Indian Constitution

Research: The present lesson is for class 8^th students and keeping in view the cultural background of the students I will try to give them knowledge about Indian constitution and its different features. It will be helpful for students to know the basic structure of Indian constitution.

SETTING STAGE: Dear Students Do You Know Any Thing about Mahatma Gandhi?

Ans: Expected

Mahatma Gandhi Was Our Great National Freedom Fighter.............

Can You Tell Me When India Secured Freedom From British?

Ans: Expected

Yes Students We Are Celebrating Every Year 26^th January As The Independence Day.

Dear Students Our Country India Is A Democratic, Secular, Socialist And Republic And India Is The Largest Democracy In The World.

Dear Students Can You Tell Me about Indian Constitution?

Today We Are Going To Study About Indian Constitution.

PRESENTATION: Indian constitution

The majority of the Indian subcontinent was under British colonial rule from 1858 to 1947. This period saw the gradual rise of the Indian independence movement to gain independence from foreign rule. The movement culminated in the formation of the Dominion of India on 15 August 1947, along with the Dominion of Pakistan. The Constitution of India was adopted on 26 November 1949 and came into effect on 26 January 1950, proclaiming India to be a sovereign, democratic republic. The Constitution was enacted by the Constituent Assembly on 26 November 1949, and came into effect on 26 January 1950. It is the longest written constitution of any sovereign country in the world, containing 395 articles in 22 parts, 12 schedules and 115 amendments. Besides the English version, there is an official Hindi translation.

Features of Indian constitution

The following are the outstanding features of the Indian Constitution.

1. A written constitution:

The Republic of India has a written and enacted constitution; it contained 409 Articles, twelve schedules and three appendices. In its present form it covers 254 octavo pages. “Like the constitution of the United States of America, Canada and France, India too has a written constitution, though it differs from those documents in many respects.”

2. The Longest Known Constitutions:

The constitution of India has the distinction of being the most lengthy and detailed constitutional document the world has so far produced. The original constitution contained as many as 395 Articles and 8 schedules. Even after the repeal of several provision of it still contains 409 articles and 12 schedules.

4. Sovereign Democratic Republic:

The preamble of the constitution declares India to be a sovereign democratic Republic it is sovereign since India has emerged as a completely Independent state. The word ‘Democratic’ signifies that the real power emanates from the people. The constitution introduces the country the right to elect their representatives for the union Parliament and state legislatures at the time of periodical elections to be held every five years. The world ‘Republic’ is used to denote that the state is headed not by a permanent head like the queen of Britain but by a President indirectly elected by the people.

5. Both Rigid and Flexible:

The Indian constitution is partly rigid and partly flexible. The procedure said down by the constitution for its amendment is neither very easy, as in England, nor very rigid as in the United States.

7. Secular State:

A secular state has negative and positive aspects. Negatively, it is the antithesis of a communal or theocratic state which officially identified it self with a particular religion. In a secular state, on the other hand there is no official or state religion. In its positive aspects a secular state treats all its citizens alike and gives them equal opportunities. The state has no official religion. No discrimination can be made on the basis of religion, faith, caste, color and sex. Every citizen is equal before law.

8. A federal system with unitary Bias:

The most remarkable achievement of the Indian constitution is to confer upon a federal system the strength of a unitary Government Though normally the system of government is federal the constitution enables the federation to transform into unitary state.

9. Fundamental Rights:

Like the constitution of the United States of America, the constitution of India also includes a separate chapter guaranteeing fundamental Rights to all the citizens. These rights are justifiable and inviolable. They are binding on the legislature as well as on the executive. If any of the rights is violated, a citizen has the right to seek the protection of the judiciary. Act of the legislature or odder of the executive can be declared rule and void if it violates any of the fundamental rights guaranteed to the citizens by the constitutions