The Philosophy of The Constitution Notes in English Class 11 Political Science Chapter-10 Book-1
0Team Eklavyaजून 06, 2025
What is the meaning of the philosophy of the Constitution?
Some people believe that the Constitution is made up of laws only and law is one thing and values and morality are completely different things, hence only a legal approach can be adopted towards the Constitution and not the approach of moral or political philosophy.
It is true that not every law has a moral element but there are many laws which are deeply related to our values and ideals.
Example-
The constitution prohibits discrimination between individuals on the basis of religion .
This type of law is linked to the idea of equality.
This law has been made because we value equality.
It is clear from this example that there is a deep connection between law and moral values.
That is why it is important to look at the Constitution as such a document
There is a moral vision behind it.
There is a need to adopt a political philosophy perspective towards the Constitution.
The Constitution is made on the basis of some concepts.
Like 'rights', 'citizenship', 'minority' or 'democracy'
Indian Constitution Debate
The Indian Constitution should be read in conjunction with the debates of the Constituent Assembly so that we can theoretically explain to what extent and why these ideals are correct and what improvements can be made in them further.
If we make any value the foundation of the Constitution, then it becomes necessary for us to explain why this value is correct and consistent.
When the makers of the Constitution decided to guide Indian society and polity by a particular set of values rather than others, it was because they had some arguments to justify this set of values , even if many of these arguments were not entirely clear. However crude and unrefined the arguments of the makers of the Constitution may have been, it is difficult to imagine that they did not have arguments to justify the values underlying the Constitution.
Constitution- an instrument of democratic change
In the first chapter we read about the meaning of the Constitution and the need for a good Constitution.
There is widespread agreement that a major reason for adopting a constitution is to prevent power from becoming autocratic.
Modern states are powerful to the extreme.
The state is considered to have a monopoly on the use of force and punitive power.
What would happen if the institutions of such a state fall into the wrong hands?
Even though these institutions were created for our protection and well-being, they can easily work against us.
Experience with state power around the world shows that most states can work to harm the interests of certain individuals or groups.
If this is so, then we should make the rules of the game of power in such a way that this tendency of the state is curbed.
The Constitution provides these basic rules and prevents the state from becoming autocratic.
Nehru argued that the Constituent Assembly was not merely a gathering of people's representatives or able lawyers
Rather, it is in itself 'a nation on the road, emerging from the shell of its past political and social structure and preparing to wear a new cover of its own making.'
The Indian Constitution was created to break the shackles of traditional social hierarchy and to usher in a new era of freedom, equality and justice.
According to this view, the presence of a constitution not only curbs the power of those in power but also empowers those who have traditionally been away from power.
The Constitution gives power to the weaker sections of society to achieve their due rights collectively.
Why look back at the Constituent Assembly?
Example of America – The Constitution there was written in the latter half of the 18th century.
It would be absurd to use the values and standards of that era in the 21st century.
But the situation in India is different. There has been no revolutionary change in the situation that existed at the time of the constitution makers and the conditions in which we live today.
In terms of values, ideals and concepts, we could not separate ourselves from the thinking and time of the Constituent Assembly.
The history of our Constitution is still the history of our present.
It is possible that we have forgotten the real reason behind our legal and political behavior. Over time, we have accepted them as natural.
What is the political philosophy of our Constitution?
It is difficult to describe this philosophy in one word.
Our Constitution refuses to be confined to any one title because it is liberal, democratic, secular, federal, upholding the values of community life, sensitive to the needs of religious and linguistic minorities as well as the historically disadvantaged classes and committed to the creation of a common national identity.
In short, this Constitution is committed to liberty, equality, democracy, social justice and national unity.
Along with all this, there is one more fundamental thing that the Constitution emphasizes that its philosophy should be implemented in a peaceful and democratic manner.
freedom of the individual
Our Constitution is committed to individual freedom.
This commitment is the result of nearly a century of sustained intellectual and political activity.
As early as the 19th century, Rammohan Roy had opposed the curtailment of freedom of the press.
The British government was imposing restrictions on the freedom of the press.
Rammohan Roy argued that the state which takes care of the needs of the individual must also provide the individual with the means to express his needs.
Today freedom of expression is an integral part of our Constitution.
Similarly, we have been given freedom against arbitrary arrest.
The Rowlatt Act tried to hijack this very freedom of ours and the national freedom struggle fought strongly against it.
On this basis we can say that the character of the Indian Constitution is based on a strong liberal foundation.
In the chapter dealing with Fundamental Rights, we have seen how much importance the Indian Constitution gives to individual freedom.
social justice
Our constitution is linked to social justice.
The provision of reservation for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes is the best example of this.
