8. प्रस्ताव : संविधानाचा मसुदा

Finally Sir, I wish to say that it is not so much on the written word of the printed Constitution that will ultimately depend whether we reach that full stature, but on the spirit in which the leaders and administrators of the country implement this Constitution of ours and on the spirit in which they approach the vast problems that face us; on the way in which we discharge the spirit of this Constitution will depend the measure of our fulfilment of the ideals which we all believe in.

*Shri Krishna Chandra Sharma (United Provinces : General) : I join in the pleasant task to compliment Dr. Ambedkar for the well worked out scheme he has placed before the House, the hard work he was put in, and his yesterday’s able and lucid speech. Sir, in considering a Constitution we have to take note of the fact that the Constitution is not an end in itself. A Constitution is framed for certain objectives and these objectives are the general good of the people, the stability of the State and the growth and development of the individual. In India when we say the growth and development of the individual we mean his self realisation, self-development and self-fulfilment. When we say the development of the people we mean to say a strong and united nation…..

*****

†Shri T. T. Krishnamachari (Madras : General) : Mr. President, Sir, I am one of those in the House who have listened to Dr. Ambedkar very carefully. I am aware of the amount of work and enthusiasm that he has brought to bear on the work of drafting this Constitution. At the same time I do realise that that amount of attention that was necessary for the purpose of drafting a Constitution so important to us at this moment has not been given to it by the Drafting Committee. The House is perhaps aware that of the seven members nominated by you, one had resigned from the House and was replaced. One died and was not replaced. One was away in America and his place was not filled up and another person was engaged in State affairs and there was a void to that extent. One or two people were far away from Delhi and perhaps reasons of health did not permit them to attend. So it happened ultimately that the burden of drafting this Constitution fell on Dr. Ambedkar and I have no doubt that we are grateful to him for having achieved this task in a manner which is undoubtedly commendable. But my point really is that the attention that was due to a matter like

*CAD, Vol. VII, 5th November 1948 , p.229.

†Ibid. pp. 231-32.

this has not been given to it by the Committee as a whole. Some time in April the Secretarial of the Constituent Assembly had intimated me and others besides myself that you had decided that the Union Powers Committee, the Union Constitution Committee and the Provincial Constitution Committee, at any rate the members thereof, and a few other selected people should meet and discuss the various amendments that had been suggested by the members of the House and also by the general public. A meeting was held for two days in April last and I believe a certain amount of good work was done and I see that Dr. Ambedkar has chosen to accept certain recommendations of the Committee, but nothing was heard about this committee thereafter. I understand that the Drafting Committee—at any rate Dr. Ambedkar and Mr. Madhava Rau—met thereafter and scrutinised the amendments and they have made certain suggestions, but technically perhaps this was not a Drafting Committee. Though I would not question your ruling on this matter, one would concede that the moment a Committee had reported that Committee became functus officio, and I do not remember your having reconstituted the Drafting Committee……..

****

*Shri Biswanath Das (Orissa : General) : Mr. Vice-President. Sir, I rise to thank the Honourable Dr. Ambedkar for the brilliant analysis of the Constitution that he presented to the Constituent Assembly. Sir, I equally thank his colleagues who laboured hard for six long months to forge the Constitution that is presented to this House…….

†Shri H. Das (Orissa : General) : Mr. Vice President. Sir, at the outset I must pay my tribute to the Drafting Committee that did a greatly arduous work and put into shape and form the Constitution Bill which we are considering today and which we have to alter according to our will, so that a proper sovereign Constitution will be designed for India. While I pay my tribute to Dr . Ambedkar and his colleagues, I must also pay the tribute that your advisers deserve………..

***** ‡Shri Lokanath Misra (Orissa : General):…….Sir, this Constituent Assembly which represents the sovereignty of India and which is supposed to give shape and form and prestige to our freedom is here deliberating on a Constitution that is supposed to be the guardian of our future. With that end in view, our leaders have laboured enough

*CAD. Vol. VII. 5th November 1948. p. 237.

†Ibid., p 239.

‡Ibid., p. 240.

and hard and have produced a Draft Constitution which we are now going to discuss.

Sir, my first point is this : that although Dr. Ambedkar has delivered a very brilliant, illuminating, bold and lucid speech completely analysing the Draft Constitution……… .... I would have taken some more time to X-ray the speech of Dr. Ambedkar. I bow down to his knowledge. I bow down to his clarity of speech. I bow down to his courage. But I am surprised to see that so learned a man so great a son of India knows so little of India. He is doubtless the very soul of the Draft Constitution and he has given in his Draft something which is absolutely un-Indian. By un-Indian I mean that however much he may repudiate, it is absolutely a slavish imitation of—nay much more—a slavish surrender to the West.

*****

*Kazi Syed Karimuddin (C.P. and Berar : Muslim) : Mr. President, Sir. I congratulate Dr. Ambedkar for the introduction of the motion for the consideration of the Draft Constitution of India. The speech that he delivered was a remarkable one and I am sure that his name is bound to go down to posterity as a great constitution-maker……..

