POLITY
– CLASS 2
Today’s classes started with a recap
of last class
a) The Constitution of India has been adopted on
26th November 1949, and it came into effect on 26th January 1950.
b) Popular Sovereignty – Power of the Constitution derived from
the people, also denoted by “We the people”.
c) The present Government declared 26th
November as “Constitution Day” to emphasize the significance of the Indian
Constitution.
d) On 26th January 1930, the Indian National
Congress declared Poorna Swaraj and asked the people to observe it as Independence Day.
PREAMBLE TO THE
INDIAN CONSTITUION
· According to
N.A. Palkhivala, the preamble is an “identity card of the constitution”.
·
The preamble
gives idea of Source of the Constitution, history behind its creation, and
the principles of the nation.
Key words in Preamble:
·
We,
the people of India: It indicates the ultimate sovereignty of the people of India.
·
Sovereign - The term means
that India has its own independent authority and it is not a dominion of any
other external force.
·
Socialistic – A classless society. Property in the country
owned by the Government. India follows the democratic kind of socialism (equal
amount of livelihood).
It was added in the Preamble by
42nd Amendment, 1976.
·
Secular - All
the religions in India get equal respect and support. In Indian secularism,
Government interferes in some occasions, to promote the religion equally. It was added in the Preamble by 42nd Constitutional
Amendment, 1976.
·
Democratic – The
Constitution of India gets its authority from the will of the people through an
election. The Indian Constitution provides for
“representative democracy” – the executive is responsible to the legislature
for all its policies and actions.
·
Republic - The head of the state is elected by the people (not being
ancestral). Protects the rights of people.
Difference between
Democracy and Republic:
Democracy – A Rule by people. The kind of
Governance system where people will rule by electing a person to be the head of
state.
Republic – The Head of the state should also rule according to the welfare of the
people.
Democracy has a disadvantage – “Tyranny of
Majority” which means oppression of minority groups by majoritarian groups.
Objectives of the Indian Constitution:
· Justice: It is a fundamental right and
comprises of three elements
a) Social Justice – The Constitution
of India promotes social justice by creating a society without discrimination
on any grounds like caste, creed, gender, religion etc.
b) Economic
Justice – No discrimination can be caused
by people on the basis of their wealth or economic status. Every person
should be paid wages and treated equally.
c) Political
Justice – The political
officers would be equal to all. People
have an equal right to participate in political opportunities.
·
Liberty: The
term ‘Liberty’ means freedom for the people to choose their way of life.
·
Equality: Everyone is equal
before the law. All the people have been given equal opportunities for
everything.
Example –
Reservation for the historically downtrodden communities in competitive exams.
·
Fraternity:
A feeling of brotherhood or an emotional attachment with the country and all
the people.
i.
The term ‘Socialist’, ‘Secular’, and
‘Integrity’ were added to the preamble through 42nd Amendment
Act, 1976.
ii.
Supreme court is the ultimate
“Interpreter” of the Indian constitution.
iii.
Preamble is used to interpret the Indian
constitution by the Judiciary.
iv.
The constitution of India has been a
prime tool in changing the society and it’s the lengthiest written
constitution in the world.
v.
Fundamental rights have been given a wider
interpretation ever since constitution was created.
FEDERALISM – Indian Constitution has been made as a blend of parliamentary sovereignty
and judicial supremacy.
· “Parliamentary sovereignty” - Parliament is considered to be omnipotent
(in U.K) which is the supreme legal authority which can
create or end any law, and cannot be questioned.
· In India, the Parliament is not omnipotent.
· Parliamentary power is subjected to fundamental rights and it
has to be in line with the Indian constitution. If this fails, then The
Judiciary has the power to declare a law as null and void. This is called
“Judicial Supremacy”
-
India has been given Universal adult
franchise.
-
India made a bold attempt and gave
the right to vote for everyone who has completed 21 years.
-
The 61st Amendment Act of
the Constitution of India, lowered the voting age from 21 years to 18 years.
Citizens – a group of people who give allegiance to a
country.
Dual citizenship is impossible in India, it provides only
single citizenship.
CREDITS: LEO PRANEETHA
