Introduction to the

Constitution
Dr Avinash Bhagi
Assistant Professor of Law
GNLU, Gandhinagar
Significance of the Constitution
 Definition
P.Rama Nath Aiyar: Concise Law Dictionary
• Constitution is the system or body of fundamental principles according
to which a nation, state or body politic is constituted and governed; it is
the action of constituting or establishing.
Black's Law Dictionary
• A constitution is “[a] charter of government deriving its whole authority
from the governed”.
Wade & Philips
• A constitution means a document having a special legal sanctity which
sets out the frame-work and the principal functions of the organs of the
Government of a state and declares the principles governing the
operation of those organs.
Prof.K C Wheare
• The whole system of government of a Country, the collection of rules
which establish and regulate or govern the government.
Thomas Paine
• A constitution is not the act of a government, but of a people constituting
a government, and a government without a constitution is power without
right ….A constitution is a thing antecedent to a government; and a
government is only the creature of a Constitution.
 Analysis of Definition
• Charter of the Government
• Derives whole authority from governed (People).
• Document with special legal sanctity.
• Sets out the frame-work & the principle functions of the
Government.
• Collection of rules which establish & regulate or govern the
government.
• Not the act of the government, but of the people.
• Constitution is a thing antecedent to the government .
• Government is only the creature of the constitution.
Not covered by the above definition.
• Regulates the relationship between government and people.
• Regulates the relationship between Centre and State.
 Constitution & Ordinary Statutes
Points Constitution Ordinary Statute
Public/Private Law Public Law- Law Governing the Private Laws- Law by which the State
State governs

Enacting Body Constituent Assembly Parliament

Amendment- Special Procedure laid By Simple Majority
down in Article 368
Amendment
Article 368(2): President cannot Article 111: President may use
Procedure
send it for reconsideration. Assent suspensive veto
mandatory
Grund Norm Law of the land- All laws must be in Must be in consonance with the state.
consonance with constitution of
India.

Tenure/Life Span Constitution is framed for ages to To meet certain contingency or certain
come. situations
Duration General Specific

Source Derives authority from the people Derives authority from the
Constitution
 Constitution Of India: Law of the Land

• All laws must be in consonance with the Constitution. (Article 13)

– Fundamental Right
– Other Constitutional Provisions
– Doctrine of Basic Structure
 Constitution Of India: Law of the Land
Other reasons why Constitution is considered as the law of the land
• It’s antecedent to the government.
• It derives its authority from the people.
• It constitutes the government.
• It defines the powers and limitations of the government.
• It restricts the government.
• Guarantees fundamental rights to its citizens as well as for other people.
• Enacted by the constituent assembly.

• The Supremacy of the Constitution is undisputed and cannot be challenged in

a court of law. Any law made by the legislature if repugnant to the
Constitution will be void.

• Minerva Mills v. Union of India, AIR 1980 SC 1789

• “People of the Country, the organs of the Government, Legislature, executive and
judiciary are all bound by the Constitution which is the paramount law of the
land and nobody is above or beyond the Constitution.”
 Constitutionalism
• Modern political thought draws a distinction between ‘Constitutionalism’
and ‘Constitution’.
• A country may have the ‘Constitution’ but not necessarily
‘Constitutionalism’.
• For example, a country with a dictatorship, where the dictator’s word is
law, can be said to have a ‘Constitution’ but not ‘Constitutionalism’.

• Constitutionalism recognized the need for government with powers but at

the same time insists that limitations be placed on those powers.

• Constitutionalism envisages checks and balances and putting the powers of

the legislature and the executive under some restraints and not making
them uncontrolled and arbitrary.

• ‘Constitutionalism’ connotes in essence limited government or a limitation

on government.
• Constitutionalism is the antithesis of arbitrary powers.

• Article 13,Article 56(b) r/w Article 61, Article 74, Article 75, Article
124(b), (4)
 Constitutionalism
• If the Constitution confers unrestrained power on either the legislature or
the executive, it might lead to an authoritarian, oppressive government.

• Therefore, to preserve the basic freedoms of the individual , and to

maintain his dignity and personality, the constitution should be permeated
with ‘constitutionalism'; it should have some inbuilt restrictions on the
powers conferred by it on governmental organs.

• Giovanni Sartori(Italian Political Scientist-Specialiszation in

democracy and comparative politics) defines liberal
constitutionalism as constituting the following elements:
(1) there is a higher law, either written or unwritten, called
constitution;
(2) there is judicial review;
(3) there is an independent judiciary comprised of independent judges
dedicated to legal reasoning;
(4) possibly, there is due process of law.
 Need for the Constitution
1. This question can be answered in two ways:
2. Firstly (a) from the social contract situation and secondly (b)
from the view point of a new start by the nations in the post-
colonial era.
(a) A constitution is the natural desire of a politically
organized people. They wish to have an enduring law so that
there is a rule of law and stability of governance.
(b) for fulfilling the aspirations of the people of India.
 Scope
Constitution deals with such questions:
• How is the legislature, Executive & Judiciary structured,
composed and organized?

• What are there powers and functions?

• What is the mutual relationship between the legislature and

the executive, or between the executive and judiciary or
between the legislature and judiciary?

• What is the relationship between these organs and the people?

• Does the constitution guarantee any rights for the people?

Constitution Establishes
• the organs of government;
• allocation of power between those organs of government;
• to provide for the resolution of disputes regarding the
interpretation of the constitution,
• to provide for amendment of the constitution where
appropriate,
• the fundamental rights and duties of its citizens,
• to specify the protection afforded to those rights and
• to provide due protection for minority groups.

• Not laid down detailed provisions.

• Article 52. The President of India
• Article 63. The Vice-President of India
• Article 73. Extent of executive power of the Union
• Article 74. Council of Ministers to aid and advice President
• Article 79. Constitution of Parliament
• Article 80. Composition of the Council of States
• Article 81. Composition of the House of the People
• Article 83. Duration of Houses of Parliament
• Article 84. Qualification for membership of Parliament
• Article 124. Establishment and Constitution of Supreme
Court
• Article 70, 71(3), 105(3), 124(5)
 The Constitution of India, 1950
• Preamble
• Part1 The Union & Its Territory (1 TO 4)
• Part II Citizenship (5 -11)
• Part III Fundamental Rights (12 – 35)
• Part IV Directive Principles of State Policy (36-51)
• Part IVA Fundamental Duties (51A)
__________________________________________________

• Part V Union (52-151)

• Part VI States (152-237)
• Part VIII Union Territories (239-242)
• Part IX Panchayats (243-243O)
• Part IXA Municipalities (243P-243ZG)
• Part IXB The Co-Operative Societies (243ZH-243ZT)
• Part X The Scheduled and the Tribal Areas(244-244A)
• Part XI Relation Between the Union and the States (245-263)
 Parts
• Part XII Finance, Property, Contracts & Suits (264-300A)
• Part XIII Trade, Commerce and Intercourse within the Territory
of India (301-307)
• Part XIV Services under the Union and the States (308-323)
• Part XIVA Tribunals (323A-323B)
• Part XV Elections(324-329A)
• Part XVI Special Provisions relating to Certain Classes(330-342)
• Part XVII Official Language(343-351)
• Part XVIII Emergency Provisions (352-360)
• Part XIX Miscellaneous (361-367)
• Part XX Amendment of the Constitution (368)
• Part XXI Temporary, Transitional and Special Provisions
(369-392)
• Part XXII Short title, Commencement and Repeals (393-395)

• Schedules I to XII