*****

†Prof. K. T. Shah (Bihar: General) : Sir. I have to join in the chorus of congratulations that have been offered to the Drafting Committee and its Chairman for the very elaborate Draft Constitution that they have placed before this House. I have particularly to felicitate the Law Minister for the very lucid way in which he has put forward the salient features of the Constitution for our consideration, and given us thoughtprovoking ideas, with reasons why certain items have been included and why certain others have been put in the manner they have been……..

***** ‡Pandit Lakshmi Kanta Maitra (West Bengal : General) : Sir. I would be failing in my duly if I do not at the very outset congratulate my Honourable friend and old colleague. Dr. Ambedkar for the magnificent performance he made yesterday. The House appreciates the stupendous amount of time and energy he has spent in giving the constitutional proposals a definite shape…….

*****

*CAD, Vol. VII, 5th November 1948. p. 242.

†Ibid., p. 244.

‡Ibid. p. 246.

*Shri Ramnarayan Singh (Bihar : General) : Sir, I congratulate my Honourable friend Dr. Ambedkar on the opportunity he got of introducing this Constitution Bill and I support his motion…..

*****

†Dr. F. S. Deshmukh (C.P. & Berar : General) : Sir. I am thankful to you for giving me this opportunity to express my views on the proposed Constitution. The time is limited and therefore my observations can only be of a very general nature. When consideration of the various clauses takes place I shall unfortunately not be present here. I am therefore all the more grateful to have these few minutes.

The speech delivered by my Honourable friend Dr. Ambedkar was an excellent performance and it was an impressive commentary on the Draft that has been presented. As is well known, he is an Advocate of repute and I think he ably argued what was before him. He would perhaps have shaped the Constitution differently if he had the scope to do so. In any case I think he admitted his difficulties fully when he said that after all you cannot alter the administration in a day. And if the present Constitution can be described in a nutshell it is one intended to fit in with the present administration……….

***** ‡Shri S. Nagappa : Mr. Vice-President, Sir, I join the previous speakers in congratulating the Honourable Chairman of the Drafting Committee and all members of it. They have taken care to see that all aspects of all problems and all the reports of the various committees have been consolidated and looked into……..

Sir, I am one of those who plead for a strong Centre, especially as we all know that we have won our freedom very recently. We require sufficient time to consolidate it and to retain it for all time to come. For another reason also the Centre has to be strong. We have been already divided in so many respects, communally and on religious grounds. Now let us not be divided on the basis of provinces. So, in order to unite all the provinces and to bring about more unity, it is in the country’s interests as a whole to have a strong Centre.

Another reason why we should have a strong Centre I will mention presently. Some people say that we should have a strong Centre with a war mentality. I do not think we should have that mentality at all. We have been trained to be non-violent and truthful. These are our principles. When that is the case, there is no likelihood of the Centre having war mentality.

*CAD, Vol. VII. 5th November 1948. p. 252

†Ibid., p 250.

‡Ibid., p.252

The Honourable Dr. Ambedkar, in introducing his report and the Draft Constitution, mentioned that the Constitution was federal in structure but unitary in character. I believe, Sir, especially at this stage we require such a Constitution. We were told that he has borrowed from the Government of India Act. When we find something good in it, we copy it. If we find something useful and suitable to us, to our custom and to our culture, in other constitutions, there is no harm in adopting it.

The minorities have been very well provided for in the Constitution. I am glad about it and the representatives who have been returned to this House to safeguard the interests of the minorities are also glad about it. For this we have to congratulate the majority community. We have to congratulate the majority community for conceding certain special privileges to the minorities……..

Sir, I once again thank the Honourable Dr. Ambedkar for having taken the trouble of drafting this Constitution. No doubt it is an elaborate task but he has done it so successfully and in such a short time.

*****

*Shri Arun Chandra Guha (West Bengal : General) : Mr. Vice President, Sir……. Now to the Draft Constitution. I am afraid the Drafting Committee has gone beyond the terms. I am afraid the whole constitution that has been laid before us has gone beyond the main principles laid down by the Constituent Assembly. In the whole Draft Constitution we see no trace of Congress outlook, no trace of Gandhian social and political outlook. The learned Dr. Ambedkar in his long and learned speech has found no occasion to refer to Gandhiji or to the Congress. It is not surprising, because I feel the whole Constitution lacks in Congress ideal and Congress ideology particularly. When we are going to frame a constitution, it is not only a political structure that we are going to frame ; it is not only an administrative machinery that we are going to set up ; it is a machinery for the social and economic future of the nation……….

As for the Fundamental Rights, Dr. Ambedkar,—he is a learned professor and I acknowledge his learning and his ability and I think the Draft Constitution is mainly his handicraft—in his introductory speech, he has entered into a sort of metaphysical debate. He has introduced a new term ; I feel. Sir, there is no right in the world which is absolute. Every right carries with it some obligation ; without obligation there cannot be any right……

*****

*CAD, Vol. VII, 4th November 1948. pp. 255-56.

Mr. Vice President (Dr. H. C. Mookherjee) : Before I call upon the next member to address the House, I have here forty slips of members who wish to speak. The matter is so urgent and so important that I should like everybody to have an opportunity of airing his views on the Draft Constitution. May I therefore appeal to the speakers not to exceed the time-limit which I have fixed as ten minutes ?

