Making of the constitution

1934: Idea of constituent assembly put forward by M N Roy

1935: INC officially demands constituent assembly
1938: JL Nehrus declaration on the constitution of India
1940: Nehrus demand accepted in the form of August Offer
August Offer
o PM: Winston Churchill
o While rejecting INCs demand for independence of India after the war on the ground
that INC is not representative of the minorities, three offers were made
o Expansion of Viceroys executive council with the inclusion of Indian representatives
o An advisory body with the members from British India and Indian princely states
which were supposed to meet at consequent intervals was established
o Two practical steps were decided to be taken in which it was to come at an
agreement with the Indians on the form which the post representatives body should
take and the methods by which it should come to a conclusion.
o It further planned to draw out the principles and outlines of the Constitution itself
o Congress rejected the offer
1942: Cripps Mission
o PM: Winston Churchill Sec of State: Leo Amery Viceroy: Linlithgow
o On the framing of an independent constitution to be adopted after the WW II
o Cripps proposals rejected by the ML which wanted India to be divided into two
autonomous states
1946: Cabinet Mission
o PM: Clement Attlee Viceroy: Lord Wavell
o Members: Pethick Lawrence (sec of state for India), Stafford Cripps, A V Alexander
o Simla Conference
o May 16 plan
United dominion of india would be given independence
Muslim majority and Hindu majority provinces to be grouped
Central government to run foreign affairs, defence and communications
while rest of the responsibility would belong to the provinces, coordinated
by the two groups
o Interim cabinet was formed. ML joined the cabinet but decided to boycott the
constituent assembly
1946, Nov: Constituent Assembly formed under the Cabinet Mission Plan
First meeting of CA on December 9, 1946. Sacchidanada Sinha was elected the temporary
Presidetn
Dec 11, 1946: Rajendra Prasad and H C Mukharjee elected as the President and VP of the
assembly respectively.
BN Rao was the constitutional advisor to the assembly
Dec 13, 1946: Objectives Resolution moved by JL Nehru
Jan 22, 1947: Objectives resolution adopted
June 3, 1947: Mountbatten plan. Partition of the country announced.
Jan 24, 1950: Final session of the CA. It however continued as a provisional body from Jan
26, 1950 till the formation of the new Parliament after the first general elections in 1951-52
Major Committees of CA
Committee Chairman
Union Powers Committee JL Nehru
Union Constitution Committee JL Nehru
Committee for Negotiating with States JL Nehru
Steering Committee Rajendra Prasad
Rules of Procedure Committee Rajendra Prasad
Provincial Constitution Committee Sardar Patel
Committee on Fundamental Rights and
Minorities.
Two sub committees ( FR , Minorities)
Sardar Patel
(J B Kriplani, H C Mukharjee)
Drafting Committee B R Ambedkar

Drafting Committee was setup on Aug 29, 1947. It had seven members
o B R Ambedkar
o Alladi Krisnaswamy Ayyer
o N Gopalaswamy Ayyangar
o K M Munshi
o TT Krishnamchari
o N Madhava Rau
o Syed Mohammad Saadullah
Nov 26, 1949: Constitution was adopted
The Preamble was enacted after the entire Constitution was already enacted
Governor
Same person can be appointed the governor of two or more states
Appointed by the President
May resign by writing to the President
Qualification
o Citizen of India
o 35 years of age
Art 161: Pardon for any offence against a law relating to a matter to which the executive
power of the state extends
Constitution does not state the procedure or the grounds for the removal of the Governor

Council of Ministers
The advice tendered by the CoM cannot be enquired in a court
Number of ministers in the CoM (including the PM) cannot exceed 15 pc of the total number
of members of LS (91
st
amendment, 2003)
If a person is disqualified under the 10
th
schedule (defection), he cannot become a minister
Art 75(3): Collective responsibility
Attorney General
Article 76
Should be qualified to be appointed as a judge of the SC
Right of audience in all courts in the territory of India
Has the right to take part in the proceedings of either houses, without the right to vote.
Parliament
Consists of the President, Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha
Six months should not intervene between consecutive sessions
The president shall address a joint sitting of both the houses at the first session of every year
and at the first session after the general elections
The Chairman and Speaker can vote only in case of equality of votes
Quorum: One-tenth of the total number of members of the House
MPs resign by addressing their resignation to the Speaker of the Chairman
If a member is continuously absent for 60 days without permission for all the meetings of
the House, his seat is declared vacant
Article 102: grounds for disqualification.
o 5 grounds
Decision on questions as to disqualification of members shall be referred to the President
and his decision shall be final. The President, in giving his decision, shall act in accordance
with the advice of the Election Commission
Joint sitting: If passed by one house and rejected by the other, disagreement between
houses on the amendments to the bill, more than six months has passed and the other
house has not passed the bill
Joint sitting does not apply to Money Bills

