Salient features of the constitution

1.      The Bulkiest Constitution: - The Constitution of India is the lengthiest and the most comprehensive of all the written constitutions of the world. It originally consisted of 395 Articles divided into 22 parts and 8 Schedules. After more than ninety amendments[3], now it consists of about 450Articles[4] divided into 24 parts and 12 Schedules. The 7th Amendment Act 1956 repealed Part IX of the Constitution but the 42nd Amendment Act 1976 added two new parts viz., Part IVA (Fundamental Duties) and Part XIV A (Tribunals). The 73rd Amendment Act 1992 reintroduced Part IX with a new title “The Panchayats”. The 24th Amendment Act 1992 added a new part, Part IX A (The Municipalities). The original Constitution had 8 Schedules. The Ninth Schedule was added by the 1st Amendment Act 1951. The Tenth Schedule incorporated under the 52nd Amendment. Act 1985, contains the Anti-defection Law. The Eleventh and Twelfth Schedules were introduced by the 73rd and 74th Amendment Acts, respectively. The following factors have contributed to the bulk of the Constitution: -

a)      The founding fathers of the Constitution had before them the accumulated experience from the working of all the known constitutions of the world, and were aware of the difficulties faced in the working of those constitutions. Thus a number of provisions have been included to avoid some of the difficulties, which were experience in the working of the other constitutions.

b)      The Indian Constitution lays down, unlike the federal constitutions of the U.S.A. and Australia, provisions relating to the governments machinery not only in the Centre but also in the States.

c)      The vastness of the country and the peculiar problems relating to language, scheduled caste and tribes and minorities have contributed to the bulk of the Constitutions.

d)      Apart from laying down just the fundamental principles of governance as many of the constitutions do, the Indian Constitution provides matters of administrative detail.

e)      60% of it is based on the Government of India Act, 1935 which itself was a bulky document.

f)       The inclusion of provisions relating to the governmental machinery not only in the Centre but also in the States.

g)      The detailed provisions relating to Centre-State relations including the emergency provisions.

h)      The special status given to Jammu and Kashmir and other States such as Nagaland, Mizoram, Assam, Gujarat, etc.

i)       The task of reconciling the Parliamentary form of Government as taken From England and the concept of judicial review as borrowed from the U.S.A.

2.      Nature of Government: -The Constitution declares India as a Sovereign, Socialist, and Democratic Republic. According to it the people are the ultimate sovereigns.

3.      Parliamentary form of Government: - The Constitution of India establishes a Parliamentary form of Government both at the Centre and the States. In this respect the makers of the Constitution have followed the British model. The essence of the Parliamentary form of Government is its responsibility to the legislature. The President is the constitutional head of the State. The real executive power is vested in the Council of Ministers whose head is the Prime Minister. The Council of Ministers is collectively responsible to the Lower House, i.e. Lok Sabha. The members of the Lok Sabha are elected directly by the people on the basis of adult franchise normally for 5 years. The position is the same in the States. This Government is, therefore, called a responsible Government. On the other hand, the American Constitution establishes a Presidential type of Government based on the Principle of Separation of Powers. The President is the real executive, elected directly by the people for 4 years. All executive powers are vested in him. He is not responsible to the Legislature, i.e., the Congress. The members of his cabinet are not members of the Legislature. They are appointed by the President and therefore responsible to him.

4.      Unique blend of rigidity and flexibility: - A rigid constitution is one which requires a special method of amendment of any of its provisions while in a flexible constitution many of its provisions can be amended by ordinary legislative process. A written constitution is generally said to be rigid. The Indian Constitution though written is sufficiently flexible. It is only a few provisions of the Constitution like provisions relating to Centre-State relations, election of the president etc. that require the consent of at least half of the State legislatures.

5.      Fundamental Rights: - The Constitution declares certain fundamental rights of the individual. The most vital difference between the Indian Constitution and the Government of India Act 1935 is the inclusion of a set of fundamental rights in the Constitution. The fundamental rights seek to protect the rights of individuals or groups of individuals from the State. These rights are meant to ensure the fullest physical, mental, and moral development of an individual and provide those basic freedoms and conditions, which alone can make life worth living. The fundamental rights provided by the Constitution are not absolute rights. They are subject to restrictions. The Constitution has made express provisions dealing with such restrictions of Fundamental Rights as are necessary in the public interest. Thus the Constitution tries to strike a balance between the individual liberty and the social interest. But mere declaration of certain Fundamental Rights will be of no use if there is no machinery for their enforcement. The Constitution, has, therefore, conferred on the Supreme Court the power to grant most effective remedies in the nature of writs of Habeas Corpus, Mandamus, Prohibition, Quo Warranto and Certioraris, whenever such rights are violated.

6.      Directive Principles of State Policy: - One of the most important and unique features of the Indian Constitution is the provision of Directive Principles of State Policy. Their purpose is to secure a truly welfare State in the country. The Directive Principles are the guiding lines, which should guide the State in the formulation of its policy. They are the imperative basis of State policy and are based on the ideals of justice, liberty, equality and fraternity. They provide a code of conduct for the Indian administrators and legislators. However, the Directive Principles, unlike the Fundamental Rights are not enforceable in a Court of Law. Nevertheless according to Dr. B.R. Ambedkar they are fundamental in the governance of the country. The Directive Principles of State Policy and the Fundamental Rights together constitute the conscience of the Constitution, and represent the basic rights inherent in the people of India.

