The Philosophy of the Constitution


1. The following are certain laws. Are they connected with any value?

If yes, then what is the underlying value? Give reasons.

a. Both daughters and sons will have share in the family property.

b. There will be different slabs of sales tax on different consumer

items.

c. Religious instructions will not be given in any government

school.

d. There shall be no begar or forced labour.


2. Which of the options given below cannot be used to complete the

following statement?

Democratic countries need a constitution to

Check the power of the government.

Protect minorities from majority.

Bring independence from colonial rule.

Ensure that a long-term vision is not lost by momentary

passions.

Bring social change in peaceful manner.


3. The following are different positions about reading and

understanding Constituent Assembly debates.

i. Which of these statements argues that Constituent Assembly

debates are relevant even today? Which statement says that

they are not relevant?

ii. With which of these positions do you agree and why?

a. Common people are too busy in earning livelihood and

meeting different pressures of life. They can’t understand

the legal language of these debates.

b. The conditions and challenges today are different from the

time when the Constitution was made. To read the ideas of

Constitution makers and use them for our new times is

trying to bring past in the present

c. Our ways of understanding the world and the present

challenges have not changed totally. Constituent Assembly

debates can provide us reasons why certain practises are

important. In a period when constitutional practises are

being challenged, not knowing the reasons can destroy them.


4. Explain the difference between the Indian Constitution and western

ideas in the light of

a. Understanding of secularism.

b. Articles 370 and 371.

c. Affirmative action.

d. Universal adult franchise.

5. Which of the following principles of secularism are adopted in the

Constitution of India?

a. that state will have nothing to do with religion

b. that state will have close relation with religion

c. that state can discriminate among religions

d. that state will recognise rights of religious groups

e. that state will have limited powers to intervene in affairs of

religions


6. Match the following.








7. This discussion was taking place in a class. Read the various

arguments and state which of these do you agree with and why.

Jayesh: I still think that our Constitution is only a borrowed

document.

Saba: Do you mean to say that there is nothing Indian in it? But is

there such a thing as Indian and western in the case of values and

ideas? Take equality between men and women. What is western

about it? And even if it is, should we reject it only because it is

western?

Jayesh: What I mean is that after fighting for independence from

the British, did we not adopt their system of parliamentary

government?

Neha: You forget that when we fought the British, we were not

against the British as such, we were against the principle of

colonialism. That has nothing to do with adopting a system of

government that we wanted, wherever it came from.


 8. Why is it said that the making of the Indian Constitution was

unrepresentative? Does that make the Constitution

unrepresentative? Give reasons for your answer.


 9. One of the limitations of the Constitution of India is that it does not

adequately attend to gender justice. What evidence can you give to

substantiate this charge? If you were writing the Constitution today,

what provisions would you recommend for remedying this limitation?


10. Do you agree with the statement that “it is not clear why in a poor

developing country, certain basic socio-economic rights were

relegated to the section on Directive Principles rather than made

an integral feature of our Fundamental Rights”? Give reasons for

your answer. What do you think are the possible reasons for putting

socio-economic rights in the section on Directive Principles?

11. How did your school celebrate the Constitution Day on November

26th?