Purno Sangma may have walked out but there were also other members of the National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution whorecorded their dissent as part of the <a href=http://lawmin.nic.in/ncrwc/finalreport/volume1.htm target=_blan
Justice Reddy, C.R. Irani, Dr. Subhash C. Kashyap and Sumitra G. Kulkarni,members of the National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitutionrecorded their dissent as part of the reportsubmitted to the prime minister.
National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution.
By C R Irani
a) In January 2000, the RSS unit in Delhi send us a letter complaining of an article by AG Noorani, a respected commentator, on the RSS organisation, published that month. The letter is promptly published in full and without comment. On 14 March 2000, a criminal complaint is filed before a Magistrate in Midnapore District of West Bengal. Then follow 11 hearings and the matter is still pending in March 2002. On the same facts another functionary of the RSS in Delhi, files a criminal complaint in the Tees Hazari Courts in Delhi on 29 February 2000. Some of the defendants are not given exemption from personal appearance and the issue goes to Delhi High Court, where the judge rejects the terms suggested by the RSS for settlement and finally disposes of the entire matter by a consent order on terms acceptable to us on 25 February 2002. It had taken 19 hearings. However the Midnapore Magistrate is still considering the terms endorsed by the Delhi High Court.
In regard to Articles 29 and 30, the Commission recommends that the cultural and educational rights available under the Articles should be available equally to all groups in society so that there is no discrimination between communities or social groups in the matter of establishment and maintenance of educational institutions, etc.
Member of the Commission and Chairman of its Drafting and EditorialCommittee.
(a) “It may be neither necessary nor proper to include in the text of our Constitution all the provisions of international conventions etc., for, where acceptable, many of these can be adopted by ordinary legislation. Also, enlargement of fundamental rights through judicial verdicts does not always call for constitutional amendments, for judicial interpretations and verdicts are amenable to review by courts themselves.
(iv) In regard to Chapter 4 titled ‘Electoral Process and Political Parties’, I would like to iterate the following unanimous decisions of the Drafting and Editorial Committee which were based on the decisions taken by the whole Commission earlier with one Member expressing some reservations in regard only to (a):
“Only parties or pre-poll alliances of political parties registered as national parties or alliances with the Election Commission be allowed a common symbol to contest elections for the Lok Sabha. State Parties may be allowed common symbols to contest elections for State Legislatures and the Council of States ( Rajya Sabha).”
“At the same time, the other point of view put forward was that denial of the said high offices solely on account of the fact that the person was not a natural born citizen of India or his parents or grand parents were not citizens of India, would deprive worthy citizens from occupying these high offices”.
“At the same time, the other point of view put forward was that denial of the said high offices solely on account of the fact that the person was not a natural born citizen of India or his parents or grand parents were not citizens of India, might deprive some citizens from occupying these high offices even if they were otherwise worthy and acceptable”.
“The Commission took into account the consultation paper, the responses thereto and the views of eminent persons like the former President of India and some of the former Chief Justices of India including the one who delivered the majority judgement in the second judges case. When the matter came to be discussed before the Commission, divergent views were advanced and cited. According to one former C.J.I. (Justice E.S. Venkataramaiah), in the interpretation placed by the majority of judges on article 124, the “text of the Constitution seems to have been departed from. …….. The interpretation now given neutralises the position of the President and makes article 74 which requires the President to act on the aid and advice of the Council of Ministers irrelevant. ……. The construction now placed by the court makes the Supreme Court and the High Courts totally undemocratic. While in a parliamentary democracy the President may be a mere constitutional head when the power is exercised by him on the advice of the Council of Ministers he cannot be asked to play the same limited role where the Chief Justice of India who is not an elected representative advises him. One cannot ignore that this may lead on a future occasion to tyranny in another unexpected place… The new meaning given by the Supreme Court appears to be beyond the scope of mere interpretation and virtually amounts to re-writing the relevant constitutional provisions……”[See note]
“There shall be a National Judicial Commission for making recommendation as to the appointment of a Judge of the Supreme Court (other than the Chief Justice of India), a Chief Justice of a High Court and a Judge of any High Court.”
“(i) Intensive training and orientation programmes should be organized for the members of the Judiciary at all levels at the time of their entry.