Council of States
Elected members: 238 from state and union territories
o Allocation of seats given in the 4
th
schedule
Nominated members: 12
o From field of Literature, science, art and social service
Elected members of the states to be elected by respective Legislative Assembly by
proportional representation by means of single transferrable vote
Representatives of UTs to be chosen as Parliament may by law prescribe
1/3 members retire every 2 years
At least 30 years of age
Deputy Chairman can resign by addressing to the Chairman
Most RS seats: UP>Maharashtra>TN=AP>Bihar=WB>Karnataka
States with only one RS seat: Arunachal, Goa, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim,
Tripura
States with least RS seats: Above 8<HP=Uttaranchal<J&K<Haryana=CG
UTs: Delhi-3, Puducherry-1, Rest-zero
House of People
530 members from states by direct elections
20 from UTs chosen in a manner prescribed by the Parliament
2 nominated by the President from the Anglo-Indian community if it is not represented
Ratio of LS seats allocated to a state and its population should be same across states
o This may not be followed if the population of the state is less than 6 million
Population kept as frozen till the census taken after 2026
o For LS constituency allotment to states: 1971 census data used
o For defining boundaries of constituencies: 2001 census data used
At least 25 years of age
Speaker can resign by addressing to the Dy Speaker. The latter can resign by addressing to
the Speaker
When LS is dissolved, the Speaker shall not vacate his office until immediately before the
first meeting of the LS after its dissolution
Whenever the Deputy Speaker is appointed as a member of a parliamentary committee, he
automatically becomes its chairman
Most LS seats: UP>Maharashtra>AP=WB>Bihar>TN
States with one LS seat: Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim
Least LS seats: Above 3<Manipur=Meghalaya=Goa=AP=Tripura<HP<Uttaranchal<J&K
UTs: Delhi(7), Puducherry(2), Rest -1
Reserved for SC: UP 17, WB - 10
Reserved for ST: MP 6, Jharkhand, Orissa 5, CG, Gujarat, Maharashtra 4


Fundamental Rights
Discrimination not on grounds only of
o Art 15: religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth
o Art 16: religion, race, caste, sex, descent, place of birth, residence
Reservation
o First Backward Classes Commission: 1953, Kaka Kalelkar
o Second BCC: 1979, B P Mandal (by Morarji Desai govt)
o Article 340
Reasonable Restrictions
o Speech and Expression: sovereignty and integrity of India, security of the state,
friendly relations with foreign states, public order, decency or morality, contempt of
court, defamation and incitement to an offence
o Assembly: sovereignty and integrity of India and public order
o Association: sovereignty and integrity of India, public order and morality
o Movement: interest of general public and the protection of interests of any
scheduled tribe
o Residence: interest of general public and the protection of interests of any
scheduled tribe
o Profession: in the interest of the general public
Protection against self-incrimination does not extend to civil proceedings
Protection provided under normal detention in Art 22 not covers arrest under the orders of
a court, civil arrest, arrest on failure to pay the income tax and deportation of an alien

The president doesnt sit in Parliament. Why is he still consider an integral part of it?
Because a bill passed by the Parliament cannot become a law unless it receives Presidents
assent
He also performs certain functions relating to the parliament eg, summoning and proroguing
the sessions, issuing ordinances, addressing both the houses
What does Rajya Sabha consist of?
Representative of states
o By elected members of state legislative assemblies
Representatives of Union Territories
o By members of an electoral college constituted specially for this purpose
Nominated members
o From field of Art, Science, literature and social service.
But, why have nominated members?
To provide eminent persons a place in the RS without going through the process of election

Why was proportional representation not adopted for election to LS?
Difficulty for the voters to understand the system due to low literacy rate in the country
Unsuitability to the parliamentary government due to the tendency of the system to
multiply political parties leading to instability in government
Disqualification of an MP
Disqualification conditions mentioned in the constitution
o Decided by the President on the advice of the EC
Disqualification on the ground of defection (10
th
Schedule)
o Decided by the Speaker/Chairman. Open to judicial review
In what cases does a MP vacate his seat?
Disqualification
Resignation
Absence
Double Membership
Some other cases

Distinction between SC and HC
SC HC
Appointment of Judges A distinguished jurist can be
appointed a judge
Constitution does not make
provision for appointment of a
distinguished jurist
Tenure of judges Till 65 Till 62
Jurisdiction Jurisdiction cannot be curtained
as mentioned in the
constitution. Other jurisdiction
and powers can be changed by
the Parliament.
Ditto. Other jurisdiction and
powers can be changed by both
the Parliament and the State
legislature.
Original jurisdiction In matters relating disputes
between centre and states or
between states
Some imp:
1. Disputes relating to the
election of members of
Parliament and state
legislatures
Writ Jurisdiction Can issue only for enforcement
of fundamental rights
Can issue for fundamental
rights and for any other
purpose

Posts
Post Appointment Removal
State Public Service
Commission
Governor President
HC Judge President in consultation with
the CJI and the governor of the
state
Same as SC judges


Taxes
Levied Collected Appropriated Example
1. Centre State State Stamp duty on
some bills of
exchange, Excise
duty on some
medicinal prep
containing alcohol
2. Centre Centre + State Centre + State Service Tax (88
th

amendment. Rule
of appropriation
decided by the
Parliament)
3. Centre Centre State Some taxes on
inter-state trade
4. Centre Centre Centre+ State All other taxes
expect those
mentioned above
and below (division
decided by the FC)
5. State State State Wealth, Sales,
some excise etc
6. Centre Centre Centre Surcharges on taxes
referred to 3 and 4

Grants in aid
Statutory grants on the recommendation of the FC. There are charged on the Consolidated
Fund of India every year
Discretionary grants on the recommendation of the Planning Commission
These days discretionary grants > statutory grants
Charged expenditure
CAG
UPSC
CG, Jharkhand, MP and Orissa have to have a minister for tribal affairs.

