Preamble

NAUREEN HERA
 What is the Preamble?

 A preamble of a bill is an introductory part of the document which explains the

purpose, rules, regulations, and philosophy of the document. A preamble gives a brief
introduction of documents by highlighting the principles and fundamental values of the
document. It shows the source of the authority of the document. 
 The preamble of the Constitution of India is an introduction of the Constitution which
includes the sets of rules and regulations to guide the people of the country. The
inspiration and the motto of the citizens are explained in it. The preamble can be
considered as the beginning of the Constitution which highlights the base of the
Constitution.
 Historical Background of Indian Constitution

 Before 1947, India was divided into two main parts – 11 provinces that were ruled by the Britishers and
Princely states ruled by Indian princes under the command of Britishers. Combining these two units
formed the Union of India. The preamble is based on the principles written by the Constituent Assembly. 
 It provides a way of life, which includes fraternity, liberty, and equality as the notion of a happy life and
which can not be taken from each other. Liberty, equality, and fraternity and connected with each other and
they can not be separated, which means without equality, liberty would produce the supremacy of the
minority over the majority. Equality without liberty would kill individual perception. And fraternity helps
liberty and equality in their course of action. 
 Who wrote the Preamble of India and Date of
its Adoption
 The Preamble of the Indian Constitution is primarily based on the ‘Objective Resolution’ written by
Jawaharlal Nehru. He introduced his objective resolution on December 13, 1946, later it was accepted by
the Constituent Assembly on 22 January 1947. 
 The drafting committee observed that the preamble must be limited in defining the important features of the
new state and its socio-political objectives and other important matters should be refined further in the
Constitution. The committee changed the motto from ‘Sovereign Independent Republic’ to ‘Sovereign
Democratic Republic’ as it was mentioned in the ‘Objective Resolution’. 
 The preamble can also be called the soul of the constitution as it has everything about the constitution. It
was adopted on 26th November 1949 and it was started from 26th January 1950 also known as the
Republic Day. 
 Components of Preamble of the Indian
Constitution

 The components of the preamble are:

 The preamble shows that the people of India are the source of authority. It means power lies with the citizens
to elect their representatives and they also have the right to criticize their representatives. 
 It comprises the date of its adoption which is November 26th, 1949. 
 It states the objectives of the Constitution of India, which are justice, liberty, equality, and fraternity to
maintain the integrity and unity of the nation as well as the citizens.
 It also justifies the nature of the Indian State, which is Sovereign, Socialist, Republic, Secular, and
Democratic. 
Sovereign

 The preamble of the Constitution states that India is a Sovereign State. The term
‘Sovereign’ means the independent authority of the state. It means the state has
control over every subject and no other authority or external power has control
over it. So, the legislature of our country has the powers to make laws in the
country with restrictions keeping in mind imposed by the Constitution.
 Socialist

 The term ‘Socialist’ was added after the 42nd Amendment, 1976, during the emergency. The term socialist
denotes democratic socialism. It means a political-economic system that provides social, economic, and
political justice. 
 Theory advocating governmental ownership of the means of production and distribution of goods.
 A 0political and economic theory of social organization which advocates that the means of production,
distribution, and exchange should be owned or regulated by the community as a whole.
 Mrs. Indira Gandhi explained socialist as ‘equality of opportunity’ or ‘better life for the people’. She said
socialism is like democracy, everyone has their own set of interpretations but in India socialism is a way for
the better life of the people. 
 Secular

 The term ‘Secular’ was also added by the 42nd Amendment Act, 1976, during the emergency. The
Constitution states India as a secular state as the state has no official religion. The citizens have their own
view of life and can choose their religion as they like.
 The state provides full freedom to the people to practice any religion of their choice. The state treats all
religions equally, with equal respect and can not discriminate between them. The state has no right
interfering with the people with their choice of religion, faith or idol of worship. 
 Important Components of Secularism are:

 The right to equality is guaranteed by Article 14 of the Constitution. 

 Discrimination on any grounds such as religion, caste, etc is prohibited by Article 15 and 16 of the
Constitution. 
 Article 19 and 21 of the Constitution discuss all the freedoms of the citizens, including freedom of speech and
expression. 
 Article 24 to Article 28 covers the rights related to practice religion.
 Article 44 of the Constitution abandoned the fundamental duty of the state to enact uniform civil laws treating
all citizens as equal.
 In the case of S.R. Bommai v. Union of India, the nine-judge bench of Apex Courts found the concept of
secularism as the basic feature of the Constitution. 
 Democratic

 The term ‘Democratic’ is derived from the Greek words where ‘demos’ means ‘people’ and ‘Kratos’ means ‘authority’.
Which concludes that the government is constructed by the people. India is a democratic state as the people elect their
government at all levels, that means, union, state, and local or ground level. Everyone has the right to vote irrespective of
their caste, creed or gender. So, in a democratic form of government, every person has a direct or indirect share in
administration. 
 Republic

 India has a republic form of government as the head of state is elected and not a hereditary monarch like a
king or queen. The term ‘Republic’ is obtained from ‘res publica’ that means public property or
commonwealth. It means the power to elect the head of the state for a fixed term lies within the people.
 So, in conclusion, the word ‘republic’ shows a government where the head of state is elected by the people
rather than any birthright. 
 Is Preamble a part of the Constitution?

Berubari Case
 Berubari Case was used as a reference under Article 143(1) of the Constitution which was on the
implementation of the Indo-Pakistan Agreement related to Berubari Union and in exchanging the enclaves
which were decided for consideration by the bench consisting of eight judges. 
 Through this case, the Court stated that ‘Preamble is the key to open the mind of the makers’ but it can not
be considered as the part of the Constitution. 
Kesavananda Bharati Case

 This case created history as for the first time, a bench of 13 judges was assembled to hear
a writ petition. The Court held that:
 The Preamble of the Constitution will now be considered as part of the Constitution. 
 The Preamble is not the supreme power or source of any restriction or prohibition but it
plays an important role in the interpretation of statutes and provisions of the Constitution. 
 So, it can be concluded that preamble is part of the introductory part of the Constitution. 
 Amendment of the Preamble

 After the judgment of the Kesavanand Bharati case, it was accepted that the preamble is part of the
Constitution. So, as a part of the Constitution, it can be amended under Article 368 of the Constitution,
but the basic structure of the preamble can not be amended.
 Because the structure of the Constitution is based on the basic elements of the Preamble. As of now, the
preamble is only amended once through the 42nd Amendment Act, 1976. 
 42nd Amendment Act, 1976

 The 42nd Amendment Act, 1976 was the first act ever to amend the preamble of the Constitution. On
December 18th, 1976, ‘Socialist’, ‘Secular’, and ‘Integrity’ were added to the preamble to protect economic
justice and eliminate discrimination whatsoever. Through this amendment, ‘socialist’ and ‘secular’ were
added between ‘sovereign’ and ‘democratic’, and ‘Unity of the Nation’ was changed to ‘Unity and Integrity
of the Nation’.