Constitution of India - an Overview

Constitution of India

The Indian Constitution stands as a beacon of democracy and unity, embodying the aspirations and values of a diverse nation.?

Historical Background

The Indian Constitution, being the Supreme Law of the Land, was enacted on November 26, 1949. The Constituent Assembly of India adopted the Constitution of India, which came into effect on January 26, 1950. It is the world's longest constitution. For the enactment of the Constitution, it took 165 long days - almost 2 years, 11 months, and 18 days to complete this historic task. Dr. B. R. Ambedkar was the chairman of the Constitution drafting committee. At the time of its adoption, the Constitution contained 395 articles, of which eight were scheduled. It is the document that provides guidelines for the government to follow its principles.

Challenges and Amendments

The Constitution of India defines its ‘Basic structure’ in terms of federalism, secularism, fundamental rights, and democracy. It provides judicial review to safeguard the citizen's liberties and to preserve the ideals on which the Constitution is based. Art. 14 and 21? right to equality and the right to life is available not only to its citizens but also to foreign nationals. The Constitution is federal in the sense that it distributes its powers to the states and allows for the accommodation of diversity and regional autonomy with a larger political unit. The Indian Constitution establishes a federal system with some unitary features, and it is sometimes called a quasi-federal system, as it contains elements of both the federation and the union. Constitution contains the emergency provisions, and during an emergency, it also changes its structure. The Constitution has been amended many times, and now it contains 448 articles.

The latest amendment, 106th, was made in 2023, and it deals with the women’s reservation in LokSabha, the State Legislative Assembly of the National Capital Territory of Delhi. The Constitution is supreme in the sense, that any law that violates the constitutional provisions becomes void abinitio. i.e., parliament has no power to make a law that violates the Constitution. The Indian Supreme Court is considered to be the guardian of the Constitution in general.?

Academical Exploration

Expanding the scope of fundamental rights and addressing historical injustices, the Indian Constitution serves as a foundation principle of democracy to uplift the ideals. To have a detailed structure of study on ‘Indian Constitution’ academically, check out the various LL.B & LL.M courses offered by SRM School of Law. Thereby, future lawyers are trained in such a way as to have a deep level of understanding of the Indian Constitution, a core subject.?

Start your legal landscape through SRM School of Law.