This article is written by Gargi Mishra, a student of 3 semester in Symbiosis Law School, NOIDA, an intern under Legal Vidiya. The title of the article is Salient Features Of Indian Constitution.
ABSTRACT
After a “ransacking” of all prior constitutions, the Indian constitution, considered to be among the most widely recognized constitution in the world, was enacted. A constitution that we adopted has endured the test of time. Even if parts of other constitutions were accepted, there are a number of distinctive features that distinguish the Indian Constitution from those of other nations.
Its salient features are the foundational pillars upon which India’s democratic and constitutional framework rests. These salient features collectively define the Indian Constitution’s essence and its commitment to democracy and justice. They provide a robust framework for governance that has withstood the test of time and societal evolution, making it a cornerstone of India’s democratic journey.
These features include Separation Of Power, Judicial Review, Independent Judicial System, Secularism, Federal And Unitary Government, Rigid or Flexible Constitution and many more to be mentioned. This article mainly focuses on explaining the importance of these features to operate the nation smoothly providing liberty to the citizens of India.
Keywords: Democracy, DPSPs, Quasi Federal, Judicial Review, Federation, Constitutional Amendments, Secularism, Emergency, Separation Of Power, Universal Adult Suffrage.
OBJECTIVES
The main aim of this article to acknowledge the key constituents of the Indian Constitution which makes it unique and different. This is to understand the basic principles governing the nation and providing its citizens liberty and freedom.
INTRODUCTION
“The Indian Constitution, adopted on January 26, 1950,” is a remarkable document that serves as the “supreme law of the land for the world’s largest democracy.” It embodies the aspirations and values of a diverse and vibrant nation. Among its many facets, several salient features distinguish the Indian Constitution, making it a unique and enduring legal framework that continues to guide the nation’s governance.
The Preamble sets the tone for the Constitution, emphasizing justice, liberty, equality, and fraternity as its guiding principles. It reflects the collective dreams and goals of the Indian people. These ideals that form the core of its national identity as an Indian.
The salient features of the Indian Constitution, ranging from its federal structure with a unitary bias to its extensive Bill of Rights, are not just legal provisions; they are instruments of empowerment for the Indian citizenry. These features guarantee fundamental rights, uphold the rule of law, and provide a framework for equitable governance. They establish the framework for a vibrant parliamentary democracy where the people have a voice, the government is held accountable, and the judiciary acts as the guardian of constitutional values which are extensively explained below.
salient features of Indian Constitution are:
- Most Extensive Written Constitution-
Being the longest and most comprehensive constitution in existence, the Indian Constitution is noteworthy. It is, in other terms, the longest written constitution in history. It is skillfully written, lengthy, and complicated document. Both detailed administrative regulations and the guiding principles of government are included in the Indian Constitution. India has one constitution for the federal government and the states.
The Constitution recognizes both enforceable and inadmissible rights.
The following elements helped make the Indian Constitution so massive:
Geographic factors, i.e., the size and diversity of the nation.
Historical aspects, such as the weighty “Government of India Act of 1935” and its influence
The Constituent Assembly’s predominance of eminent lawyers.
- Adopted From A Variety Of Sources–
A significant number of the Indian Constitution’s articles were lifted from those of other countries. like U.K, USA, Canada, Ireland, etc. and also from the “Government of India Act of 1935 (about 250 of the Act’s provisions were included into the Constitution).”
The Indian Constitution, as outlined by Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, was written after “ransacking all known Constitutions of the world.”
“The Irish and American Constitutions, respectively, served as models for the philosophical sections of the Constitution (the Fundamental Rights and the Directive Principles of State Policy).
The British Constitution served as a major inspiration for the political aspects of the Constitution, including the notion of Cabinet administration and the relationships between the executive and legislative.”[1]
- Unitary Biasness In The Federal System-
The Indian Constitution establishes a federal system of government. It possesses all the hallmarks of a federation, such as a constitution with multiple government levels, an arrangement of powers, sovereignty, strictness, codified, an impartial judiciary, and bicameralism.
However, there are also a large number of united or non-federal components in the Indian Constitution, such as a powerful centralized government, a single constitution, the federal government’s choice of a state governor, all-India services, a unified legal system, etc. Additionally, the word “federation” does not occur in the Constitution either.
India is known as a “Union of States in Article 1,” which indicates two things:
The states did not agree to create the Indian Federation.
There is no state that has the authority to leave the federation.
As a result, it has been variably referred to as “quasi-federal” and “federal in form but unitary in spirit.”
- Combination Of Stability And Flexibility-
There are two forms of constitutions: flexible and rigid.
