Background of Constitution Making: 1942–1947

Background of Constitution Making: 1942–1947 (Indian Political System) is a crucial phase in “Indian Polity“ that marked a decisive stage in India’s constitutional development. The period from 1942 to 1947 was shaped by the “Quit India Movement”, “Cripps Mission (1942)”, and “Cabinet Mission Plan (1946)”, reflecting the growing demand for self-governance. These developments ultimately led to the formation of the “Constituent Assembly”, laying the foundation of an independent India’s Constitution.

Background of Constitution Making: 1942–1947

• The popularly elected ministries remained in office for only two years. India was dragged into the Second World War without consulting the Indian legislatures. In protest, all the Congress ministries resigned in 1939.

• Pakistan Resolution: In 1940, the Muslim League passed the Pakistan Resolution.

British Resolution and National Movement

Cripps Mission (1942):

• The Cripps Mission of 1942 explicitly accepted the proposal for the formation of a Constituent Assembly for framing the Indian Constitution. It was clearly stated that immediately after the war, a Constituent Assembly would be set up in India to frame the Constitution of India.
• On 23 March 1942, Churchill sent Sir Stafford Cripps to India for negotiations.
• Indian leaders involved in official talks:
  • Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru
  • Maulana Azad.
• Proposals:
  • A Constituent Assembly elected after the war would be formed.
  • Provinces would have the freedom to accept or frame their own constitutions.
  • An Indian Union would be established, and India would be granted Dominion Status.
  • The Muslim League would have the freedom to accept or reject the Indian Union.
  • Till the framing of the Constitution, the responsibility for the defence of India would remain with the British Government.

• However, both the Indian National Congress and the Muslim League rejected the Cripps Mission proposals.
• Mahatma Gandhi described it as a “post-dated cheque”, while Nehru termed it the “lawyer of the devil”.
• Pattabhi Sitaramayya described it as merely a modified version of the August Offer.

Quit India Movement (8 August 1942):

• 14 July 1942: After a meeting of the Congress Working Committee at Wardha, the Quit India Resolution was passed.
• 8 August 1942: The movement was ratified at the Bombay session of the All India Congress Committee (President – Maulana Azad).
• Resolution moved by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru.
• Supported by Sardar Patel.
• Gandhiji declared it a call of “Do or Die”.
• The movement began on 9 August 1942 and is also known as the August Revolution.

Wavell Plan (14 June 1945):

• Lord Wavell was appointed Viceroy of India in place of Lord Linlithgow.
• The plan proposed Indianisation of the Interim Government.
• Except for the Viceroy and the Commander-in-Chief, all members of the Executive Council would be Indians.
• The Defence Department would remain under the control of the Viceroy.
• An equal number of Hindu and Muslim members would be included in the Executive Council.
• The Governor-General would not use his veto power without valid reasons.
• Indians would be given the right to frame their own Constitution.

Shimla Conference (1945):

• Viceroy Lord Wavell convened a conference of Indian leaders at Simla from 25 June to 14 July 1945.
• The conference was convened to reach a consensus among Indian leaders for the implementation of the Wavell Plan.
• The conference failed because:
  • The Congress insisted on a united India.
  • The Muslim League remained adamant on the demand for a separate Pakistan.
• Congress representative: Maulana Abul Kalam Azad.
• Mahatma Gandhi did not participate in the conference.

• Note: In 1945, the Sapru Committee, in its report, prepared a plan for constitution-making.

Cabinet Mission and Constituent Assembly

Cabinet Mission (1946)

• After the change of government in Britain in 1945, the Clement Attlee Government sent a delegation from London to India in January 1946, which is known as the Cabinet Mission.
• On 14 March 1946, Attlee declared that Indians have the right to be free.
• The Cabinet Mission (Ministerial Mission) arrived in India on 24 March 1946.
• The Mission consisted of three members:
  • Pethick-Lawrence (Chairman) – Secretary of State for India
  • Stafford Cripps – President of the Board of Trade
  • A. V. Alexander – First Lord of the Admiralty
• Elections to the Central Legislative Assembly were held in the last quarter of 1945. Elections to the Provincial Legislative Assemblies were completed in April 1946. The Congress fought the elections on the issue of the Quit India Resolution, while the Muslim League fought on the issue of Pakistan. The Congress secured an absolute majority in eight provinces and won 56 out of 102 seats in the Central Legislative Assembly. The Congress performed poorly in Muslim reserved constituencies.
• After holding talks with Indian political parties at Simla from 5 May to 12 May 1946, the Cabinet Mission published its plan on 16 May 1946, which is known as the Cabinet Mission Plan.
• Main Proposals of the Cabinet Mission (1946):
  • An Interim Government would be formed immediately in India.
  • A Constituent Assembly would be constituted to frame the Constitution of India.
  • India would be a Federation of India consisting of:
    1. British Provinces
    2. Princely States
• The Union would have only three subjects:
  1. Foreign Affairs
  2. Defence
  3. Communications
• All other subjects (residuary powers) would remain with the provinces.
• Provinces would be given the right to frame their own constitutions.
• The Cabinet Mission rejected the demand for Pakistan and for two Constituent Assemblies.
• The Congress accepted the Cabinet Mission Plan, while the Muslim League initially rejected it and later joined it.
• The Muslim League declared Direct Action Day on 16 August 1946, which led to communal riots.
• The Cabinet Mission clarified that its objective was not to determine the details of the Constitution but to associate Indians with the process of constitution-making.

