Preamble is an introduction or preface to the Constitution. It is also called as ‘Identity card of the Constitution’. As per K.M. Munshi Preamble is a horoscope of the Indian Constitution. In simple terms, we can say that just after seeing the index of a book we get an idea about the book, similarly after seeing the Preamble one gets an idea about nature of the Indian state i.e Sovereign, Socialist, Secular, Democratic and Republic. It starts from “We, the people of India”……
Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru drafted the ‘objective resolution‘ and put it among the Constituent assembly on 13th December 1946. This objective resolution was adopted by the Constituent assembly on 22 January 1947. Preamble of the Constitution is based on the objective resolution.
Keywords in the Preamble are :-
1) Sovereign :– It means India is an independent nation to take its decision on its own. We are neither dependant on anyone nor dominion of any other countries. In simple terms, no other countries can force us to take internal as well as external decisions according to their wish.
Note : India is a member of UNO(United nations organisation), but this does not affects sovereignity of India.
2) Socialist :- India is a democratic socialism not a communistic socialism. in democractic socialism, both public and private sector co-exist side by side i.e mixed economy. In democratic socialism, aim is to end poverty, diseases and inequality. The word ”Socialist” was added in the Preamble by 42nd Constitutional amendment act 1976.
Note :- In communistic socialism, all source of production and distribution are under the government. There is no concept of private property in it.
3) Secular :- We have concept of positive secularism in India. It means, all religions in the country have same status and are equal. State can treat and protect all religion equally. The word “Secular” was also added in the Preamble by 42nd Constitutional amendment act 1976.
4) Democratic :- Democratic means ultimate power lies in the hands of the people of country. People can elect their representative on the basis of universal adult suffrage.
Note :– Democracy is of 2 types i,e Direct democracy and indirect democracy. In direct democracy, people can exercise their power directly like through Referendum, Plebiscite, Recall and Initiative. Direct democracy is in Switzerland. In India, we have indirect democracy, in which elected representatives of the people can make laws on their behalf and functions as a government. Indirect democracy is also called as representative democracy.
Important note :- The term “democratic” is used in the Preamble in a very broader sense, it does not mean only political democracy but also ”social and economic democracy”.
5) Republic :- It means head of the state is to be elected by the people and not to be a monarch or king. President of India is head of the state.
6) Justice :- Here justice indicates social, economic and political justice. The ideal of justice i.e social, economic and political in the Preamble was taken from Russian revolution of 1917.
a) Social justice :– It means a society in which no discrimination is there on the basis of religion, race, caste, sex and colour. No priviledges is to be provided to any of the particular section of the society and to enhance the conditions of women, schedule castes, schedule tribes and other backward classes.
b) Economic justice :- It means elimination of inequalities in wealth, property and income of the people. All people must get an equal opportunity to earn for their living.
Note :- The sad reality is that as per recent reports, the richest 1% people of India are holding 40% of country’s total wealth, while half of the population shares only 3% of the wealth.
c) Political justice :- It means all the people of India should have equal political rights like right to vote, right to speech, right to contest for elections etc.
7) Liberty :- Preamble talks about liberty of thought, expression, belief, faith and worship. It means people have freedom to live their life freely and have opportunities to develop themselves. But, liberty also does not mean you can do whatever you feel like to; liberty has to be enjoyed within the limitations prescribed in the Constitution.
Note :- The ideal of liberty, equality and fraternity in the Preamble was taken from the French revolution (1789-1799)
8) Equality :- It means everyone is equal before the law, no section of the society is to be provided with special priviledges in any manner. All the people have equal opportunities irrespective of their religion, race, caste, sex , place of birth.
9) Fraternity :- It means a feeling of brotherhood among the people of the country. This is very important for unity and integrity of the country as well as for dignity of the individual. People should feel connected to the country and fellow citizens for a better society. The word “Integrity” was added in the Preamble by 42nd Constitutional amendment act 1976. It is also enlisted in the Fundamental duties (Article 51A) of the Constitution that it shall be the duty of every citizen of India to promote harmony and spirit of brotherhood.
Note :- Liberty, equality and fraternity all goes hand in hand which means without equality and liberty, fraternity is not possible, similarly; without equality and fraternity, liberty is not possible.
Some important facts related to the Preamble :-
- Is Preamble part of the Constitution ? – Yes, Preamble is a part of the Constitution. Kesavananda Bharti case of 1973 alos emphasized on this.
- Can Preamble be amended ? – Yes, Preamble can be amended by the Parliament subject to the doctrine of basic structure of Constitution. It was amended once till now. As 3 words i.e Socialist, Secular and Integrity were added in the Preamble by the 42nd Constitutional amendment act 1976. Note :- In Kesavananda Bharti case of 1973, Supreme Court stated that Parliament can amend any part of the Constitution but it cannot amend basic structure of the Constitution. Theory of basic structure is dynamic and it will keep evolving over time.
- Is Preamble justiciable or enforceable in a court of law ? – No, it is neither enforceable nor justiciable in court of law. It means court cannot pass orders against the government to implement the ideas mentioned in the Preamble.
- Is Preamble part of the basic structure ? – No, Preamble as a whole is not a part of basic structure of Constitution. But, some of the parts of Preamble are part of basic structure.
Some important cases related to the Preamble :-
1) Berubari union case (1960) :– In its judgement, court stated that Preamble is the key to open mind of the makers, but it is not a part of the Constitution.
2) Kesavananda Bharti case (1973) :- Here, court stated that Preamble is part of the Constituion.
3) Union govt. vs LIC of India (1995) :– Here, again court stated that Preamble is part of the Constitution but it is not directly enforceable in the court of law.
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