*Shri T. Prakasam : (Madras : General): Sir, the Draft Constitution introduced by Dr. Ambedkar, the Honourable member in charge, is a very big document. The trouble taken by him and those who are associated with him must have been really very great. My Honourable friend Mr. T. T. Krishnamachari, when he was speaking, explained the handicap under which the Honourable Dr. Ambedkar had been labouring on account of’ as many as live or six members of the Committee having dropped out and their places not having been filled up………

*****

†Dr. Joseph Alban D’souza (Bombay : General) : Mr. Vice-President. never before in the annals of the history of this great nation, a history that goes back to thousands of years has there ever been, and probably will there ever be, greater need—nay. Sir, I may even say as much need—as at this most vital and momentous juncture when this Honourable House will be considering clause by clause, article by article, the Draft Constitution for a Free, Sovereign, Democratic Indian Republic—as much need for a quiet and sincere introspection into our individual consciences for the purpose of giving unto Caesar what unto Caesar is due as much need for a keen spirit of fraternal accommodation and co-operation whereby peace, harmony and goodwill will be the hall-marks of our varied existences individually as well as collectively ; as much need for a sufficient breadth of vision so that the complex and the difficult problems that we have to face in connection with this constitutional set-up may be examined primarily from the broader angle of the prosperity and progress of the country as a whole ; and lastly, as much need for an adequately generous and altruistic display of that well-known maxim “Love thy neighbour as Thyself”, so that in the higher interests of the nation as a whole, sentimental, emotional, parochial particularisms may not be allowed unduly to influence the decisions of fundamental policy affecting the nation as a whole. It has been admitted by several Members—particularly by every Member who has spoken before me—that the Draft Constitution is an excellent piece of work. May I say that it is a monumental piece of

*CAD, Vol. VII. 6th November 1948. p. 257.

† Ibid., p. 260.

work put up by the Honourable Dr. Ambedkar and his Drafting Committee after months of laborious work which may definitely be qualified as the work of experts, work which is comparative, selective and efficient in character right from the beginning to the end………..

***** The Honourable Shri K. Santhanam: ……..The Drafting Committee have done a good job of work, but at the same time I am afraid they cannot escape two valid criticisms. The Committee, I think illegitimately, converted themselves into a Constitution Committee. They have taken upon them selves the responsibility of changing some vital provisions adopted in the open House by this Assembly..............

*****

†Shri R. K. Sidhwa (C.P. & Berar: General): Mr. Vice-President, Sir, as an able and competent lawyer, the Honourable Dr. Ambedkar has presented the Draft Constitution in this House in very lucid terms and he has impressed the outside world and also some of the Honourable Members here, but that is not the criterion for judging the constitution. This is a Constitution prepared for democracy in this country and Dr. Ambedkar has negatived the very idea of democracy by ignoring the local authorities and villages……

***** ‡Shri Jainarain Vyas (Jodhpur) : *Mr. Vice-President, Sir, Dr. Ambedkar and his colleagues as also the typist and copists have to be thanked for the labour expended in preparing the Draft Constitution that is before us. This is a very big Draft and many things have been included in it……

***** #Shri B. A. Mandloi (C. P. and Berar: General): Mr. Vice-President, Sir, Dr. Ambedkar, Chairman of the Drafting Committee, in a very lucid speech explained the salient points of the Draft Constitution. In answer to the questions which are raised, namely, what is the form of the Government and what is the constitution of the country, he has pointed out that it is a federal type of Government with a strong Centre and a parliamentary system of Government with a single judiciary and uniformity in fundamental laws. He has also said that the emphasis has been placed on responsibility rather than on stability. It is strong enough in peace-time as well as in war-time. He has answered in his speech the various criticisms levelled against the Draft Constitution and

*CAD, Vol. VII, 6th November 1948. p. 262.

†Ibid.. p. 265.

‡Ibid p. 269.

#Ibid, p. 271.

I submit that his peech is a very lucid exposition of the Draft Constitution. The Draft Constitution prepared by the Drafting Committee is based on the reports of the various Committees, namely, the Union Power Committee, the Provincial Constitution Committee, the Advisory Committee and the Minority Committee. The Constituent Assembly in its very first session passed a Resolution with respect to the objective of our Constitution. That Resolution was moved by our respected leader, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, and was unanimously passed. We have to see that our Constitution is based on that fundamental Resolution—on that Objectives Resolution—in which the claims for justice, liberty, equality and fraternity had been granted. I submit that the Draft Constitution is a true reflection of the Objectives Resolution and therefore we can say that it has fulfilled our object.

There is another touch-stone with which to see whether the Draft Constitution answers the purpose of our country and our nation. That touch-stone is whether it would maintain our freedom, our independence and our democratic, secular Government. I am of opinion that, looking from that point of view also, this Draft Constitution serves our purpose…..