How is original jurisdiction of SC different wrt disputes of federal nature and those
relating to fundamental rights?
Ans: In federal cases SC has exclusive original jurisdiction whereas in writ cases SC has original
jurisdiction which is not exclusive. It shares it with the high courts. Secondly, the parties involved in
the first case are units of the federation while in the second case it is between a citizen and the
government.


Various Constitutional Posts
CAG UPSC SPSC EC Nat Comm SC Nat Comm ST Officer
Linguistic
Minorities
Article 148 315-323 315-323 324 338. By 65
th

amendment
(1990) as Nat
Comm of SC
and ST
338A <89
th

amendment>
350 B 7
th

Amendment.
1957
Appointment By president Chairman and
Members by
President
Governor (but
can be
removed only
by President)
President President President
Chair, VC, 3
members

Qualification None None (except half
the members
govt
servants>=10 yrs
None (except
half the
members govt
servants>=10
yrs

Tenure Max six years
till 65 years
Max six years till
65 years. Single
term.
Max six years
till 62 years.
Single term
Max six years till
65
Determined
by Pres. Hold
office for 3
years
Determined
by Pres. Hold
office for 3
years

Removal Same manner
and ground as
SC judge
By president:
Insolvent, outside
employment,
infirmity of mind
or body. Also
misbehaviour
<has to refer to
SC. Binding
advice>
President
<same as
UPSC>
CEC: Same
manner and
ground at SC
judge
Members:
cannot be
removed
without the
recommendation
of the CEC

Further
employment
Not eligible
under centre
or state govt
Chairman: Not
under the govt or
state (except
governor).
Members: Only as
UPSC or SPSC
chairman
Chairman: As
Chairman of
UPSC of any
other SPSC
but no other
under govt.
Members:
Same except
that they can
also be
appointed as
same SPSC
chairman

Not debarred
from any further
employment

Service
conditions
Determined
by Parliament
By president.
Jurisdiction can
be extended by
parliament
Similar to that of
SC Judge

Others President can
exclude posts,
services and
matters from
purview of SPSC.
Rejected
recommendations
to be approved by
the Appointments
Committee
Governor can
exclude posts,
services and
matters from
purview of
SPSC
Can regulate
its own
procedure

Powers of civil
court

Also enquires
matters
relating to
OBCs and
Anglo Indians
Bifurcated
after 89
th

amendment
(2003). So
came into
being in 2004

Can regulate
its own
procedure

Powers of civil
court

HQ: Allahabad
Regional
office:
Belgaum,
Chennai,
Kolkata

Falls under the
ministry of
Minority
Affairs

Other Bodies
PC NDC NHRC SHRC CVC CIC
Estd 1950 executive
resolution
1952 executive
resolution
1993 Statutory 1993 - Statutory 1964 executive
res
2003 - statute
2005 statute
Composition 1 Chair, 4 Members, 4 ex-
officio members (Chair of
Nat com of SC, ST,
Minorities, Women)
1 Chair, 2 Members 1 CVC, 2 VC 1 CIC and <=10
members. Persons
of eminence in
public life etc.
Qualification Chair: Ex CJI
Members: Ex or serving
SC/HC judge; 2 persons
having human rights
knowledge or experience
Chair: Ex CJI of HC
Members: Ex or
serving HCJ/Dist J min
7 year exp and a
person having
knowledge of HR

Appointment President on
recommendation of six
member committee PM,
Speaker, Dy Chair (RS),
Leaders of Opposition in
Both Houses, Home Min
By Governor on
recommendation of
committee ( centre
counterparts)
President 3
member
committee
President by
committee: PL,
Leader of Opp in
LS, a Cabinet
Minister
Tenure 5 years or till age of 70 5 yrs of till age 70 4 years or till age
of 65
5 years of 65 age.
No
reappointment. IC
can be appointed
as CIC but total
term <= 5years
Further employment No No No
Removal By President. Same as
UPSC.
By President. Same as
UPSC.
By President.
Same as UPSC.
By President.
Same as UPSC.
Conditions of services By Central Govt By State Govt Same as UPSC Same as EC/SC
Powers Of a civil court. Can look
into a matter only within
one year of its occurance.
Powers of Civil court.
Can look into a matter
only within one year of
its occurrence. Can
enquire only on HR
violations in matters
relating to state list
and concurrent list.
Powers of a civil
court
Powers of a civil
court

If you know this, you know that
CIC State IC