AMENDMENTS OF THE CONSTITUTION
Two categories of Amendment under Article 368
- By special majority of Parliament:
- More than 50 percent of total membership of each House.
- Two-thirds majority of members present and voting.
- By special majority of Parliament and consent of half of State Legislature:
- Simple majority.
Provisions Amended:
- Federal structure-related provisions.
Keshavananda Bharati Case (1973)
- Every provision is amendable except the basic structure of the constitution.
CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS
- First Amendment Act, 1951:
- Added Ninth Schedule.
- Seventh Amendment Act, 1956:
- Necessitated due to reorganization of states on linguistic basis.
- Fifteenth Amendment Act, 1963:
- Extended age of retirement for High Court Judges from 60 to 65 years.
- Twenty-Sixth Amendment Act, 1971:
- Abolished titles and special privileges of former princely state rulers.
- Thirty-Sixth Amendment Act, 1975:
- Made Sikkim a State.
- Forty-Fourth Amendment Act, 1978:
- Deleted Right to Property from Part III.
- Amended Article 352 to include ‘Armed Rebellion’ as circumstance for emergency declaration.
- Seventy-Third Amendment Act, 1992:
- Provided constitutional status to Panchayati Raj.
- Added XIth Schedule and Part IX containing Articles 243, 243A to 243O.
- Eighty-Ninth Amendment Act, 2003:
- Added Article 338A for National Commission for Scheduled Tribes.
- Ninety-First Amendment Act, 2003:
- Amended Anti-Defection Law.
- Limited number of ministers to 15% of Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha strength.
- Ninety-Third Amendment Act, 2005:
- Reserved seats for socially and educationally backward classes in private unaided institutions.
- Ninety-Seventh Amendment Act, 2011:
- Gave constitutional status to cooperatives.
- Ninety-Ninth Amendment Act, 2014:
- Replaced collegium system for appointment of Judges, but declared unconstitutional by Supreme Court.
- One Hundredth Amendment Act, 2015:
- Dealt with acquisition of territories by India and transfer to Bangladesh.
- One Hundredth One Amendment Act, 2016:
- Introduced Goods and Services Tax (GST).
- One Hundredth Two Amendment Act, 2018:
- Provided Constitutional status to National Commission for Backward Classes.
- One Hundredth Three Amendment Act, 2019:
- Provided 10% reservation to economically backward classes.
- One Hundredth Fourth Amendment Act, 2020:
- Extended reservation for SCs and STs in Lok Sabha and State Assemblies to eighty years.
- Removed reserved seats for Anglo-Indian community.
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The Constitution (105th Amendment) Act, 2021:
- Passed on February 15, 2021, this amendment clarifies that states have the power to maintain their “State List” of Other Backward Classes (OBCs).
- Previously, there was confusion regarding the validity of state OBC lists after a Supreme Court judgement.
It’s important to note that there are several other proposed amendments pending debate and approval in the Indian Parliament. Some notable examples include:
- Uniform Civil Code: Proposes implementing a nationwide personal law system applicable to all citizens, regardless of their religion.
- Right to Education Amendment: Aims to extend the free and compulsory education age limit to 18 years.
- National Judicial Appointments Commission: Aims to establish a new body for appointing judges to higher courts.
