RAS question
Which Article of the Indian Constitution is described by Dr. B.R. Ambedkar as the 'heart and soul' of the Constitution?
Correct answer: (B) Article 32.
Dr. B.R. Ambedkar described Article 32 of the Indian Constitution as the heart and soul of the Constitution because it secures direct enforcement of Fundamental Rights through the Supreme Court.
Explanation
Article 32 is the answer because it is not merely a procedural route; it is itself placed in Part III among the Fundamental Rights. The Supreme Court of India, in State of West Bengal & Ors. v. Committee for Protection of Democratic Rights, West Bengal & Ors., records Dr. B.R. Ambedkar's description of Article 32 as the Constitution's very soul, its very heart, and its most important Article. The reason is constitutional design: Article 32 lets a person move the Supreme Court when Fundamental Rights need enforcement. Its clause on remedies is framed widely, allowing directions, orders, or writs in the nature of habeas corpus, mandamus, prohibition, certiorari, and quo warranto. That is why Ambedkar treated Article 32 as central to making Fundamental Rights enforceable, not merely declaratory.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Article 21 concerns life and personal liberty, but Ambedkar's heart-and-soul provision for enforcing Fundamental Rights is Article 32, not Article 21.
- (C) Article 19 is a Fundamental Rights provision, but it is not the Article that gives the Supreme Court's direct writ remedy for enforcement.
- (D) Article 14 is tested often with Fundamental Rights, but Ambedkar's description is attached to Article 32's enforcement role, not Article 14.
Concept
This tests constitutional remedies under Fundamental Rights, especially the enforceability of rights through Supreme Court writ jurisdiction. RAS repeats this concept because it connects Part III rights, judicial review, and landmark constitutional language in one fact pattern.