The ConstitutionofIndia.net Podcast
Podcast
If you prefer listening to articles rather than reading them, then we have got you covered! Listen to the ConstitutionofIndia.net team analyse contemporary Indian and global developments, drawing on constitutional and political history.
The ConstitutionofIndia.net Podcast
Indian Constitution Framers Refused to Regulate Religious Attire
Indian Constitution Framers Refused to Regulate Religious Attire
The Supreme Court of India is hearing a challenge to the constitutional validity of Karnataka’s ban on the wearing of Hijab in educational institutions. Muslim students argue that the ban violates their right to religious freedom guaranteed in the Constitution. On Day 2 of the hearings, Senior Advocate Devadatt Kamat, representing the students, referred to […]
How India Became the First Republic in the Commonwealth
In this podcast, we revisit how Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru convinced the Constituent Assembly to ratify the Indian government’s decision to remain in the Commonwealth whilst being a republic. Transcript On 8 September 2022, Queen Elizabeth II, the longest-serving monarch of the United Kingdom passed away. This has reignited debates around the role of British […]
The ConstitutionofIndia.net Podcast
Chileans Overwhelmingly Reject a New, Progressive Constitution
Chileans Overwhelmingly Reject a New, Progressive Constitution
On 4 September 2022, Chileans overwhelmingly rejected a new Constitution, with 62% of the voters saying NO in a referendum. A Constitutional Convention comprising of 144 directly elected delegates had released a Draft Constitution in March 2022. It contained strong provisions for environmental protection, indigenous peoples’ rights, gender diversity in public institutions, a national healthcare […]
Who Should Get Reservations?
The Supreme Court is currently hearing a challenge to the 103rd Amendment Act, which introduced reservations based on economic criteria. Petitioners have argued that our Constitution allows for reservations only on the basis of social or educational backwardness. What did our Constitution Framers think? Listen to our podcast to find out. Transcript You may have […]
The ConstitutionofIndia.net Podcast
How Did B.R. Ambedkar and M.K. Gandhi Imagine Indian Federalism?
How Did B.R. Ambedkar and M.K. Gandhi Imagine Indian Federalism?
B.R. Ambedkar and M.K. Gandhi spoke and wrote widely on a number of matters. Their contrasting views on the caste system, have garnered wide attention. Relatively less attention however, has been paid to comparing other strands of their constitutional vision for India. In this video, we compare their views on an important constitutional design feature: […]
Why Did B.R. Ambedkar Accept the Poona Pact?
On 6 December 2022, the Governor of Tamil Nadu made a controversial statement. He argued that B.R. Ambedkar’s decision to accept the Poona Pact, which dropped separate electorates for the so-called ‘Depressed Classes’, was targeted at the British ‘divide-and-rule’ policy. Is this claim true? What do we mean by separate electorates? Why did Ambedkar accept […]
The British Game of Sovereignty
In this podcast, we use the 2022 FIFA Men’s World Cup to engage with the unique federal system in the United Kingdom. How is it that England and Wales, two countries part of the sovereign state of the United Kingdom, played a group fixture against each other? Transcript On 30 November, 2022 at the Ahmad […]
The ConstitutionofIndia.net Podcast
Why India’s Vice President is Wrong About Parliamentary Sovereignty
Why India’s Vice President is Wrong About Parliamentary Sovereignty
Is India’s Parliament Sovereign as claimed by India’s Vice President? Is Parliament’s power to change the Constitution unlimited? Listen to our podcast to find out. Transcript In February 1965 Dieter Conrad, a German constitutional scholar, asked his audience at the Law Faculty, Banaras Hindu University a few probing questions. Could the Indian Parliament abolish Article […]
Independent India’s First Budget
In this podcast, we take you back to a key moment in independent India’s history: our first Union Budget. Who presented it? What did the Budget contain for the new born republic? Transcript On 26 November 1947, a tall, impeccably dressed man carrying a leather briefcase, posed for the cameras in a rather stoic fashion. […]