Important Amendments

To understand the Important Amendments to the Indian constitution you have first to know that amendments to the Constitution of India is the process of making modifications to the country’s fundamental law, which is also known as the supreme law. The procedure of amending the Constitution is set out by the Part of XX (Article 368) of the Constitution of India. 

But, there is a second restriction imposed on the power to amend Constitutional law in India that was enacted amid conflicts between Parliament and the Supreme Court Parliament, in which Parliament seeks to exercise discretionary powers to alter the Constitution. At the same time, the Supreme Court wants to restrict this power. The result is the layout of various doctrines and guidelines for determining the legality and validity of amendments. One of these is the basic structure doctrine formulated in the Supreme Court in the case of Kerala.

Important Amendment of Indian Constitution

In Article 368 of the Indian Constitution, the Parliament has the power to amend the Constitution and the procedures it follows. Modifications of the Indian Constitution are not easy to come up with and must comply with other laws. Article 368 confers Parliament’s power to modify the Constitution while keeping its basic structure the same. In Article 368, the Constitution of India cites two kinds of amendments to the Constitution of India. One, total amendment in the Indian constitution can be made by a simple legislature majority (Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha) and the second kind of amendment is made by a majority of the parliamentary, or a third one is with the consent of a specific majority and half of the entire state.

Modifying procedure

• Amendments can only be made by introducing a bill to accomplish the aim in any of the houses of the Parliament

• The bill may be introduced by a minister or private members and does not require the consent of the President

• The bill must be approved in each house with an enumerable majority, which is more than a majority of House members, and the majority of two-thirds of the members present and voting

• Each house must approve the bill in its way. If there is a disagreement, the bill cannot be passed for a joint sitting of the houses

• If the legislation seeks to modify the Constitution’s provisions, the bill must be ratified by the legislatures in half of the states with a simple majority

• After both houses have approved it, it’s presented by the President to him for signature

Criticism of the amendment procedure

• The Parliament may invoke an amendment only

• The procedure is quite impervious if a member of the private sector of the Parliament would like to introduce an amendment to the Constitutional Code

• Even the constitutive power of the Parliament grants the ruling party more chance of passing amendments if they have the necessary figures in both Parliaments. This could lead to legislation passing in a rush method

• The state’s consent is limited to some clauses

• No date or time frame has been set in the Constitution to allow states to ratify or deny the amendment bill

List of Amendments in Indian Constitution

• First Amendment Act, 1951

• Second Amendment Act, 1952

• Seventh Amendment Act, 1956

• Ninth Amendment Act, 1960

• Tenth Amendment Act, 1961

• 12th Amendment Act, 1962

• 13th Amendment Act, 1962

• 14th Amendment Act, 1962

• 19th Amendment Act, 1966

• 21st Amendment Act, 1967

• 24th Amendment Act, 1971

• 25th Amendment Act, 1971

• 26th Amendment Act, 1971

• 31st Amendment Act, 1972

• 35th Amendment Act, 1974

• 36th Amendment Act, 1975

• 40th Amendment Act, 1976

• 42nd Amendment Act, 1976

• 52nd Amendment Act, 1985

• 61st Amendment Act, 1989

• 65th Amendment Act, 1990

• 69th Amendment Act, 1991

• 71st Amendment Act, 1992

• 73rd Amendment Act, 1992

• 86th Amendment Act, 2002

• 88th Amendment Act, 2003

• 92nd Amendment Act, 2003

• 95th Amendment Act, 2009

• 97th Amendment Act, 2011

• 100th Amendment Act, 2015

• 101st Amendment Act, 2016

• 102nd Amendment Act, 2018

• 103rd Amendment Act, 2019

• 104th Amendment Act, 2020

Reason for Amendment Procedure

The world is not stationary; it’s constantly changing. The Constitution must be changed as shown in the list of amendments in the Indian constitution as in 2021. The cultural, social and political conditions are shifting. If constitutional amendments weren’t made and implemented, we might not be able to face future challenges and could become a hindrance to progress. There’s a reason our founding fathers drafted the Constitution as solid as it is present. It’s to ensure that the plan changes in line with the country’s development. So, by Article 368 of the Constitution, Parliament’s power for amending constitutions are unrestricted for the sections of the Constitution it would like to amend.

Conclusion

While it was still young, it has been seven years since the Indian Constitution has seen significant changes during those seven years. The total amendments of the Indian constitution have changed the fundamental aspects of the Constitution, including human rights and federalism, political participation and judicial scrutiny, among others. They were never made to enhance constitutional rights. India’s constitutional path through the past 70 years has seen the weakening of our fundamental freedoms. These adjustments were made to our political system, the impact of fundamental degradation played by various institutional structures, and the fight to defend our constitutional ethics. This democracy has its backbone in the Constitution.