Give two examples each to support the following conclusions about the Indian Constitution:

a. The Constitution was made by credible leaders who commanded peoples’ respect.

b. The Constitution has distributed power in such a way as to make it difficult to subvert it.

c. The Constitution is the locus of people’s hopes and aspirations.

a.

• The members of the Constituent Assembly represented all religions as well as sections of the society. There were 26 members from the Scheduled classes as well as members from Hindu, Sikh and Muslim communities. Representatives were elected by the members of each community in the Provincial Legislative Assembly through proportional representation.

• The Provinces and Princely States were allotted seats in proportion to their population, approximately in the ratio of 1:10,00,000. Members of the Constituent Assembly like Nehru, Patel, Rajendra Prasad and Ambedkar were also a part of the national movement and enjoyed credibility among masses.

b.

• The Constitution has horizontally distributed power among different institutions of judiciary, legislature and executive and statutory bodies like the election commission. If one institution tries to exploit it, other institutions check it.

• The Constitution strikes a balance between the possibility of change and the limits placed upon the nature of changes that can be made. Thus, it is neither too rigid nor too flexible and survives as a living document that has the respect of the people.

c.

• Indian Constitution is formed on the basis of common goals of Indian people that were expressed during the nationalist movement. It was reflected in the Objectives Resolution that defined the aims of the assembly.

• The Constitution provides institutional expression to ideas of equality, liberty, sovereignty, democracy and cosmopolitan identity.