Constitutional Design Notes
1.The democratic constitution in South Africa
2. Why do we need a constitution?
3. The making of constitution in India
4. The guiding values of the constitution
5. institutional design
1. Democratic constitution in South Africa
Nelson Mandela was sentenced to life imprisonment in 1964 for 28 years.
They were accused of opposing Apartheid system.
Apartheid system
➡️ It was a system of discrimination in South Africa on the basis of skin colour .
➡️ Natives( blacks), coloured and Indians were treated as inferior and not given voting rights.
✔️ Feature
a) Blacks were forbidden to live in white areas.
b) They were allowed to work there only if they have permits.
c) Transportation ,hotels ,hospitals schools, college, libraries and Church were separated for the whites and blacks .This was called segregation
# opposition of apartheid
➡️ The oppressed communities along with their supporters have made an organisation named ANC to led the struggle against it.
➡️ Several countries denounced South Africa as a unjust and racist country.
# Beginning of New Era
➡️After long struggle the leaders of South Africa realised that it would be no longer good to continue such an oppressive system.
➡️ Finally after 28 years of jail Nelson Mandela was released.
➡️A new election was held granting everyone voting right.
➡️And Nelson Mandela was elected as a president .
Forget and Forgive Policy
➡️ After coming to power black leaders appealed to fellow blacks to forgive the whites for atrocities.
➡️ Both parties sat together to form constitution which give right to everyone regardless of the races.
2. Why do we need a constitution ?
Constitution :-- It is a set of written rules that are accepted by all people living together in a country and used to govern the country .
Its needs
a) It generates a degree of trust which is necessary for different people to live together .
b) It specifies the clear guidelines on how our government should be formed in the country.
c) that lays down limits on the power of Government and provides basic rights to its citizens .
d) It helps in maintaining the law and order in the country .
3. Making of the Indian Constitution
In this topic will discuss how constitution for independent India was made.
Challenges
➡️ Like South Africa Indian constitution was also drawn up under very difficult situation.
a) Partition of the Country
The country was born through a partition on the basis of religious differences.
This was very horrible experience for the people as many people were killed and displaced from their Homeland .
b) Problem of Princely States
It was a difficult task to merge princely states with India as the British had given three options.
➡️ Either merge with India or
Pakistan or remain independent.
Conclusion
The makers of the Constitution had anxiety about the present and the future of our society .
#The path to the constitution
Despite all these difficulties there are some advantages for the makers of the Indian Constitution .
a) Agreement about basic ideas
During the freedom struggle they had reached the agreement of how independent India would look like.
Some basic ideas like Universal adult franchise , right to freedom and equality and protection of minority rights were accepted by all.
b) familiarity with colonial administration
The British had introduced very weak legislature but the experience was gained by Indians.
It helped them set up its own institutions.
c) Inspiration from the other countries
our leaders gained confidence to learn from other countries on our own terms.
They were inspired from the French Revolution ,the bill of rights in the US and the socialist revolution in Russia.
Note --They did not just copy it from others without analysing whether it will be applicable in India or not.
#The constituent assembly
An assembly of elected leaders who were responsible for the drafting of the Constitution was called the constituent assembly .
Election to the Assembly -- July 1946
First meeting -- December 1946
Total time taken -- 2 years 11 months and 18 days
26 November 1949 -- It was adopted
26 January 1950 -- It came into effect
Q. Why should we accept the constitution made by this assembly more than 50 years ago?
Ans:- Despite being 50 years old there are some strong reasons to accept the constitution.
a) The constitution does not reflect the views of its members alone. It expresses a broad consensus of its time.
b) The constituent assembly represented the people of India.
However they were chosen by the members of the existing provincial assemblies.
This ensured a fair geographical share of members from all the regions of the country.
c) It included members from different language groups, caste, classes, religions and occupations.
d) The worked in a systematic, open and consensual manner in the following way.
➡️ first -[some basic principles⟩were decided & agreed upon
➡️then–·Dr.Ambedkar (chairman of the drafting committee) prepared a draft constitution for discussion.
➡️ then–·several rounds of discussion took place⟩clause by clause
*Note*- Every document presented and every word spoken in the assembly has been recorded and preserved. These are called 'Constituent Assembly Debates'.
4) The Guiding values of the Indian constitution
To understand the basic philosophy of the constitution we can read the—
a) Views of major leaders on our constitution.
b) What the constitution itself says about its own philosophy-(preamble).
*Preamble*
The constitution begins with a short statement of its basic values. This is called the preamble of constitution.
_Key points_:-
• The basic values that inspired and guided the freedom struggles were included in it.
• They guide all the articles of the Indian constitution.
•The idea of starting the constitution with the preamble was taken from America.
• It is considered the soul of Indian constitution.
" *Preamble of India's constitution* "
WE,THE PEOPLE OF INDIA, having solemnly resolved to constitute India into a SOVEREIGN, SOCIALIST, SECULAR, DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC and to secure to all its citizens:
JUSTICE —Social, economic and political.
LIBERTY—of thought, expression, belief, faith and worship.
EQUALITY— of status and opportunity and to promote among them all
FRATERNITY—assuring the dignity of the individual and the Unity and Integrity of the nation;
#Definition of important words
*-›* Source of the constitution≈
We, the people of India
(the constitution has been drawn up by people through their representatives and
not handed down to them by a king or any outside powers.
*-›* Form= • sovereign, • socialist,• secular,• democratic,• republic.
*-›* Objectives= • justice, • liberty, • equality, • fraternity, • dignity, • unity and integrity.
*# Form*
i)Sovereign:- India is free to take its internal and external decisions.
ii)Socialist:- •Wealth is generated socially and should be shared equally by society.
•The ownership of land and industry should be regulated by the government.
iii)Secular:- •Citizens have complete freedom to follow any religion.
•Government treats all religions beliefs and practices with equal respect.
•There is no official religion of the country.
iv)Democratic:-A form of government where people enjoy equal political rights, elect their rulers and hold them accountable.
v)Republic:-The head of the state is an elected person and not a hereditary position.
*# Objectives*
a) Justice
•Citizens cannot be discriminated on the grounds of caste, religion and gender.
•Social inequalities have to be reduced.
•Government should work for the welfare of all, especially of the disadvantaged groups.
b) Liberty
There are no resonable restrictions on the citizens in
•what they think
•how they wish to express their thoughts and
•the way they wish to take action according to the thought.
c) Equality
•All are equal before the law.
•The government should ensure equal opportunity for all.
d) Fraternity
All of us should behave as if we are members of the some family. No one should treat a fellow citizen as inferior.
e) *Institutional design*
A constitution is not merely a statement of values and philosophy, it is mainly about embodying these into practical arrangements.
Such arrangements are called institutional design.
_Amendments_
The changes in the constitution are called amendments. It is done to update the constitution according to the demands & problems of time.
~ Seminary Classes
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