Constitution as a Living Document

1. Can Constitutions be Static?

It is not that uncommon for countries to rewrite constitutions with the changing world. The Soviet Union had four constitutions in its life of 76 years-1918, 1924, 1936 and 1977

In 1991, the rule of the communist party ended in the Soviet Union and the Soviet Federation disintegrated.
The newly formed Russian Federation adopted a new constitution in 1993
The Constitution of India was adopted on 26 November 1949, and its implementation formally started in January 1950, For more than 70 years same constitution has been functioning

Indian Constitution

India has inherited a very robust constitution. The basic framework of the constitution is very much suited for our country. Our Constitution makers especially Dr.Ambedkar are farsighted and think about all the future possible problems and a procedure to amend our constitution. Our constitution accepts necessary modifications according to the changes needed by society. the

2. How to amend our Constitution

Article 368:Parliament may in the exercise of its constituent power amend by a way of addition, variation or repeal any provision of this constitution by the procedure laid down in this article. Constitution makers thought our constitution should be flexible and rigid. Flexible-Open to Changes Rigid-Resistant to changes By law: it indicates that these articles can be modified by the Parliament without recourse to the procedure laid down under Article 368. Article 2: Parliament by law admits into the union –new states. Article 3: Parliament by law increases the area of any state. There are two methods to amend the Constitution of India

Amendment can be made by a special majority of the two houses of the parliament.
It requires a special majority of the Parliament and the consent of half of the state legislature.

All amendments to the constitution have to be initiated only in Parliament: Like any other bill, this bill also goes to the President for his assent, but in this case, the President cannot send it back for reconsideration.

Special Majority

Both houses of the parliament must pass the amendment bill separately in the same manner. admits
In the Lok Sabha there are 545 members there, therefore for any amendment to be passed it needs the support of a minimum of 273 members.
Even if only 300 members are present at the time of voting, the amendment bill must get the support of 273 members.
In addition to this, both houses must pass the amendment bill separately.

Ratification by states

For some articles of the constitution, the special majority is not sufficient
When an amendment is aimed to modify the distribution of powers between Centre and State, or articles related to representation, it is necessary that states must be consulted and give their consent
Federalism means states should not be at the mercy of the Central Government
So, the constitution has ensured this by providing that the legislatures of half the states have to pass the amendment bill before it comes into effect.

3. Important Amendments

Amendments	Description
1^st Amendment Act,1951	Empowered the state to make special provisions to advance socially and economically backwards
7^th Amendment Act, 1956	Extended High court authority to Union Territories Two or more states to establish a common Court
9^th Amendment Act,1960	Adjustments to the Indian territory as a result of an agreement with Pakistan (Berubari Union)
10^th Amendment Act,1961	Incorporation of Dadra, Nagar and haveli from portugal
11^th Amendment Act, 1961	Changed the election procedure for vice President
12^th Amendment Act, 1962	Goa, Diu and Daman were incorporated
13^th Amendment Act, 1962	Formation of Nagaland state
15^th Amendment Act, 1963	Enabled High Courts to issue writ petition Increased their retirement age from 60 to 62
24^th Amendment Act, 1971	Amending Article 13, 368 to change every aspect of the constitution including constitutional rights
26^th Amendment Act,1971	Abolished the purses and privileges of the former rulers of Princely states
31^st Amendment Act, 1973	Seats in Lok Sabha were increased from 525 to 545
36^th Amendment Act, 1975	Sikkim became the 21^st state of India
40^th Amendment Act, 1976	Establishment for Parliament to look after international border and Exclusive Economic Zones
42^nd Amendment Act, 1976	· Fundamental duties were added · Shifted five subjects from the state list to the concurrent list education, forests, wildlife and bird protection
44^th Amendment Act, 1978	Replaced the term “internal disturbance” with “armed rebellion” Fundamental rights guaranteed by Article 20 and Article 21 cannot be suspended
61^st Amendment Act, 1989	Reduced voting age from 21 to 18
65^th Amendment Act, 1990	Established National Commission for SC and STs
69^th Amendment Act, 1991	Delhi Statehood
73^rd & 74^th Amendment Act, 1992	Panchayat Raj Institutions gained Constitutional legitimacy Municipal Institutions gained Constitutional legitimacy
77^th Amendment Act, 1995	A new clause (a) has added to Article 16 of the constitution which empowers the state to make any reservation provisions in favour of SCs and STs
86^th Amendment Act, 2002	The act inserts a new Article Article 21A which confers the right to free and Compulsory education for kids in the age between 6-14
97^th Amendment Act, 2012	Cooperative Societies were added to the Article 19
101^st Amendment Act,2016	Goods and Services Tax established
102^nd Amendment Act, 2018	Establishment of National Commission for Backward classes
104^th Amendment Act, 2020	Expanded seats for SC, ST in Lok Sabha

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