Sir, our Constitution is a Constitution which has been evolved by us from comparison of the various constitutions prevailing in the civilized countries all over the world. Various good points from all the constitutions have been taken with such modifications as are necessary in the interests of our country. If we faithfully and honestly work out the Constitution, I feel sure that our country would be prosperous, would be happy, would be strong, and we would be able to maintain our independence and not only maintain our independence but would be fulfilling the great mission of our departed leader, the Father of the Nation, who said that hereafter India would be in such a position as to free the other dependent countries and bring peace and prosperity in the whole world.

With these words. Sir, I submit that the Motion moved by Dr. Ambedkar be accepted by the House.

*Pandit Balkrishna Sharma (United Provinces : General) : Mr. Vice-President, Sir, so many friends have come here and offered their congratulations to the Honourable the Law Minister who was in charge

*CAD, Vol. VII. 6th November 1948, pp. 272-73.

of this Draft Constitution that it will sound almost a tautology if I repeat the same sentiments again. But I think I will be failing in my duty if I do not offer my humble and respectful congratulations to the learned Law Minister for the very lucid manner in which he has presented this Draft Constitution for our consideration. Many friends and critics have come here and levelled certain charges against our Constitution. The one charge which has been repeated by many friends is that ours is a very bulky Constitution. The Mover himself referred to the bulky nature of this document. When we really examine the clauses and articles of the various other Constitutions we come to the conclusion that ours is indeed a bulky Constitution. Sir, as you know, it contains 315 Articles, whereas the Constitution of British North America, that is Canada, contains only 147 Articles ; the Commonwealth of Australia Act contains about 128 Articles ; the Union of South Africa Act contains 153 Articles ; the Irish Constitution contains only 63 Articles ; the U. S. Constitution contains 28 Articles ; the U.S.S.R. Constitution 146 Articles ; the Swiss Federal Constitution 123 Articles; the German Reich Constitution contains 181 Articles, and the Japanese Constitution 103 Articles. A glance at these Constitutions shows that none of them contains more than 200 Articles whereas our Constitution contains 315 Articles. Critics have tried to make a great deal out of this bulkiness of our Constitution. But we must not forget that ours is a big country of 330 millions and we are making a Constitution for almost one fifth of humanity. Therefore there should be no wonder that our Constitution is bulky……….

Sir, our is a country which has got its own problems. In no country in the world are there what we call the principalities—the States— and there should be no wonder that in order to bring all these various factors in line with the present day democratic principles, the draftsmen of our Constitution could not compress into a few Articles all that they wanted to do. Therefore the charge that has been levelled against our Constitution that it is bulky seems to me to be frivolous………

*****

*Pandit Thakur Dass Bhargava (East Punjab : General) : ………. Since my friends insist that I should speak in English, I bow to their

*CAD, Vol. VII, 6th November 1948, p. 275.

wishes. It is true that I am able to express myself with greater ease in Hindi but at the same time I do wish that I should be understood by all the members of the House.

Sir, I wish to join in the chorus of praise which has been showered in this House on the Drafting Committee, but I cannot do so without reservation. When I bear in mind the complaints made by some friends here, I do feel that the Drafting Committee has not done what we expected it to do. Some of the members were absent, some did not join, some did not fully apply their minds…….The real soul of India is not represented by this Constitution, and the autonomy of the villages is not fully delineated here and this camera (holding out the Draft Constitution) cannot give a true picture of what many people would like India to be. The Drafting Committee had not the mind of Gandhiji, had not the mind of those who think that India’s teeming millions should be reflected through this camera. All the same, Sir, I cannot withhold my need of praise for the labour, the industry and the ability with which Dr. Ambedkar has dealt with this Constitution. I congratulate him on the speech that he made without necessarily concurring with him in all the sentiments that he expressed before this House.

I think, Sir, that the soul of this Constitution is contained in the Preamble and I am glad to express my sense of gratitude to Dr. Ambedkar for having added the word ‘fraternity’ to the Preamble. Now, Sir, I want to apply the touch-stone of this Preamble to the entire Constitution. If Justice, Liberty, Equality and Fraternity are to be found in this Constitution, if we can get this ideal through this Constitution, maintain that the Constitution is good.

*****

*Prof. Shibban Lal Saksena (United Provinces : General) :…… Mr. Vice-President, we are today called upon to discuss the principles underlying our Draft Constitution. To begin with, I must congratulate the learned Doctor who has placed this motion before us. I have read the speech, which he delivered, several times and I think it is a masterpiece of lucid exposition of our Constitution. I certainly think that there could not have been an abler advocacy for the Draft Constitution……

*****

*CAD, Vol. VII, 6th November 1948, p. 284.

*…….Lastly, Sir, I thank the Drafting Committee for providing us with a very fine Constitution. I also feel that the suggestions that I have made will be discussed at the amendment stage and finally find a place in the Constitution of our country. Sir, with these words, I commend the motion to the House.

*****

†Shri Sarangdhar Das (Orissa States): Mr. Vice-President, Sir, like all the previous speakers I congratulate the Drafting Committee, and especially its Chairman. Dr. Ambedkar for the hard work that they have put in. But at the same lime, there are certain things in his speech with which I cannot agree…...

