Every year on November 26, India observes Constitution Day or National Law Day. On this day in 1949, the Constitution of India was adopted by the Constituent Assembly and it came into force on January 26, 1950. The Union government in 2015 decided to mark November 26 as National Constitution Day to promote constitution values among citizens and as a tribute to BR Ambedkar. The Constitution is a legal document that contains powers and duties of government institutions, fundamental rights and duties of citizens, and directive principles, among others. It declares India a “sovereign, socialist, secular, democratic republic assuring its citizen’s justice, equality and liberty.
Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren on Constitution Day pledged to strongly affirm the values of justice, liberty, equality & fraternity in our public and personal lives.
Some interesting facts about our Constitution:
- India boasts of the world’s longest written Constitution among all sovereign counties in the world.
- The original copies of the Indian Constitution were written in Hindi and English.
- Each page of the constitution was decorated by artists from Shantiniketan
- The calligrapher of the original Constitution of India was Prem Behari Narain Raizada
- The constitution was published in Dehradun and photolithographed by the Survey of India
- The Constitution came into being after meetings that were held for more than 2 years.
- Before its completion on 26th November 1949, the Constitution underwent more than 2,000 amendments.
- Liberty, equality, fraternity- words that appear in the Preamble were borrowed from the French Constitution.
Let’s take a look at some inspirational quotes by Ambedkar on National Constitution Day
If we wish to maintain democracy not merely in form, but also in fact, what must we do? The first thing in my judgement we must do is to hold fast to constitutional methods of achieving our social and economic objectives.”
Democracy is not merely a form of government. It is primarily a mode of associated living, of conjoint communicated experience. It is essentially an attitude of respect and reverence towards fellow men.”
So long as you do not achieve social liberty, whatever freedom is provided by the law is of no avail to you.”
Law and order are the medicine of the body politic and when the body politic gets sick, medicine must be administered.”
Caste is not a physical object like a wall of bricks or a line of barbed wire which prevents the Hindus from co-mingling and which has, therefore, to be pulled down. Caste is a notion; it is a state of the mind.”
I measure the progress of a community by the degree of progress which women have achieved.”
Religion and slavery are incompatible.”
