CIVICS

CONSTITUTIONAL DESIGN
Democratic Constitution in South Africa
Apartheid: Apartheid is a system of racial discrimination unique to South Africa imposed by white
Europeans.
• During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, the trading companies from Europe occupied it
with arms and force, settled in it and became the local rulers.
Discrimination of white against black:
• The white rulers treated all non-whites as inferiors.
• The non-whites did not have voting rights.
• They were forbidden from living in white areas. They could work in white areas only if they had a
permit.
• All basic facilities like trains, taxis, hotels, hospitals, schools, cinema halls, beaches, swimming pools
were separate for the whites and blacks.
• Blacks could not even visit the churches where the whites worshipped.
• Blacks could not form associations or protest against the terrible treatment.
• Nelson Mandela and seven other leaders were sentenced to life imprisonment in 1964 for daring to
oppose the apartheid regime

Formation of ANC
• Blacks, coloured and Indians have been fighting apartheid since 1950 who continued to rule by
detaining, torturing and killing thousands of black and coloured people.
• The African National Congress (ANC) was an umbrella organization including many workers’ unions
and the Communist Party that was against the apartheid policies.

Formation of a new constitution

• government realised that they could no longer keep the blacks under their rule through repression
• Ban on political parties and restrictions on the media were lifted. Nelson Mandela was released
after 28 years in the Robben Island Prison.
• at the midnight of 26 April 1994, the new national flag of the Republic of South Africa was unfurled,
paving way for the formation of a multi-racial government.

Spirit of African constitution

• Following the emergence of the new democratic South Africa, the party that ruled through
oppression and brutal killings and the party that led the freedom struggle sat together to draw up a
common constitution.
• This constitution gave its citizens the most extensive rights available in any country.
• Together, they decided that in the search for a solution to the problems, nobody should be
excluded.

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 African constitution an inspiration
• The South African constitution inspires democrats all over the world.
• A state denounced by the entire world till 1994 as the most undemocratic one is now seen as a
model of democracy
• The people of South Africa to work together, to transform bitter experiences into the binding glue
of a rainbow nation
Compromise between the whites and blacks
• Blacks wanted substantial social and economic rights and the white minority was keen to protect its
privileges and property.
• After long negotiations, the whites agreed to the principle of majority rule, one person one vote
and some basic rights for the poor and the workers.
• The blacks agreed that majority rule would not be absolute and the majority would not take away
the property of the white minority.
• So they laid down some rules that everyone would abide by.

Constitution: The constitution of a country is a set of written rules that are accepted by all people
living together in a country.
A constitution does many things:
[ques: Why do we need a constitution?]
• First, it generates a degree of trust and coordination that is necessary for different kind of people to
live together;
• Second, it specifies how the government will be constituted, who will have power to take which
decisions
• Third, it lays down limits on the powers of the government and tells us what the rights of the
citizens are;
• Fourth, it expresses the aspirations of the people about creating a good society.

MAKING OF THE INDIAN CONSTITUTION

India during Independence

[QUES: The making of the constitution for India was not an easy affair. Explain.]
• India was a huge and diverse country.
• The country was born through a partition on the basis of religious differences leading to large no. of
killings and homicide.
• The British had left it to the rulers of the princely states to decide whether they wanted to merge
with India or with Pakistan or remain independent, making merger of these princely states difficult
and uncertain task.
• The National movement was a struggle to rejuvenate our country and to transform our society and
politics.
• There were sharp differences of opinion within the freedom struggle about the path India should
take after Independence.

