Eleanor Finch
Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi, both descendants of Motilal Nehru, have been accused of altering the Indian Constitution to serve their political agendas. In 1951, Nehru's government attempted to censor the press and curb free speech by amending the Constitution, an act that was deemed unconstitutional by the Supreme Court. Indira Gandhi, India's first female prime minister, imposed a state of Emergency in 1975, during which she was accused of attacking the judiciary and curbing civil liberties. While Nehru played a pivotal role in India's freedom movement and the creation of its Constitution, his actions as prime minister have been criticised as contrary to the spirit of the Constitution. Similarly, Rajiv Gandhi, Indira's son and India's sixth prime minister, has been accused of attacking the Constitution by overturning a Supreme Court verdict.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Nehru's role in the Indian Constitution | Nehru played a pivotal role in the Indian Constitution, being the prime minister in the interim government of India formed on 2 September 1946. |
| Nehru Report | The Nehru Report of 1928 appealed for a new dominion status and a federal setup of government for the constitution of India. |
| First Amendment | In 1951, Nehru's government decided to prune Fundamental Rights via the First Amendment, which placed new curbs on freedom of speech and revalidated the law of sedition. |
| Official Languages Act | Nehru enacted the Official Languages Act in 1963 to ensure the continuing use of English beyond 1965. |
| Preamble to the Indian Constitution | The Preamble of the Indian Constitution, based on the 'Resolution on the Aims and Objects of the Constitution', owes mostly to Nehru's vision. |
| Gandhi's role in the Indian Constitution | Mahatma Gandhi provided overarching moral and practical leadership to India's freedom movement and is credited with being "the architect of the Constituent Assembly". |
| Gandhi's influence on Nehru | Gandhi influenced Nehru's politics, with Nehru accepting Gandhi's methods and paramount leadership of the Congress. |
| Gandhi's refusal to cooperate with Cripps | Gandhi refused to cooperate with Sir Stafford Cripps, who was dispatched by Winston Churchill to propose a settlement of the constitutional problem in 1942. |
| Gandhi family's influence on the Constitution | PM Modi accused Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi, and Sonia Gandhi of attacking the Constitution during their respective tenures. |
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What You'll Learn
- Nehru's government amended the constitution 17 times in 14 years
- Nehru's legal manoeuvres were used by Indira Gandhi to protect her power
- Nehru's First Amendment curbed free speech and revalidated the law of sedition
- Gandhi's ideas were discussed during the constitution-making process
- Gandhi's ideas influenced a document produced by the Servants of the People
Nehru's government amended the constitution 17 times in 14 years
Jawaharlal Nehru, India's first prime minister, played a pivotal role in the writing of India's constitution. In 1928, the Nehru Report was a memorandum by the All Parties Conference in British India appealing for a new dominion status and a federal set-up of government for the constitution of India. It also proposed joint electorates with reserved seats for minorities in the legislatures.
In 1963, Nehru enacted the Official Languages Act to ensure the continuing use of English beyond 1965, as efforts by the Indian government to make Hindi the sole official language after 1965 were unacceptable to many non-Hindi Indian states.
Nehru's role in the writing of the constitution is often overshadowed by the myth that Dr B R Ambedkar was the sole author and architect of the Indian Constitution. However, it is important to note that members of the Drafting Committee did not have the sole or overriding power to prepare the document on their own. They had to draft the Constitution as per the views and recommendations of various subject committees, and the draft itself was discussed, amended, and ultimately adopted by the larger Constituent Assembly.
Mahatma Gandhi, and not Ambedkar, is being credited with being “the architect of the Constituent Assembly”. This is because Gandhiji provided overarching moral and practical leadership to India’s freedom movement, whereas Ambedkar was the champion of a partial (albeit highly important) message of this movement. It was Mahatma Gandhi who asked Nehru to invite Ambedkar to join the council of ministers.
