitution. |
1930-32 |
Three round table conferences were held in this period regarding constitutional reforms. |
1934 |
Proposal for establishment of Constituent Assembly given by M.N. Roy for the first time. |
1937-39 |
The working committee of Congress demanded the Constituent Assemble several times in this period. |
1940 |
August offer – British Government accepted the demand. |
1942 |
Cripps Mission was failed as it didn’t satisfy the demands regarding the constituent assembly of the Congress and the Muslim League. |
1945 |
Simla Conference. |
1946 Jan-May |
Finally, the Constituent Assembly was formed on Cabinet mission’s recommendations. |
1946 July-Aug |
Elections for Constituent Assembly. |
1946 Nov-Dec |
Assembly was formed in Nov 1946 and met on 9 Dec 1946 for the first time and objective resolution was moved by Jawahar Lal Nehru on Dec 13. |
1947 Jan |
Objective Resolution was passed. |
1947 Aug |
Indian Independence Act, 1947 |
1947 Nov |
They met for the first time as legislatures. |
1948 |
Discussions on the draft constitution started. |
Till 1949 |
Third and final reading of the draft. |
26 Nov 1949 |
The draft Constitution was passed and signed by the members. |
1950 Jan |
Constitution came into force on 26 Jan1950 and India became a republic. |
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Constituent Assembly
Constituent Assembly is a body that drafts the constitution. The constituent assembly of India was partly nominated and partly elected body. Total members of this body before independence were 389. The members who were from British India were indirectly elected and representatives from Princely states were nominated. They were divided as follows:
296 Members |
British India |
93 Members |
Princely States |
After adopting the Mountbatten plan of Independence and Partition, the strength of this body was reduced as follows:
299 |
Total Members |
229 |
British India |
70 |
Princely States |
Important Committees
Writing the constitution of a country like India was not an easy task. Therefore, a number of the committee were made to divide the work so that everything would be done effectively and efficiently. Some of the Important committees were as follows:
Name of the Committee |
Chairman |
Committee on the Rules of Procedure |
Rajendra Prasad |
Committee on the Functions of the Constituent Assembly |
G.V. Mavalankar |
Union Powers Committee or Union Constitution Committee |
Jawaharlal Nehru |
Drafting Committee |
B.R. Ambedkar |
Finance and Staff Committee |
Rajendra Prasad |
Order of Business Committee |
K.M. Munshi |
Fundamental Rights Sub-Committee |
J.B. Kripalani |
Drafting Committee
This committee was incorporated on 29 Aug, 1947 and the chairman of this committee was Dr. B.R. Ambedkar. He is also regarded as the father of our Indian Constitution. In the making of the Indian Constitution, this committee plays an important role by drafting the whole constitution. There were 7 members in this committee which are written below:
T.T. Krishnamachari joined this committee after the death of D.P. Khaitan and N.Madhab Rao joined the committee by replacing B.L.Mitter because of Mitter’s bad health. The drafting committee submitted their report on Feb 21, 1948, and then the assembly held discussions on it. Later new draft was presented by the committee on Nov 4, 1948. The committee met for 114 days to draft the constitution overall.
Summary of The Constitutional Design
The members of the Constituent Assembly created the Constitution after a great hard work of many days. It took 2 years, 11 months and 17 days to complete it. That’s why our constitution is the lengthiest in the whole world. Each article or provision is included in it after a lot of debates and discussions. The crux of the Indian Constitution can be seen in the Preamble of India. If powers are given to someone then restrictions are also there.
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Did You Know?
The original Indian constitution had 1 Preamble, 8 schedules, 22 Parts and 395 Articles and it is the lengthiest constitution in the world. India has taken different provisions from different countries.
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