What do you think?
Rate this book
A Peoples Constitution
It has long been contended that the Indian Constitution of 1950, a document in English created by elite consensus, has had little influence on India's greater population. Drawing upon the previously unexplored records of the Supreme Court of India, A People's Constitution upends this narrative and shows how the Constitution actually transformed the daily lives of citizens in profound and lasting ways. This remarkable legal process was led by individuals on the margins of society, and Rohit De looks at how drinkers, smugglers, petty vendors, butchers, and prostitutes--all despised minorities--shaped the constitutional culture.
The Constitution came alive in the popular imagination so much that ordinary people attributed meaning to its existence, took recourse to it, and argued with it. Focusing on the use of constitutional remedies by citizens against new state regulations seeking to reshape the society and economy, De illustrates how laws and policies were frequently undone or renegotiated from below using the state's own procedures. De examines four important cases that set legal precedents: a Parsi journalist's contestation of new alcohol prohibition laws, Marwari petty traders' challenge to the system of commodity control, Muslim butchers' petition against cow protection laws, and sex workers' battle to protect their right to practice prostitution.
Exploring how the Indian Constitution of 1950 enfranchised the largest population in the world, A People's Constitution considers the ways that ordinary citizens produced, through litigation, alternative ethical models of citizenship.
The Constitution came alive in the popular imagination so much that ordinary people attributed meaning to its existence, took recourse to it, and argued with it. Focusing on the use of constitutional remedies by citizens against new state regulations seeking to reshape the society and economy, De illustrates how laws and policies were frequently undone or renegotiated from below using the state's own procedures. De examines four important cases that set legal precedents: a Parsi journalist's contestation of new alcohol prohibition laws, Marwari petty traders' challenge to the system of commodity control, Muslim butchers' petition against cow protection laws, and sex workers' battle to protect their right to practice prostitution.
Exploring how the Indian Constitution of 1950 enfranchised the largest population in the world, A People's Constitution considers the ways that ordinary citizens produced, through litigation, alternative ethical models of citizenship.
280 pages, Hardcover
Published January 1, 2018
65 people are currently reading
1069 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews
August 9, 2020
A People’s Constitution by Rohit De is a book on Indian Constitution and how this document transformed the lives of ordinary citizens. De after exhaustive research and with the help of previously unexplored records of Supreme Court has gone on to establish how individuals on the margins, essentially subalterns like drinkers (alcohol prohibition laws) smugglers, Petty vendors (commodity control), butchers (cow protection laws)and sex workers (with their battle to protect right to practice prostitution)have used this document time and again and shaped our constitutional culture.
.
The books I have read on Indian Constitution and it’s characteristics have been usually about landmark cases by mostly if not all privileged well meaning individuals or NGOs and while I love reading about them, this book is a breath of fresh air.
.
Rohit De bring weaves a story from start to end and almost always we see that the laws he is talking of have been implemented similarly or in a harsher manner than what they were in the colonial times. Like Essential Commodities Act which was a wartime rationing method and continued and even widened after India gained independence.
.
The book also has cheeky titles like The Case of the Constable’s Nose to talk of alcohol prohibition. I think it can be read by anyone without previous knowledge provided they know what Fundamental Rights are and something of their operation, there is some legal jargon there but the analysis very simple and understandable. I also loved the various cartoons this one contained!
.
The books I have read on Indian Constitution and it’s characteristics have been usually about landmark cases by mostly if not all privileged well meaning individuals or NGOs and while I love reading about them, this book is a breath of fresh air.
.
Rohit De bring weaves a story from start to end and almost always we see that the laws he is talking of have been implemented similarly or in a harsher manner than what they were in the colonial times. Like Essential Commodities Act which was a wartime rationing method and continued and even widened after India gained independence.
.
The book also has cheeky titles like The Case of the Constable’s Nose to talk of alcohol prohibition. I think it can be read by anyone without previous knowledge provided they know what Fundamental Rights are and something of their operation, there is some legal jargon there but the analysis very simple and understandable. I also loved the various cartoons this one contained!
