Making of the Constitution
Idea and formation of the Constituent Assembly
- M.N. Roy first suggested a Constituent Assembly in 1934. The Congress demanded it officially in 1935. The British accepted the idea in principle in the August Offer (1940).
- The Cabinet Mission Plan (1946) gave it shape. Members were elected indirectly by the provincial assemblies, so it was not elected on adult franchise.
- Strength: 389 members. That was 296 from British India (292 from the provinces and 4 from chief commissioner provinces) and 93 from the princely states.
- In the elections of 1946 the Congress won 208 and the Muslim League 73 of the 296 seats. The Muslim League boycotted the Assembly.
- After Partition, strength fell to 299 (229 from provinces and 70 from princely states).
- 15 women were members, among them Sarojini Naidu, Hansa Mehta, Durgabai Deshmukh, Rajkumari Amrit Kaur, Sucheta Kripalani, Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit and Begum Aizaz Rasul.
Key dates
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 9 Dec 1946 | First meeting. Dr Sachchidananda Sinha (oldest member) was temporary President. |
| 11 Dec 1946 | Dr Rajendra Prasad elected permanent President. H.C. Mukherjee became Vice-President. |
| 13 Dec 1946 | Objectives Resolution moved by Jawaharlal Nehru. Adopted on 22 Jan 1947. It became the base of the Preamble. |
| 22 Jul 1947 | National Flag adopted. |
| 29 Aug 1947 | Drafting Committee set up under Dr B.R. Ambedkar. |
| Feb 1948 | Draft Constitution published (315 Articles, 8 Schedules). |
| 26 Nov 1949 | Constitution adopted by the Assembly (now celebrated as Constitution Day or Samvidhan Divas). Some provisions came into force at once. |
| 24 Jan 1950 | 284 members signed the Constitution. Jana Gana Mana adopted as National Anthem. |
| 26 Jan 1950 | Constitution came into force. The date honours Purna Swaraj Day of 1930. |
The whole work took 2 years, 11 months and 18 days, in 11 sessions. About 7,600 amendments were proposed to the draft and about 2,400 were actually discussed.
The Drafting Committee (7 members)
B.R. Ambedkar (Chairman), N. Gopalaswami Ayyangar, Alladi Krishnaswamy Ayyar, K.M. Munshi, Syed Mohammad Saadullah, B.L. Mitter (later replaced by N. Madhava Rau) and D.P. Khaitan (died, replaced by T.T. Krishnamachari). B.N. Rau was the Constitutional Adviser and prepared the first draft.
Other important committees
| Committee | Chairman |
|---|---|
| Union Powers Committee | Jawaharlal Nehru |
| Union Constitution Committee | Jawaharlal Nehru |
| Provincial Constitution Committee | Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel |
| Advisory Committee on Fundamental Rights, Minorities and Tribal Areas | Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel |
| Rules of Procedure Committee | Dr Rajendra Prasad |
| States Committee | Jawaharlal Nehru |
| Ad hoc Committee on the National Flag | Dr Rajendra Prasad |
What came into force on 26 November 1949
Articles on citizenship, elections, the provisional Parliament and some temporary provisions: Arts 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 60, 324, 366, 367, 379, 380, 388, 391, 392 and 393. The rest began on 26 January 1950.
The Assembly also worked as the Provisional Parliament until the first general election of 1951-52. G.V. Mavalankar was its Speaker and later the first Speaker of the Lok Sabha.
Size of the Constitution
| Original (1950) | Now | |
|---|---|---|
| Articles | 395 | about 448 |
| Parts | 22 | 25 |
| Schedules | 8 | 12 |
Four Parts have been added (IVA, IXA, IXB, XIVA) and Part VII was repealed. That makes 22 + 4 - 1 = 25.
Read the full article: Making of the Indian Constitution: Constituent Assembly, Committees and Drafting Process.
Keep practising
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Prepared for exam revision from the Constitution of India and standard sources. Office-holders and recent developments change, so check official sources before relying on them. Found a mistake? Tell us.