55 years of reforms have shaped Constitution: Narender Jadhav
Former chief economist of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Narendra Damodhar Jadhav on Saturday said many people only know that the Constitution was written by the Constituent Assembly between 1946 and 1950, whereas in reality the statue book was the outcome of a 55-year process of constitutional reforms that began in 1895.
Hyderabad:Former chief economist of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Narendra Damodhar Jadhav on Saturday said many people only know that the Constitution was written by the Constituent Assembly between 1946 and 1950, whereas in reality the statue book was the outcome of a 55-year process of constitutional reforms that began in 1895.
Delivering Justice Konda Madhava Reddy memorial lecture on ‘55 years of The Constitution Making and the Role of Dr B.R. Ambedkar’, Jadhav, a former member of the Rajya Sabha, said that two parallel tracks of constitutional reforms were initiated in those days — one by British rulers and the other by Indian leaders. These two were eventually merged in 1946, when the constituent assembly was formed, he said.
There were around 12 major attempts to write the Constitution. One leader who was common to most of the 12 efforts was the indomitable Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar, he said.
Justice B. Sudarshan Reddy pointed out that the Constitution was conceived as a framework for governance and social relations. It was shocking and deeply distressing to read about constitutional functionaries, including some Supreme Court judges, likening welfare recipients as parasites, he said.
“To call welfare schemes as freebies and suggesting that the recipients were undeserving was an attempt to dehumanise fellow-citizens. It is a matter of serious concern,” Justice Reddy said.
Assembly Speaker Gaddam Prasad Kumar said that Justice Konda Madhav Reddy was a stalwart in the field of judiciary and a great scholar, who also brought reforms in the field of education.
Rajya Sabha member Dr K. Laxman said that Dr Ambedkar differed with Jawaharlal Nehru on certain issues right from the beginning, including Article 370, giving special status to Jammu and Kashmir. Dr Ambedkar considered the state as an integral part of the country.
There were many attempts to disrupt the Constitution like imposing Emergency and gross abuse of Article 356, but it survived all such attempts and became stronger, Dr Laxman said.
Chevella MP Konda Vishweshwar Reddy said that the Constitution was the beacon that can help India realise the Vikasit Bharat goal.