IX.Chapter 2.Constitutional Design.Civics.

Class 9.Class Notes. 
Civics. Chapter 2.

Constitutional Design.

Glossary

Sovereign :- People have Supreme right to make decisions on internal as well as external matters. No external power can dictate the Government of India.

Socialist :- Wealth is generated socially and should be shared equally by society. Government should regulate the ownership of land and industry to reduce socio- economic inequalities.

Secular :- Citizens have complete freedom to follow any religion. But there is no official religion. Government treats all religion beliefs and practices with equal respect.

Democratic :- Form of Government where people enjoy equal political rights, elect their rulers and hold them accountable. The government is run according to some basic rules.

Republic :- The head of the state is an elected person and not a hereditary position.

Justice :- Citizens cannot be discriminated on the grounds of caste , religion and gender. Social inequalities have to be reduced. Government should work for the Welfare of all, especially of the disadvantaged groups.

Liberty :- There are no unreasonable restrictions on the citizen in what they think, how they wish to express their thoughts and the way they wish to follow up their thoughts in action.

Equality :- All are equal before the law. The traditional social inequalities have to be ended. The government should ensure equal opportunity for all.

Fraternity :- All of us should behave as if we are members of the same family. No one should treat a fellow citizen as inferior.

Persons 

Important in this Chapter.

Nelson Mandela :- Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was a South African anti-apartheid revolutionary, political leader and philanthropist who served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999. He was the country's first black head of state and the first elected in a fully representative democratic election.

Vallabhbhai Jhaverbhai Patel :- Sardar Vallabhbhai Jhaverbhai Patel, popularly known as Sardar Patel, was an Indian statesman. He served as the first Deputy Prime Minister of India.

Abul Kalam Azad :-  Abul Kalam Ghulam Muhiyuddin Ahmed bin Khairuddin Al-Hussaini Azad was an Indian scholar, Islamic theologian, independence activist, and a senior leader of the Indian National Congress during the Indian independence movement.

Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar :- Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar, also known as Babasaheb Ambedkar, was an Indian jurist, economist, politician and social reformer, who inspired the Dalit Buddhist movement and campaigned against social discrimination towards the untouchables.

Sarojini Naidu :- Sarojini Naidu was an Indian political activist and poet. A proponent of civil rights, women's emancipation, and anti-imperialistic ideas, she was an important figure in India's struggle for independence from colonial rule.

Jawaharlal Nehru :- Jawaharlal Nehru was an Indian independence activist and, subsequently, the first Prime Minister of India, as well as a central figure in Indian politics both before and after independence.

Jaipal Singh :- Jaipal Singh Munda (3 January 1903 – 20 March 1970) was an Indian politician, writer and sportsman. He was the member of the Constituent Assembly which debated on the new Constitution of the Indian Union. He captained the Indian Field Hokey team to clinch gold in the1928 Summer Olympics  in Amsterdam.

Dates and Events

26 April 1994 :- at the Midnight of 26th of April 1994 the new national flag of Republic of South Africa was unfurled marking the newly born democracy in the world.

1935 :- The Government of India Act, 1935 was an Act adapted from the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It originally received royal assent in August 1935. It was the longest Act of Parliament ever enacted until Greater London Authority Act 1999 surpassed it.

December 1946 :- First meeting of constituent assembly of India take place.

26th of November 1949 and 26th of January 1950 :- the constituent assembly of India adopted the constitution of India on the 26th of November 1949 but it came into effect on 26th of January 1950.

Objectives. 

____ generates a degree of trust and co-ordination that is necessary for the betterment of society.

Ans. The constitution

____ was the first President of the Republic of South Africa.

Ans. Nelson Mandela

The Constituent Assembly was set up as per the recommendations of the ____.

Ans.  Cabinet Mission Plan.

The first meeting of the Constituent Assembly was held in ____.

Ans.  December 1946

The main objective of a constitution is to ____.