Note: The objective of the Cabinet Mission Plan was to keep India united and to avoid partition.

Provisions of the Cabinet Mission regarding the Constituent Assembly

• Plan for the Formation of the Constituent Assembly (16 May 1946): Indirect election system (not based on adult franchise) along with nomination, i.e., partly elected and partly nominated.
• Representation of British India and Princely States in the Constituent Assembly was to be on the basis of population. Broadly, one representative was to be allotted for every ten lakh population.
• Representatives were to be elected from three communities in proportion to the population of the province:
  1. General
  2. Muslim
  3. Sikh
• On this basis, the total strength of the Constituent Assembly was fixed at 389 members, of which 296 seats were allotted to British India and 93 seats to the Princely States.
• At that time, British India consisted of 11 British Provinces and 4 Chief Commissioner’s Provinces.
  • 11 British Provinces:
    1. Punjab      
    2. United Provinces
    3. Sind          
    4. Bihar   
    5. Bengal    
    6. Assam
    7. Odisha                                       
    8. Madras
    9. Bombay                                    
    10. North-West Frontier Province
    11. Central Provinces and Berar
  • 4 Chief Commissioner’s Provinces:
    1. Ajmer-Merwara
    2. Coorg
    3. Delhi
    4. Baluchistan

• Election to the 296 seats allotted to British India was to be held indirectly. These members were to be elected by the members of the Provincial Legislative Assemblies of British Provinces and Chief Commissioner’s Provinces through the system of proportional representation by means of a single transferable vote. Each province elected its representatives from among its own Assembly members according to the number of seats allotted to it.
• The 93 seats allotted to the Princely States (maximum representation – Mysore: 7) were to be filled by nomination through consultation. For this purpose, a Negotiation Committee was constituted consisting of representatives of the Princely States and the Constituent Assembly. Election was not provided for these representatives because legislative assemblies did not exist in the Princely States. Hyderabad was one such Princely State whose representatives (16 members) did not join the Constituent Assembly.
• Since representatives from British India were elected and those from the Princely States were nominated, the Constituent Assembly was neither a wholly elected nor a wholly nominated body. It was a partly elected and partly nominated body. Thus, 296 members were elected and 93 members were nominated.
• The elected members of the Constituent Assembly were chosen through indirect elections. Therefore, the Constituent Assembly was not constituted on the basis of universal adult franchise and direct elections.
• The Constituent Assembly included representatives of several political parties, such as:
  • Indian National Congress
  • Muslim League (though it later boycotted)
  • Sikh Akali Dal
  • Communist Party
  • Independents, etc.
  • Thus, it was a multi-party body.
• The Constituent Assembly constituted 22 committees to organise its work.
• Since the Constituent Assembly was constituted in 1946 on the basis of limited franchise, socialist leaders argued that it was not a true representative of the people. Therefore, the National Executive of the Socialist Party demanded that:
  • “The Constituent Assembly should be dissolved and re-elected on the basis of universal adult franchise.”

Elections to the Constituent Assembly

• Community-wise distribution of 296 representatives (292 + 4) from British Provinces:
  1. General – 213
  2. Muslims – 79
  3. Sikhs – 4
• Elections to the Constituent Assembly were held in July–August 1946. The results were as follows:
  • Out of the 296 seats allotted to British India:
    • Indian National Congress – 208 seats
    • Muslim League – 73 seats
    • Other small groups and independents – 15 seats (8 independents)
  • However, the 93 seats allotted to the Princely States could not be filled, as they decided to keep themselves away from the Constituent Assembly.
• The Constituent Assembly included:
  • 15 women members
  • 33 Scheduled Tribe members
  • 26 Scheduled Caste members

Formation of the Interim Government (1946)

• Under the Cabinet Mission Plan, an Interim National Government was formed.
• The formation of India’s first Interim Government under the leadership of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru was announced on 24 August 1946, without the participation of the Muslim League.
  • President: Viceroy Lord Wavell
  • Vice-President: Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru
• Formation/Oath-taking: On 2 September 1946, a total of 13 members (President, Vice-President and 11 other members) of the Interim Government took oath under the leadership of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. At the time of oath-taking, the Interim Government included representatives of the Congress, some independents and non–Muslim League members. The Muslim League was not included.

Interim Government (1946)

S. No.	Name	Department
1	Boyroy Lord Babel	Chairman
2	Jawaharlal Nehru	Vice President/Commonwealth Relations and External Affairs
3	Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel	Home, Information and Broadcasting
4	Dr. Rajendra Prasad	Food and Agriculture
5	Liaquat Ali Khan	Finance
6	Dr. John Mathai –	Industry and Civil Supplies
7	Abdur-Rab-Nishtar	Post and air
8	C. Rajagopalachari	Education and the Arts
9	Jagjivan Ram	Labor
10	Sardar Baldev Singh	Defence
11	Asaf Ali	Railways and Transport
12	C. H. Bhabha	Work, Mines and Energy
13	I I Chundrigar	Commerce
14	Ghazanfar Ali Khan	Health
15	Jogendra Nath Mandal	Law

• Reconstitution of the Interim Government: On 26 October 1946, the Interim Government was reconstituted and the Muslim League was included (through the efforts of Wavell).
  • In place of the three original members—
    1. Syed Ali Zaheer
    2. Sharatchandra Bose
    3. Sir Shafaat Ahmad Khan
  • Five representatives of the Muslim League were included in the Interim Government.
  • After the reconstitution, the total number of members became 15.
• In view of the mutual deadlock in the Interim Government, Dr. B. R. Ambedkar remarked that it was a government of one country being run by two countries.