A rigid structure, like the USA Constitution, can only be modified after following a certain procedure. A flexible constitution is one that can be altered in the same manner that conventional laws can, like the British Constitution.
The ability to modify a constitution decides either it is rigid or flexible. There are three ways to modify the Indian Constitution, each of which would be more or less difficult depending on the modifications being made. A rare example of combining firmness with flexibility is the Indian Constitution.
- Parliamentary Democracy-
The “British Parliamentary System of Government” is the one that the Indian Constitution has adopted.
The parliamentary system is built on the design of cooperation and coherence between both the executive and legislative branches, unlike to the presidential system, which is based on the design of dividing the power among the two organs. At the central level and in the States, the Constitution establishes the parliamentary system. Because the Prime Minister’s function in a parliamentary system has grown so important, the government is referred to as a “Prime Ministerial Government.”
Features of Indian Parliamentary government-
The executive and legislature share an obligation to each other
Ministers’ participation in the legislature
The head of the government is an elected President
Authoritative head of the government is chief minister or prime minister.
- Judicial Review-
The Indian Constitution gives the court a substantial role and establishes its independence from the legislative and executive branches.
The Indian Supreme Court is the pinnacle of an all-inclusive judicial system. It protects the Constitution and every right of Indian citizens.
- Rule Of Law-
Based to this axiom, “people are ruled by law not by men.” A democracy must adhere to the axiom.
The notion that a democracy must uphold the “rule of law” is important. The sovereignty of the collective knowledge of the people is what the rule of law ultimately entails. There is no place for arbitrary action. Each person has some basic rights, and the apex court in the land has the final say in upholding the integrity of the law.
“This notion has been introduced into Part III of the Indian Constitution in order to give substance to Article 13 which states about the law of the land, Article 14 i.e., equality before law and to support the creation of Lok Adalats along with the Supreme Court’s public interest litigation initiative.”[2]
- Fundamental Rights-
“One of the key components of the Indian Constitution is the guarantee of fundamental rights. Six fundamental rights are guaranteed to all citizens of India under Part III of the constitution.”[3]
Everyone has a basic human right to certain freedoms, and the enjoyment of such freedoms is unaffected by the views of the general public. A majority cannot take away these rights.
Fundamental rights are intended to strengthen political democracy. They act as checks on the legislative branch’s arbitrary laws and the authoritarianism of the executive branch. They are justiciable in nature, making them accessible by the courts for violations.
“Maneka Gandhi v. Union Of India (1978)
A crucial issue in this case was whether the right to go abroad is covered by Article 21’s definition of the Right to Personal Liberty. It is a component of the right to personal liberty, according to the SC. The SC further ruled that limiting personal freedom only needed an enabling law to be in place. Such a law also has to be just, fair, and reasonable.”[4]
- Directive Principles Of State Policy-
“The DPSP are a ‘novel feature,’ in Dr. B. R. Ambedkar’s words, of the Indian Constitution. They are listed in the Constitution’s Part IV.”[5]
These ideas were put into our Constitution in order to guarantee equitable socioeconomic conditions for our inhabitants so that the welfare state in India will not result in a concentration of wealth to selected few people. Naturally, they are not justifiable.
“The Indian Constitution is established on the foundations of a harmony between the Fundamental Rights and the Directive Principles, as the Supreme Court ruled in the Minerva Mills case (1980).”[6]
- Fundamental Duties-
While the people are guaranteed their rights, they are also expected to fulfill their obligations as citizens, which are called duties. There are 11 Fundamental obligations in total.
“The fundamental obligations of citizens were not outlined in the original constitution. The Swaran Singh Committee’s suggestion led to the 42nd Amendment Act of 1976, which introduced Fundamental Duties to our Constitution. One more essential duty was later added by the 86th Constitutional Amendment Act of 2002. The obligations, however, are likewise of a non-justiciable character.”[7]
“In Kendra v. State of Uttar Pradesh, the court halted all mining operations in the Mussoorie Hills because it violated Article 51 A’s fundamental obligation to protect the environment and ecological balance.”[8]
- Secularism In India-
“India’s Constitution upholds a secular government.” As a result, contrary to what is stated in Article 19 of the constitution, it does not support any certain religion as the state religion of the Indian State.
The motive is to establish a secular state. The core of secularism as envisioned by the Constitution is political equality, which allows any Indian citizen to run for the highest position under the State.
The Indian constitution exemplifies the positive idea of secularism, i.e., treating all religions equally or protecting them all. Additionally, the Constitution eliminated the previous form of communal representation. To ensure enough representation for the STs and SCs, it does, however, provide for the temporary reserve of seats.