Ans. Generate trust among the people

____ was the name of a system of racial discrimination unique to South Africa.

Ans. Apartheid

The ____ expresses the aspirations of the people about creating a good society.

Ans. Constitution

Who fought against apartheid in South Africa?

Ans. Nelson Mandela

Nelson Mandela was imprisoned in ____.

Ans. 1964

Nelson Mandela was imprisoned for ____ years.

Ans.  28 years

Shorts Questions and Answers.

Who were called blacks in South Africa?
Ans.: he native people of South Africa were black in colour. They made up about three fourth of the population and were called blacks.

Who supported the African national Congress?

Ans.: the African national Congress was supported by workers Union and the Communist party. Many sensitive whites also joined the African national Congress to oppose apartheid and played a leading role in the struggle.

What is constitution?

Ans : the constitution of a country is a set of written rules that are accepted by all people living together in a country. constitution is the supreme law that determines the relationship among people living in a territory called citizens and also the relationship between the people and government.

What does a constitution do?

Ans :  a Constitution does many things. It generates a degree of trust and coordination that is necessary for different kind of people to live together. It specifies how the government will be constituted, who will have the power to take decisions. It lays down limits on the powers of government and tells us what the rights of the citizens are. It expresses the aspirations of the people about creating a good society.

What does the term democratic mean?

Ans : The term means a form of government where people enjoy equal political rights, elect their rulers and hold them accountable. The government is run according to some basic rules.

Long questions and answers

Question .1.  What is meant by the Apartheid? How did the people of South Africa struggle against it?Answer : Apartheid is the name of a system of social discrimination unique to South Africa. It was the official policy of ill treatment of blacks followed by government of South Africa. The people of South Africa struggled against the apartheid in the following way

Blacks and Indians were fighting against the apartheid, since 1950. The racial government did not pay any heed to them.

Marches and strikes were launched.

The struggle was led by the African National Congress.

Many of the sensitive whites also joined the struggle with the African National Congress.

Beside this many workers’ unions and the communist parties joined the movement.

As the struggle gained momentum, the government realized that the blacks could no longer be held under the oppression.

In continuation to this, discriminatory laws were annulled, bans from media lifted and Nelson Mandela walked out from the jail.

A new Constitution was formed on 26th April, 1994. The white racial government was overthrown by a multi-racial government.

Question 2.  Explain with five facts the transition from Apartheid to democracy and multi-racial government take place in South Africa.

Answer : After two years of discussion and debate leaders of South Africa came out with one of the finest Constitutions the world has ever had.

The new Constitution gave to its citizens the most extensive rights available in any country.

Together, they decided that in the search for a solution to the problems, nobody should be excluded, no one should be treated as a demon.

The leaders of the nation agreed that everybody should become part of the solution, whatever they might have done or represented in the past.

The apartheid government came to an end, paving way for the formation of a multi-racial government.

Question 3.  Explain the major factors which contributed to the making of our Constitution.

Answer: National Movement: Our national movement was not merely a struggle against a foreign rule. It was also a struggle to rejuvenate our country, and to transform our society and politics.

Role of Leaders: Leaders like Moti Lai Nehru, Jawahar Lai Nehru and others had played very important role in making of Indian Constitution. In 1928, Moti Lai Nehru Drafted a Constitution for India.

Role of British Rule: The familiarity with political institutions of colonial rule also helped develop an agreement over the institutional design.

British Rule and the Legislative Institutions: The experience gained by Indians in the working of the legislative institutions proved to be very useful for the country in setting up its own institutions.

World Event or Revolutions: Many of our leaders were inspired by the ideals of French Revolution, the practice of Parliamentary democracy in Britain and the Bill of Rights in USA. So they incorporated some good points of the Constitutions of these g in the Indian Constitution.

