SSC
Including its Chairman, how many members did the Drafting Committee of the Constituent Assembly have?
Answer (Detailed Solution Below)View answer ▾Hide ▴
Answer: Option B — Seven
Detailed Solution
The Drafting Committee of the Constituent Assembly had seven members, including its Chairman, Dr. B. R. Ambedkar.
The original members:
Dr. B. R. Ambedkar (Chairman).
- Gopalaswami Ayyangar.
Alladi Krishnaswami Ayyar.
Dr. K. M. Munshi.
Syed Mohammad Saadullah.
- Madhava Rau, who replaced B. L. Mitter, who resigned due to ill health.
- T. Krishnamachari, who replaced D. P. Khaitan after his death in 1948.
The work of the committee:
- It was the most important committee of the Constituent Assembly.
- It examined the draft prepared by the Constitutional Adviser and the reports of the other committees.
- It prepared the Draft Constitution, which was published for public discussion.
- It considered the comments and suggestions received from the public, the governments and the legislatures.
- It piloted the Draft Constitution through the Assembly, clause by clause, and accepted or rejected the amendments proposed.
Ambedkar's role:
Dr. Ambedkar carried the main burden of explaining and defending the Draft Constitution in the Assembly.
He is called the "Chief Architect of the Indian Constitution".
In his speech, he pointed out that many members of the committee could not attend regularly because of death, illness, resignation or other duties, so much of the work fell on him.
- T. Krishnamachari's remark:
- T. Krishnamachari said in the Assembly that, of the seven members, one had resigned, one had died, one was in America, one was busy with state affairs, and one or two were away from Delhi, so the burden of drafting had fallen on Dr. Ambedkar.
About Syed Mohammad Saadullah:
He had been the Premier of Assam, and was the only Muslim League member of the Drafting Committee.
Why not the other options?
- ✗Five, nine and eleven are not the number of members of the Drafting Committee.
Quick tip
Remember: Drafting Committee = seven members (Chairman Ambedkar; Gopalaswami Ayyangar, Alladi, Munshi, Saadullah, Madhava Rau, T. T. Krishnamachari).
💬 Discussions on this question
Ask a doubt ›Still stuck on this question? Ask our faculty and fellow students — answers appear here.
Ask a doubtMore Making & Sources of the Constitution Questions
View all ›- Q1.Who was the Constitutional Adviser (legal adviser) to the Constituent Assembly of India?
- Q2.The original Constitution of India was handwritten in English by:
- Q3.The idea of the 'Rule of Law' in the Indian Constitution was adopted from the Constitution of:
- Q4.The structural part of the Indian Constitution is largely derived from the:
- Q5.Which province had the highest representation in the Constituent Assembly of India as on 31 December 1947?
More General Knowledge Questions
- Q1.The techniques of Rasa and Bhava used in Indian classical dance trace their origin to which ancient text?Indian Dance Forms
- Q2.Lavani, Powada, Koli, Waghya Murali and Dhangari Gaja are folk dances of which state?Indian Dance Forms
- Q3.The one-act play associated with the Sattriya tradition of Assam is called:Indian Dance Forms
- Q4.Which dance form of Goa is known as the 'Warrior Dance'?Indian Dance Forms
- Q5.Manipuri dance is based on the Rasleela themes of:Indian Dance Forms
Making & Sources of the Constitution — Preparation
This question tests your understanding of Making & Sources of the Constitution, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.
This topic covers how the Indian Constitution was made: the Constituent Assembly, its committees and members, the drafting process and key dates, and the features India borrowed from other constitutions, such as the parliamentary system from Britain and Fundamental Rights from the USA. Exams frequently ask who chaired the Drafting Committee (B. R. Ambedkar), who was President of the Constituent Assembly (Rajendra Prasad), and when the Constitution was adopted (26 November 1949) and came into force (26 January 1950). Questions on borrowed features are very common, so learn a table of features and their source countries. Practise the making of the Constitution questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.