CBSE Class 9 Political Science Chapter 2 Revision Notes (Free PDF Download)

What is a Constitution?

There are certain basic rules that the citizens and the government of a nation have to follow. All such rules together are called the constitution. As the supreme law of the country, the constitution determines the rights and duties of the citizens, the powers of the government and how the government should function. This chapter throws light on all these aspects and provides a comprehensive idea of the constitution of a country.

Democratic Constitution In South Africa

Struggle Against Apartheid

• Racial discrimination in South Africa is set by white Europeans. During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, trading companies from Europe settled in and became local administrators. The apartheid system divided people and marked them by the colour of their skin. White rulers treated all white people as superior. Non-whites had no voting rights and were barred from living in white areas. Blacks, coloured and Indians have been fighting apartheid since 1950.  The African National Congress (ANC) was an umbrella organization that was against the apartheid policies. Nelson Mandela was one of eight leaders accused of sedition by the white South African government. They were sentenced to life in prison in 1964 on charges of opposing the country's apartheid regime.

• Formation of the New Constitution

• As anti-apartheid protests intensified, blacks could no longer be held hostage under dictatorship. The white government changed its policies. Discriminatory laws were repealed. The ban on political parties and media restrictions has been lifted. Nelson Mandela was released after 28 years in Robben Island prison. The apartheid government ended at midnight on April 26, 1994, paving the way for the formation of a multi-racial government.

• After the emergence of a new democratic South Africa, the ruling dictatorship and the genocide and the party that led the liberation struggle came together to form a common constitution. This constitution gives its citizens the greatest rights available in any country. Together, they decided that in the pursuit of a solution, no one should be excluded.

• Why a Constitution?

• Take the example of South Africa to see why we need a constitution and what constitutions do. The oppressor and the oppressed planned to live together as equals in the new democracy. Each section wanted to protect their interests and demanded greater social and economic rights. Through negotiations, both sides agreed. Whites agree with the principle of democracy and that one person has one vote. They also agreed to accept certain basic rights for the poor and the working class. Blacks have agreed that much of the law will not be complete and that the majority will not dispossess the white minority. How should this relaxation be made? The only way to build and maintain confidence in such a situation would be to write down some rules of the game for everyone to follow. These supreme laws that no government can ignore are called the constitution.

• Each country has its own distinct groups of people. People all over the world have different opinions and interests. The constitution is the supreme law that determines the relationship between the people living in an area (called citizens) and the relationship between the people and the government. Find out what the following principles are:

• First, it creates the level of trust and communication needed for different types of people to live together

• Second, it sets out how the government will be formed, who will have the power to make decisions.

• Third, it puts limits on the powers of government and tells us what citizens' rights are.

• Fourth, it reflects people's desires for a better society

All countries with constitutions are not democratic but on the other side all democratic countries will have constitutions.

• Guidelines for the Constitution of India

• First, we need to understand what our Constitution is all about. Read the views of our great leaders on our Constitution and read what the Constitution says about its philosophy. This is done in the preamble of the Constitution.

• Dream and Promise:

There were many members who followed the view of Mahatma Gandhi. India's dream of eradicating inequality was shared by Dr. Ambedkar, who played a key role in drafting the Constitution, but his vision for eliminating inequality in India was different from Gandhiji's.

• We, the People of India: The Constitution was drafted and made by the people through representatives, and was not given by the king any foreign power.

• Governor: People have the right to make decisions on internal and external matters. No foreign power can control and suppress the Indian Government.

• Socialist: Wealth is created in society and should be shared equally by society. Government must regulate land and industry ownership to reduce social and economic inequalities.

• Country: Citizens have complete freedom to practice any religion. But there is no official religion. The government will treat all religious beliefs and practices with the same equal respect.

• Democratic: A form of government where people enjoy equal political rights, elect their own rulers and hold them accountable. The government is governed by certain basic rules.

• Republic: The head of state is the elected person.

• Justice: Citizens cannot be discriminated against on the basis of race, religion, or sexual orientation. Social inequality should be reduced. The government should work for the well-being of all, especially the poor.

