National Constitution Day 2021: All you need to know

Every year, on 26th November, India observes National Constitution Day, also known as National Law Day or ‘Samvidhan Diwas.’ On this day in 1949, two years after India’s independence, the Constituent Assembly adopted the Constitution of India, that soon came into effect on 26th January 1950, marking that day as the official Republic Day of India. The two months in between were well utilised to thoroughly read and translate the Constitution from English to Hindi. In fact, later in 1950, many of the constitutional rights were converted into laws for the country.  

However, it was not until 2015, that the government of India declared this day as the National Constitution Day. This year, India is celebrating 72nd anniversary of the foundation of the Constitution. 

History behind National Constitution Day

On 11th October 2015, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had laid the foundation stone of B.R. Ambedkar’s Statue of Equality Memorial. During this programme, the Prime Minister declared 26th November to be celebrated as the Constitution Day of India. It was his way of sending tribute to Ambedkar, who was the appointed chairman of the constitution drafting committee and later came to be known as the Father of India’s Constitution. Moreover, 2015 marked Ambedkar’s 125th birth anniversary. So, this was the government’s way of honouring this legendary personality. On 19th November 2015, the Union ministry of social service had issued a gazetted notification and officially established 26th November as the National Constitution Day of India.  

Significance of the National Constitution Day

Since its declaration in 2015, National Constitution Day is commemorated every year to raise awareness about the prominent value of the constitution and encourage people to follow and preach the ideals of Ambedkar and acknowledge and respect the contribution of the other framers of the constitution. 

How is the day celebrated?

In 2020, President Ramnath Kovind had read the Preamble to the Constitution to celebrate the Constitution Day of India. This year too, the tradition is supposed to be maintained in the Central Hall of the Parliament. Supreme Court has also organised a two-day Constitution Day celebration. Other programmes like talk-shows and seminars are also organised to emphasise on the constitutional values of the Indian Constitution.