Question

Who played a key role in the making of our Constitution?

Answer 1

Hint: On August 30, 1947, he was appointed as the chairman of the “Drafting Committee”, which is the most crucial committee of the Constituent. He is also regarded as the ‘Father of the Constitution of India’.

Complete answer:
The Indian Constitution and its drafting process are often considered synonymous with Dr Bhim Rao Ambedkar. He is also regarded as the ‘Father of the Constitution of India’.

Contributions of Dr B.R. Ambedkar in the making of the Constitution:
- Due to the offices he held and his interventions and speeches in the Assembly, he became a key figure in India’s constitution-making process. He was a member of the “Drafting Committee”, the Assembly’s most crucial committee, which consisted of 6 other members, namely Alladi Krishnaswami Ayyar, N. Gopalaswami, K.M Munshi, Mohammad Saadulla, B.L. Mitter and D.P. Khaitan.
- On August 30, 1947, he was appointed as the Chairman of the Drafting Committee. Being the chairman, he had to defend the Draft Constitution prepared by the Committee and hence intervened in nearly every debate.
- He had written and submitted a ‘States and Minorities document' to the Sub-Committee on Fundamental Rights of the Constituent Assembly, on behalf of the “Scheduled Caste Federation party”. Being a mini-constitution in itself, States and Minorities helped in framing strong social and economic rights.
- His interventions and speeches about various aspects of the Constitution, were intuitive, well-reasoned and meticulously researched. This won him the support and respect of the Assembly's other members who permitted him to lead the process of constitution-making.
- By the end of October 1947, the Drafting Committee started scrutinising the Draft Constitution which was prepared by the Constitutional Advisor, B.N. Rau. It made several changes and on February 21, 1948, submitted the Draft Constitution to the President of the Constituent Assembly.
- On November 26, 1949, the Indian Constitution was adopted and on January 24, 1950, the honourable members appended their signatures to it. In total, 284 members actually signed the Constitution. The Constituent Assembly took 2 years, 11 months and 17 days to finish the historic task of drafting the Constitution of India and it finally came into force on January 26, 1950.

Thus, a key role was played by Dr B.R. Ambedkar in the making of our Constitution.

Note: Members of the Drafting Committee had a major influence in the making of the Indian Constitution during the Committee stages and the deliberations of the Constituent Assembly. The majority of the debates that took place in the Constituent Assembly revolved around the Draft Constitution(s) prepared by the Drafting Committee. Out of 11 sessions of the Constituent Assembly, covering a total of 165 days, 114 were spent debating the Draft Constitution(s).