Following the French practice, the oldest member of the Constituent Assembly was elected its first temporary (provisional) Chairman. He was:

Sachchidananda Sinha. Dr. Sachchidananda Sinha, the oldest member of the Constituent Assembly, was elected its temporary (provisional) Chairman at its first meeting, following the French practice.

The French practice:

• In France, when a new assembly meets for the first time, the oldest member presides over it until a permanent President is elected.
• The Constituent Assembly of India followed this practice.

His speech:

In his inaugural address, Dr. Sinha spoke about the importance of the task of framing a constitution for free India.

He referred to the constitutions of other countries, especially that of the United States, and quoted from them.

He read out messages of good wishes from several countries.

About Dr. Sachchidananda Sinha:

• He was born on 10 November 1871 at Murar, in the Buxar district of Bihar.
• He studied law in England, and became a barrister.
• He was a journalist; he founded and edited the "Hindustan Review", and helped start "The Bihar Times".
• He is regarded as the "maker of modern Bihar", because he led the movement for the separation of Bihar from Bengal; Bihar (with Orissa) became a separate province in 1912.
• He was the first Indian to be appointed as the Finance Member of a provincial government (Bihar and Orissa, 1921).
• He was a member of the Imperial Legislative Council and the Central Legislative Assembly.
• He was the Vice-Chancellor of Patna University (1936-1944).
• The Sinha Library in Patna, founded by him in memory of his wife, is one of the oldest public libraries of Bihar.
• He died on 6 March 1950.

Signing the Constitution:

Because of his ill health, the Constitution was taken to him at Patna for his signature.

Why not the other options?

• ✗Rajendra Prasad was not the temporary Chairman; Frank Anthony represented the Anglo-Indians; Madan Mohan Malaviya had died in 1946 and was not a member.