May 14, 2019
Loved this book by Rohit De. My interest in legal politics made this book a must-read but after reading it, I'd recommend it to anyone who wants to know more about India and its politics. It's well-written, comprehensive, and compelling - none of which I was expecting considering this was written by an academic. Would love to think that books like De's will only encourage more Indian academics to write for a non-academic, wider audience.
That said though, the book is also a (radical) response to academic views of law in India. The academic view of law has generally held that the Indian Constitution was an elite device that barely resonated with the "masses" and De refutes this position by studying constitutional cases filed by (discriminated) minority communities. Couple of things this book got me thinking about -
- "Who does law belong to?" I have been tempted to write off the law as entrenching elite interests but it is super interesting to see how minority communities use the law to articulate their rights and interests. As De points out, law was as much a "weapon of the weak" as well.
- The communities who questioned the law were those most familiar with the law - these were communities who were often evicted, imprisoned, ticketed on the basis of laws and bylaws. (This reaffirmed a pet feeling that people who were quick to say "But the law is always right" / "That's the law so no point in discussing this anymore" / "What does *the* law say?", have rarely experienced being on the "wrong" side of the law.)
- The question of whether the petitioners won the case or not cannot be the only way we choose to see the journey of these petitioners and their cases. De points out that through these journeys, petitioners (like the Qureshi community that was involved in the beef trade, Husna Bai who was fighting against the effective bans on prostitution, etc.) were also rebelling against their identities as "deviant" and claiming their space as rightful citizens of the country.
- The Indian legal / judicial system is a complex and complicated beast.
Two things I wish De would have spent a little more time on -
- How do these cases land in the higher courts? What was the extent of involvement of lawyers in filing these cases? De causally mentions the utility of networks and petitioners' awareness of their rights but does this mean there were no lawyers involved?!
- What is the aftermath of these cases? What happened to the petitioners after the case was disposed? (This is impossible I understand but) I would have loved to know how these petitioners reflected on their interaction with these judicial institutions.
All in all, read the book!!
That said though, the book is also a (radical) response to academic views of law in India. The academic view of law has generally held that the Indian Constitution was an elite device that barely resonated with the "masses" and De refutes this position by studying constitutional cases filed by (discriminated) minority communities. Couple of things this book got me thinking about -
- "Who does law belong to?" I have been tempted to write off the law as entrenching elite interests but it is super interesting to see how minority communities use the law to articulate their rights and interests. As De points out, law was as much a "weapon of the weak" as well.
- The communities who questioned the law were those most familiar with the law - these were communities who were often evicted, imprisoned, ticketed on the basis of laws and bylaws. (This reaffirmed a pet feeling that people who were quick to say "But the law is always right" / "That's the law so no point in discussing this anymore" / "What does *the* law say?", have rarely experienced being on the "wrong" side of the law.)
- The question of whether the petitioners won the case or not cannot be the only way we choose to see the journey of these petitioners and their cases. De points out that through these journeys, petitioners (like the Qureshi community that was involved in the beef trade, Husna Bai who was fighting against the effective bans on prostitution, etc.) were also rebelling against their identities as "deviant" and claiming their space as rightful citizens of the country.
- The Indian legal / judicial system is a complex and complicated beast.
Two things I wish De would have spent a little more time on -
- How do these cases land in the higher courts? What was the extent of involvement of lawyers in filing these cases? De causally mentions the utility of networks and petitioners' awareness of their rights but does this mean there were no lawyers involved?!
- What is the aftermath of these cases? What happened to the petitioners after the case was disposed? (This is impossible I understand but) I would have loved to know how these petitioners reflected on their interaction with these judicial institutions.
All in all, read the book!!