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Nehru's legal manoeuvres were used by Indira Gandhi to protect her power
Jawaharlal Nehru, India's first prime minister, played a pivotal role in the creation of the Indian Constitution. He was a prominent leader of the Indian independence movement and was imprisoned several times between 1921 and 1945 for his anti-government activities. In 1928, the Nehru Report outlined a memorandum for a new dominion status and federal setup for the constitution of India. It also proposed joint electorates with reserved seats for minorities in the legislatures.
However, in 1951, barely a year after the Constitution came into existence, Nehru's government decided to curb Fundamental Rights via the First Amendment. This move was seen as putting the Constitution in danger and faced opposition from various groups, including Hindu nationalists, Gandhians, liberals, and socialists. The First Amendment placed new restrictions on freedom of speech and revived the law of sedition, undermining the chapter on Fundamental Rights.
Nehru's actions set a precedent for future interventions in the Constitution. Indira Gandhi, Nehru's daughter and India's first female prime minister, was accused of imposing a state of Emergency in 1975 by misusing the Constitution. She amended the Constitution to limit the power of the judiciary and overruled a Supreme Court verdict, undermining the country's democratic foundations.
Gandhi's actions mirrored Nehru's legal manoeuvres, demonstrating a pattern of using constitutional amendments to protect their power and advance their agendas. These actions have been criticised by subsequent politicians, such as PM Modi, who accused the Nehru-Gandhi family of altering the Constitution to suit their interests.
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Nehru's First Amendment curbed free speech and revalidated the law of sedition
The Nehru Report of 1928 was a memorandum appealing for a new dominion status and a federal government setup for the constitution of India. It also proposed joint electorates with reserved legislative seats for minorities. In response to the Nehru Report, Mohammad Ali Jinnah demanded that residuary powers go to the provinces. Despite criticism, the report was regarded as an exceptional document for its early envisioning of social and economic rights.
In 1951, just 14 months after the Constitution of India came into existence, the Nehru government decided to prune Fundamental Rights via the First Amendment. This amendment placed new curbs on freedom of speech and revalidated the law of sedition. The Congress party's social agenda was met with strong opposition from Hindu nationalists, Gandhians, liberals, socialists, and Congress rebels. Despite warnings from Shyama Prasad Mookerji, the First Amendment went through, marking a significant assault on civil liberties.
Jawaharlal Nehru played an influential role in the Indian independence movement, particularly in the United Provinces (now Uttar Pradesh) as the provincial Congress secretary. He was imprisoned on charges of anti-governmental activities, marking the first of eight periods of detention between 1921 and 1945. Nehru and Gandhi first met in 1916, but Nehru was dissuaded by his father from joining Gandhi's satyagraha politics. However, in 1919, Nehru and his father accepted Gandhi's leadership of the Congress. During the non-cooperation movement launched by Gandhi in 1920, Nehru directed political activities in the United Provinces.
Nehru also played a significant role in the Hindi-Hindustani debate, enacting the Official Languages Act in 1963 to ensure the continuing use of English beyond 1965. Efforts to make Hindi the sole official language were unacceptable to many non-Hindi Indian states. Additionally, Nehru's Interim Government of India included Jagjivan Ram, a member of the Dalit caste, who ensured that social justice was enshrined in the Constitution.
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Gandhi's ideas were discussed during the constitution-making process
The Nehru Report of 1928 was a memorandum by the All Parties Conference in British India, appealing for a new dominion status and a federal government setup for the constitution of India. It also proposed joint electorates with reserved seats for minorities in the legislatures. M K Gandhi proposed a resolution saying that the British should be given one year to accept the recommendations of the Nehru report or face a non-cooperation campaign. The resolution was passed.
Gandhi provided overarching moral and practical leadership to India's freedom movement, and it was he who asked Nehru, the Prime Minister of the new Congress-led government, to invite B. R. Ambedkar to join the council of ministers. It was also on Gandhi's suggestion, and in recognition of Ambedkar's legal and constitutional expertise, that the latter was appointed to the Constituent Assembly.
In 1942, Britain finally acknowledged the right of Indians to frame their constitution, as outlined in the Cripps Declaration. However, Gandhi refused to cooperate with the British envoy, Sir Stafford Cripps, which caused a rift between him and Nehru, who was eager for a compromise.