Process of Independence

Mountbatten Plan – 1947

• Due to the Direct Action Day on 16 August 1946 and the absence of the Muslim League in the first meeting,
• Prime Minister Clement Attlee, on 20 February 1947, announced that power would be transferred to Indians before 30 June 1948.
• In March 1947, the British Government sent Louis Mountbatten to India as the last Viceroy, replacing Lord Wavell.
• He arrived in India on 22 March 1947.
• His objective was to make arrangements for the smooth transfer of power.
• He realised that the Congress and the Muslim League could not work together.
• On 3 June 1947, a policy statement was issued which clearly laid down the Mountbatten Plan / June Plan / Balkan Plan / Dickie Bird Plan.
• Under the plan:
  • The Congress and the League accepted it.
  • The inevitability of Partition was recognised.
  • The wishes of areas demanding a separate Constituent Assembly were respected.
  • The formation of two Dominion States—India and Pakistan—was ensured.
  • After the 3 June 1947 Plan, members of the Muslim League also joined the Constituent Assembly.
• On 15 August 1947, India and Pakistan became two independent nations.
• Confirmation of the Plan
  • 14 June 1947, Congress meeting at New Delhi
    • President: J. B. Kripalani
  • Proposal for the partition of India: Govind Ballabh Pant
  • Supported by: Maulana Azad, Nehru, Patel
  • Opposed by: Ghaffar Khan, Chauthram Mitwani, Dr. Kichlu, Purushottam Das, Maulana Hafizur Rahman

Indian Independence Act, 1947

• The British Parliament passed this Act on 5 July 1947.
• It received Royal Assent from King George VI on 18 July 1947.
• Its objective was to transfer power from British rule to the new independent states of India and Pakistan.
• It ended British paramountcy over Indian affairs.
• On 3 June 1947, Viceroy Lord Mountbatten presented the Partition Plan, which is known as the Mountbatten Plan or Dickie Bird Plan.
• This plan was secretly called the “Balkan Plan”.
• It partitioned India and created two independent Dominion sovereign states—India and Pakistan, which were free to leave the British Commonwealth.
• Governor-General of India: Lord Mountbatten
• Prime Minister of India: Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru
• Governor-General of Pakistan: Mohammad Ali Jinnah
• Prime Minister of Pakistan: Liaquat Ali Khan
• Partition of Provinces
• Bengal and Punjab were also partitioned:
  • East Bengal (Pakistan) and West Bengal (India)
  • East Punjab (India) and West Punjab (Pakistan)
• East Bengal, Sindh, West Punjab, North-West Frontier Province, and the Sylhet district of Assam were included in Pakistan, while the remaining parts were included in India.
• The Indian Princely States were given the option to: Accede to India, or Accede to Pakistan, or Remain independent.
• The sole Congress leader, Abul Kalam Azad, did not accept the Partition of India till the end.
• When Balochistan (North-West Frontier Province) was included in Pakistan through a referendum, Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan remarked: “We have been thrown to the wolves.”
• Under this plan, the existing Constituent Assembly would function as the Constituent Assembly of India, and a new Constituent Assembly would be constituted for Pakistan.
• The office of the Viceroy was abolished, and in its place the office of Governor-General was created in both Dominion States, whose appointment would be made by the British Monarch on the recommendation of the Cabinet of the concerned Dominion.
• The office of the Secretary of State for India in Britain was abolished, and all its powers were transferred to the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Affairs.
• Until the new Constitution came into force, the administration would be carried on in accordance with the Government of India Act, 1935.
• There would be separate Constituent Assemblies for both countries. The Constituent Assembly would function as the legislature until the new Constitution was enforced.
• Norman D. Palmer described it as a Bill which was passed in a short time and with little debate.

After 15 August 1947

• The Cabinet Mission had fixed the strength of the Constituent Assembly at 389, but due to the creation of Pakistan, after 15 August 1947, this number was reduced from 389 to 324.
  • From Governor’s Provinces – 232 (9 British Provinces)
    • United Provinces – 55 (maximum)
    • Madras – 49
    • Bihar – 36
  • Chief Commissioner’s Provinces – 3
    • Balochistan went to Pakistan
  • From Princely States – 89
    • From United Rajasthan – 12
• Four Chief Commissioner’s Areas:
  1. Ajmer–Merwara – Mukut Bihari Lal Bhargava (due to being a Central Assembly member)
  2. Delhi – Deshbandhu Gupta (due to being a Central Assembly member)
  3. Coorg – C. M. Poonacha (elected by the legislature)
  4. Balochistan

• After India–Pakistan partition and termination of some memberships, the number became 299.
• At present, the Lok Sabha website mentions the strength of the Constituent Assembly as on 31 December 1947, and not the total original strength. This number is as follows:
  • British Provinces – 226
  • Chief Commissioner’s Provinces – 03
  • Princely States – 70
  • Total – 299 (after reorganisation)
• From 15 August 1947 to 26 January 1950, India remained a Dominion State.