***** ‡Shri R. R. Diwakar (Bombay : General) : Mr. Vice-President, Sir, Honourable Members who have spoken before me have covered enough ground and I think I should nut take much time of the House in going over the same ground. I would like to make a few points which from my point of view are very important when we are on the eve of giving a new Constitution to our country. One thing which I wish to make quite clear is that the Draft Constitution which is before us is really a monumental work and we all of us have already given congratulations to the Drafting Committee and its Chairman who is piloting it through this House. At the same time I would like to point out that the Drafting Committee has not only drafted the decisions of the Constituent Assembly but in my humble opinion it has gone far beyond mere drafting, I may say that it has reviewed the decisions, it has revised some of the decisions and possibly recast a number of them. It might be that it was inevitable to do so under the circumstances, but at the same time we, the Members of the Constituent Assembly, should be aware of this fact when we are considering the Draft and when we are thinking in terms of giving our amendments…….

***** #Mahboob Ali Baig Sahib Bahadur (Madras : Muslim) : Mr. VicePresident, Sir, Dr. Ambedkar’s analysis and review were remarkably lucid, masterly and exceedingly instructive and explanatory. One may not agree with his views but it is impossible to withhold praise for

*CAD, Vol. VII, 6th November 1948, p. 286 .

†Ibid., p. 286.

‡Ibid., p. 291.

#Ibid., 8th November 1948, p. 295.

his unique performance in delivering the speech he did while introducing his motion for the consideration of this House………

*****

*Mr. Z. H. Lari : …….In order to assess the value of the provisions, we have to bear in mind two things : firstly, certain admissions made by the Honourable Mover of the Resolution, I mean the Honourable Dr. Ambedkar, and secondly our experience of the working of democracy in the last fifteen months after the attainment of independence. When the House adopted resolutions which are the basis of the Draft Constitution, we had no such experience before us ; but now we have. The first admission that the Honourable Mover made was, and I will use his own words : “Democracy in India is only a top-dressing on Indian soil, which is essentially undemocratic”……….“It is wiser not trust the legislatures to prescribe forms of administration. “With respect, I say he is mainly right.

*****

†Mr. Hussain Imam : …….I must say that I find the position of the President of the Drafting Committee unenviable. He has been attacked from the left for not having copied the Soviet Constitution, and from the right for not having gone back to the village panchayat as his unit. May I say that there is an element of confusion in some of our friends minds, when they want that the Constitution should provide for all the ills to which Indians are subject. It is not part of the Constitution that it should provide for cloth and food. A very revered Member of this Constituent Assembly regretted that this Constitution does not contain any provision for that purpose. My submission, Sir, is that the Constitution is based on the needs of a country to which it is applied. We have to see whether this Constitution does supply those essentials which are peculiar to our own circumstances……

***** ‡Begum Aizaz Rasul (United Provinces: Muslim): Sir, I congratulate the Honourable Dr. Ambedkar for his lucid and illuminating exposition of the draft Constitution. He and the Drafting Committee had no ordinary task to perform and they deserve our thanks. Sir, I feel it a great privilege to be associated with the framing of the Constitution. I am aware of the solemnity of the occasion. After

*CAD, Vol. VII, 8th November 1948. p. 298.

†Ibid., p. 302.

‡Ibid., p. 305.

two centuries of slavery India has emerged from the darkness of bondage into the light of freedom, and today, on this historic occasion we are gathered here to draw up a Constitution for Free India which will give shape to our future destiny and carve out the social, political and economic status of the three hundred million people living in this vast sub-continent. We should therefore be fully aware of our responsibilities and set to this task with the point of view of how best to evolve a system best suited to the needs, requirements, culture and genius of the people living here……

*………A lot of criticism has been made about Dr. Ambedkar’s remark regarding village polity. Sir, I entirely agree with him. Modern tendency is towards the right of the citizen as against any corporate body and village panchayats can be very autocratic…… Sir, as a woman, I have very great satisfaction in the fact that no discrimination will be made on account of sex. It is in the fitness of things that such a provision should have been made in the Draft Constitution, and I am sure women can look forward to equality of opportunity under the new Court.

*****

*Dr. Monomohan Das (West Bengal : General) : Mr. VicePresident, Sir, a few days have passed since the Draft Constitution was introduced on the floor of this house by our able Law Minister and Chairman of the Drafting Committee, Dr. Ambedkar. During these few days, the Draft Constitution has met with scorching criticism at the hands of different members of this House. With the exception of a very few members who questioned the very competency and authenticity of this House to pass the Draft Constitution, all the other members have been unanimous in their verdict. They have accepted the Draft Constitution with some alterations, additions and omissions, in some clauses and articles, as a fairly workable one to begin with. One very re-assuring feature that we find in the Constitution is the single citizenship. As the Chairman of the Drafting Committee has said, unlike the American Constitution, the Draft Constitution has given us a single citizenship, the citizenship of India. In these days of provincialism, when every province likes to thrive at the cost of its neighbouring ones,

*CAD, Vol. VII, 8th November 1948, p. 305.