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Path to constitution
[ques: what were the factors that contributed to the making of our Constitution?]
• In 1928, Motilal Nehru and eight other Congress leaders drafted a constitution for India.
• In 1931, the resolution at the Karachi session of the Indian National Congress dwelt on how
independent India’s constitution should look like.
• Basic values like universal adult franchise, right to freedom and equality and to protecting the rights
of minorities were accepted by all leaders.
• The experience gained by Indians in the working of the legislative institutions by British like the
1937 elections to provincial legislature proved to be very useful for the country in setting up its own
institutions.
• Our leaders gained confidence to learn from other countries, but on our own terms like the practice
of parliamentary democracy in Britain and the Bill of Rights in the US etc.
The Constituent Assembly
• The drafting of the document called the constitution was done by an assembly of elected
representatives called the Constituent Assembly.
• Elections to the Constituent Assembly were held in July 1946.
• Its first meeting was held in December 1946.
• Constituent Assembly had 299 members.
• The Assembly adopted the Constitution on 26 November 1949.
• The constitution came into effect on 26 January 1950, which we celebrate as Republic Day every
year.
Acceptance of the constitution
[ques: Why should we accept the Constitution made by this Assembly more than six decades ago?]
• The Constitution does not reflect the views of its members alone. It expresses a broad consensus of
its time.
• Constituent Assembly represented the people of India from different language groups, castes,
classes, religions and occupations. There was no universal adult franchise at that time. Even if the
Constituent Assembly was elected by universal adult franchise, its composition would not have
been very different.
• The manner in which the Constituent Assembly worked with systematic, open and consensual
manner gives sanctity to the Constitution.
• The constitution for thoroughly discussed clause by clause over 114 days spread over three years
causing more than two thousand amendments.
Constituent Assembly Debates
• Every document presented and every word spoken in the Constituent Assembly has been recorded
and preserved. These are called ‘Constituent Assembly Debates’.
• When printed, these debates are 12 bulky volumes
• These debates provide the rationale behind every provision of the Constitution.
• These are used to interpret the meaning of the Constitution.

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 GUIDING VALUES OF THE INDIAN CONSTITUTION
Values that inspired and guided the freedom struggle and were in turn nurtured by the overall philosophy
of major leaders, formed the foundation for India’s democracy.
PREAMBLE
• The Constitution begins with a short statement of its basic values. This is called the Preamble.
• Indian preamble is inspired from the American model.
• Preamble guide all the articles of the Indian constitution.
• It contains the philosophy on which the entire Constitution has been built.
• It provides a standard to examine and evaluate any law and action of government
• It is the soul of the Indian Constitution.

WE, THE PEOPLE OF INDIA having solemnly resolved to constitute India into a SOVEREIGN SOCIALIST
SECULAR DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC and to secure to all its citizens:
JUSTICE, social, economic and political;
LIBERTY of thought, expression, belief, faith and worship;
EQUALITY of status and of opportunity; and to promote among them all
FRATERNITY assuring the dignity of the individual and the unity and integrity of the Nation;
IN OUR CONSTITUENT ASSEMBLY this twenty-sixth day of November, 1949, do HEREBY ADOPT, ENACT
AND GIVE TO OURSELVES THIS CONSTITUTION.

We, the People of India: The Constitution has been drawn up and enacted by the people through their
representatives and not handed down to them by a king or any outside powers.

Sovereign: People have the supreme right to make decisions on internal as well as external matters. No
external power can dictate the Government of India.

Socialist: Wealth is generated socially and should be shared equally by society. The government should
regulate the ownership of land and industry to reduce socioeconomic inequalities.

Secular: Citizens have complete freedom to follow any religion. But there is no official religion. The
government treats all religious beliefs and practices with equal respect.

Democratic: A form of government where people enjoy equal political rights, elect their rulers and hold
them accountable. The government is run according to some basic rules.

Republic: The head of the state is an elected person and not a hereditary position.

Justice: Citizens cannot be discriminated against on the grounds of caste, religion and gender. Social
inequalities have to be reduced. The government should work for the welfare of all, especially the
disadvantaged groups.

Liberty: There are no unreasonable restrictions on the citizens in what they think, how they wish to
express their thoughts and the way they wish to follow up their thoughts in action.

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Equality: All are equal before the law. The traditional social inequalities have to be ended. The government
should ensure equal opportunity for all.

Fraternity: All of us should behave as if we are members of the same family. No one should treat a fellow
citizen as inferior.

Note: The terms ‘Socialist’ and ‘Secular’ were added in Preamble through the 42nd Constitutional
Amendment in 1976.

Institutional Design

• A Constitution is not merely a statement of values and philosophy. It is mainly about embodying
these values into institutional arrangements in a very legal language.

• It is a very long and detailed document. Therefore, it needs to be amended quite regularly to keep
it updated.

• Those who crafted the Indian Constitution felt that it has to be in accordance with people’s
aspirations and changes in society. They did not see it as a sacred, static and unalterable law

• Provisions are made to incorporate changes in the constitution is known as constitutional

amendments.

• Like any Constitution, the Indian Constitution also lays down a procedure for choosing persons to
govern the country. It defines who will have how much power to make which decisions. And it puts
limits to what the government can do by providing some rights to the citizen that cannot be
violated.