The First Cabinet of Independent India (1947)

S. No.	Name	Department
1	Chakravarti Rajagopalachari	President (20 June 1948 onwards)First and last Indian Governor General
2	Jawaharlal Nehru	Vice President/Prime Minister – Commonwealth and Foreign Affairs; Scientific Research
3	Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel	Home, Information and Broadcasting, State Affairs
4	Dr. Rajendra Prasad	Food and Agriculture
5	Maulana Abul Kalam Azad	Education
6	Dr. John Mathai –	Railways and Transport
7	R.K. Shanmugam Shetty	Finance
8	Dr. B.R. Ambedkar	Law
9	Jagjivan Ram	Labor
10	Sardar Baldev Singh	Defence
11	Rajkumari Amrita Kaur	Health
12	C. H. Bhabha	Commerce
13	Rafi Ahmed Kidwai	Communications
14	Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee	Industry and Supply
15	V. N. Gadgil	Work, Food and Energy

• Lord Mountbatten, President of the Executive Council – 15 August 1947 to 20 June 1948
  • The last Governor General
  • The first Governor General of independent India

Indian Constituent Assembly

• The first reference to the Constituent Assembly in India is found in the ‘Swaraj Bill’ drafted by Bal Gangadhar Tilak in 1895. This Bill is also known as the Constitution of India Bill.
• In opposition to the Government of India Act, 1919, Indians raised the demand for a Constituent Assembly.
• In 1922, Mahatma Gandhi made a clear reference to the Constituent Assembly.
• In 1922, on the initiative of Annie Besant, a meeting of the members of the Central Legislature was held and a proposal for constitution-making was placed.
• In 1923, at the Delhi Conference, an outline of the Indian Constitution was presented.
• In 1928, all political parties in India constituted a committee under the chairmanship of Motilal Nehru. This committee prepared a draft Constitution for India on 10 August 1928, which is known as the ‘Nehru Report’. This was the first effort made by Indians in the direction of constitution-making.
• Rejecting the Government of India Act, 1935, the Congress made the demand for a Constituent Assembly a major issue.
• The idea of the formation of a Constituent Assembly in India was first proposed by M. N. Roy in 1934.
• In 1935, the Indian National Congress officially demanded the formation of a Constituent Assembly for the framing of India’s Constitution for the first time.
• In 1937, after winning the provincial elections, the Congress reiterated the demand for the formation of a Constituent Assembly.
• In 1938, on behalf of the Indian National Congress, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru declared that the Constitution of independent India would be framed by a Constituent Assembly elected on the basis of adult franchise, and that there would be no external interference in it. This demand of Nehru was ultimately accepted in principle by the British Government. This is known as the ‘August Offer’ of 1940.
• On 19 November 1939, Gandhiji wrote an article titled ‘The Only Way’ in Harijan, in which he expressed the view that only a Constituent Assembly could frame a Constitution that truly and fully represented the indigenous character of the country and the will of the people.
• In 1940, both the Congress and the Muslim League, the two major political parties, agreed on the idea of a Constituent Assembly. However, while the Congress wanted a single Constituent Assembly for the whole of India, the Muslim League demanded two Constituent Assemblies in accordance with its demand for two states.
• Hyderabad was the only princely state whose representatives did not join the Constituent Assembly. Therefore, the largest princely state to join the Constituent Assembly was Mysore, which had seven members in the Constituent Assembly.

Structure of Constituent Assembly

There were a total of 15 women members in the Constituent Assembly

Number	Name	State/Province	Special information
1	Sarojini Naidu	Bihar
2	Sucheta Kriplani	Uttar Pradesh
3	Purnima Banerjee	Uttar Pradesh
4	Rajkumari Amrita Kaur	Central Province
5	Durgabai Desai	West Bengal
6	Renuka Rai	West Bengal
7	Malti Choudhary	Odisha
8	Leela Rai	West Bengal
9	Ammu Swaminathan	Madras
10	Dakshayani Velayudana	Madras	The only Dalit woman
11	Vijayalakshmi Pandit	Uttar Pradesh
12	Hansa Mehta	Bombay
13	Begum Ejaz Rasool	Uttar Pradesh	The only Muslim woman; Muslim League Party
14	Kamla Chowdhary	Uttar Pradesh
15	Anne Mascarini	Travancore	Catholic Christian; the only nominated woman member
Only 09 were present in the first meeting.

Rajasthan had a total of 12 members in the Constituent Assembly.

No.	Name	Representation/Region	Special information
1	Hiralal Shastri	Jaipur
2	V. T. Krishnamachari	Jaipur	Vice-Presidents of the Constituent Assembly
3	Sardar Singh	Khetri
4	Jaynarayan Vyas	Jodhpur
5	Balwant Singh Mehta	Udaipur
6	Manikyalal Verma	Udaipur
7	Jaswant Singh	Bikaner
8	Raj Bahadur	Bharatpur
9	Ramchandra Upadhyay	Alwar
10	Dalel Singh	Kota
11	Gokul Lal Asawa	Shahpura
12	Mukut Bihari Lal Bhargava	Ajmer-Merwara

Members of the Constituent Assembly who were administrative officers of the princely states of Rajasthan:

• V. T. Krishnamachari – Jaipur State
• C. S. Venkatachari – Jodhpur State
• Sardar K. M. Panikkar – Bikaner State
• Sir T. Vijay Raghavacharya – Udaipur State

Persons who were not members of the Constituent Assembly but served as Chairpersons of its Committees:

1. S. Varadachari – Ad Hoc Committee on Citizenship
2. Nalini Ranjan Sarkar – Expert Committee on Financial Provisions
3. S. K. Dhar – Linguistic Provinces Commission
4. Ushanath Sen – Press Gallery Committee
5. B. N. Rau – State Ministry Committee for preparing a Model Constitution for the Indian States

Persons who were not members of the Constituent Assembly:

1. Mahatma Gandhi
2. Jayaprakash Narayan
3. Tej Bahadur Sapru
4. B. N. Rau

Other Prominent Members of the Constituent Assembly

1. Dr. Jayashankar
2. Tekchand Bakshi
3. Minoo Masani
4. H. S. Gaur
5. Sir Firoz Khan
6. Noor Suhrawardy
7. Khwaja Nazimuddin
8. Zafarullah Khan

Procedure of the Constituent Assembly and the Making of the Constitution

• The first meeting of the Constituent Assembly was held on 9 December 1946, and the last meeting was held on 24 January 1950. During this period, the Constituent Assembly held 12 sessions, comprising a total of 167 sittings.

