Articles in Indian Constitution
K . SAI BABA
With regard to the number of Articles in the Indian Constitution, there prevails some confusion in academic circles as is seen in the different claims — 446, 416, 450, etc,— in the writings of scholars. M.V. Pylee, in his “Constitutional Amendments in India”, recently published by Universal Law Publishing, said that there are 395 Articles in the Constitution. This figure seems to be convincing, inasmuch as no one can find any Article which is beyond
Article 395. This does not necessarily mean that the writers who have mentioned the number of Articles to be other than this are wrong.
The fact is that they have made the exercise of “adding and subtracting” the “Insertions and Repeals” of various Articles/Clauses made by the Amendments to the Constitution. So, whenever any Amendment is made in affecting any Article/Clause, the number of Articles, according to the writers, goes on changing.
Cause for confusion
If this were to be taken to mention the figure of the number of Articles in the Constitution, one has to make a continuous exercise in finding out the number from time to time. But all this is a futile exercise. Technically speaking, ‘there are 395 Articles’ and there is not even a 396th Article.
It must be observed that the changes made by the Amendments were named “Clauses” of some Articles and not “Separate Articles”. For example, Article 243 deals with “The Panchayats” and “The Municipalities”. This Article has 15 Clauses (243-A to 243-O) in Part-1X-A dealing with the “The Panchayats” and 18 clauses(243-P to 243-ZG) in Part 1X-B, dealing with “The Municipalities”. In other words, Article 243 (which, earlier, dealt with the Territories of Part-D of the First Schedule and repealed by the Constitution (Seventh Amendment) Act, 1956, sec. 29 and which was inserted by the Constitution (Seventy Third Amendment) Act, 1992. Sec.2 to empower the Local Self Governments by due recognition of the Constitution has 33 Clauses (15 Clauses of 1XA and 18 Clauses of 1XB) under it.
Original framework
So, there is only ONE Article to deal with the Panchayat and the Municipalities. Some writers may regard all the Clauses as Articles which makes one to make an account of 34 (33 Clauses + the Article) Articles in the Parts of 1XA and 1XB.
In the long process of different Amendments to the Constitution, many Articles/Clauses are affected, but it must be noted that “all the Additions and Repeals” were made within the frame work of original Document of 395 Articles.
So it may not be appropriate to regard any other figure other than 395 as the number of Articles in the Constitution. The list of some Insertions and Repeals by different Amendments may be perused to find them mostly as Clauses and it may also be noted that all of them are within the framework of 395 Articles.
It may be emphasised that there is no Article which is beyond Article 395. All this implies that the “Clauses” cannot be regarded as “Articles”.
However, legal luminaries may enlighten this typical issue and dispel the confusion in academic circles. This is very necessary for those who are appearing for competitive examinations.
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