History and significance of India’s Constitution Day; EXPLAINED-

In May 2015, the Union Cabinet led by PM Narendra Modi announced that November 26 will be observed as Constitution Day to promote “constitutional values amongst citizens”.

NewsBharati    25-Nov-2021
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-Kinjal Dixit 
 
On November 26, 1949, the Constituent Assembly took on the Constitution of India, and it was then commemorated on the 26th of January, 1950. While the 26th of January is celebrated as Republic Day, beginning in 2015, November 26 has been seen as the Constitution Day of India or ‘Samvidhan Divas’. Dr. Rajendra Prasad, Dr. B.R Ambedkar, and Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel were the founding fathers of the constitution of India.
 
Why 26 November is celebrated as Constitution Day?
 
In May 2015, the Union Cabinet led by PM Narendra Modi announced that November 26 will be observed as Constitution Day to promote “constitutional values amongst citizens”. Notably, 2015 was the year that marked the 125th birth anniversary of BR Ambedkar, the Chairman of the Drafting Committee of the Constitution. Other members included in that Committee Jawaharlal Nehru, Vallabhbhai Patel and Shayama Prasad Mukherjee, among others.
 
 
The Modi government wanted to honor the legacy of BR Ambedkar and to promote the constitutional values that were introduced by him and others. Following the Cabinet meeting in 2015, then Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment Thawar Chand Gehlot said, “Rahul Gandhi and his party never honoured Ambedkar. Neither did he get the Bharat Ratna nor was his oil painting installed in Parliament premises as long Congress was in power.”
 
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At the time, the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment decided to undertake several activities to promote Ambedkar’s ideas and philosophy, which included the setting up of the Ambedkar International Centre at 15, Janpath at a cost of over Rs 197 crore. On November 19, 2015, the government formally notified November 26 as Constitution Day. Before this, the day was observed as National Law Day. Ambedkar was also the first Law Minister of India.
 
“This year, the country is celebrating 125th birth Anniversary of Dr. B. R. Ambedkar. The ‘Constitution Day’ will be a part of these year-long nationwide celebrations. This will be a tribute to Dr. Ambedkar, who played a seminal role in the framing of the Indian Constitution as the Chairman of the Drafting Committee of Constituent Assembly,” a press release issued by the Press Information Bureau said in 2015.
 
History of Constitution Day of India-
 
The 2-month period between the adoption and enforcement of the Constitution was used for a thorough reading and translation from English to Hindi. The Constituent Assembly met for 166 days spread over two years, 11 months and 18 days before the Constitution was adopted. The members of the Constituent Assembly signed 2 hand-written copies of the document, in Hindi and English, on January 24, 1950. 2 days later, the Constitution of India became the law of the land. There were several critical issues debated including language, rights, minorities, etc.
 
What happened on November 25, 1949?
 
The day before the Constituent Assembly wound up its proceedings, B R Ambedkar gave a moving speech. It ended with 3 warnings for the future. The first was regarding the place of popular protest in a democracy. He said, “One must abandon the methods of civil disobedience, non-cooperation and satyagraha.”
 
The second warning was, “Bhakti in religion may be the road to salvation of a soul. But in politics, bhakti or hero worship is a sure road to degradation and to eventual dictatorship.”
 
 
B R Ambedkar’s final warning was that Indians shouldn’t be content with political democracy, as inequality and hierarchy were still embedded in the Indian society. He said that if we continue to deny it (equality) for long, we will do so only by putting our political democracy in peril.
 
What is the significance of Constitution Day?
 
26th November was marked as the Constitution Day of India by PM Narendra Modi in the year 2015, as a part of year-long celebration of the 125th birth anniversary of Dr B R Ambedkar. Constitution Day of India aims to bring awareness on the importance of the Indian Constitution and its architect - Dr B R Ambedkar. Ambedkar was a renowned social reformer, politician and jurist. He is also called the Father of Indian Constitution. He was appointed as chairman of the constitution drafting committee on August 29, 1947.
 
What is Constitution of India?
 
The Constitution of India proclaims India as a sovereign, equal country, guaranteeing its resident’s equity, equality, and freedom and tries to bring about a change in the society. The preface was corrected by the 42nd Constitutional Amendment Act in the year 1976, in which 3 new words - Socialist, Secular, and Integrity were added. The Preamble has been altered just once up until now. The Constitution portrays the major political code, structure, techniques, forces, and obligations of the public authority foundations. A lesser-known fact is that the Indian constitution is the longest composed constitution on the planet, with 1,17,369 words in English. It took close to 2 years, 11 months, and 17 days to finish the entire Constitution. Hence, Constitution Day of India is commended on November 26.
Also Read: President to lead 'Constitution Day' events; to witness reading of Preamble in 23 official languages 
 
A few provisions of the Indian Constitution have been acquired from 10 other nations that include Britain, Japan, USA, Germany, Australia, South Africa, Ireland, and Canada. The concepts of Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity have actually been taken from the French Constitution. The concept of 5-year plans was taken from the USSR. The Directive Principles were taken from Ireland. The laws on which the Supreme Court functions were taken from Japan. As a part of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav, honouring 75 years of India’s independence, India will be celebrating Constitution Day on November 26 with great fervour and gaiety in the Central Hall of Parliament House, according to the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs.