Salient Features — Federal with a Unitary Bias — KSLU Constitutional Law Notes

Salient Features — Federal with a Unitary Bias

Finished on 26 November 1949, India’s is the longest written constitution in the world. Its defining features:

flowchart TD
    A["Salient Features"]:::root
    A --> B["Lengthiest written<br/>constitution"]:::leaf
    A --> C["Sovereign Socialist Secular<br/>Democratic Republic"]:::leaf
    A --> D["Parliamentary government;<br/>independent judiciary +<br/>judicial review"]:::leaf
    A --> E["Federal structure with<br/>a strong unitary bias"]:::leaf
    A --> F["Fundamental Rights (III),<br/>DPSP (IV), Duties (IVA)"]:::leaf
    A --> G["Single citizenship;<br/>universal adult franchise"]:::leaf

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    classDef leaf fill:#E6F3FF,stroke:#1E3A8A,color:#000;
    linkStyle default stroke:#888,stroke-width:1px;

The most-tested theme is the federalism debate. India is “quasi-federal” (K.C. Wheare): it has the federal marks — a written constitution, a division of powers (Seventh Schedule), an independent judiciary — but a strong unitary tilt (single citizenship, a single integrated judiciary, the Centre’s power to reorganise States, and overriding emergency powers). As Ambedkar put it, the Constitution is “both unitary as well as federal according to the requirements of time and circumstances.”

Cases: State of West Bengal v. Union of India (1963) — India is not a “true” federation; the Centre is supreme in key respects. S.R. Bommai v. Union of India (1994) — federalism is part of the basic structure, but President’s Rule survives subject to judicial review.