Debashis BarmanProgrammer. Engineer. Dreamer. Kravist. #ProudIndian www.debashisbarman.in
Features of the Indian ConstitutionThe constitution is a fundamental law of a country that reflects the fundamental principles on which the government of the country is based. In this article, learn some of the interesting features of the\xa0Indian Constitution.The bulkiest constitution of the\xa0worldThe Indian constitution is one of the\xa0bulkiest constitution of the world, comprising of\xa0395 articles,\xa022 parts\xa0and\xa012 schedules. So far the constitution underwent\xa0100 amendments\xa0(28 May, 2015).Rigidity and flexibilityThe Indian constitution is\xa0combination of rigidity and flexibility, which means some parts of it can be amended by the Parliament by a\xa0simple majority, whereas some parts require a\xa0two-third majority\xa0as well as not less than one-half of the state legislatures.Parliamentary system of governmentThe Indian constitution provides for a\xa0parliamentary system of government,\xa0i.e., the real executive power rests with the council of ministers and the President is only a nominal ruler\xa0(Article 74).Federal system with a unitary\xa0biasThe Indian constitution described India as a\xa0\'Union of States\'\xa0(Article 1), which implies that Indian federation is not the result of any agreement among the units and the units cannot secede from it.Fundamental rights and fundamental dutiesThe Indian constitution provides an elaborate list of\xa0Fundamental Rights\xa0to the citizens of India, which cannot be taken away or abridged by any law made by the states (Article 12–35). Similarly, the constitution also provides a list of 11 duties of the citizens, known as the\xa0Fundamental Duties\xa0(Article 51A).Directive principles of state\xa0policyThe Indian constitution mentions certain\xa0Directive Principles of State Policy(Article 36–51) which that government has to keep in mind while formulating new policy.SecularismThe constitution makes India a\xa0secular state\xa0by detaching from religious dogmas (Forty-second Amendment).Independent judiciaryThe constitution provides an\xa0independent judiciary\xa0(Article 76) which ensures that the government is carried on in accordance with the provisions of the constitution and acts as a guardian of the liberties and fundamental rights of the citizens.Single citizenshipThe Indian constitution provides a\xa0single citizenship\xa0for all the people residing different parts of the country and there is no separate citizenship for the states (Article 5–11).Bicameral legislaturesThe Indian constitution provides a bicameral legislatures at centre consisting of\xa0Rajya Sabha (Council of States)\xa0and\xa0Lok Sabha (House of the People)\xa0(Article 79).Emergency powersThe constitution vests extraordinary powers, known as\xa0Emergency Powers\xa0in the President during emergencies out of armed rebellion or external aggression or due to failure of constitutional machinery in the state (Article 352–360).Special provisions for minoritiesThe constitution makes\xa0special provisions for minorities, Scheduled castes, Scheduled Tribes, etc. by granting them certain special rights and provisions.Basically those are some of the interesting features of Indian constitution. Moreover, the constitution also has many other features such as,\xa0Panchayati Raj,\xa0Rule of Law,\xa0Provisions for Independent Bodies, etc. which are very unique in nature.