India’s Constitutional Preamble: Fundamental Principles, Significance, and Evolution

• External Sovereignty: India is Independent from Foreign Control. India proudly holds external sovereignty, which signifies its complete independence and autonomy. 
  • This characteristic is fundamental to India’s identity as a sovereign state.
• Internal sovereignty: It allows the government to be directly elected by its citizens and create laws that govern the nation, without external interference.
  • The internal sovereignty of India signifies the supremacy of its domestic authorities.
• Non-Interference from External Powers: India’s government is not subject to dictation by any external power. 
  • This safeguard ensures that India’s decision-making processes are untainted by external influences.
  • Global Engagements without Compromise: India’s membership of the Commonwealth of Nations, World Bank Group, International Court of Justice, United Nations Organisation (UNO) is not limitation on her sovereignty in any way.
• Acquisition and Relinquishment of Territory: As a sovereign country, India has the authority to make decisions regarding the acquisition or relinquishment of foreign territories. 
  • This capacity demonstrates the nation’s power to manage its territorial boundaries according to its strategic, diplomatic, or geopolitical interests.

• The 42nd amendment (1976) added the term “Socialist” in the preamble.
  • Previously, socialism was implicit in the Indian Constitution in the form of certain Directive Principle of State Policy (Articles 38, 39, 39A, 41, 42, 43, 43A, and 47).
• Democratic socialism, aiming to promote social welfare and equality 
  • Democratic socialism (The mixed economic model) allows for the coexistence of both private and public sectors.
  • In Communist Socialism which involves the nationalization of all means of production and distribution and the abolition of private property.
  • Indian socialism is influenced by both Marxism and Gandhism, with a stronger emphasis on Gandhism.
• India follows a mixed economic model, combining elements of socialism and capitalism.
• According to the Supreme Court, Socialist concept of society should be implemented in the true spirit of the constitution. The principal aim of socialism is to
  • Eliminate inequality of income and standards of life and
  • To provide a decent standard of life to working people.
  • Democratic socialism aims to end poverty, inequality of income, disease and to provide a decent standard of life to working people. 

(NOTE: Socialist is not a Basic Structure of Constitution)

• Meaning: State should have no religion of its own, and no one could proclaim to make the State a theocratic State.
• Secular term was added by 42nd Amendment (1976).

• Positive Secularism in India: State will have no religion of its own and all persons will be equally entitled to the freedom of conscience and the right freely to profess, practice and propagate the religion of their choice (S R Bommai and Others vs Union of India)
• Constitutional basis: Preamble, Art. 14, 15, 16, 25-28, 29-30, 44, 325 etc.
• Secularism is part of basic structure doctrine.

• The Supreme Court (In Hijab Ban Case 2022) said India had always been a secular country even when the framers of the Constitution had not thought it fit to insert the word ‘secular’ in the Preamble.

• Constitution has established a form of Government which gets its authority from the will of the people – “Doctrine of popular sovereignty“
  • The rulers are elected by the people and are accountable to them.
  • Phrase ‘Democratic’ entails: Political + Social + Economic democracy.
• Dr. Ambedkar: In his speech in the Constituent Assembly social democracy means a way of life which recognises liberty, equality and fraternity.
  • They form a union of trinity in the sense that to divorce one from the other is to defeat the very purpose of democracy.
• Indirect Democracy: This type of democracy is known as representative democracy.
  • Two kinds: Presidential (found in USA)  and Parliamentary (found in India and UK)
• Representative Parliamentary Democracy of India: In representative form of Democracy,  the executive is responsible to the legislature for all its acts and policies.
  • Features of Parliamentary Democracy: Universal adult franchise, periodic elections, rule of law, independent judiciary, absence of discrimination on certain grounds.