• Note: If 11 sessions are considered (the 11th session from 14 to 26 November 1949), the tenure of the Assembly was 2 years, 11 months, and 18 days.
• If 12 sessions are considered (up to 24 January 1950), the tenure becomes 3 years, 1 month, and 16 days.

     9 December 1946 (First Meeting)

• In this meeting, Acharya J. B. Kripalani (National President of the Indian National Congress) requested the senior-most and most experienced member present, Sachchidananda Sinha (an elected member), to assume office as the Temporary President of the Constituent Assembly. Thus, J. B. Kripalani was the first speaker in the Constituent Assembly, who was also the Congress President at that time.
• Dr. Sinha expressed his inability to continue for a long period due to health reasons and, for presiding over the House in the afternoon, nominated Frank Anthony as the Deputy President.
  • Nominated by Sinha
  • Anglo-Indian
  • Elected from the Central Provinces and Berar
  • Nominated member of the Lok Sabha eight times (except the 6th and 9th Lok Sabha)
• 207 members participated in the meeting.
  • The highest number of members present was from Madras.
• The Muslim League boycotted the meeting.
  • Churchill described it as “a marriage in which the bride is absent.”

      10 December 1946 (Second Meeting)

      11 December 1946 (Third Meeting)

• Permanent Chairman: Rajendra Prasad was unanimously elected as the Permanent President (Chairman) of the Constituent Assembly.
  • Proposal moved by: J. B. Kripalani
  • Seconded by: Sardar Patel
  • Spokespersons / Vice-Presidents of the Constituent Assembly
• Permanent Vice-Chairman: It was suggested that one Vice-President should be from the Princely States (Suggestion by N. V. Khare)
  • H. C. Mukherjee (West Bengal) – Elected in January 1947
  • V. T. Krishnamachari (Jaipur) – Elected in July 1947
• The first woman speaker in the Constituent Assembly was Sarojini Naidu, who, in this sitting, read out a congratulatory message for Rajendra Prasad.

     12 December 1946 (Fourth Meeting)

     13 December 1946 (Fifth Meeting)

• In this meeting, on 13 December 1946, Jawaharlal Nehru presented the Objectives Resolution, which contained eight objectives.
  • Opposed by: M. R. Jayakar, Dr. B. R. Ambedkar
• An Expert Committee for the Objectives Resolution had been constituted in July 1946.
  • Chairman: Jawaharlal Nehru
  • Members:
    • Gopalaswami Ayyangar
    • K. T. Shah
    • Asaf Ali
    • K. M. Munshi
    • V. R. Gadgil
    • Humayun Kabir
    • K. Santhanam
• On 22 January 1947, the Constituent Assembly unanimously adopted the Objectives Resolution.

Main Features of the Objectives Resolution: India shall become a sovereign democratic republic. British India, the Princely States, and other territories shall form part of the Indian Union. There shall be a federal system in which residual powers shall vest in the autonomous units, and sovereignty shall rest with the people.

Sessions of the Constituent Assembly

• If 11 sessions are counted, the tenure was 2 years, 11 months and 18 days.
• If 12 sessions are counted, the tenure was 3 years, 1 month and 16 days.
  • 12th Session – 24 January 1950.

First Session

• 9 December 1946 to 23 December 1946
• 211 members participated.

Fourth Session

• It was decided that the existing Constituent Assembly would function as the Constituent Assembly of India, and Pakistan would establish its own Constituent Assembly.

Fifth Session

• The Constituent Assembly was declared fully sovereign.

Seventh Session

• Dr. B. R. Ambedkar presented the Draft Constitution.
• It contained 315 Articles and 8 Schedules.

Tenth Session

• The Preamble was finally adopted.

11th Session of the Constituent Assembly

• On 26 November 1949, the Assembly finally passed the Constitution. On this day, the Constitution of India was adopted, and 16 Articles relating to citizenship, elections, the interim Parliament, and transitional provisions came into force, namely Articles 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 60, 324, 366, 367, 379, 380, 388, 391, 392, 393 and 394. The remaining provisions came into force on 26 January 1950, as mentioned in Article 394.The remaining provisions shall come into force on 26 January 1950.
  • Articles 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 – Citizenship
  • Article 60 – Oath of the President
  • Article 324 – Election Commission
  • Articles 366, 367 – Definitions and interpretation
  • Article 379 – Provisions relating to the Provisional/Interim Parliament
    • The Constituent Assembly functioned as the Interim Parliament from 26 November 1949 to 13 May 1952.
    • Speaker – G. V. Mavalankar (Father of the Indian Parliament).
  • Article 380, 388, 391, 392
  • Article 393 – The Title of the Constitution is “The Constitution of India.”
  • Article 394 – The date of commencement of the Constitution of India is 26 January 1950.
• The remaining provisions shall come into force on 26 January 1950.

