Model Question and Answers for APSC | It would have been difficult for the Constituent Assembly to complete its historic task of drafting the Constitution for Independent India in just three years but for the experience gained with the Government of India Act, 1935. Discuss.
It would have been difficult for the Constituent Assembly to complete its historic task of drafting the Constitution for Independent India in just three years but for the experience gained with the Government of India Act, 1935. Discuss.
Bhadra IAS Academy 
Ans: The Constituent Assembly took almost three years (2 years, 11 months and 17 days to be precise) to complete its historic task of drafting the Constitution for Independent India. During this period, it held eleven sessions covering a total of 165 days.
The Constitution of 1950 was a by-product of the legacy started by the Government of India Act 1935. This was the longest act passed by the British government with 321 sections and 10 schedules. This act had drawn its content from four sources – The report of the Simon Commission, discussions and deliberations at the Third Round Table Conference, the White Paper of 1933 and the reports of the Joint select committees.
Some features of the Government of India Act 1935 that was adopted in the Constitution:
- Federal Legislature
- Provincial Autonomy
- All India services
- The office of the Governor
- Division of legislative powers into three lists –The federal list, the Provincial List and the Concurrent list
The Government of India Act 1935 gave a solid foundation to work upon. It gave both the basic structural framework of the federal system and also administrative detail and eased the work of constituent assembly to a greater extent.
