Celebrating November 26 as Constitution Day

(MainsGS2:Indian Constitution—historical underpinnings, evolution, features, amendments, significant provisions and basic structure.)

Context:

• Constitution Day also known as 'Samvidhan Divas', is celebrated in our country on 26th November every year to commemorate the adoption of the Constitution of India. 
• On 26th November 1949, the Constituent Assembly of India adopted the Constitution of India, which came into effect from 26th January 1950.

Freedom due to constitution:

• The level of awareness about the Constitution among ‘we the people’ is not encouraging. 
• The Constitution has a clear imprint on day-to-day life as we read the newspaper, the TV channels we watch; our travel by bus, train or in our own car every time; getting a passport and flying; taking up a profession we like; eating the food we relish in a restaurant; and buying fashionable outfits in malls etc is made possible through fundamental rights provided under constitution.
•  The freedom of movement, freedom of expression, freedom to choose a calling of our liking, freedom to buy, sell and carry-on any trade, freedom to wear garments of our choice; all these freedoms emanate from the Constitution in the form of fundamental rights.

A clean break:

• When we were on the verge of Independence, our freedom fighters wanted to make a clean break with the past and build a brave new society through the Constitution. 
• Thus, the Constitution declared with the stroke of a pen that all Indians are equal citizens irrespective of caste, creed, colour, gender, estate, education, etc. 
• This is, indeed, heady stuff for a nation steeped in religion, rituals, ignorance and poverty which gave rise to unacceptable inequalities between men and women, the rich and the poor, the literate and the illiterate, and the learned and the laity.
• Setting aside all these aberrations, the Constitution put everyone on an even keel, even while providing a level playing field for the weak and the meek.
• However, just because the Constitution declared all Indians as equals, equality does not prevail from the day of such a declaration.

Lower awareness:

• We pay great respect to religious books and treat them as sacred doctrines, while we are oblivious to the Constitution which has changed our lives. 
• It is unlikely that even those who are well educated and well-placed have a copy of the Constitution in their houses unless they are advocates. 
• Hardly any parent thinks of gifting the Constitution to their child on their birthday, while every parent wants their offspring to grow up as a responsible adult with mature minds and restrained manners. 
• Our constitution inculcates values such as respect for women, empathy towards the weak and the meek, and rejects dowry, caste and creed as the basis to measure the values of a person.

Conclusion:

• Celebrating November 26 as Constitution Day is fine, but we should not restrict ourselves to symbolism. 
• We should look at the substantive issues dealt with by the Constitution, thereby enriching our life provided under the philosophy of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, which means the entire humanity is one large family.