The Constitution of India

A Constitution is a document containing the set of rules according to which the government of a country is governed. It is the supreme law of the country. All the laws, rules and regulations of the country must be in accordance with the Constitution.

Three basic features of the Constitution are:

1. It lays down the basic structure of the government and its functions.
2. It describes the functions of different organs of the government, their powers and mutual relations.
3. It lays down the fundamental rights and fundamental duties of the citizens.

The Constitution of India was adopted and passed by the Constituent Assembly on November 26, 1949. The Constitution as whole came into force with effect from January 26, 1950.

The Preamble is an introductory part of the Constitution. The ideals of the Constitution are embodied in the Preamble. The Preamble to the Constitution of India reflects the aims and objectives of the Constitution.

The terms 'Socialist' and 'Secular' were added to the Preamble by the 42nd Amendment Act 1976.

India is a country of many religions and this makes the term Secular in the Preamble of the Indian Constitution very significant.

1. India being Secular means that the state does not uphold any religion as the State religion.
2. Every citizen of India has the liberty to profess, practice and propagate any religion of his or her choice.
3. The country does not favour or promote any particular religion. It does not discriminate against anybody on the basis of religion.
4. This has been ensured by incorporating freedom of religion in the Fundamental Rights.

(a) Sovereign State — The term 'Sovereign' refers to the independent authority of a state. In a sovereign country, the government has the supreme power to legislate on any subject without any external interference into its internal affairs by any other country.

(b) Socialist State — The term socialist refers to the economic and social equality in a country. This has been ensured in the Constitution of India by inserting the word 'socialist' in the Preamble by the Constitution (42nd Amendment) Act of 1976.

In a democracy all are equal before law and there is no discrimination on the basis of caste, creed, colour, sex, religion and economic status. Equality is ensured by providing equal opportunities for all round development. All the citizens of India are treated equally before law and are ensured equal protection. Thus we can say that Equality is an ideal of the Indian Constitution.

(a) The objectives of the Constitution with reference to Justice as provided by Preamble are:

• Political justice implies that all the citizens of the country possess equal opportunities to participate in the political process. As stated earlier this is done through Universal Adult Franchise under which every adult citizen of 18 years and above has the right to vote.
• Social justice implies that all the citizens are equal in the eyes of law and no discrimination is made on the basis of caste, creed, race, religion and sex.
• Economic justice means fair distribution of resources amongst all those who contribute towards its production. This can be achieved by enhancing national wealth and resources, by creating more employment opportunities and thereby, bridging the gap between the rich and the poor.

(b) The Preamble implies that in a democracy, citizens should have certain Fundamental Rights. These basic rights are necessary for a free and civilised existence. Indian citizens are given freedom of thought, expression, belief, faith and worship.

(a) The Preamble to the Constitution of India serves two purposes:

1. It indicates the source from which the Constitution derives its authority.
2. It states the objects which the Constitution seeks to establish and promote.

(b) 'We the People of India' in the Preamble means the constitution of India derives its power and authority from the people of the country. It indicates that the Constitution of India has been made by the people of India through their elected representatives in the Constituent Assembly.

(c) Democratic - India has a democratic government, i.e., the people of India govern themselves through the elected representatives in the Parliament at the centre and Legislature in each State. These representatives are elected after every five years through universal adult franchise, i.e., by the vote of all the adults of 18 years and above according to the principle of 'one man, one vote'. No discrimination is made on the basis of sex, caste, creed or religion.

Republic - A Republic is a state, which does not have a hereditary King or Queen, but has an elected head. In our country, the head of the state, i.e., the President is elected by the members of the two Houses of Parliament and the State Legislative Assemblies. His term of office is five years. He is not a hereditary head as in other countries like Great Britain where the Queen or the Monarch is the head of the State.