Borrowed features of the Indian Constitution
The constitution can be defined as a set of rules and laws that establish the state's government by clearly defining the relations between the different institutions and components of the government, namely, the executive, the legislature, the judiciary, the central,50 and the local government.
The creation of the Indian Constitution began with the first meeting of the constituent assembly after the second world war under the presidency of Dr. Rajendra Prasad. On 29th August 1947, a drafting committee was appointed with Dr. B R Ambedkar to achieve a permanent and organized constitution.
On 4th November 1947, the drafting committee submitted the initial draft of the constitution. The final draft was submitted on 26th November 1949. On 24th January 1950, the Handwritten Constitutional Draft was signed and came into legal force on 26th January 1950.
The Indian constitution is widely considered to be the longest written constitution in the world. Its present state consists of Preamble, 448 Articles divided into 25 Parts, 12 Schedules, and 101 Amendments. While the Indian constitution is designed to account for the numerous challenges arising due to India's diverse political, social, and cultural nature, its size can also be attributed to adopting the best features of other countries and incorporating them into themselves.
India has adopted the parliamentary government, cabinet system, bicameralism, and single citizenship from the British. In India, the role of the head of the state, the President, is mostly ceremonial. In contrast, the head of the government, the Prime Minister, is entrusted with executive powers. This contrasts with the United States, where the President is both the head of the state and the head of the government. The executive branch of India consists of the President, the Vice President, and the Council of Ministers, chosen from the legislative branch, under the leadership of the Prime Minister, unlike the US, where the executive branch is completely independent of the legislative branch. Just as Britain has the House of Commons and House of Lords, India has Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha as the Lower and Upper Houses of the Parliament. Single citizenship means that a citizen of India can not accept the citizenship of another country without relinquishing Indian citizenship.
The US.
The concept of Independence of Judiciary, Judicial Review can trace its origin to the US. From the United States of America, India borrowed the process of Impeachment of the President, the functions of the President and the Vice President, the process for removal of Supreme Court and High Court judges, and the preamble of the Constitution. The Supreme Court of India can review laws, acts, and government actions and invalidate those found to violate the Constitution's Basic Features. The concept of Fundamental Rights is another one that was adopted from the US Constitution. The six Fundamental Rights are the Right to equality, Right to freedom, Right against exploitation, Right to freedom of religion, Cultural and educational rights, and the Right to constitutional remedies.
Canada’s contribution comes in the form of the centrifugal form of federalism, where the center is stronger than the states. In all fields or areas not specifically restricted for the states, the center's authority trumps that of the states. The advisory jurisdiction of the Supreme Court is also inherited from the Canadian Constitution. Under Article 143 of the Indian Constitution, Supreme Court can express opinions regarding matters referred to it by the President.
In a federal type of government, the subjects or areas of interest are split into lists depending on whether the state or the center has the sole jurisdiction over it. The constitution of Australia provided the concept of a Concurrent List for subjects that come under the jurisdiction of both the state and the center. Freedom of trade and commerce is a concept adopted from Australia.
Russia (referred to as USSR at the time) contributed to the Indian Constitution the Fundamental Duties and the concept of justice (social, economic, and political) as expressed in the Preamble. The Fundamental Duties of citizens were added to the Constitution by the 42nd Amendment in 1976, upon the recommendations of the Swaran Singh Committee that was constituted by the Government. There are 11 Fundamental Duties drafted based on moral, ethical, and cultural codes. They are to abide by the Indian Constitution and respect the National Anthem and Flag, follow the ideas that inspired the freedom struggle, protect the integrity, sovereignty, and unity of India, defend the country and perform national services when called upon, promote the spirit of harmony and brotherhood, preserve the composite culture, preserve the natural environment, develop scientific temper, safeguard all public property, strive for excellence, and the duty of parents/guardians to send the children aged 6-14 years to school.
The Directive Principles of State Policy and the method of election of President were adopted from Irish Constitution. The Directive Principles of State Policy of India are guidelines or principles given to institutes governing the state of India. While they are not legally enforceable, they are considered fundamental in the country's governance and serve as a base template for making laws to establish a just society in the country.
India borrowed from France the concept of ‘Republic,’ the ideals of Liberty, Equality, and fraternity as expressed in the Preamble. At the same time, Germany contributed the concept of the suspension of Fundamental Rights during the Emergency.
Despite the criticisms that the constitution of India is a bag of borrowings, it is unique in its contents and spirit. The Indian constitution has many salient features that distinguish it from those of other countries. Even among the borrowed features, it is mainly the concept that was taken, and the details were crafted to align with the unique history, diverse geography, and rich culture and tradition of India.
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