Ask anyone where the Indian Constitution came from, and you’ll probably hear, “It’s borrowed from other countries.” While that’s correct, it doesn’t tell the whole story.The Constituent Assembly didn’t just lift provisions wholesale, it studied constitutions across the world and picked only what fit India’s own socio-political reality.
That’s why historians call it a borrowed but not copied Constitution. Here’s where each piece actually came from.
Britain Gave Us the Machinery
Parliamentary form of government
Cabinet system
Collective responsibility of the Council of Ministers
Rule of Law
Single citizenship
Office of the Speaker
Writ jurisdiction
Parliamentary legislative procedure
America Gave Us the Philosophy
Preamble
Fundamental Rights
Independent Judiciary
Judicial Review
Federal system
Impeachment of the President
Removal of Supreme Court and High Court judges
President as the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces
Canada Shaped Our Federalism
Federation with a strong Centre
Residuary powers vested in the Union
Advisory jurisdiction of the Supreme Court
Appointment of State Governors by the Centre
Australia Filled in the Gaps
Concurrent List
Freedom of trade and commerce
Joint sitting of both Houses of Parliament
Parliament’s power to implement international treaties
Suspension of certain Fundamental Rights during an Emergency
Japan Gave Us One Powerful Phrase
Procedure established by law” under Article 21
The USSR Gave Us Duties, Not Just Rights
Fundamental Duties (Article 51A)
The 1935 Act Was the Real Blueprint
Federal administrative framework
Office of the Governor
Public Service Commissions
Judicial structure
Administrative framework
South Africa Gave Us Flexibility
Procedure for Constitutional Amendment (Article 368)
Election of Rajya Sabha members through Proportional Representation by the Single Transferable Vote (STV)
Next time someone calls the Indian Constitution “unoriginal,” remind them it’s the opposite. Borrowing eleven different frameworks and stitching them into one working document, without any of them dominating, might be the most original act of all.