Constituent Assembly: Debates, Composition and Committee

The Constituent Assembly is a gathering of publicly elected delegates that meet to draft the constitution. It is chosen by the people. It was built for a specific purpose and for a limited period. It disintegrated after a certain amount of time. It’s a type of democratic representation.

Constituent Assembly Debates

On December 9, 1946, the Constituent Assembly convened for the first time. The Assembly met for a total of 166 days over the following two years and eleven months to draft the Indian Constitution. The Constituent Assembly had its final session on January 24, 1950.

The whole transcripts of the Constituent Assembly discussions have been preserved and printed. The transcripts are organized into 12 volumes, each relating to a certain time period. The volumes are further split by date, allowing visitors to see all of the arguments that occurred on a certain date.

Composition Of Constituent Assembly

• The Constituent Assembly intended to have 389 members in total. British India was to receive 296 seats, while the princely kingdoms would receive 93. 292 members were required to be picked from eleven governors’ provinces.  Four members were to be picked from the four Chief Commissioners’ provinces, one member was from each, out of the 296 seats given to British India.

• Seats were to be allocated in proportion to the population of each province and state. This was considered as a group of states in the case of minor states. Every million individuals were intended to get one seat.

• Seats assigned to each British jurisdiction were to be divided between the three major community sections –Muslims, Sikhs, and Generals–in line with their numbers.

• Members of each section of the community were required to vote for their members in the legislative assembly of the respective province using the proportional voting method and a single handy vote.

• The delegates of the states were required to be elected by the rulers of the states. As a result, it is evident that the Constituent Assembly had to become a body that was to be elected in part and appointed in part. Furthermore, the delegates were required to be chosen indirectly by members of the legislation of the province, who were to be chosen on a restricted franchise.

Committees Of Constituent Assembly

The Constituent Assembly gathered for the first time in 1946 in New Delhi, at the Constitution Hall, presently known as the Central Hall of Parliament House. The Indian Constitution was developed by a group of distinguished individuals from diverse areas.

Dr. B R Ambedkar was the principal architect of India’s Constitution. According to Article 395, the Government of India Act of 1935 and the Indian Independence Act of 1947 were abolished with the adoption of the Indian Constitution.

The Constituent Assembly formed 22 committees to handle various aspects of the Constitution-making process. There were ten on procedural matters and twelve on substantive matters.

Major Committees Of The Indian Constitution

• Drafting committee

• Committees of Procedural affairs

• Committees of substantive affairs

The Drafting Committee had Dr. BR Ambedkar as the chairman and a few of the distinguished members were KM Munshi, Alladi Krishnaswami Ayyar, and Dr. DP Khaitan.

The Committees of Procedural affairs include:

• Committee on the effect of the Indian Independence Act of 1947

• Steering Committee

• House Committee

• Urdu Translation Committee

• Press Gallery Committee

• Hindi Translation Committee

• Finance and Staff Committee

• Rules of Procedure Committee

• Orders of Business Committee Credentials Committee

The Committees of substantive affairs includes:

• House Committee

• Drafting Committee

• Committee on the Rules of Procedure

• Minorities Sub-Committee

• Advisory Committee on Fundamental Rights,

• Order of Business Committee

• Union Constitution Committee

• Finance and Staff Committee

• Ad hoc Committee on the National flag

• Committee on Minorities and Tribal and Excluded Areas

• Steering Committee

Conclusion

We know about constituent assembly debates, the composition of the constituent assembly, committees of the constituent assembly, and other topics related to Constituent Assembly: Debates, Composition, and Committee.

In 1946, India’s Constituent Assembly was founded to establish the country’s constitution. M.N. Roy initially proposed it in 1934, and it was based on the Cabinet Mission Plan. Every document submitted at the Constituent Assembly, as well as every word said, has been documented and preserved. These are called ‘Constituent Assembly Debates’. These arguments are 12 thick volumes that are printed. These debates explain the reasoning behind each clause of the Constitution.