• Referendum: Procedure whereby a proposed legislation is referred to the electorate for settlement by their direct votes.
• Initiative: Method by means of which the people can propose a bill to the legislature for enactment.
• Recall: Method by means of which the voters can remove a representative or an officer before the expiry of his term.
• Plebiscite: Method of obtaining the opinion of people on any issue of public importance. It is generally used to solve territorial disputes.

• Democratic polity is classified into two categories: Monarchy (Britain) & Republic (USA/India).
  • Monarchial form of Democracy: Head of state comes to the office by the rights of birth through succession.
  • Republic: Democratic republic means head of state is elected – Directly or indirectly, for a fixed tenure – President of India indirectly elected for period of 5 years
  • It means vesting political sovereignty in people and absence of any privileged class and all public offices open to all without any discrimination.

• The ideal of justice—social, economic and political—  in the constitution of India has been taken from the Russian Revolution (1917).
• The term ‘Justice’ comprises three elements that complete the definition, which is social, economic, and political.
• It is secured through through various provisions of Fundamental 

Rights and Directive Principles.

• Social Justice: means the equal treatment of all citizens without any social distinction based on caste, colour, race, religion, sex and so on. 
  • It also means absence of privileges being extended to any particular section of the society, and improvement in the conditions of backward classes (SCs, STs and OBCs) and women.
• Economic Justice:  It means the non-discrimination between people on the basis of economic factors. 
  • It involves the elimination of glaring inequalities in wealth, income and property. 
  • A combination of social justice and economic justice denotes what is known as distributive justice.
• Political Justice: It denotes that all citizens should have equal political rights, equal access to all political offices and equal voice in the government.

• The ideals of liberty, equality and fraternity in our Preamble have been derived  from the French Revolution (1789–1799).
  • Liberty means Absence of Restraints on the activities of individuals.
    • It also means providing opportunities for the development of individual personalities.
    • It does not mean License to do what one likes. 
• Hence, Liberty ensured in Preamble & Fundamental Rights is not absolute but qualified.
• Preamble secures liberty of thought, expression, belief, faith & worship.
• Positive liberty: It defines the area of society where an individual can be free with some constraints made by the society and the government.
  • It is the possibility of acting or the fact of acting in such a way as to take control of one’s life and realize one’s fundamental purposes.
• Negative Liberty: It is the absence of obstacles, barriers or constraints. 
  • It is the idea that freedom means being able to do what you want, without any external obstacles..

• Absence of special privileges to any section of society.
• Adequate opportunities for all without discrimination.
• Preamble secures: Equality of status and opportunity.

• Art.14: Equality before law.
• Art.15: Prohibition of discrimination on the grounds of religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth.
• Art.16: Equality of opportunity in public employment.
• Art.17: Abolition of untouchability
• Art.18: Abolition of titles

• Following  two provisions in the constitution tries to achieve Political equality.
  • Art.325: No one is ineligible for inclusion in the electoral rolls on the grounds of religion, race, caste or sex.
  • Art.326: Lok Sabha & state assembly elections based on universal adult franchise.

• Art.39: Equal right to adequate means of livelihood & equal pay for equal work to men and women.

• It means a sense of brotherhood and support. 
• Single Citizenship and Fundamental duties in the constitution promotes fraternity.
• Article 51A: Fundamental duty of every citizen to promote harmony and spirit of common brotherhood transcending religious, linguistic, regional or sectional diversities.
  • It also protect the dignity of women by stating that it shall be the duty of every citizen of India to renounce practices derogatory to the dignity of women
  • Fraternity: Fraternity in constitution implies  dignity of individual and unity & integrity of India. (Word “Integrity” is added through 42nd CAA).
  • Dignity of individuals is ensured in Fundamental Rights, DPSPs, Fundamental Duties.
    • According to K M Munshi, dignity of the individual signifies that the Constitution not only ensures material betterment and maintains a democratic set-up, but it also recognises that the personality of every individual is sacred.
• Unity & Integrity of nation: It denotes both psychological and territorial dimensions of national integration.

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