NCERT Solutions for Class 9 
Social Science Civics 

Chapter 3 Constitutional Design

Page :- 31

1. Here are some false statements. Identify the mistake in each case and rewrite these correctly based on what you have read in this chapter.

(a) Leaders of the freedom movement had an open mind about whether the country should be democratic or not after independence.(b) Members of the Constituent Assembly of India held the same views on all provisions of the Constitution.(c) A country that has a constitution must be a democracy.(d) Constitution cannot be amended because it is the supreme law of a country.

Answer : (a) Leaders of the freedom movement had an open mind about the country being democratic after independence.(b) Members of the Constituent Assembly worked in a systematic, open, and consensual manner to resolve differences among them.(c) It is not necessary that a country having a constitution must be a democracy. The constitution of a country can even make provisions for dictatorship or monarchy. Examples: the Soviet Union and Pakistan.(d) A Constitution can be amended to keep up with the changes in aspirations of the society. It can also be changed keeping in mind the social, political, and economic conditions of the country.

2. Which of these was the most salient underlying conflict in the making of a democratic constitution in South Africa?

(a) Between South Africa and its neighbors.

(b) Between men and women

(c) Between the white majority and the black minority

(d) Between the colored minority and the black majority

Answer : (c) Between the white majority and the black minority

3. Which of these is a provision that a democratic constitution does not have?

(a) Powers of the head of the state

(b) Name of the head of the state

(c) Powers of the legislature

(d) Name of the country

Answer :

(b) Name of the head of the state

4. Match the following leaders with their roles in the making of the Constitution :

Answer:

(a)                    Motilal Nehru	iv.  Prepared a constitution for India in   1928
(b)                    B. R. Ambedkar	iii. Chairman of drafting committee
(c)                    Rajendra Prasad	i.   President of Constituent Assembly
(d)                    Sarojani Naidu	ii.  Member of Constituent Assembly

5. Read again the extracts from Nehru’s speech ‘Tryst with Destiny’ and answer the following:
(a) Why did Nehru use the expression “not wholly or in full measure” in the first sentence?

(b) What pledge did he want the makers of the Indian Constitution to take?

(c) “The ambition of the greatest man of our generation has been to wipe every tear from every eye”. Who was he referring to?

Answer:

(a) The expression ‘not wholly or in full measure’ in the first sentence was used by Nehru because he thought that the task they had undertaken was incomplete and it wasn’t possible to fulfill the pledges all at once but would be gradually fulfilled.(b) The pledge that he wanted the makers of the Indian Constitution to take was to dedicate their lives to the service of India, Indians, and humanity at large.(c) He was referring to Mahatma Gandhi.

6. Here are some of the guiding values of the Constitution and their meaning. Rewrite them by matching them correctly.

(a)Sovereign (ii) People have the supreme right to  make decisions.

(b) Republic (iii) Head of the state is an elected person.

(c) Fraternity (iv) People should live like brothers and sisters.

(d) Secular(i) Government will not favour any religion.

Page :- 32

7. A friend from Nepal has written you a letter describing the political exercises situation there. Many political parties are opposing the rule of the king. Some of them say that the existing constitution given by the monarch can be amended to allow more powers to elected representatives. Others are demanding a new Constituent Assembly to write a republican constitution. Reply to your friend giving your opinions on the subject.

Answer : 

Dear Yam,

I read your letter. These are exciting times indeed for you! My country has been independent for almost sixty years, and we have already gone through the whole process of the establishment of democracy. Fortunately, it has survived on this soil as well. I just hope the same happens in Nepal.

I find myself hoping that the demand for a new Constituent Assembly would take root in Nepal. A republican constitution has its benefits you know! In countries like yours and mine, there is already too much wastage in terms of government expenditure. Unfortunately, such is the reality of our national culture. In addition, if Nepal has a Constitutional Monarchy, a lot of money would have to be spent on maintaining the high standards of living for the royalty. UK has a Constitutional monarchy, but it can also afford it–centuries and centuries of colonial exploitation of other countries has its benefits! However, in my opinion, for countries like India and Nepal, a Republican government is best suited.

