what is constitution and its salient frature?
Answers
Salient Features of the Constitution of India
Preamble of the Constitution:
The Preamble to the Constitution of India is a well drafted document which states the philosophy of the constitution.
It declares India to be a Sovereign Socialist Secular Democratic Republic and a welfare state committed to secure justice, liberty and equality for the people and for promoting fraternity, dignity the individual, and unity and integrity of the nation.
The Preamble is the key to the constitution. It states in nutshell the nature of Indian state and the objectives it is committed to secure for the people.
The Constitution mentions that India is a Democratic socialist state:
Although, right from the beginning the Indian Constitution fully reflected the spirit of democratic socialism, it was only in 1976 that the Preamble was amended to include the term ‘Socialism’.
It is now regarded as a prime feature of Indian state.
India is committed to secure social, economic and political justice for its entire people by ending all forms of exploitation and by securing equitable distribution of income, resources and wealth. This is to be secured by peaceful, constitutional and democratic means.
Right to Religious Freedom:
India gives special status to no religion. There is no such thing as a state religion of India.
This makes it different from theocratic states like the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.
Further, Indian secularism guarantees equal freedom to all religions. The Constitution grants the Right to Religious Freedom to all the citizens.
The Constitution of India provides for a democratic system:
The authority of the government rests upon the sovereignty of the people. The people enjoy equal political rights.
On the basis of these rights, the people freely participate in the process of politics. They elect their government.
Free fair and regular elections are held for electing governments.
For all its activities, the government of India is responsible before the people. The people can change their government through elections.
No government can remain in power which does not enjoy the confidence of the people. India is the world’s largest working democracy.
India is a Republic:
The Preamble declares India to be a Republic.
India is not ruled by a monarch or a nominated head of state. India has an elected head of state (President of India) who wields power for a fixed term of 5 years.
After every 5 years, the people of India indirectly elect their President.
India is a Union of States:
Article I of the Constitution declares, that “India that is Bharat is a Union of States.”
The term ‘Union of State’ shows two important facts:
That the Indian Union is not the result of voluntary agreement among sovereign states.
The states of India do not enjoy the right to secede from the Union.
At present, India has 28 States and 7 Union Territories.
Mixture of Federalism and Unitarianism:
While describing India as a Union of States, the Constitution provides for a federal structure with a unitary spirit.
Scholars describe India as a ‘Quasi-Federation’ (K.C. Wheare) or as ‘a federation with a unitary bias, or even as ‘a Unitarian federation.’
Like a federation, the Constitution of India provides for:
A division of powers between the centre and states,
A written, rigid and supreme constitution and an independent judiciary with the power to decide centre-state disputes and a Dual administration i.e. central and state administrations.
India is a federation with some Unitarian features. This mixture of federalism-Unitarianism has been done keeping in view both the pluralistic nature of society and the presence of regional diversities, as well as due to the need for securing unity and integrity of the nation.
The Constitution is collection of basic rules providing the framework for the governance of a country.
It is adopted to establish governmental machinery to maintain social order and peace.
Its Salient features are-
1. Written and detailed constitution.
2. Preamble of the Constitution.
3. Self made and enacted constituion.
4. India is a secular, federal and democractic country.
5. Fundamental Rights and fundamental duties of the citizens.
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