Part XXII (Articles 393 to 395)

• Article 393 – Short title: The Constitution of India.
• Article 394 – Commencement of the Constitution on 26 January 1950.
• Article 394A(a) – The President is authorised to cause the translation of the Constitution into Hindi and to publish it.
• By the 58th Constitutional Amendment Act, 1987, Article 394A was inserted, assigning this responsibility to the President.
• Article 395 – Repeal of the Government of India Act, 1935 and the Indian Independence Act, 1947; however, the Privy Council Jurisdiction Abolition Act, 1949 was not repealed.

 12th Session (24 January 1950)

• This was the final session of the Constituent Assembly and lasted only one day.
• The Assembly adopted the National Anthem and the National Song.
• Dr. Rajendra Prasad was elected Interim President, as only one nomination was received.
• The proposal was moved by Jawaharlal Nehru and seconded by Vallabhbhai Patel.
• H. V. R. Iyengar, Secretary of the Constituent Assembly, acted as the Returning Officer.
• Three copies of the Constitution were placed before the Assembly:
  1. Handwritten English copy

• Out of a total of 299 members, 284 members of the Constituent Assembly signed all the three original copies of the Constitution. There were 8 women members.
  1. English copy (handwritten)
     • Under the leadership of Nandalal Bose, it was handwritten in italic style by Prem Behari Narain Raizada. He refused to accept any remuneration for this work.
  2. English copy (printed)
  3. Hindi copy (handwritten) –
     • It was written by Vasant Krishna Vaidya.
• The first signature on the Constitution was made by Jawaharlal Nehru.
• Two members took the oath –
  • Ratanappa Bharamappa Kumbhar (Bombay)
  • Dr. Y. S. Parmar (Himachal Pradesh)
• The Constituent Assembly was adjourned sine die.

26 January 1950

• The Constituent Assembly emerged as the Interim Parliament, functioning as a unicameral legislature.

Interim Parliament

• The Interim Parliament came into existence on 26 November 1949 (the Constituent Assembly itself).
• It was unicameral.
• It consisted of elected and nominated members (the first Parliament was indirectly constituted).
• It did not dissolve, but its existence came to an end on 17 April 1952.
• From 15 August 1947 to 25 January 1950, India remained a Dominion State.
  • Under the Indian Independence Act, 1947,
  • Governance was carried out through the Government of India Act, 1935.
• From 26 January 1950 to April 1952, the first elected Parliament was constituted.
• The Interim Parliament exercised the powers of Parliament in accordance with the Constitution of India.
• The Constituent Assembly functioned as the Dominion Legislature for about 2 years and 1 month.
  • First meeting – 17 November 1947
  • Last meeting – 24 November 1949
• The practice of discussion on the President’s Address in the form of a Motion of Thanks was initiated.
• The First Constitutional Amendment, 1951 was passed.
• Approval was given for the use of Article 356 in Punjab on 20 June 1951.

Principal Officers of the Constituent Assembly

• Temporary Chairman – Dr. Sachchidananda Sinha
• Temporary Deputy Chairman – Frank Anthony
• President – Rajendra Prasad
• Vice-Presidents – H. C. Mukherjee and V. T. Krishnamachari
• Constitutional Adviser – B. N. Rau
  • He was a member of the Indian Civil Service.
  • He was a Judge of the Calcutta High Court.
  • He was the Prime Minister of the State of Kashmir.
  • When India became a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council (1951–52), Rau was India’s representative.
  • He also served as a Judge of the International Court of Justice (1952–53).
• Secretary – H. V. R. Iyengar (He was the Returning Officer at the time of the election of Rajendra Prasad on 24 January.)
• Spokesman – Rajendra Prasad

Committees of the Constituent Assembly

Committees of the Constituent Assembly- The Constituent Assembly functioned through several committees.

Committees under the Chairmanship of Dr. Rajendra Prasad

1. Rules of Procedure Committee (Rules Committee)
   • First committee
   • Meeting – 9 December 1946
   • 1 + 15 members – G. Durgabai was the only woman member
2. Steering Committee

Committees under the Chairmanship of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru

1. States Committee – for negotiations with princely states
2. Union Powers Committee – advocated a strong Union
3. Union Constitution Committee
4. Special Committee to examine the draft finalized by the Drafting Committee

Committees under the Chairmanship of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel

1. Provincial Constitution Committee
2. Advisory Committee on Fundamental Rights, Minorities, Tribes and Excluded Areas
   • Under this committee, there were five sub-committees, the main ones being:
     • Fundamental Rights Sub-Committee – J. B. Kripalani
     • Minorities Sub-Committee – H. C. Mukherjee 
3. Special Committee to report on minority problems of East Punjab and West Bengal
   • This was the only committee in which Sardar Patel, Rajendra Prasad, Jawaharlal Nehru, K. M. Munshi and Ambedkar were members together.