July 2, 2020
B.R. Ambedkar, chairman of the drafting committee had warned the Constituent Assembly,”Constitutional morality is not a natural sentiment. It has to be cultivated. We must realise that our people have yet to learn it.” Most histories of our constitution have been either triumphalist, heralding the inauguration of a new reality and obliteration with the colonial allegiances of the past, or that of skepticism of its purported transformative potential in a society marred with entrenched social and economic hierarchies.
Rohit De, in this book argues that the Constitution was neither revolutionary nor elitist. He instead aims to present ‘how the Constitution as a document with alien antecedents that was a product of elite consensus, became part of the experience of ordinary Indians..” Thus the objective of the book is meant to chart a different interpretation of the course of Indian Republic and show how the constitution was articulated and imbibed through popular discourse and culture and through constant engagement with the courts in the first two decades after Independence. The writing is further replete with comic, witty and interesting vignettes which will also delight the reader.
The visible instruments of the illustration of this argument are four marked and unique studies of litigation and engagement with constitutional processes in the post-colonial scenario. Comprehensive legal histories of prohibition, economic controls, cow slaughter and prostitution are traced from their origins in the colonial state and their engagement with the constitutional processes in a post-colonial society. It departs from the doctrinaire viewing of legal commentaries from the point of view of the ‘judgment’ and instead ‘traces the processes through which the Constitution emerged as the dominant field of politics.’ As De points out that,”viewing the success or failure of legal mobilisation purely in terms of a judicial verdict severely limits our understanding of the role of law in our society.”
However the underlying thread spanning the narrative is to illustrate how with the enactment of the Constitution and institution of a sovereign democratic republic there were specific sections of society who felt wronged and aggrieved with the social reform-oriented regulations of the new welfare state. They were thus left relatively voiceless, marginalised and with a limited social capital to be able to express and redress their grievances through democratic means of petitions and protests. Therefore the only route left for them was to implore an avowedly anti-majoritarian higher judiciary to protect their customs and traditional privileges in the garb of a new language of constitutionalism and fundamental rights.
Without disregard for the authentic breakthrough this book seems to make in the legal histories of post-colonial India, there are some issues which in my opinion the author has failed to draw more attention to. First of all, there is only a limited reflection on why an independent post-colonial state used the very tools of coercive repression reminiscent of the colonial era in order enforce constitutional imperatives. Further, the author makes the claim that the judiciary was completely separated from the executive in the 1970s. It needs to be pointed out for instance that security proceedings under Criminal Procedure Code are still heard by Executive Magistrates and more crucially, matters related to agricultural land in rural jurisdictions such as declaratory suits are still presided over by revenue functionaries of the district administration.
Nevertheless De’s ‘A People’s Constitution’ remains a hugely important work of research and writing in the histories of popular understanding of the Constitution in a post-colonial society. It shows how those who ‘stood outside the consensus of what a good Indian citizen should be’ navigated their marginalisation and vilification through litigious engagement with constitutional law attempted to ‘recast themselves as virtuous constitutional actors.’ To paraphrase the author’s words, constitutional narratives were forged not only through the instrumentations of legal elites inside the courtroom but also within popular interpretations outside the courtrooms. In the words of Justice Krishna Iyer, “our Constitution, enacted by ‘We the People of India’, is meant for the butcher, the baker and the candlestick maker—shall we add the bonded labourer and the payment dweller?”
Rohit De, in this book argues that the Constitution was neither revolutionary nor elitist. He instead aims to present ‘how the Constitution as a document with alien antecedents that was a product of elite consensus, became part of the experience of ordinary Indians..” Thus the objective of the book is meant to chart a different interpretation of the course of Indian Republic and show how the constitution was articulated and imbibed through popular discourse and culture and through constant engagement with the courts in the first two decades after Independence. The writing is further replete with comic, witty and interesting vignettes which will also delight the reader.
