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The constitution may also perform the function of a national symbol. It may
articulate the ideals and aspirations of a people. These are programmatic
constitutions which act as the vehicles for social revolution and social renaissance
or for political development and modernization. The Constitution of India falls
under this category,(i.e. programmatic constitution). Because there are directive
principles of state policy laid down by it to realise certain socio-economic ideals.
Constitutionalism means:-
Equality before law
Change in political system by peaceful means and methods
Freedom of press
Rule of law
In the erstwhile U.S.S.R constitutionalism was closely linked with state political
ideology. It was based on the principle of class struggle.
In China, constitution has been made part of party manifesto and thus
constitutionalism means promoting party ideology.
The communist world does not believe that constitutionalism can be pressed with
the help of parliamentary/democracy system as it prevails in the western world.
Developing countries have their own problems. Constitutionalism in these countries
does not have the same meaning as it has in developed countries. They have to yet
adjust their love for traditionalism with the present trend of modernism; they are
yet to decide about sphere of state activity. They are yet to get political stability.
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Though the concept of constitutionalism varies from society to society, yet its
strength can be measured with the help of four important indicators, that is;
1. Basic rights and liberties of the people.
2. Independence of judiciary.
3. Constitutional jurisdictions- which include power of courts of law to
review the laws of the government.
4. The extent of decentralization of powers.
In western societies, usually people are given freedom of thought, speech and action
and right to life, liberty and property. In communist societies, they are even given
right to work.
In the most of the western countries (especially federation), the court of law are
given the power of judicial review and independence of judiciary. Decentralization
of power is inevitable in every form of government (either unitary/ federal).
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Executive
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Executive in India
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CONSTITUTIONALISM
1. Meaning of constitutionalism
These rules determine the validity of legislature and executive action. These rules
curb the arbitrary exercise of political power.
Constitutional governments refer to rule by law, but not by men. The exercise of
their power is limited. The essence of constitutionalism rests in it. And also in
certain amount of diffusion of power.
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Example: In the USA, government and parliament are practically autonomous. They are
required to cooperate as the constitution prescribed i.e. interdependence by coordination.
Under the technique of shared and controlled power, an open circuit is established. In that
circuit, different competitive ideologies and the social forces are free to play.
NATURE OF CONSTITUTIONS
These power holders are below the supreme power holder i.e. the electorate.
Electorate is the ultimate arbiter of political system.
In order to protect the people from the arbitrary exercise of power by power
holders, there is a need for built in mechanism in the political system. As a part of it
certain restraints are imposed on the exercise of the power through a set of fixed
rules in the constitution. Thus a constitution is the basic instrumentality of power-
control.
Power being the central concept in the modern political analysis, the constitution
can be seen as a political institution arrangement for the legitimate and effective
exercise of political power.
According to Herman Finer, the state is a group of human beings that is ruled by a
certain relationship between its individual and associated constituents. This power
is embodied in the political institution.
Classical writers like Lord Bryce, Strong and KC (Kenneth Clinton) Wheare
(Australian Academic) looked upon a constitution in terms of the institutional organ
of the political system. But the modern writers viewed the constitution as restraint
on and control of political power. The normative aspect is very clearly discernible in
this thinking. Such a constitution is the hallmark of a democratic constitutional
political system.
Neumann says that all states have constitutions, but all states do not observe
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CLASSIFICATIONS OF CONSTITUTIONS:
(B) Programmatic
(C) Nominal
(D) Semantic
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4. Rigid and flexible constitutions- this classification is not based on the conventional
lines but on the significance of actual change of the constitution.
The criterion of classification is the genesis of the constitution i.e. whether native and
convertible to domestic culture.
Indian Constitution- Adventitious Category. Many things borrowed from foreign countries.
Example: The Socialist Constitution of the former USSR; The fundamental role of the
Communist Party of Soviet Union (CPSU) is specified in the constitutional document.
On the other hand, a latent Constitution does not specify and recognize the fundamental
and vital elements of political process.
Example: The US Constitution recognizes neither the role of political parties nor interest
group.
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If it is a part of a unitary state organ what was the raison d’etre of its original constitution?
Consolidatory Constitution seeks to consolidate the effective rule of any one person or
group in a non-competitive position in the system.
In a programmatic constitution certain aims are declared and certain standards are
stipulated.
If the constitution provides for the redressal of the grievances of the people and certain
power/authority is given to office holders to protect them, then it can be called justiciable
constitution.
13. The final classification of the more useful of the traditional categories i.e. Federal and
Unitary constitution
The criteria of classification are: What is the nature of the federal solutions? What were
the reasons advanced for a federal solution in the drafting of the constitution? The federal
unitary distinction is looked upon as a spectrum, not as a clear dichotomy.
Constitutionalism is a principle that the exercise of political power is bounded by rules that
determine the validity of legislative and executive function.
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Constitutionalism becomes a reality to the extent that these rules curb the arbitrary
exercise of power and permit significant scope for the enjoyment of individual
liberty.
Political systems differ in the extent to which they wish to impose limitations. These
limitations may be enforced by various means like judicial review or special administrative
justice. In short, constitutional government invokes elaborate rules of political procedure
and jurisdiction.
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Techniques of control:-
Horizontal categorization:-
2. Intra-organ control: - If the control operates within an organ of the individual powers.
The vertical structure of controls operates between the totality of the constituted power
holders and socio-political forces of the society. These powerholders conduct
governmental process. The socio-political forces of the state/society act on the bases of
territory, plurality or individuality.
(b) A constitution can enforce particular roles on the power-holders in a society. It can
also possess a symbiotic capability because it is also regarded as a showcase of the norms
and symbols of a given a society.
(c) A constitutional is not merely a functional instrumentality but also focus for the
evolution of the law –making, law changing, law----- adjudicating and law-enforcing
institutions. Therefore, the social context and political culture of a country are important in
shaping a constitution and determining its course of working.
A truly living constitution must grow from legitimizing process and from an existing
consensus that embodies at least some substantive and most procedural concerns of
the govt. It means it is the prevailing consensus of attitude and beliefs which sustain
a constitutional framework provide the necessary support and give a sense of
legitimate authority. This will tell us the importance of constitution-making in a
society.
These rules comes into being through a long course of historical evolution or
through deliberate design by a representative convention or assembly or by will of
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The legitimacy, acceptability and the normative quality of the constitution will
largely depend on the specific technique/ method is a resultant of the configuration
of socio-political forces at that time.
It ensures the reflection and representation of the internets of a large segment of the
political community.
It imparts to the written constitution which comes after prolonged debates and
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mature deliberations.
o --However we cannot deny the fact that the constituent Assembly (CA) grows
out of conflict.
o In India, the conflict arose b/t the alien power and the subject people. In
other words, the conflict is b/t the allies of alien power`s and the toiling
masses. These masses are supported by a large body of intellectuals.
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