†Ibid., p. 307.

when we have forfeited the sympathy and goodwill of our neighbouring provinces, it is indeed a great re-assuring feature. I, as a member from “West Bengal, especially find myself elated to think that henceforth when this Constitution is passed, when this clause of single citizenship, with its equal rights and privileges all over India, is passed, the door of our neighbouring provinces will be open to us, so that our unfortunate brethern from the Eastern Pakistan, will find a breathing space in our neighbouring provinces…….

*****

*Shri V. I. Muniswamy Pillai (Madras : General) : Mr. VicePresident, Sir, nobody in this august Assembly or outside can belittle the efforts and the services rendered by the Drafting Committee that has presented the Draft Constitution for the approval of this House. The future generation will feel great pride that this Drafting Coommittee has been able to digest the various constitutions that are obtaining in the world today and to cull from them such of the provisions as are needed for the elevation of this great subcontinent……. With these few observation, I congratulate the President and members of the Drafting Committee for their great service in presenting the Draft Constitution to this Assembly and I commend the motion to this House for its acceptance.

†Shrimati Dakshayani Velayudhan (Madras : General): Mr. VicePresident, Sir, now that the draft is before us for general discussion, I request you to permit me to express my views on the same. The able and eloquent Chairman of the Drafting Committee has done his duty creditably within the scope of the general set-up of the new State of India. I feel that even if he wanted he could not have gone beyond the broad principles under which transfer of power took place and I therefore think that any criticism that is levelled against him is totally uncharitable and undeserved. Even if there is any blame—and I think there is—it should go only to those of us who are present here and who were sent for the purpose of framing a Constitution and on whom responsibilities were conferred by the dumb millions of this land who by virtue of their suffering for independence had great hopes when they sent us to this Assembly. But this does not mean that I have not got any criticism about the Draft…….

*CAD, Vol. VII, 8th November 1948, p. 308.

†Ibid., 310.

*Shri Deshbandhu Gupta (Delhi) : Mr. President, I am sorry I cannot congratulate Dr. Ambedkar, the Chairman of the Drafting Committee who has received congratulations from different members of the House…….

……This is what I wanted to say. As far as Delhi and other places are concerned. I would like to urge that we should take into consideration the fact that Delhi is the Capital and that as such it must be given a distinct status. I am one with Lata Deshbandhu Gupta on this question. But the small regions like Ajmer-Merwara, Coorg. Pantipiploda etc. should be merged in the provinces. It is no use making them centrally administered areas. This much I would like to submit to Doctor Sahib. He is a great scholar, and as such he should treat this country also as a land of wisdom. It is my appeal to him that he should give a place to the soul of India in this constitution…….

*****

†Giani Gurmukh Singh Musafir (East Punjab : Sikh) : Mr. President, like my Honourable friend Shri Deshbandhu Gupta. I cannot say that Dr. Ambedkar. President of the Drafting Committee does not deserve any congratulation. On several matters he deserves congratulation for several reasons and the Committee’s labour in framing this first Constitution is certainly praiseworthy. In spite of that, if anybody discovers any error, he mentions it, according to the measure of his understanding ‡The Honourable Rev., J. J. M. Nichols-Roy (Assam : General): Mr. Vice-President, Sir. it is indeed a great privilege to associate myself in rendering tribute to Dr. Ambedkar and the other members of the Drafting Committee for the stupendous task they have undertaken to bring out this Draft Constitution. They all deserve our best thanks…….. #I must especially thank the Drafting Committee for accepting the draft for the creation of District Councils with autonomy in the hill districts in Assam which in the Sixth Schedule are called autonomous districts.

***** $Mr. Mohammed Ismail Sahib (Madras : Muslim) : Mr. VicePresident…….. Sir, it is indeed a great speech in which the Honourable Dr. Ambedkar has commended the consideration of the Draft Constitution

*CAD, Vol. VII. 8th November 1948. pp. 312-17.

†Ibid., p. 324.

‡Ibid., p. 327.

#Ibid., p. 327.

$Ibid., p. 330.

to the House. For lucidity, for persuasiveness, impressiveness and logic. I do not think that it could be beaten. All congratulations to him but this does not mean that one is agreeing with everything that is said by him in the speech…….

*****

*Shri Alladi Krishnaswami Ayyar (Madras : General) : Sir, Before making a few remarks on the Draft Constitution, I should like lo join in the tribute of praise to the Honourable Dr. Ambedkar for the lucid and able manner in which lie has explained the principles of the Draft Constitution, though I owe it lo myself to say that I do not share the views of my Honourable Friend in his general condemnation of village communities in India. I must also express my emphatic dissent from his observation that Democracy in India is only a top-dressing on Indian soil…… Before I proceed to make my remarks on the Draft Constitution, in view of certain observations of my honourable Friend Mr. T. T. Krishnamachari on the work of the Drafting Committee and the part taken by its members. I owe it to myself and to the House to explain my position. As a member of the Committee, in spite of my indifferent health, I look a fairly active part in several of its meetings prior to the publication of the Draft Constitution and sent up notes and suggestion for the consideration of my colleagues even when I was unable to attend its meetings. Subsequent to the publication of the draft for reasons of health, I could not take part in any of its deliberations and I can claim no credit for the suggestions as lo the modifications of the draft…..

