Constitution of India

The Constitution of India is very close to celebrating its golden jubilee at the turn of millennium on 26 January 2000. During its existence of about forty nine years it had its own share of ups and downs. At times it ran into grave crisis causing serious concern for those who had longed to see it passing through ages much beyond their lives and lives of their innumerable future generations. At times, particularly in the first half of its existence, serious and widespread doubts were expressed whether it was suitable for a country which suffered from extreme and extensive poverty, ignorance, social and economic inequality, inequatable distribution of material resources and all other social evils which required drastic and wide ranging changes. Charges were leveled that the Constitution was suitable only for a capitalistic model of society and not for a society based on socialistic pattern and social justice. At times even its interpretation and application by the judiciary attracted wideranging criticism including in particular from the parties in political power. Such interpretation and application apparently led to frequent amendments of the Constitution on the one hand and at the same time also attracted the challenge to the power of amendment on the other from the very beginning.