The visible instruments of the illustration of this argument are four marked and unique studies of litigation and engagement with constitutional processes in the post-colonial scenario. Comprehensive legal histories of prohibition, economic controls, cow slaughter and prostitution are traced from their origins in the colonial state and their engagement with the constitutional processes in a post-colonial society. It departs from the doctrinaire viewing of legal commentaries from the point of view of the ‘judgment’ and instead ‘traces the processes through which the Constitution emerged as the dominant field of politics.’ As De points out that,”viewing the success or failure of legal mobilisation purely in terms of a judicial verdict severely limits our understanding of the role of law in our society.”
However the underlying thread spanning the narrative is to illustrate how with the enactment of the Constitution and institution of a sovereign democratic republic there were specific sections of society who felt wronged and aggrieved with the social reform-oriented regulations of the new welfare state. They were thus left relatively voiceless, marginalised and with a limited social capital to be able to express and redress their grievances through democratic means of petitions and protests. Therefore the only route left for them was to implore an avowedly anti-majoritarian higher judiciary to protect their customs and traditional privileges in the garb of a new language of constitutionalism and fundamental rights.
Without disregard for the authentic breakthrough this book seems to make in the legal histories of post-colonial India, there are some issues which in my opinion the author has failed to draw more attention to. First of all, there is only a limited reflection on why an independent post-colonial state used the very tools of coercive repression reminiscent of the colonial era in order enforce constitutional imperatives. Further, the author makes the claim that the judiciary was completely separated from the executive in the 1970s. It needs to be pointed out for instance that security proceedings under Criminal Procedure Code are still heard by Executive Magistrates and more crucially, matters related to agricultural land in rural jurisdictions such as declaratory suits are still presided over by revenue functionaries of the district administration.
Nevertheless De’s ‘A People’s Constitution’ remains a hugely important work of research and writing in the histories of popular understanding of the Constitution in a post-colonial society. It shows how those who ‘stood outside the consensus of what a good Indian citizen should be’ navigated their marginalisation and vilification through litigious engagement with constitutional law attempted to ‘recast themselves as virtuous constitutional actors.’ To paraphrase the author’s words, constitutional narratives were forged not only through the instrumentations of legal elites inside the courtroom but also within popular interpretations outside the courtrooms. In the words of Justice Krishna Iyer, “our Constitution, enacted by ‘We the People of India’, is meant for the butcher, the baker and the candlestick maker—shall we add the bonded labourer and the payment dweller?”
July 20, 2021
A People's Constitution is a fascinating study of how ordinary and often marginalized people in the newly independent India legally contested the state by asserting their constitutional rights. How ordinary citizens of a new state had so much belief in an elitist nationalist constitution comes as a welcome surprise. This book is both an educational and immensely enjoyable read.
March 13, 2019
Enjoyed this a lot!
Also see: https://indconlawphil.wordpress.com/2...
Also see: https://indconlawphil.wordpress.com/2...
January 12, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
“The radical in ambedkar” என்ற புத்தகத்தில் ஒரு வழக்கறிஞராக அம்பேத்கரின் செயல்பாடுகளை தொகுத்து எழுதி இருப்பார் Rohit de. அதன் பின் இவரை தேடியபோது கிடைத்த நூல் தான் “A people's constitution”. இந்திய அரசியலமைப்பு சட்டம் என்றாலே அது வசதி படைத்தோருக்கும், உயர் வகுப்பு மக்களுக்குமானது என்றிருக்கும் பொதுபுத்தியை கேள்விக்குட்படுத்துகிறார்.
50 களில் நடந்த 4 வழக்குகளின் மூலம் அரசியலமைப்பு சட்டம் எளியவர்களில் எளியவர்களுக்கும் உதவியுள்ளது என்பதை நிரூபிக்கிறார். மிக ஆழமான ஆய்வுக்கு பிறகு எழுதப்பட்ட நூலாக தெரிகிறது. சட்ட நுணுக்கங்களும், நீதிமன்ற நடைமுறைகள் பற்றிய புரிதல் இல்லாமையால் சில பகுதிகள் உள்வாங்கிக்கொள்ள எனக்கு கடுமையாக இருந்தது.