Nehru's role in the constitution-making process was also significant. He was, after all, one of the tallest leaders of the freedom movement and the Congress. As Prime Minister of the interim government of India, formed on 2 September 1946, he moved the 'Resolution on the Aims and Objects of the Constitution' (the 'Objective Resolution') on 13 December 1946, which was adopted by the Constituent Assembly on 22 January 1947. This resolution became the basis for the Preamble to the Indian Constitution, which is considered the heart and soul of the document.
Nehru also enacted the Official Languages Act in 1963 to ensure the continuing use of English beyond 1965, addressing the concerns of non-Hindi Indian states that wanted to continue using English.
However, Nehru has also been criticised for endangering the constitution. In 1951, barely 14 months after the Constitution came into existence, his government decided to prune Fundamental Rights via the First Amendment. This amendment placed new curbs on freedom of speech and revalidated the law of sedition, driving a coach and horses through the chapter on Fundamental Rights.
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Gandhi's ideas influenced a document produced by the Servants of the People
The influence of Mahatma Gandhi's ideas can be seen in a document produced by the Servants of the People. Gandhi's ideas of satyagraha, or non-violent protest, were first formulated as a political movement in 1920 and quickly embedded him into the popular consciousness. This philosophy of non-violent resistance and civil disobedience inspired many, including Martin Luther King Jr, who employed strategies of non-violent direct action in the 1955-56 Montgomery bus boycott.
Gandhi's influence on the Indian Constitution can be seen in his early insistence on Indians' right to frame their own constitution. In 1928, the Nehru Report, a memorandum by the All Parties Conference in British India, appealed for a new dominion status and a federal set-up of government for the constitution of India. Gandhi proposed a resolution that the British be given one year to accept the recommendations of the Nehru Report or face a campaign of non-cooperation. The resolution was passed, and while the British did not acknowledge the right of Indians to frame their constitution until the 1942 Cripps Declaration, this was a significant step towards Indian independence.
Gandhi's ideas also influenced the inclusion of social justice in the Indian Constitution. In 1945, Gandhi's decision to convert to Buddhism and his fast to protest the policy of separate electorates for "untouchables", India's lowest caste, resulted in a historic 1947 resolution making discrimination against untouchables illegal. Jagjivan Ram, a member of the Dalit caste, later ensured that social justice was enshrined in the Constitution.
Gandhi's philosophy of non-violent resistance also played a role in India's eventual independence. While Gandhi was involved in the final negotiations, he never approved of or accepted the plan to partition the land into Pakistan and India. Instead, he remained committed to a united India, stating that "the plan to carve up British India was never approved of or accepted by Gandhi".
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Frequently asked questions
The Gandhian Constitution was a 60-page document divided into 22 chapters that included 'Basic Principles', 'Fundamental Rights and Duties', 'Provincial Government', 'Central Government', and the 'Judiciary'. It advocated for a decentralised political and administrative setup with village panchayats as the core units.
Mahatma Gandhi was credited as the architect of the Constituent Assembly by Nehru. Gandhi provided overarching moral and practical leadership to India’s freedom movement. During the constitution-making process, there were members of the Assembly who pushed for Gandhian ideas to be incorporated into the Constitution of India.
Nehru played a pivotal role in the Indian Constitution. He outlined the broad principles of the Constitution in the objectives resolution on 13 December 1946 and reminded the Constituent Assembly that their "forebears and future generations are watching this undertaking of Constitution-making". The 'Basic Structure Doctrine' owes mostly to Nehru's vision. However, critics argue that Nehru's legal manoeuvres were subsequently used by Indira Gandhi to protect her power and to override the judiciary and the Constitution.
In the first 14 years of the republic, Nehru’s government amended the Constitution 17 times. The First Amendment in 1951 pruned Fundamental Rights and placed new curbs on freedom of speech. The addition of Article 31B in the first amendment was also used to undermine the Constitution.