“S.R. Bommai v. Union of India
It was decided that ‘religion has no place in matters of State’ and that secularism is one of the fundamental tenets of the Constitution.”[9]
- Universal adult Franchise-
“One person, one vote” is the blueprint upon which Indian democracy is based.
Any citizen of India who attains the age of 18 years is eligible to vote, despite their caste, gender, race, faith, or status. Equality at political level is established by the Indian Constitution via the adult franchise system.
- Separation Of Power-
The Constitution separates powers among the three organs of government: the legislature, the executive, and the judiciary. This separation ensures checks and balances, preventing any single entity from becoming too powerful.
- Independent Bodies-
“The Constitution views them as the cornerstones of India’s democratic system of government. The Indian Constitution establishes a number of independent entities in addition to the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of the federal and state governments.”[10]
- Single Citizenship-
It implies that every citizen of India is an Indian, irrespective of where they presently live or where they were born. Even though they may live in states like Gujarat, Uttaranchal, or Jharkhand, they are not its citizens. They are Indian citizens instead. All Indian nationals have equal access to rights and employment opportunities throughout the nation. Article 5 and Article 11 of the constitution describes about citizenship.
Single citizenship was a conscious choice made by the drafters of the Constitution to counter regionalism and other deteriorating tendencies. India’s population has clearly become more united as a result of its single citizenship.
- Emergency Provision-
The Constitution’s framers recognized that there might be situations in which the government does not function as it does generally. To address such situations, the Constitution broadens the definition of an emergency.
“It is given in Part XVIII of the constitution. Three different emergency situations exist:
Wartime, foreign aggression, or armed rebellion-related emergency [Article 352]
Emergency resulting from a state’s constitutional mechanism failing [Article 356 and 365]
Emergency fiscally [Article 360].”[11]
These provisions are included to safeguard the legal framework, the democratic political structure, and the nation’s independence, unity, integrity, and security. In times of emergency, the governing body assumes absolute power and the states come in complete control of the federal government.
- Government With Three Levels-
The original Indian Constitution stipulated a dual system of governance and contained provisions outlining the composition and powers of both the Union and the States.
“Later, a third level of governance (local government), which is absent from all other international constitutions, was added by the 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendment Acts (1992). By establishing a new Part IX and a new Schedule 11 to the Constitution which gave the panchayats formal status.
Similar to this, the 74th Amendment Act of 1992 provided urban local governments (municipalities) official recognition by introducing a new Part IX-A and Schedule 12 to the Constitution.”[12]
- Detailed And Impartial Judicial System-
“A single, integrated judicial system exists in India. The Indian Constitution also establishes an independent judiciary by preventing the legislature and government from having any influence over it.
The supreme court of the legal system is known as the Supreme Court. The state-level High Courts are superior courts to the Supreme Court. District courts and other lower courts fall within the high court’s hierarchy of subordinate courts.
As the highest court of appeal, the protector of people’ basic rights, and steward of the Constitution, the Supreme Court is a court of federal jurisdiction. As a result, the Constitution contains a number of clauses that guarantee its independence.”[13]
“Vishaka v. State Of Rajasthan (1997)
This incident involves sexual harassment at work. In its ruling, the SC gave employers and other responsible parties or organizations a set of instructions on how to prevent sexual harassment as soon as possible. They are known as the “Vishaka Guidelines.” These were taken into consideration to be in force up till the necessary law was passed.”[14]
CONCLUSION
The Indian Constitution is a remarkable document that reflects the country’s diverse and complex socio-political landscape. Its salient features not only provide a framework for governance but also embody the values and aspirations of a nation committed to democracy, justice, and inclusivity. Over the years, it has proven its resilience by adapting to the evolving needs of Indian society while upholding its core principles. The best features of the various constitutions have been included in the Constitution in accordance with the requirements and demands of the country but it also distinguishes out from those of other countries while containing components of numerous different constitutions from around the world due to a number of its key characteristics.
REFERENCES
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- https://www.insightsonindia.com/polity/indian-constitution/salient-features-of-indian-constitution/ (last visited 15 September, 2023).
- https://www.legalserviceindia.com/legal/article-7062-basic-features-of-indian-constitution.html (last visited 15 September, 2023).
- https://unacademy.com/content/ssc/study-material/indian-polity-and-constitution/features-of-indian-constitution-federal-features/ (last visited 15 September, 2023).
- https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/features-of-the-indian-constitution/ (last visited 15 September, 2023).
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[13] OCHCR, https://www.ohchr.org/en/instruments-mechanisms/instruments/basic-principles-independence-judiciary#:~:text=The%20judiciary%20shall%20decide%20matters,quarter%20or%20for%20any%20reason. (last visited on 15 September 2023).
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