SOAS Research Online

Abstract

As the title of the thesis suggests, we have attempted to study the process of amendment of the Constitution of India in its various aspects. To start with, in the First Chapter, the importance of the topic has been brought out. The Second Chapter traces the history of the amending procedure as provided in the Imperial Acts relating to the governance of India from 1600 to 1950. In the succeeding three Chapters (Chapters III, IV, and V), the amending procedure provided in the present Constitution has been explained and critically examined. The Sixth Chapter has been devoted to discuss the power-procedure controversy: whether Article 368 (the amending provision in the Constitution ) contains only "procedure" or "procedure" as well as "power" to amend the Constitution. Besides this, the alleged express or implied limitations to the power of amendment have also been considered therein. Then the highly intricate issue, namely, whether Part III of the Constitution containing the Fundamental Rights is amendable by Parliament so as to take away or abridge the rights, has been tackled in Chapter VII. Along with this Mr. Nath Pai's Bill pending in the Lok Sabha (Bill No. 10-B of 1967) has been discussed. In Chapter VIII, all the amendments made to the Constitution of India have been reviewed with a special emphasis on the procedure adopted in enacting them. The propriety or otherwise of these amendments has been also discussed. The main conclusions reached in our study have been expressed in the last Chapter.