மாட்டுக்கறி தடை சட்டம் சார்ந்த வழக்கில் இஸ்லாமியர்களுக்கு ஏற்பட்ட பின்னடைவுகளையும் பின்னாளில் அது அவர்களின் வாழ்க்கையில் எவ்வித தாக்கத்தை ஏற்படுத்தியது என்பதை பற்றி ஒரு பகுதியில் விவாதிக்கிறார். அந்த வழக்கோடு சேர்த்து அதன் பின்புலத்தையும் ஆராய்ந்த வரலாற்று சூழலோடு பொருத்தி எழுதியுள்ளார்.
மற்றோரு பகுதியில் பாலியல் தொழிலார்கள் சம்மந்தப்பட்ட வழக்கை விரிவாக எழுதியுள்ளார், பாலியல் தொழில் தடை என்று 1956 ஒரு சட்டம் (Suppression of Immoral Traffic Act, or SITA)கொண்டுவரப்பட்ட போது அதை எதிர்த்து ஒரு தொழிலாளி தொடர்ந்த வழக்கும், அது முன்னெடுக்கப்பட விதமும், தனிநபர் சுதந்திரம்,அடிப்படை உரிமை, அடிப்படை கடமை என்ற அடிப்படையில் அவர்களுக்கு கிடைத்த நீதியும் என மிக சுவாரசியமான வகையில் எழுதப்பட்ட பகுதியாக அமைகிறது .
இதை தாண்டி மதுவிலக்கு சட்டம் மற்றும் இராண்டாம் உலக போர் சமயத்தில் கொண்டுவரப்பட்ட Essential supplies act இவை இரண்டை பற்றியும் விரிவாக பேசுகிறது.
இந்த நான்கு வழக்குகள் இந்திய அரசியலமைப்பு சட்டத்தின் முக்கியமான சாரத்துகளை(Articles) அடிப்படையாக வைத்து நீதி பெறப்பட்டவை. இந்தியா போன்ற வளர்ந்து வரும் நாடுகளில் மக்களிடையே அரசியலமைப்பு சார்ந்த புரிதலை விழிப்புணர்வை விதைப்பது மிகவும் அவசியம் என்று முடிப்பார்.
அரசியலமைப்பு சட்டம் நடைமுறைக்கு வந்து 70 ஆண்டுக்கு மேல் ஆகியும், இன்றளவும் சாமானிய மக்களிடையே அவர்களின் அடிப்படை உரிமைகள் பற்றிய புரிதல் கூட இல்லாமல் இருப்பது ஒரு ஜனநாயக்கத்திற்கு சிறப்பல்ல.
அந்த வகையில் இந்த நூல் கூறும் செய்தி ஒன்று தான் அம்பேத்கரின் வார்த்தையில் சொல்வதென்றால் “Constitutional morality is not a natural sentiment. It has to be cultivated. We must realise that our people have yet to learn it.” என்பதை அன்றாடம் நினைவுபடுத்திக்கொள்ள வேண்டும். இந்த புத்தகம் இக்கருத்தை எடுத்துக்காட்டுகளுடன் ஆழமாக விளக்குகிறது.
Book: A People’s Constitution - The Everyday Life of Law in the Indian Republic
Author: Rohit de.
#DO_READ
“The radical in ambedkar” என்ற புத்தகத்தில் ஒரு வழக்கறிஞராக அம்பேத்கரின் செயல்பாடுகளை தொகுத்து எழுதி இருப்பார் Rohit de. அதன் பின் இவரை தேடியபோது கிடைத்த நூல் தான் “A people's constitution”. இந்திய அரசியலமைப்பு சட்டம் என்றாலே அது வசதி படைத்தோருக்கும், உயர் வகுப்பு மக்களுக்குமானது என்றிருக்கும் பொதுபுத்தியை கேள்விக்குட்படுத்துகிறார்.