†…….A brief survey of the draft Constitution must convince the Members that it is based upon sound principles of democratic government and contains within itself elements necessary for growth and expansion and is in line with the most advanced democratic Constitution of the world. It is well to remember that a Constitution is after all what we make of it. The best illustration of this is found in the Constitution of the United States which was received with the least enthusiasm when it was finally adopted by the different States but has stood the test of time and is regarded as a model Constitution by the rest of the democratic world.

*CAD, Vol. VII. 8th November 1984, p. 334.

†Ibid., p. 338.

*****

*Pandit Govind Malaviya : Sir, before I say anything else, I should like to offer my cordial congratulations to ourselves and to the Drafting Committee and its versatile Chairman, our friend, Dr. Ambedkar, for the very excellent work which, they have done in giving us this Draft Constitution. If was a difficult problem which they had to face and they have tackled it most excellently. There may be many things in the Draft Constitution which one might have wished to be slightly different, but then that must be so about anything which can be produced anywhere……

*****

†Shri R. Sankar (Travancore) : Sir, I must at the very out set congratulate the framers of the Draft Constitution on the very efficient manner in which they have executed their duty ; and I must particularly congratulate Dr. Ambedkar on the very lucid and able exposition of the principles of the Draft Constitution that he gave us by his brilliant speech. I do not propose to go into the details of the Draft Constitution but will content myself with dealing with one or two aspects of it. I think the most salient features of the Draft Constitution are a very strong Centre and rather weak but homogeneous Units. Dr. Ambedkar made a fervent appeal to the representatives of the States to take up such an attitude as to make it possible for all the States and the provinces to follow the same line, and in course of time to establish homogeneous units of the Federation without any distinction between the States and the provinces……

***** ‡Shri M. Ananthasayanam Ayyangar (Madras : General) : Sir, objections of fundamental importance have been raised to the Draft Constitution as it has emerged from the Drafting Committee. I agree that there is nothing characteristic in this Constitution reflecting our ancient culture or our traditions. It is true that it is a patch work of some of the old constitutions of the west,—not even some of the modern constitutions of the west,—with a replica of the Government of India Act, 1935. It is true that they have been brought together and put into

*CAD, Vol. VII, 8th November 1948, p. 340.

†Ibid., 9th November 1948, p. 345.

‡ Ibid., 352.

a whole. Dr. Ambedkar is not responsible for this ; we alone have been responsible for this character of the Constitution. We have not thought that we must imprint upon this a new characteristic which will bring back to our memories our ancient culture. It is more our fault than the fault of Dr. Ambedkar…….

*****

*Shri Rohini Kumar Chaudhari (Assam : General) : Sir. I am deeply grateful to you for having given me this opportunity of participating in this debate of momentous importance but before I proceed. I should like lo pay my share of tribute lo the members of the Drafting Committee, its worthy President and above all, our Constitutional Adviser whose services to our poor Province. Assam, in the heyday of his youth are still remembered with affection and gratitude………

*****

†Shri L. Krishnaswami Bharathi (Madras : General) : Mr. VicePresident,…….Dr. Ambedkar deserves the congatulations of this House for the learned and brilliant exposition of the Draft Constitution. No congratulations are due to him for the provisions in the Draft for the simple reason they are not his. Honourable members may remember that most of the clauses in the Draft Constitution were discussed, debated and decided upon in this House. Only a very few matters were left over for incorporation by the Drafting Committee. The House, however, would tender its thanks for his labours in putting them in order…….

***** ‡Shri Vishwambhar Dayal Tripathi (United Provinces : General) : Sir,……To come directly to the subject-matter, it has been a formality with almost all the speakers to congratulate the Members of the Drafting Committee and its Chairman on the labour they have put in and also on the merits of the Constitution. I would not undergo that formality. There is no doubt, of course, that they have put in a good deal of labour and have placed before us a complete picture of a Constitution on the principles that we laid down in this Constituent Assembly. I am also aware that there is a good deal of merit in the draft Constitution. They

*CAD. Vol. VII. 8th November 1948, p. 354.

†Ibid., p. 365.

‡Ibid., p. 369.

have no doubt thoroughly studied the constitutions of different countries and have tried to make a choice out of them and to adapt those constitutions to the needs of this country. This is the chief merit of this Draft Constitution. In one word, it is an ‘orthodox’ Constitution………

*****

*Shri S. V. Krishnamurthy Rao (Mysore) : Mr. Vice-President, I thank you for giving me an opportunity to speak on the Draft Constitution. I join the various speakers who have paid a chorus of tribute to the Drafting Committee and its Chairman. Dr. Ambedkar. An attempt has been made in this Draft Constitution to put in the best experience of the various democratic constitutions in the world, both unitary and federal. Of course no Constitution can be perfect and even our Constitution will have to undergo some modifications before it finally emerges from this House……..

