The

Constitution of
India
Background
• The Constitution of India came into effect on
January 26, 1950
• It was passed by the Constituent Assembly on
November 26, 1949
• It declares India a Sovereign, Socialist,
Secular, Democratic Republic
• The Constitution assures the Indian Citizens of
Justice, Equality, Liberty and Fraternity
The Constituent Assembly
•The Constituent Assembly consisted of 389 members,
of which 292 were elected by the elected members of
the Provincial Legislative Assemblies while 93 members
were nominated by the Princely States

•With the creation of a separate Constituent Assembly

for Pakistan on July 16, 1947 the membership of the
Constituent Assembly of India was reduced to 299, out
of which 229 represented the provinces and 70 were
nominated by the Princely states of India
Drafting Committee
• The Drafting Committee was formed on August 29,
1947
• Dr B.R. Ambedkar was appointed as the Chairman of
the Drafting Committee
• The framers took 2 years, 11 months and 17 days to
draft the Constitution of India
Features of the Indian Constitution
• Written Constitution
• One of the lengthiest constitutions with 12
schedules, 22 parts and 375 articles
• It has been amended several times
• Partly flexible and partly rigid
• Blend of Federal and Unitary form of
Government
• Supreme court exercises the powers to
interpret the Constitution in case of any
dispute
• It provides for Parliamentary form of
Government in India
The Fundamental Rights

• Right to Equality
• Right to Freedom
• Right against Exploitation
• Right to Freedom of Religion
• Cultural and Educational Rights
• The Right to Constitutional Remedies
Characteristic Features
• Article 12 to 35 of the Indian Constitution deal with the
Fundamental Rights of the Indian Citizens
• Any Indian citizen can move to the Supreme Court of
India to seek justice if she/he is deprived of these
Fundamental Rights
• Fundamental Rights can be altered only through a
Constitutional Amendment
 The Indian Parliament

• The Indian Parliament has two houses – the

Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha
• The Lok Sabha is also known as the Lower
House and the Rajya Sabha is known as the
Upper House of the Indian Parliament
The Lok Sabha
• The Lok Sabha (the House of People or the lower
house) is more powerful than the Rajya Sabha over
money bills
• The tenure of the Lok Sabha is five years
• The term of the Lok Sabha may be extended by up to
one year in case of emergency
• The strength of this House is 552 members
• 530 members are the state representatives, 20 are the
representatives of the Union Territories and 2
members of Anglo-Indian Community are nominated
by the President
• The speaker presides over the meetings of this house
The Rajya Sabha

• The Rajya Sabha is a permanent House

• Its members are elected for a period of six years and
one-third of its members retire every two years
• The strength of the house is 250 members
• 12 members are nominated by the President and 238
are the representatives of States and Union
Territories
• The Vice-President is the ex-officio chairman of this
House
 The President
• The President is the head of the state and the first
citizen of India

• Article 52-54 of the Indian Constitution deal with the

election of the President of India

• The President of the Indian Union is elected indirectly

by the representatives of the people through an
Electoral College
 Electoral College
The electoral college consists of:

• The elected members of both Houses

of Parliament
• The elected members of the
Legislative Assemblies of the States
(including National Capital Territory
of Delhi and the Union Territory of
Pondicherry vide the Constitution
70th amendment Act, 1992)
Indirect Election of the President

• Indirect election involves Proportional

Representation by means of Single Transferable Vote
System
• Each elector has only one vote, irrespective of the
number of seats to be filled up, however, the elector
can indicate preferences against the names of the
candidates mentioned in the ballot paper
• The candidate securing the highest number of votes
stands elected.
Thank You