Minor Committees

1. House Committee – B. Pattabhi Sitaramayya
2. Chief Commissioner’s Provinces Constitution Committee – B. Pattabhi Sitaramayya
3. Steering Committee – Dr. K. M. Munshi (He was associated with the maximum number of six committees)
4. Ad hoc Committee on the National Flag – Dr. Rajendra Prasad
5. Committee for the Conduct of Business of the Constituent Assembly – G. V. Mavalankar
6. Linguistic Provinces Commission – S. K. Dhar (He was not a member of the Assembly)
7. Ad hoc Committee on Citizenship – S. Varadachari
8. Press Gallery Committee – Ushanath Sen
9. Hindi Translation Committee – Ghanshyam Singh Gupta

Other Committees and Commissions

1. Committee for the Conduct of Business of the Constituent Assembly – G. V. Mavalankar
   • Mukut Bihari Lal Bhargava (Member)
2. Ad hoc Committee on the National Flag – Rajendra Prasad (1 + 9)
   • Date – 23 June 1947
   • Flag Committee
   • J. B. Kripalani was neither its Chairman nor a member
3. Linguistic Provinces Commission – S. K. Dhar (Not a member of the Constituent Assembly)
   • Constituted by – Dr. Rajendra Prasad
   • Recommendation – Ambedkar
4. Credentials Committee – Krishnaswami Ayyar

Draft of the Constitution

• The first draft of the Constitution was prepared by the Consultative Branch of the Constituent Assembly Secretariat under the leadership of B. N. Rau, the Constitutional Adviser of the Constituent Assembly (appointed by Lord Wavell).
• This draft contained 240 Articles and 13 Schedules.
• To consider this draft and prepare a systematic and well-organized draft, Satyanarayan Sinha moved a proposal for the constitution of a Drafting Committee.
• On the recommendation of the Steering Committee, a Drafting Committee was constituted on 29 August 1947.
• In its first meeting on 30 August 1947, the members of the Drafting Committee unanimously elected Dr. B. R. Ambedkar as Chairman. All members were elected unopposed.
• The committee consisted of seven members, as follows:
  1. Dr. B. R. Ambedkar – Chairman
  2. N. Gopalaswami Ayyangar
  3. Alladi Krishnaswami Ayyar
  4. Dr. K. M. Munshi – The only Congress member
  5. Syed Mohammad Saadulla – Associated with the Muslim League
  6. N. Madhava Rao- (He replaced B. L. Mitra, who resigned due to health reasons)
  7. T. T. Krishnamachari – (He replaced D. P. Khaitan after his death in 1948)
• The replacement was nominated by the President Rajendra Prasad in case of vacancy.
• Total duration of deliberations – 114 days
• October 1947 – First draft of the Constitution prepared
• 21 February 1948 – Draft presented to the President of the Constituent Assembly
• After reconsideration by the Drafting Committee, a reprinted draft was submitted to the President of the Constituent Assembly on 26 October 1948.
• This draft contained 315 Articles and 8 Schedules.
• On 4 November 1948, B. R. Ambedkar presented the draft in the Constituent Assembly. On this day, the first reading began. The draft underwent three readings in the Constituent Assembly:

1. First Reading –     4 November 1948 to 9 November 1948
2. Second Reading – 15 November 1948 to 17 October 1949
3. Third Reading – 14 November 1949 to 26 November 1949

• Dr. B. R. Ambedkar moved the motion “That the Constitution as settled by the Assembly be passed. ”This motion was declared passed on 26 November 1949, and the signatures of the President and members were taken on 24 January 1950. Out of 299 members, only 284 members were present on that day and signed the Constitution.
• Ambedkar stated that the Constitution should be passed in the form in which it was accepted by the Constituent Assembly.
• A special reason was behind the commencement of the Constitution on 26 January 1950. In the Lahore Session of the Congress in 1929, presided over by Jawaharlal Nehru, the resolution on Purna Swaraj was passed. On the basis of this resolution, 26 January 1930 was celebrated throughout the country as Independence Day, and subsequently every 26 January was observed as Independence Day. In memory of this day, the Constitution of India was brought into force on 26 January 1950.

Other Functions of the Constituent Assembly

Other Functions Performed by the Constituent Assembly

1. It ratified India’s membership of the Commonwealth on 16 May 1949.
2. It adopted the National Flag on 22 July 1947.
   • 22 July is observed as Flag Day.
   • Proposal – Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya
3. It adopted the National Anthem on 24 January 1950.
4. It adopted the National Song on 24 January 1950.
5. It elected Dr. Rajendra Prasad as the first President of India on 24 January 1950.
6. Under the Munshi–Ayyangar Formula, Hindi was accepted as the Official Language on 14 September 1949.

Munshi–Ayyangar Formula (1949)

• On 12 September 1949, this formula was presented in the Constituent Assembly by K. M. Munshi and Gopalaswami Ayyangar.
• Its objective was to resolve the dispute relating to the use of Hindi and English.
• Through this formula, it was decided that Hindi would be given the status of the Official Language, not the National Language.
• On 14 September 1949, this formula was adopted by the Constituent Assembly. For this reason, 14 September is celebrated as Hindi Day.
• In the Constitution, provisions relating to the Hindi language were incorporated in Articles 343 to 351.
• Important provisions:
  • The use of English shall continue for the next 15 years.
  • Parliament may make a law in the future regarding the use of English and Devanagari numerals.
  • With the permission of the President, Hindi may be used in the High Courts.
  • Bills, Acts and Ordinances may be translated into the official language of the States.