*****

†Shri N. Madhava Rau (Orissa States) . : Mr. Vice-President, I had not intended to join in this discussion, but in the course of the debate, several remarks were made not only on the provisions of the Draft Constitution, but on the manner in which the Drafting Committee had done their work. There was criticism made on alleged faults of commission and omission of the Committee. Mr. Alladi Krishnaswami Iyer who spoke yesterday and Mr. Saadulla who will speak on behalf of the Committee a little later have cleared or will clear the misapprehensions on which this criticism is based. I felt that as a member of the Committee who participated in many of its meetings after I had joined the Committee I should also contribute my share in removing these misapprehensions if they exist among any large section of the House.

It is true that the Draft Constitution does not provide for all matters, or in just the way, that we would individually have liked. Honourable Members have pointed out for instance, that cow-slaughter is not prohibited according to the Constitution, Fundamental Rights are too profusely qualified, no reference is made to the Father of the Nation the National Flag or the National Anthem. And two of our Honourable friends have rightly observed that there is no mention even of God in the Draft Constitution. We have all our favourite ideas ; but however sound or precious they may be intrinsically in other contexts, they

*CAD, Vol. VII. 9th November 1948. p. 382.

†Ibid pp. 384-85.

cannot be imported into the Constitution unless they are germane to its purpose and are accepted by the Constituent Assembly. Several speakers have criticised the Draft on the ground that it bears no impress of Gandhian philosophy and that while borrowing some of its provisions from alien sources, including the Government of India Act, 1935, it has not woven into its fabric any of the elements of ancient Indian polity.

Would our friends with Gandhian ideas tell us whether they are prepared to follow those ideas to their logical conclusions by dispensing for instance, with armed forces ; by doing away with legislative bodies. whose work, we have been told on good authority, Gandhiji considered a waste of time ; by scrapping our judicial system and substituting for it some simple and informal methods of administering justice ; by insisting that no Government servant or public worker should receive a salary exceeding Rs. 500 per month or whatever was the limit finally fixed ? I know some of the Congress leaders who sincerely believe that all this should and could be done. But we are speaking now of the Constitution as it was settled by the Constituent Assembly on the last occasion…….

*****

*Syed Muhammad Saadulla (Assam : Muslim): Mr. Vice President, Sir………The Drafting Committee is not self-existent. It was created by a Resolution of this House in August 1947, if I remember right. I personally was lying seriously ill at the lime and I could not attend that session. But, Sir, I find from the proceedings that as the Drafting Committee has been asked lo frame the Constitution within the four corners of the Objective Resolution, we will be met with the criticisms which we have heard now. Wise men even in those days had anticipated this and to the official Resolution an amendment was moved by the learned Premier of Bombay, Mr. Kher, wherein we are given this direction. I will read from his speech. He moved an amendment to the original Resolution for Constituting this Drafting Committee and there he said—“That the Drafting Committee should be charged with the duties of scrutinising the draft of the text of the Constitution of India prepared by the Constitutional Adviser giving effect to the decisions taken already in the Assembly and including all matters which are ancillary thereto or which have to be provided in such a Constitution

*CAD, Vol. VII. 9th November 1948. p . 388.

and to submit to the Assembly for consideration the text of the draft Constitution as revised by the Committee”…….

…….That was the amendment which was accepted by the House. Sir, after this amendment of the Honourable Mr. Kher which was accepted by the House, it does not lie in the mouth of the Members of the Constituent Assembly to say that we have gone far beyond our jurisdiction……..

***** Mr. Vice-President : Let us proceed with the subject.

*Syed Muhammad Saadulla : …….How can I tell Honourable Members that we toiled and moiled that we did our best, that we ransacked all the known Constitutions, ancient and recent from three different continents, lo produce a Draft which has been termed to be nothing but patch-work ? Bui those who are men of art, those who love crafts, know perfectly well that even by patch-work, beautiful patterns, very lovable designs can be created. I may claim that in spite of the deficiencies in our Draft we have tried to bring a complete picture, to give this Honourable House a document as full as possible which may form the basis of discussion in this House. The Drafting Committee never claimed this to be the last word on the Constitution, that its provisions are infallible or that these Articles cannot be changed. The very fact that this Draft has been placed before this august House for final acceptance shows that we are not committed lo one policy or the other. Where we had differed from the recommendations of Committees, or where who had the temerity to change a word here or a word there from the accepted principles of this august House, we have given sufficient indication in foot-notes, so that nothing can be put in surreptitiously there. The attention of the House has been drawn so that their ideas may be focussed on those items in which the Drafting Committee thought that they should deviate from the principles already accepted or from the recommendations of the Committees. [After Mr. Saadulla’s speech, the motion was put to vote as under.—Ed.] Mr. Vice-President : The question is :

“That the Constituent Assembly do proceed to take into consideration the Draft Constitution of India settled by the Drafting Committee appointed in pursuance of the resolution of the Assembly dated the 29th day of August. 1947.”

The motion was adopted.

[The Draft Constitution is appended herewith. Clause by clause discussion of the Draft Constitution followed. Dr. Ambedkar’s piloting of the Constitution may be seen in the next two parts of this Volume.—Ed. ]

*CAD, Vol. VII. 9th November 1948, p. 389.

Annexure

to Part I

(या पानावर मजकूर नाही — ते कोरे किंवा चित्राचे पान असू शकते.)