The Constitution must be stable enough to preserve its fundamental principles, but flexible enough to respond to changing social, political and economic conditions.
The Constitution therefore provides a mechanism for:
Amendment
Constitutional amendment means formally changing the Constitution by:
The principal constitutional provision dealing with amendment is:
Article 368
A Constitution cannot remain completely unchanged forever.
Amendments may be required because of:
Therefore, amendment provides:
Constitutional adaptability
Article 368 is located in:
Part XX
of the Constitution.
Power of Parliament to amend the Constitution and procedure therefor
It provides the principal procedure for constitutional amendments.
The current Constitution places Article 368 under:
Part XX — Amendment of the Constitution
:contentReference[oaicite:0]{index=0}
Under Article 368, Parliament exercises its:
Constituent power
to amend the Constitution.
The power includes amendment by:
Constitutional amendment is different from ordinary law-making.
Parliament acts in its:
Constituent capacity
rather than merely its ordinary legislative capacity.
No.
Parliament's power to amend the Constitution is subject to:
The Basic Structure Doctrine
The Supreme Court established this limitation in:
Kesavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala — 1973
Therefore:
Parliament can amend the Constitution
but:
Cannot destroy its basic structure.
Passed using the ordinary legislative procedure.
Passed according to the constitutional procedure applicable to the particular provision.
Therefore:
Every constitutional amendment is not an ordinary law.
For UPSC, constitutional changes are broadly understood through three methods.
Certain provisions can be changed by:
Simple majority of Parliament
These are technically not treated as amendments under Article 368.
Most constitutional provisions requiring formal amendment under Article 368 require:
Special majority of Parliament
Certain federal provisions require:
Special majority of Parliament
Ratification by at least half of the State Legislatures
India follows a:
Balanced approach between rigidity and flexibility
Could make constitutional principles unstable.
Could make constitutional adaptation difficult.
India therefore uses:
Different levels of constitutional rigidity
depending on the importance of the provision.
Some constitutional provisions directly affect:
Union–State relations
For such provisions, States are given a role in the amendment process.
This is why certain amendments require ratification by:
At least half of the State Legislatures
Federal matters → State participation
After a Constitution Amendment Bill is duly passed according to Article 368:
The Bill is presented to the:
President
The President:
shall give assent
This differs from the ordinary legislative process, where the President has constitutional options regarding ordinary bills.
A Constitutional Amendment Bill can be introduced in:
Either House of Parliament
It does not require prior permission of the President for introduction.
It can be introduced by:
A Minister or a Private Member
There is:
No provision for a joint sitting
of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha for a Constitutional Amendment Bill.
Therefore, both Houses must separately pass the Bill with the required majority.
Constitutional Amendment Bill → No Joint Sitting
States do not have an independent power to initiate a constitutional amendment.
A Constitutional Amendment Bill is introduced in:
Parliament
For provisions requiring State ratification, the Bill must subsequently be ratified by:
At least half of the State Legislatures
Constitutional amendments are subject to:
Judicial Review
The Supreme Court can examine whether an amendment violates the:
Basic Structure
Kesavananda Bharati — 1973
The Basic Structure Doctrine means that certain fundamental features of the Constitution cannot be destroyed even through the constitutional amendment procedure.
Examples recognised by the Supreme Court include principles such as:
The list is not a closed or exhaustive list.
The relationship between:
Article 13
and:
Article 368
has been an important constitutional issue.
The 24th Constitutional Amendment, 1971 clarified Parliament's constituent power to amend the Constitution and inserted provisions concerning Article 13 and Article 368.
:contentReference[oaicite:1]{index=1}
The Supreme Court subsequently established that although constitutional amendments can amend the Constitution, they cannot destroy its basic structure.
Court upheld Parliament's power to amend Fundamental Rights.
↓
Again upheld broad amending power.
↓
Held that Parliament could not amend Fundamental Rights.
↓
Strengthened Parliament's constituent power.
↓
Established:
Basic Structure Doctrine
↓
Attempted to make Parliament's amending power effectively unlimited.
↓
Struck down provisions seeking to remove meaningful judicial review of constitutional amendments and reaffirmed:
Limited amending power
The topic connects several major areas of Polity:
Article 368
Parliament
Federalism
Fundamental Rights
Judicial Review
Basic Structure
Supreme Court judgments
Therefore, it is a:
High-priority UPSC topic
Some amendments are particularly important for UPSC:
Important for:
Fundamental Rights + Land reform + Ninth Schedule
Important for:
State reorganisation
Important for:
Parliament's amending power
Known as:
Mini-Constitution
Important for:
Restoration of constitutional safeguards
Anti-defection
Voting age 21 → 18
Panchayats
Municipalities
Right to Education
GST
EWS reservation
Reservation of seats for women in Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies, subject to the constitutional conditions provided in the amendment
The Legislative Department's official amendment records list the 106th Amendment Act, 2023 as the latest constitutional amendment act in its published collection. :contentReference[oaicite:2]{index=2}
Constitutional amendment
Amendment of the Constitution
Can be introduced in:
Either House of Parliament
Not required for introduction
Not available
Required for certain:
Federal provisions
After proper passage:
Must give assent
Available
Basic Structure
"All constitutional amendments require ratification by half of the States."
False
Only certain provisions require State ratification.
"Every constitutional amendment is passed by simple majority."
False
Different provisions have different procedures.
"Constitutional Amendment Bills can be passed through a joint sitting."
False
There is no joint-sitting provision for them.
"The President can withhold assent to a duly passed Constitutional Amendment Bill."
False
Under Article 368, the President shall give assent.
"States can introduce Constitutional Amendment Bills."
False
Constitutional Amendment Bills are introduced in:
Parliament
"Parliament's power to amend the Constitution is unlimited."
False
It is limited by:
Basic Structure Doctrine
"Article 368 is located in Part XVIII."
False
It is in:
Part XX
"The Constitution provides a balance between rigidity and flexibility through its amendment procedure. Discuss."
The Indian Constitution combines stability with adaptability by prescribing different procedures for changing different constitutional provisions.
Flexible elements
→ Simple-majority provisions
Rigid elements
→ Special majority
→ Special majority + State ratification
Article 368
→ Principal constitutional amendment procedure
Judicial limitation
→ Basic Structure Doctrine
Federal dimension
→ State ratification for specified provisions
The Indian amendment mechanism seeks to preserve constitutional stability while allowing democratic adaptation. The Basic Structure Doctrine further ensures that constitutional change does not become constitutional destruction.