50 களில் நடந்த 4 வழக்குகளின் மூலம் அரசியலமைப்பு சட்டம் எளியவர்களில் எளியவர்களுக்கும் உதவியுள்ளது என்பதை நிரூபிக்கிறார். மிக ஆழமான ஆய்வுக்கு பிறகு எழுதப்பட்ட நூலாக தெரிகிறது. சட்ட நுணுக்கங்களும், நீதிமன்ற நடைமுறைகள் பற்றிய புரிதல் இல்லாமையால் சில பகுதிகள் உள்வாங்கிக்கொள்ள எனக்கு கடுமையாக இருந்தது.
மாட்டுக்கறி தடை சட்டம் சார்ந்த வழக்கில் இஸ்லாமியர்களுக்கு ஏற்பட்ட பின்னடைவுகளையும் பின்னாளில் அது அவர்களின் வாழ்க்கையில் எவ்வித தாக்கத்தை ஏற்படுத்தியது என்பதை பற்றி ஒரு பகுதியில் விவாதிக்கிறார். அந்த வழக்கோடு சேர்த்து அதன் பின்புலத்தையும் ஆராய்ந்த வரலாற்று சூழலோடு பொருத்தி எழுதியுள்ளார்.
மற்றோரு பகுதியில் பாலியல் தொழிலார்கள் சம்மந்தப்பட்ட வழக்கை விரிவாக எழுதியுள்ளார், பாலியல் தொழில் தடை என்று 1956 ஒரு சட்டம் (Suppression of Immoral Traffic Act, or SITA)கொண்டுவரப்பட்ட போது அதை எதிர்த்து ஒரு தொழிலாளி தொடர்ந்த வழக்கும், அது முன்னெடுக்கப்பட விதமும், தனிநபர் சுதந்திரம்,அடிப்படை உரிமை, அடிப்படை கடமை என்ற அடிப்படையில் அவர்களுக்கு கிடைத்த நீதியும் என மிக சுவாரசியமான வகையில் எழுதப்பட்ட பகுதியாக அமைகிறது .
இதை தாண்டி மதுவிலக்கு சட்டம் மற்றும் இராண்டாம் உலக போர் சமயத்தில் கொண்டுவரப்பட்ட Essential supplies act இவை இரண்டை பற்றியும் விரிவாக பேசுகிறது.
இந்த நான்கு வழக்குகள் இந்திய அரசியலமைப்பு சட்டத்தின் முக்கியமான சாரத்துகளை(Articles) அடிப்படையாக வைத்து நீதி பெறப்பட்டவை. இந்தியா போன்ற வளர்ந்து வரும் நாடுகளில் மக்களிடையே அரசியலமைப்பு சார்ந்த புரிதலை விழிப்புணர்வை விதைப்பது மிகவும் அவசியம் என்று முடிப்பார்.
அரசியலமைப்பு சட்டம் நடைமுறைக்கு வந்து 70 ஆண்டுக்கு மேல் ஆகியும், இன்றளவும் சாமானிய மக்களிடையே அவர்களின் அடிப்படை உரிமைகள் பற்றிய புரிதல் கூட இல்லாமல் இருப்பது ஒரு ஜனநாயக்கத்திற்கு சிறப்பல்ல.
அந்த வகையில் இந்த நூல் கூறும் செய்தி ஒன்று தான் அம்பேத்கரின் வார்த்தையில் சொல்வதென்றால் “Constitutional morality is not a natural sentiment. It has to be cultivated. We must realise that our people have yet to learn it.” என்பதை அன்றாடம் நினைவுபடுத்திக்கொள்ள வேண்டும். இந்த புத்தகம் இக்கருத்தை எடுத்துக்காட்டுகளுடன் ஆழமாக விளக்குகிறது.
Book: A People’s Constitution - The Everyday Life of Law in the Indian Republic
Author: Rohit de.
