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The Indian Constitution is unique in both text and spirit; it is an amalgamation of numerous international Constitutions, incorporating the most suitable features that fit the Indian system. The Indian Constitution contains several distinctive characteristics that makes it unique from the constitutions of other countries.
The following are the major aspects of the Indian Constitution and important articles of the Indian Constitution:
1. Lengthiest Written Constitution
- In contrast to the Britain Constitution, the Indian Constitution is based on the American Constitution, which is a written document
- India’s Constitution is the heaviest of all the world’s written constitutions. It comprised 395 articles in 22 parts and 8 schedules when it was enacted
- There are 448 articles (split into 25 parts) and 12 schedules in the current version
- When compared to all other written constitutions throughout history, why is India’s Constitution so lengthy
- Geographical factor: The country’s great size and complexity
- The legacy of the Government of India Act, 1935, was massive in and of itself
- Both the federal government and the states would be governed by a single Constitution
- In the Constituent Assembly, the supremacy of legal luminaries
- The Constitution enumerates different administrative laws as well as the fundamental principles of administration
- In India, issues that would normally be left to regular legislation in other modern democratic countries have been included in the Constitutional itself
- Future-oriented: Several elements have been worked out in great depth to eliminate any future concerns
2. Blend of Rigidity and Flexibility
- There are two types of constitutions: rigid and flexible
- A rigid Constitution demands a specialized amending method. (Take the United States Constitution, for example.)
- A flexible Constitution can be changed in the same way as regular legislation may. (Take, for example, the British Constitution.)
- The Indian Constitution is neither rigid nor flexible; rather, it is a well-thought-out blend of the two
3. Drawn From Various Sources
- Dr. B. R. Ambedkar proudly claimed that the Indian Constitution was drafted after “ransacking all known Constitutions of the World’
- The structural element of the Constitution was created by the Government of India Act of 1935, whilst the philosophical part (the Fundamental Rights as well as the Directive Principles of State Policy) is credited to the American and Irish Constitutions, respectively
- It’s a political component that is based on the British Constitution
4. Federal System with Unitary Bias
- The Indian Constitution established a federal government. The term ‘federation,’ on the other hand, is not included in the Constitution
- Two governments, separation of powers, an independent judiciary, and bicameralism are all elements of the federal government
- In contrast, the Indian constitution articles have a substantial number of unitary or non-federal components
- Features of a non-federal or unitary state include a strong central government, a single constitution, single citizenship, the nomination of state governors by the central government, all-India services, and emergency laws, among others
- The Indian Constitution has been succinctly summarized as follows:
- In form, it is federal, but in essence, it is unitary in nature
- Quasi-federal
- Federation that works together
- The Federation has a propensity to centralize
5. Parliamentary Form of Government
- The Indian Constitution’s forefathers preferred the British “parliamentary System” over the American presidential form of government
- The parliamentary system is founded on the principles of collaboration and coordination between the legislative and executive branches of government
- The presidential system is founded on the philosophy of separation of powers (i.e. separation of Legislative and Executive organs)
6. Combination of Judicial Supremacy and Parliamentary Sovereignty
- The “doctrine of Parliamentary supremacy” is important to the British Parliament, while the “principle of judicial supremacy” is important to the American Supreme Court
- The Indian parliamentary system is a hybrid of the British parliamentary supremacy concept and the American judicial supremacy idea
- Through its judicial review power, the Supreme Court can declare parliamentary laws invalid, thus superseding them
- Through its constituent authority, Parliament can make amendments in the major parts of the Constitution
7. Fundamental Rights
- The Fundamental Rights Act serves as a check on the executive’s tyranny and the legislature’s arbitrary laws, while also encouraging political democracy. There are six fundamental rights (Article 12 – 35) recognized by the Indian constitution.
- They are justiciable, which means that they can be enforced by the courts if they are violated in any scenario.
- Fundamental rights are not absolute and are susceptible to reasonable limitations; they are also not inviolable and can be limited without affecting the basic structure of the Indian constitution or repealed by Parliament through a Constitutional amendment act.
8. Directive Principles of State Policy
- Part IV (Articles 36–51) of the Constitution lists the Directive Principles of State Policy
- These ideas are meant to foster social and economic democracy goals
- The goal is to create a welfare state
- Non-justiciable in nature
- These principles are divided into three groups: Socialist, Gandhian and Liberal-Intellectual
9. Fundamental Duties
- Part IV-A (Article 51 A) of the Constitution: Fundamental Duties (Total 11)
- Individuals should be aware of the Fundamental Duties enumerated in Part IV-A of the Constitution, while enjoying the advantages of the Fundamental Rights
- All people are obligated under the Fundamental Duties to respect India’s national symbols, especially the Constitution, to appreciate its legacy, conserve its composite culture, and aid in its defence
- The Swaran Singh Committee recommended that the Fundamental Duties should be integrated into the Constitution, and the 42nd Constitutional Amendment Act of 1976 did so
- Another addition was the 86th Constitutional Amendment Act of 2002
- These are inherently unjustifiable
10. Secular State
- India’s constitution guarantees a secular state
- It does not declare any faith to be the Indian State’s official religion
- Secularism in the Western sense refers to a total separation of religion and state
- The Indian notion of secularism calls for equal respect for all religions or equal protection for all religions
11. Universal Adult Franchise
- The Indian Constitution established universal adult franchise as the basis for Lok Sabha and state legislative assembly elections
- Every person over the age of 18 has the right to vote, regardless of caste, ethnicity, religion, sex, literacy, money, or other factors
12. Single Citizenship
- Indian citizenship is the only citizenship recognized by the Constitution
- Each person in the United States is both a citizen of the United States and a citizen of the state in which they live. It is an example of dual citizenship
- In India, every citizen, regardless of where they were born or where they live, has the same political and civil rights as other citizens across the country, and there is no discrimination
13. Independent Bodies
- In addition to the government’s legislative, executive, and judicial branches, the Indian Constitution establishes various independent bodies (both central and state)
- The Election Commission is in charge of making sure that elections to Parliament, state legislatures, the President of India, and the Vice-President of India are free and fair
- The accounts of the national and state governments will be audited by the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India. He serves as a watchdog for the public purse, assessing the legality and appropriateness of government spending
- The Union Public Service Commission is in charge of conducting all-India and higher-level Central examinations, as well as recommending the President on disciplinary measures
- Each State Public Service Commission is in charge of administering state service recruitment examinations and providing disciplinary advice to the Governor
14. Emergency Provisions
- During an emergency, the country’s federal structure is transformed into a unitary one
- National Emergency (Article 352)
State emergency (President’s rule): Based on: - Ineffectiveness of the state’s constitutional machinery (Article 356)
- Failure to follow the Centre’s instructions (Article 365)
- Financial emergency (Article 360)
15. Three-tier Government
- The Indian Constitution originally established a dual polity (Centre and the states)
- The third tier of government was established with the 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendment Acts of 1992. (i.e., local government). It is a characteristic of the Indian Constitution that is not present in any other constitution in the world, i.e. the federal government, state governments, and local governments (Panchayati Raj and Municipal corporation)
- In every state, Part IX of the Constitution establishes a three-tier structure of Panchayati raj, with Panchayats at the village, intermediate, and district levels
- In every state, Part IX-A of the Constitution establishes three types of municipalities: Nagar Panchayats for transitional areas, Municipal Councils for smaller cities, and Municipal Corporations for major cities
16. Co-operative Societies
- The 97th Constitutional Amendment Act of 2011 granted co-operative societies constitutional recognition
- Article 19 of the Indian Constitution, 19 (1) enumerates the fundamental right to form cooperative societies (c)
- Promotion of Cooperative Societies (DPSP) (Article 43-B)
- Part IX-B has been added as a new chapter
- Multi State cooperative societies are regulated by Parliament
Conclusion
On a regular basis, amendments to the Constitution are proposed to be added, deleted, or modified, depending on the situation. Some laws may need to be updated due to their age, while others may need to be updated due to their outdated nature, requiring an update to ensure that they are appropriate for current situations.
