Discuss the features of the Constituent Assembly of India

 Q.1 Discuss the features of the Constituent Assembly of India.

 

The Constituent Assembly of India, Constituent Assembly was set up under the cabinet Mission plan on 16th May 1946. The members were elected by the Provincial assemblies by the method of single transferable vote system of proportional representations. The Constituent Assembly met for the time on 9th December 1946, in the library of the Council Chamber Delhi, and 205 members attended the meet.

The League representatives and nominees of the Princely States abstained. On 11th December, The Constituent Assembly of India, elected Dr. Rajendra Prasad as its permanent President. The Constituent Assembly of India was a sovereign body, which was formed on the recommendations of the Cabinet Mission which visited India in 1946 to draft a Constitution for the country.

However, later on the Constituent Assembly also faced certain criticisms after its formation. On the basis of the framework provided by the Cabinet Mission, a Constituent Assembly was constituted on 9th December, 1946. The Constitution making body was elected by the Provincial Legislative Assembly constituting of 389 members who included 93 from Princely States and 296 from British India. The Constituent Assembly of India, The seats to the British Indian provinces and princely states were allotted in proportion of their respective population and were to be divided among Muslims, Sikhs and rest of the communities. All sections of the Indian society got representation in the Constituent Assembly in spite of limited suffrage.

The Objective Resolution was moved on December 13, 1946 by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, which provided the philosophy and guiding principles for framing the Constitution and later took the form of Preamble of the Constitution of India. The Constituent Assembly of India, This Resolution was unanimously adopted by the Constituent Assembly on 22 January 1947. The Resolution stated that the Constituent Assembly would firstly proclaim India as an Independent Sovereign Republic which includes all the territories, retaining as autonomous units and possess residuary powers; all the people of India shall be guaranteed justice, equality of status, freedom of thought, expression, belief, faith, worship, vocation, association and subject to law and public morality; adequate safeguards shall be provided for minorities, backward, depressed classes; the integrity of the territories of the Republic and its sovereign rights on land, sea and air and thus India would contribute to the promotion of world peace and the welfare of mankind.

Not a Popular body: Critics argued that the members of the Constituent Assembly were not directly elected by the people of India. The Constituent Assembly of India, The Preamble says that the Constitution has been adopted by the people of India, whereas it was adopted by only few individuals who were not even elected by the people.