7.      Distribution of Powers: - The Indian Constitution, like the Government of India Act 1935, distributes the legislative subjects on which the Parliament and the state Legislatures can enact laws under three lists. The first list called the Union List enumerates under 99 heads the subjects ever which the Parliament has exclusive control the second list called the State List enumerates under 61 heads the subjects over which the State Legislatures have control and the third list called the Concurrent List containing 52 heads over which both the Parliament and the State Legislatures can make laws. In the event of a conflict between the Union and State laws on Concurrent subjects, the latter must give way to the former to the extent of their contradiction. Under the clause of Residuary Powers, the Constitution confers on the Parliament, the power to enact laws on subjects, which do not fall under any of the three lists. In a federal system, the Residuary Power is generally vested in the States, for example as in the U.S.A. and Australia. In this respect India follows the Canadian system. Further, under certain circumstances the Parliament may enact laws on subjects enumerated under the State List.

8.      Independent Judiciary: - The Indian Constitution has made judiciary truly independent and impartial. There are provisions in the Constitution to ensure its independence. The judiciary is the guardian of the Constitution and the guarantor of freedom of all citizens of India. The Supreme Court of India is the best guarantor of the freedom of Indian Constitution. Judicial review has also been specifically provided for in the Indian Constitution. The acts of the executive or of the legislature can be reviewed and declare null and void by the Courts in case such acts violate the provisions of the Constitution.

9.      Judicial Review: - Judicial review in India is based on the assumption that the Constitution is the supreme law of the land, and all governmental institutions derive their powers from its provisions, must not do anything which is inconsistent with the provisions of the Constitution. In a federal system it is a necessary consequence to have an impartial and independent Judiciary whose basic function is to act as an arbitrator in a dispute arising between the Centre and constituent units. But the framers of the Indian Constitution adopted the Parliamentary form of Government as it obtains in England, where the Parliament is supreme. Since the Indian Constitution is a written one and the form of polity is federal, none of the organs created by the Constitution can be supreme. For this purpose, the Constitution of India has adopted the via media between the American system of Judicial Supremacy and the English principle of Parliamentary Supremacy, by conferring on the judiciary with the power of declaring a law as unconstitutional if it is beyond the competence of the legislature according to the distribution of powers provided by the Constitution or if it is in contravention of the Fundamental Rights guaranteed by the Constitution.

10.    A federation with strong centralizing tendency: -The most remarkable feature of the Indian Constitution is that being a federal Constitution it acquires a unitary character during the time of emergency. During the proclamation of emergency the normal distribution of powers between the Centre and the States undergoes a vital change. The Parliament is empowered to legislate on any subject mentioned in the State List. The Central Government is empowered to give directions to a State as to the manner in which it should exercise its executive powers. The financial arrangements between the Centre and State can also be altered by the Union Government. Thus during the proclamation of emergency, all powers are centralized in the Union Government and the Constitution acquires a unitary character. This combination of federal and unitary systems is a unique feature of the Indian Constitution. It is not only in times of war but also in times of peace that the Constitution can function as unitary.

11.    Adult Suffrage: - The old system of communal electorates has been abolished and the universal adult suffrage has been every adult above 18 years of age has been given the right to elect representatives for the legislatures without prescribing any qualification based either on sex, property, education or the like.

12.    Secularism: - A distinctive feature of the Indian Constitution is that it provides for the establishment of a secular State. Religious toleration is the essence of the secular State. A secular state is logically a democratic State. Freedom, tolerance and equality are its pillars. Every citizen gets equality of opportunity for the realization of his full stature. Regardless of their religious beliefs, all Indian citizens enjoy equal rights. The State cannot discriminate against anyone on the ground of his religion or caste, nor can the State compel anybody to pay taxes for the support of any particular religion. The Constitution regards religion as a private affair of individuals and prohibits the State from interfering with it.

13.    Single citizenship: - The Indian Constitution has established a single and uniform citizenship for the whole of India. It rejects the double citizenship, characteristic of some federal States like the United States. The Indian Constitution does not recognize State citizenship. It provides for a common all-India citizenship.

14.    Single Judiciary: -The Indian Constitution unlike other federal constitutions provides for a single and unified judiciary with the Supreme Court at the apex, the High Courts in the middle and the subordinate courts at the bottom, each organically linked with the courts above. A unified judiciary also means that the decisions of the higher courts are binding on the courts below.

15.    Special provisions for Scheduled Castes and Tribes: -The Indian Constitution has some special provisions for the Scheduled Castes and Tribes in public appointments and reservation of seats in educational institutions and the Union and State Legislatures. These are meant to ensure the development and welfare of the weaker section of society and bring it back to the Indian mainstream of life.

Borrowed features of the Indian Constitution