The makers of the Constitution believed that merely granting the right to equality was not enough to liberate these classes from the injustice done to them for centuries or to give real meaning to their right to vote.
Special constitutional measures were needed to promote the interests of these classes.
For this reason, the makers of the Constitution took many special measures to protect the interests of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.
Example - Reservation of seats in the legislature for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes . It was possible to provide reservation to these classes in government jobs only due to special provisions of the Constitution .
Respect for diversity and the rights of minorities
The makers of the Constitution faced a difficult challenge as to how to establish a relationship of equality among communities amidst the prevailing situation of discrimination and deep rivalry.
How to liberalise communities?
This problem could have been easily solved by not recognising the communities.
This is what has been done in the liberal constitutions of most Western nations. But doing so in our country would neither be effective nor desirable.
This is not because Indians are more connected by communities than other people. People everywhere belong to cultural communities and each such community has its own traditions, values, customs and language. A member of a community is a participant in it.
Example: In France and Germany a person is a member of a linguistic community and is deeply attached to it.
We accept community values more openly and this is what makes us special.
More importantly, there are many cultural communities in India.
Unlike Germany or France, India has many linguistic and religious communities. No community should dominate the other –
This had to be ensured. That is why it became necessary for our Constitution to recognise community-based rights.
One such right is the right of a religious community to establish and run its own educational institution.
The government can give money to such institutions. This provision shows that the Indian Constitution does not consider religion to be a private matter of an individual.
Secularism
Both religion and state will stay away from each other's internal matters.
It is necessary for the state not to interfere in the field of religion.
Similarly, religion should neither interfere in the policy of the state nor influence the functioning of the state.
The purpose of keeping religion and state completely separate is protection of individual freedom.
A state that supports organized religion makes an already strong religion even more powerful.
When religious organizations start controlling a person's religious life, when they even start telling a person how he should relate to God, how he should worship and pray, then in such a situation the person should have the option to expect the state to protect his religious freedom.
But, what help will a state provide which has itself joined hands with these organisations?
Therefore, to protect the religious freedom of an individual it is necessary that the state should not aid religious organisations.
But at the same time it is also important that a powerful institution like the state should not tell religious organizations how they should do their work. This also hinders religious freedom.
For this reason, it is also necessary for the state not to interfere in religious organisations.
universal suffrage
Universal adult suffrage means that the Indian constitution gives the right to vote to every citizen of India who has attained the age of 18 years. There will be no discrimination on the basis of caste, religion, sex, place of residence etc.
Federalism
According to the Indian Constitution, the concept of federalism has been adopted in India. Here the division of powers is in the form of central government, state government and local government.
National identity
There has been a constant emphasis in the Constitution on a national identity for all Indian people.
Our one national identity is not in conflict with the different identities created on the basis of language or religion.
An attempt has been made to create a balance between these two identities in the Indian Constitution.
Nevertheless, in certain circumstances national identity has been given priority.
Procedural achievement
The idea was to include everyone in the constitution.
The ability to accept dissent is a feature of the Constitution.
The agreement needs to be implemented in the correct manner.
Taking decisions by consensus was a laudable policy of the Constitution makers.
Criticism
The constitution is chaotic or elaborate
Some people believe that the Constitution should be a coherent document.
The Indian Constitution also includes other constitutional documents and provisions (e.g. Election Commission, Public Service Commission).
In countries like America the constitution is brief but in India it has been elaborated to cover all the important aspects.
could not represent everyone
The Constituent Assembly was not formed by universal suffrage,
Rather, people from the leading sections of the society were involved in it.
Representation has two aspects:
Voice: The voice of every section of the society was not fully heard in the Constituent Assembly.
Opinion: There was extensive discussion on various issues and concerns from many sections were covered.
The aspirations of Dalits and other sections were also given place in the Constitution, which can be seen in the form of Ambedkar's statue.
The constitution is not suited to Indian conditions
According to critics, the Indian Constitution is a copy of foreign constitutions.
It did not adequately reflect Indian cultural and social conditions.
However, an attempt has been made to incorporate India's diversity and social values in the Constitution.
boundaries
These things do not mean that the Constitution of India is a complete and error-free document in every way.
Given the social conditions in which it was created, it is natural that it may contain some controversial issues, things that require review.
Many such things in this Constitution arose under the pressure of time. Nevertheless, we must admit that this Constitution has some limitations.
The concept of national unity in the Indian Constitution is very centralized.
Some important issues of gender justice, especially those related to family, have not been given adequate attention in this.
It is not clear why in a poor and developing country certain basic socio-economic rights were relegated to the Directive Principles of State Policy clause instead of making them an integral part of the Fundamental Rights.
