Key facts

  • The Constituent Assembly first met on 9 December 1946; the Objectives Resolution was moved on 13 December 1946 and adopted on 22 January 1947.
  • The Drafting Committee was set up on 29 August 1947, with Dr. B.R. Ambedkar as chairman;
  • Article 1 describes India, that is Bharat, as a Union of States and treats India's territory as States, Union territories and other acquired territori...
  • Articles 2 to 4 give Parliament the framework for admitting, establishing, forming and altering States;
  • Articles 5 to 11 deal with citizenship at commencement and Parliament's power over citizenship;

Key Points at a Glance

  1. 1

    The current CET Graduation syllabus explicitly includes the Constituent Assembly, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar's role, constitutional nature and features, Preamble, Fundamental Rights, Directive Principles, federal structure, amendments, emergency provisions and Public Interest Litigation.

  2. 2

    The Constituent Assembly first met on 9 December 1946; the Objectives Resolution was moved on 13 December 1946 and adopted on 22 January 1947.

  3. 3

    The Drafting Committee was set up on 29 August 1947, with Dr. B.R. Ambedkar as chairman; the Constitution was adopted on 26 November 1949 and mostly commenced on 26 January 1950.

  4. 4

    The Preamble declares India to be a sovereign, socialist, secular, democratic republic and promises justice, liberty, equality and fraternity.

  5. 5

    Article 1 describes India, that is Bharat, as a Union of States and treats India's territory as States, Union territories and other acquired territories.

  6. 6

    Articles 2 to 4 give Parliament the framework for admitting, establishing, forming and altering States; Article 3 consultation with an affected State Legislature is not a veto.

  7. 7

    Articles 5 to 11 deal with citizenship at commencement and Parliament's power over citizenship; the Citizenship Act, 1955 covers acquisition and loss after commencement.

  8. 8

    The Constitution combines written supremacy, parliamentary government, federal distribution with a strong Centre, single citizenship, universal adult franchise, judicial review, Fundamental Rights, Directive Principles and Fundamental Duties.

  9. 9

    The 42nd Amendment inserted socialist, secular and integrity into the Preamble and added Fundamental Duties through Article 51A; the 86th Amendment later added the child-education duty.

  10. 10

    Kesavananda Bharati established the basic-structure limit on amendment power; S.R. Bommai treated secularism as a basic feature and made Article 356 misuse open to judicial review.

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Preamble as constitutional identity

The Preamble gives the Constitution its public identity and moral direction. It declares India to be a sovereign, socialist, secular, democratic republic and commits the State to justice, liberty, equality and fraternity. For CET, each word should be read with its constitutional sense. Sovereign means India is not legally subordinate to an outside power. Democratic government rests on elected representation and public accountability. Republic means the head of State is not hereditary. Justice is social, economic and political; liberty covers thought, expression, belief, faith and worship; equality is of status and opportunity; fraternity links individual dignity with national unity and integrity.

The Preamble is also an interpretation aid. It helps explain the Constitution's values, but it is not an independent article under which a person files a writ. The Berubari Union advisory opinion did not treat the Preamble as part of the Constitution. Kesavananda Bharati later treated it as part of the Constitution, while still not making it a separate source of enforceable rights. The 42nd Amendment is the exam trap: it inserted socialist, secular and integrity into the Preamble, not the 44th Amendment.

Revision anchor: the Preamble supplies constitutional values; enforceable powers and remedies normally come from the articles that follow it.

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