• Freedom: There are no unreasonable restrictions on citizens' thinking, how they wish to express their thoughts and how they wish to follow their ideas in action.

• Equality: All are equal before the law. Traditional social inequality must end. The government needs to ensure that all people must have equal opportunities.

• Brotherhood: We should all act as members of one family. No one should treat his fellow citizen as inferior.

• Modeling Council

The drafting of the constitution was done in a meeting of elected representatives referred to as the Constituent Assembly. Election Council elections were held in July 1946 and its first meeting was held in December 1946. Shortly thereafter, the country was divided into India and Pakistan and the Constituent Assembly was also divided into the Constituent Assembly of India and Pakistan. The Constituent Assembly which drafted the Indian constitution had a total of 299 members. The Assembly adopted the Constitution on 26 November 1949 but came into operation on 26 January 1950. To mark this day we celebrate January 26 as Republic Day every year.

• Institutional design

This is about integrating these principles into institutional arrangements. Very long and detailed text. Therefore, it needs to be updated regularly to keep it updated. It is provided for the introduction of changes, known as periodic amendments to the constitution. Like any other Constitution, the Constitution of India also provides for the election of a new president. It describes who will have the power to make decisions. It also limits what the government can do by granting certain unrestricted citizens' rights.

Class 9 Social Science Political Science Chapter 2 Constitutional Design

Constitutional Design

Students while preparing the chapter of constitutional design always have a common question in mind which is what is constitutional design? And to give a perfect answer to this question, constitutional design notes explained the democratic Constitution of South Africa and Apartheid.

Apartheid

The racial discrimination that was imposed in South Africa by the White Europeans is termed as Apartheid. The White Europeans with arms and forces started ruling South Africa in the seventeenth and eighteenth century. They started Apartheid and divided people based on their skin colour. Under their rule, all non-whites were treated as inferiors and as slaves. Voting rights were not given to non-white citizens of the country, and they are also not allowed to stay in areas where white people were residing.

The black coloured and Indian start their fight against this discrimination from the year 1950 by making an umbrella organisation which was named as African National Congress. Nelson Mandela was one of the leaders who was fighting against this struggle and was sentenced to imprisonment in 1964 on the context of his opposition against the Apartheid.

Rise of New Democratic Constitution of South Africa

The protest and struggle against the Apartheid risen every day, making it hard for the white government to keep the blacks under the policies of Apartheid due to which the white government was bound to change its policies. All the discriminatory laws of the country were declared void and banned parties were again operational. Nelson Mandela was released from jail after a long duration of 28 years. The Apartheid government finally came to an end on the night of 26th April 1994.

Following the rise of New Democratic South Africa, this party has gone through all oppression and brutal killings. This party was leading the freedom struggle and was the main reason for the creation of a new non-racial Constitution. This Constitution gave rights to every citizen of South Africa without any racial discrimination.

Need For Constitution

The need for Constitution can be witnessed in the Apartheid situation of South Africa. The rulers and the people who were being ruled in South Africa were planning to live under one democracy where they both will be considered as equals. Each section was of the motive to safeguard its interest and was keen to enjoy some social and economic rights. After a lot of negotiations, both the parties cracked a deal which was acceptable by both the parties. In this deal, the whites were in support of the principle of majority rule in which one person has the right to give one vote. They also agreed to impose some rights for the poor and workers. In this deal, the blacks agreed to the point that if they win in the majority, they will not take away the properties of the white minority. The only way to make this legal was to write the rules that everyone should follow. The rules that can't be ignored by any government is termed as the Constitution.

Every country has different types of people with diverse thoughts. People have a difference of opinion and interests. The Constitution is the supreme law which is responsible for determining the relationship among people living in a territory and the relationship between government and people. Below, there is a list of functions that a constitution performs:

• It is responsible for generating a certain amount of trust and coordination among people who have different opinions.

• It informs the rules and regulations under which a government will get selected who is meant for ruling the country.

• The Constitution is responsible for limiting the powers of the government over citizens and also informs the citizens about their rights.

• It is responsible for expressing the aspirations of the people which is required for creating a good society.