#DO_READ
March 26, 2021
Outstanding ! The premise of the book is to challenge the notion that the constitution was for the elites . The author traces challenges to various laws by ordinary citizens in the first 2 decades of the life of the Republic . Through 4 cases ,the author proves that the promise of the constitution and language of rights was embraced by the subalterns the most . The issues that challenged the elite thinking are relevant even today - cow slaughter, prostitution, economic rights and prohibition and they open you to the many possibilities that the constitution offered . A must read for everyone interested in the project of the Constitution and “constitutional morality”!
March 15, 2020
This is a truly unique and seminal work in the field of Constitutional Law.
The book traces how the assertion of rights by Indians transformed in the regime change from colonial to indigenous Constitutional law. The author traces this through 4 major fields- Alcohol prohibition, Commodity control, Cow slaughter and Prostitution.
What sets this work apart is that instead of elaborating on case law and its surrounding circumstances, as is found in many other works, the author delves into the social life and struggles by the Petitioners, their previous legal struggles, and how the court and the Constitution provided a new site for a new approach to their long held ways of doing things.
Most importantly, the author has put in tremendous effort into research, and has had unique access to the Supreme Court records room to investigate into aspects of a case which don’t necessarily come out in judgments. Refer to the cow slaughter chapter for more on this.
This is an essential read for law students/professionals to appreciate how Indians engaged with constitutional rights to make it a living, breathing document that reflected their hopes and aspirations, and how the Constitution meant different things for different people.
The book traces how the assertion of rights by Indians transformed in the regime change from colonial to indigenous Constitutional law. The author traces this through 4 major fields- Alcohol prohibition, Commodity control, Cow slaughter and Prostitution.
What sets this work apart is that instead of elaborating on case law and its surrounding circumstances, as is found in many other works, the author delves into the social life and struggles by the Petitioners, their previous legal struggles, and how the court and the Constitution provided a new site for a new approach to their long held ways of doing things.
Most importantly, the author has put in tremendous effort into research, and has had unique access to the Supreme Court records room to investigate into aspects of a case which don’t necessarily come out in judgments. Refer to the cow slaughter chapter for more on this.
This is an essential read for law students/professionals to appreciate how Indians engaged with constitutional rights to make it a living, breathing document that reflected their hopes and aspirations, and how the Constitution meant different things for different people.
May 7, 2019
A brilliant book. Usually books about law or legal proceedings shoo away readers like me with their much focus on courtroom complexities and judicial procedures. Rohit De, in this one made every case study he does, heavily grounded in the social landscape these legal battles took place. That's what made the book intellectually available to a poorly informed and half educated person like me.
Although I might never use the court in my lifetime (who knows I might too), this made me feel very empowered. And it adds a lot to our already huge admiration for Bhimji <3 More than the insights this book shares, the way everything was translated from constitutional language to everyday English and exploration of alternatives makes this one such an interesting read too.
Although I might never use the court in my lifetime (who knows I might too), this made me feel very empowered. And it adds a lot to our already huge admiration for Bhimji <3 More than the insights this book shares, the way everything was translated from constitutional language to everyday English and exploration of alternatives makes this one such an interesting read too.
June 26, 2024
It is often argued that the legal arena is an open floor for challenge and discussions amongst the elites of the society who can afford a podium on the legal platform. However, this book brings forth a significant shift in perspective through the lens of the Indian Constitution and the battle of wits between the common people of the country and the State.
The book, quite meticulously, draws its observations on the basis of 4 separate landmark claims on constitutional rights against the question of legitimacy of the administrative and bureaucratic control. These four situations include the rise of claims against liquor prohibition, commodity controls, absolute prohibition of cow slaughter and regulation of prostitution. What is interesting to see is that all these significant cases, which brought about new dimensions of constitutional rights such as freedom, life and liberty, were brought before the eyes of judicial scrutiny through a collective participation of minority segments of the Indian Subcontinent.