By all means, the Constitution offered by your king can hardly be called democratic! It hardly gives any powers to your Parliament or the civilian government or so I’ve heard. Nevertheless, whatever I might think as a foreigner, the people of Nepal will be the best judge of your country’s political future. Let’s see what happens.

P.S. – I have heard the Maoists are making some inroads in the rural heartland of Nepal? I don’t personally support violence of any kind and am a believer in democracy. However, the Maoists intrigue me to no limit. What is their attitude towards India? What do they think about the Chinese? Do let me know what you think.

Your Friend,

XVZ

8. Here are different opinions about what made India a democracy. How much importance would you give to each of these factors?

(a) Democracy in India is a gift of the British rulers. We received training to work with representative legislative institutions under British rule.

(b) Freedom Struggle challenged the colonial exploitation and denial of different freedoms to Indians. Free India could not be anything but democratic.

(c) We were lucky to have leaders who had democratic convictions. The denial of democracy in several other newly independent countries shows the important role of these leaders.

Answer: (a) Though I would acknowledge many good things were learned from the British rulers and democracy being one of them,I wouldn’t say that democracy was a gift given by them. Indians had to struggle a lot and make many sacrifices to attain freedom from British rule. These circumstances helped people to gain experience and training in the working of the legislative institutions.

(b) Yes, Free India could not be anything but democratic because the people had already suffered a lot under British rule. This made them realise that for people to have a say in ruling the country, it was necessary to make India a democratic country. 

(c) It is indeed true that we were lucky to have leaders who had deep democratic values. It is because of these ideals that India’s freedom struggle can be considered as the only example of a bloodless freedom struggle in contemporary history. Therefore, absence of such ideals has made many countries undemocratic.

9. Read the following extract from a conduct book for ‘married women’, published in 1912. ‘God has made the female species delicate and fragile both physically and emotionally, pitiably incapable of self- defence. They are destined thus by God to remain in male protection – of the father, husband, and son – all their lives. Women should, therefore, not despair, but feel obliged that they can dedicate themselves to the service of men’. Do you think the values expressed in this para reflected the values underlying our constitution? Or does this go against the constitutional values?

Answer :The given paragraph does not reflect the underlying value in our Constitution. It refers to the patriarchal views and endorses the thought of inequality in genders.

It goes against the constitutional values because in the paragraph women are shown as inferior, unequal as weak and fragile who should serve men. However, the Constitution has provided equal rights to women. They enjoy the right to vote, can take up any job, and are paid equal wages for the same work.

10. Read the following statements about a constitution. Give reasons why each of these is true or not true.

(a) The authority of the rules of the constitution is the same as that of any other law.

(b) Constitution lays down how different organs of the government will be formed.

(c) Rights of citizens and limits on the power of the government are laid down in the constitution.

(d) A constitution is about institutions, not about values.

Answer : (a) Not true. An ordinary law is passed by the Parliament and can be changed by it on its own will. On the other hand, the rules of the Constitution have greater authority and the Parliament has to abide by them. For amending these rules, a special procedure has to be adopted.

(b) True. The Constitution has laid down the framework for government formation. It has put in place the structure, power, and functions of the three organs of the government, i.e. executive, legislative, and the judiciary.

(c) True. The rights of the citizens are laid down in the Constitution as fundamental rights, which are enforceable by law. The powers and functions of the government are divided into the executive, legislative, and judiciary. It is done to keep each organ under check by the other organs to ensure the power functioning of the government.

(d) Not True. The Constitution is the supreme law of the country. It lays down the composition powers and functions of the various institutions of government. The Constitution is guided by values which are found in the form of Preamble. Principles and values such as equality, liberty, fraternity, brotherhood, secularism, and justice are included in the Preamble of the Constitution.