• ISBN13: 9788126942282
• Binding: N/A
• Subject: Politics and Current Affairs
• Publisher: Atlantic Publishers & Distributors (P) Ltd
• Publisher Imprint: Atlantic
• Publication Date: October 10, 2025
• Pages: 1041
• Original Price: INR 1895.0
• Language: English
• Edition: N/A
• Item Weight: 1550 grams
• BISAC Subject(s): Constitutional, General, and Constitutions

Constitution of India: 75 Years of World's Largest Democracy offers an insightful exploration of India's constitutional journey, from its drafting by the Constituent Assembly to its evolution over the past 75 years. This book delves into the debates that shaped the idea of justice, rooted in the country's struggle for independence, and critically assesses key amendments that have either strengthened or undermined its spirit. Through landmark Supreme Court rulings and significant constitutional changes, it traces India's progress towards achieving social, economic and political justice, weaving a compelling narrative of the challenges and triumphs of the world's largest democracy.

V. Krishna Ananth currently teaches History at Sikkim University, Gangtok. He holds an MA, MPhil and PhD in History from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. A former political journalist with The Hindu, he reported on national politics and contributed extensively to editorials and opinion pieces. A respected writer since 2004, he also practised law at the Madras High Court, specialising in writ jurisdiction, labour disputes, human rights and the RTI Act. From 2009 to 2011, he served as a fellow at the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library, New Delhi. His research focuses on the intersection of history, politics and law. He has authored several influential works, including Between Freedom and Unfreedom: The Press in Independent India (2020), The Indian Constitution and Social Revolution: Right to Property Since Independence (2015), Politics in the Times of Churning (2014) and India Since Independence: Making Sense of Indian Politics (2009).

• Acknowledgement …………………………………….... v
• Introduction ……………………...... xiii
• 1. Making of the Constituent Assembly: The Idea, the Persons and the Process …………………… 1
• 2. Charting the Course and the Objectives Resolution ………… 53
• 3. The Theory and Practice of Equality: Fundamental Rights and the Minorities ……………… 95
• 4. The Preliminary Drafts of the Constitution ………………… 145
• 5. The Draft Constitution in the Constituent Assembly ……… 198
• 6. The Constitution (First Amendment) Act, 1951: Justice—Social, Economic and Political …..... 281
• 7. Parliamentary versus Judicial Supremacy: The Basic Structure Doctrine and Article 368 ……… 325
• 8. The Constitution Rewritten: The Constitution(Forty-second Amendment) Act, 1976 ………… 418
• 9. The Constitution Restored: The Constitution (Forty-fourth Amendment) Act, 1979 …………….. 453
• 10. The Judiciary and Economic Justice: From Shankari Prasad Deo to Kesavananda Bharati and Beyond ……... 505
• 11. The Right to Life and Liberty: A. K. Gopalan to Maneka Gandhi and After …………… 575
• 12. The Idea of Social Justice: Champakam Dorairajan to Indra Sawhney …………………….... 637
• 13. Federalism in the Constitution: From State of Rajasthan and Others (1977) to S.R. Bommai and Others (1994) ….............. 693
• 14. The ADM Jabalpur Moment: The Writ of Habeas corpus ….............. 737
• Conclusion …………………………………….……………………... 789
• References ……………………….…………………………………… 803
• Appendices
• 1. Resolution at the Calcutta Session (December 1928) as Drafted by Gandhi and further Amended by Jawaharlal Nehru and Subhas Chandra Bose ........... 810
• 2. The Only Way .................................................................. 813
• 3. Members of Different Parties Elected to the Constituent Assembly from the General and Muslim Parts of Each Provincial Legislature ................... 816
• 4. Members Elected to the Constituent Assembly and their Affiliation as in July 1946 ................... 820
• 5. Declaration of Objectives drafted by the Experts Committee appointed by the Indian National Congress in its meeting between July 20 and 22, 1946 ................ 831
• 6. Text of the Resolution on Aims and Objects (known otherwise as the Objectives Resolution) as moved by Jawaharlal Nehru on 13 December, 1946 and adopted by the Constituent Assembly on 22 January, 1946 .............. 833
• 7. Clauses 18 and 19 of the Cabinet Mission Proposals(also called the State Paper) of 16 May 1946 .................. 835
• 8. Several Versions of Fundamental Rights drafted in the Several Committees between 24 December 1946 and 25 August 1947 ..............840
• 9. Muslim Members in the Lok Sabha — 1952–2019(in numbers) .................................................. 865
• 10. Excerpts from the Debate on Article 24 of the Draft Constitution (Article 31 of the Constitution) in the Constituent Assembly ........................ 866
• 11. Draft by K.M. Munshi and N. Gopalaswami Ayyangar as Revised by the Drafting Committee, August 24, 1948 ........ 897
• 12. The Ninth Schedule .......................................................... 901
• 13. Text of the Private Member’s Bill moved by Nath Pai in the Lok Sabha on 7 April, 1967 .............................................. 917
• 14. Text of Constitution (Forty-second Amendment)Act, 1976 ...................... 918
• 15. Excerpts from the Janata Party’s Manifesto of 1977 .......... 941
• 16. Text of the Constitution (Forty-third Amendment)Bill, 1977.......................................................................... 945
• 17. Text of the Constitution (Forty-fifth Amendment) Bill,1978 as introduced in the Lok Sabha on 15 May, 1978 ..... 948
• 17A. The Constitution (Forty-Fourth Amendment) Act, 1978 ...................... 967
• 18. Text of the two Office Memorandums issued by the Union Government on August 13, 1990 and September 25,1991........... 980
• 19. Instances of Imposition of President’s Rule between 1950 and 2024 ................................................................. 982
• Index ..................................................................................... 1007