Presiding Authority of the Constituent Assembly

• As a Legislature – G. V. Mavlankar
• As the Constituent Assembly –Dr. Rajendra Prasad

Constituent Assembly as the Interim Parliament –

• Under the Indian Independence Act, 1947, it was provided that until the Constitution of India was framed, the governance of India would be carried on in accordance with the Government of India Act, 1935, and till then, the law-making work would be performed by the Constituent Assembly itself acting as the Interim Parliament.
• The Constituent Assembly was presided over by Dr. Rajendra Prasad, whereas the Interim Parliament was presided over by Ganesh Vasudev Mavlankar.
• The Interim Parliament was a unicameral legislature. The First Constitutional Amendment of India was passed by this unicameral Interim Parliament itself.
• India’s first use of Article 356 was made on 20 June 1951, and its approval was given by this Interim Parliament.
• Under Article 379, the Constituent Assembly functioned as the provisional Parliament until both Houses were constituted; once the new Parliament was duly formed in April 1952, the provisional Parliament automatically ceased to exist.

Important Statements Regarding the Constituent Assembly

Granville Austin identified three main characteristics of the Constituent Assembly:

1. Decision by consensus – for example, provisions relating to federalism, language and minorities
2. Principle of accommodation – coordination between federal and unitary systems, between central governance and Panchayati Raj
3. The art of selection with change

• According to Granville Austin, India’s fundamental contribution to constitution-making lies in the fact that its Constituent Assembly, by demonstrating the art of selection and accommodation, created an “Amicable Union” through decisions based on consensus.
• Granville Austin found in his study that in constitution-making, four leaders played an important role in supreme political leadership (political oligarchy):
  1. Jawaharlal Nehru
  2. Vallabhbhai Patel
  3. Rajendra Prasad
  4. Maulana Abul Kalam Azad
• Book: The Indian Constitution – Cornerstone of a Nation – Granville Austin
• Jawaharlal Nehru: “The demand for a Constituent Assembly is a reflection of the collective demand for complete self-determination.”
• Dr. B. R. Ambedkar:

• “If under the new Constitution things go wrong, it will not be because our Constitution is bad, but we shall have to say that man is vile.”
• “The success of a Constitution depends on the people who operate it.”
• “No matter how good a Constitution may be, if those who implement it are bad, the Constitution will also become bad.”
• Ambedkar is regarded as the ‘Father of the Indian Constitution’ and is also described as the ‘Modern Manu’.

• Dr. Rajendra Prasad:
  • “If the people are capable, of good character and honest, they can make even a bad Constitution work well, and if they lack these qualities, the Constitution will not be able to help the country.”
  • “The Constitution is good, but it will depend on how the people who implement it are.”
  • “The country needs leaders who place national interest above everything else.”
  • “A Constitution is a lifeless thing like a machine; it is the people who operate it who breathe life into it. India only needs a few honest people for whom national interest is supreme.” (On the day of the closing session of the Constituent Assembly – 26 November 1949)
• Hanumanthaiya, a member of the Constituent Assembly, remarked: “We wanted the music of a veena or sitar, but here we are hearing the music of an English band.”
• The Constituent Assembly adopted the Elephant as its emblem (seal).
• Sir B. N. Rau was appointed as the Constitutional (Legal) Adviser to the Constituent Assembly.
• S. N. Mukherjee was appointed as the Chief Draftsman of the Constituent Assembly.

Criticism of the Constituent Assembly

Number	Critics/Thinker	Criticism/Comment	Other information / Context
1	Nirajuddin Ahmed	He was a member of the Abduction Committee; he questioned the legality and representativeness of the Constituent Assembly.
2	Granville Austin	“The Constituent Assembly was a one-party body of a one-party country. The Assembly was the Congress and the Congress was India.”	Books – The Indian Constitution: A Cornerstone of a Nation; Working a Democratic Constitution: The Indian Experience. He also stated that with the coming into force of the Constitution, India became the world’s largest democracy. After Philadelphia (1787), it was the greatest political achievement.
3	Lord Viscount	He described the Constituent Assembly as “a Hindu body”;	This remark was made in the context of minority representation in the Assembly.
4	John Simon	He described the Constituent Assembly as a Hindu Assembly	Alleged a communal outlook.
5	Winston Churchill	He stated that the Constituent Assembly represented only one major community of India (the Hindus).	Churchill and M. R. Jayakar both described it as non-sovereign.
6	M. R. Jayakar	The Constituent Assembly was not sovereign; it functioned under the authority of the British Government.
7	Jayaprakash Narayan	The Constituent Assembly was not truly a representative body	He questioned the real participation of the people.
8	Ivor Jennings	“The Indian Constitution is a paradise for lawyers.”	Adequate importance was not given to the interests and sentiments of minorities under a nationalist outlook.
9	Lakshminarayan Sahu	“The ideals of this Constitution have no connection with the soul of India.”	He criticised it for being detached from Indian tradition.

Other Important Facts:

• Formation of the first Law Commission after independence – in 1955
  • Chairman – M. C. Setalvad (Attorney General of India)
• Butler Committee (1927)
  • To improve relations between the Government of India and the princely states
• Proposal passed with minimum debate – Universal Adult Franchise
• Maulana Azad had suggested postponing the provision of adult franchise for 15 years.
• Chief Guest of India’s first Republic Day – President Sukarno of Indonesia
• Proclamation of India as a Sovereign Democratic Republic – C. Rajagopalachari (26 January 1950); thereafter Dr. Rajendra Prasad took the oath.
• On 17 October 1949, Dr. Rajendra Prasad moved a proposal in the Constituent Assembly that the Objectives Resolution should form part of the Constitution.
• Constitution Day – 26 November
  • Beginning – 26 November 2015 (125th birth anniversary of Dr. Ambedkar)
  • Celebrated as Law Day from 1951 to 2014.
• Mahatma Gandhi – After India’s independence, the Indian National Congress should be dissolved as a political party.