Knowledge
Knowledge
Right to Equality and Eradication of Untouchability
Dr. Santosh Kumar
The establishment of the Indian Constitution was not merely a political event but a significant milestone in history. In the historical context, India ' s past speaks not only of social justice and human rights but also emphasizes equality for socially oppressed sections. For the Indian subcontinent, ensuring human rights and paving the way for development made it essential to create social equality for all sections of society, so that every citizen could enjoy privileges on a large scale.
Under the Constitution of independent India, equality is not just a law but a foundational principle. Article 14 of the Indian Constitution enshrines the Right to Equality as one of the Fundamental Rights. It guarantees that every individual is equal before the law and is entitled to equal protection under the law. This right is not limited to Indian citizens— it also applies to non-citizens. Under the Right to Equality, no one is above the law in India, and all are considered equal in the eyes of the law.
The Constitution of India is the supreme law of the land. It was adopted by the Constituent Assembly on 2nd November 1949 and came into effect for the general public on 26th January 1950. For this reason, 26th November is celebrated as Constitution Day in India. From an academic perspective, it was in 1946 that the British began to seriously consider granting independence to India.
To prepare the draft of the Indian Constitution, the British began discussing the possibility of establishing a Constituent Assembly. After meeting with representatives from the British government and various Indian states, a Cabinet Mission was sent to India. In July 1946, meetings and elections for the Indian Constitution were held. Soon after, the country was divided into two parts— India and Pakistan. The Constituent Assembly of India was formed in 1946 under the Cabinet Mission Plan. Dr. Rajendra Prasad,
India ' s first President, was appointed as its permanent Chairman, and Dr. B. R. Ambedkar was appointed as the Chairman of the Drafting Committee. Thirteen committees were established to prepare the draft report. After their formation, the Constituent Assembly had 389 members, including 292 representatives from each province, 93 representatives from princely states, 3 from the Chief Commissioner’ s provinces, and one representative from Baluchistan. Due to the low number of Muslim League representatives, only 299 members remained. In January 1948, the first draft of the Constitution of India was presented for discussion, and deliberations continued for 32 days. The Constituent Assembly completed its work on November 26, 1949, after extensive discussions on 2,473 clauses.
The process of drafting the Constitution took a total of 2 years, 11 months, and 18 days. On January 24, 1950, 284 members of the Constituent Assembly, including 15 women, signed the Constitution. India ' s Constitution is the longest written constitution of any sovereign country in the world. The original copy of the Constitution was handwritten in both Hindi and English. India ' s Constitution is considered the best democratic constitution in terms of culture, religion, and geography. As of September 2023, the Constitution has undergone 106 amendments.
One of the most important features
38 Dalit Andolan Patrika | April 2025