The cases have been wonderfully discussed through the pre-colonial and the post-colonial political, cultural and economic shifts in the Indian governance and a thorough study of the engagement of minority groups and the public at large with the State and the legal fraternity. Rohit De has argued that this study brings to the forefront the establishment of a post-colonial legal structure which has gained significance through the continued involvement of the common folk in its functioning and has helped bridge significant gaps within the much-needed relationship between the citizens, the State and the judiciary.
This is a wonderful account of how our Constitution stands as a document not merely establishing a substantive set of rights and privileges with an elitist representation but as a passage for the voices of the invisible and the marginalised to resonate through our country's major political, cultural, economic and administrative changes!! A must read for anyone who wants to have a more intricate understanding of the Indian Constitution and its involvement in the everyday lives of the Indian Citizens.
The book, quite meticulously, draws its observations on the basis of 4 separate landmark claims on constitutional rights against the question of legitimacy of the administrative and bureaucratic control. These four situations include the rise of claims against liquor prohibition, commodity controls, absolute prohibition of cow slaughter and regulation of prostitution. What is interesting to see is that all these significant cases, which brought about new dimensions of constitutional rights such as freedom, life and liberty, were brought before the eyes of judicial scrutiny through a collective participation of minority segments of the Indian Subcontinent.
The cases have been wonderfully discussed through the pre-colonial and the post-colonial political, cultural and economic shifts in the Indian governance and a thorough study of the engagement of minority groups and the public at large with the State and the legal fraternity. Rohit De has argued that this study brings to the forefront the establishment of a post-colonial legal structure which has gained significance through the continued involvement of the common folk in its functioning and has helped bridge significant gaps within the much-needed relationship between the citizens, the State and the judiciary.
This is a wonderful account of how our Constitution stands as a document not merely establishing a substantive set of rights and privileges with an elitist representation but as a passage for the voices of the invisible and the marginalised to resonate through our country's major political, cultural, economic and administrative changes!! A must read for anyone who wants to have a more intricate understanding of the Indian Constitution and its involvement in the everyday lives of the Indian Citizens.
July 1, 2020
Remarkable study of the evolution of a subaltern understanding of economic rights under the new Constitution. Rarely is legal writing so engaging!
July 11, 2019
One of the finest non-fiction books I have had the pleasure of reading - I wouldn't necessarily define it as a 'legal' book; it is rather, an extremely well-articulated description of the interactions between the people of India and the Indian Constitution, 1950.
Right off the bat, the author captures your attention by identifying the manner in which the book has been written. It is not in the manner of the often-seen dry, pedantic or cause-effect driven narrative that dominates most of the literature surrounding the post-colonial Indian polity in the 1940s-1960s.
Rather, it gives you the sensation of being amongst the Butchers, Prostitutes, Traders & other classes of people that used the very document which was enacted to protect their rights, in order to actually safeguard such rights. Whether it be the right to drink, or to be a prostitute, or to butcher cows, or to carry/produce goods; the book delves into the approach the Courts took to such challenges, which was often a mixture of hesitancy coupled with uncertainty.
As a new state was formed, the republican government was trying to carve out a new image of itself, one which hugely differed from its colonial ancestor. In order to do so, it proceeded to enact a whole statuary which regulated the livelihood of people who in turn, engaged with the government in the courtroom using their right of judicial remedies.
It truly is a fascinating read, with each page bursting with knowledge, and a prose highlighting the ever-wide and often uncertain relations between the legislature and the judiciary. It doesn't stop at analysing past events, but draws reasonable causes and conclusions for such events.
A beautiful read; one which gives perspective to an individual about the many before him who have struggled for the rights and liberties he/she so gaily enjoys today.
Right off the bat, the author captures your attention by identifying the manner in which the book has been written. It is not in the manner of the often-seen dry, pedantic or cause-effect driven narrative that dominates most of the literature surrounding the post-colonial Indian polity in the 1940s-1960s.
Rather, it gives you the sensation of being amongst the Butchers, Prostitutes, Traders & other classes of people that used the very document which was enacted to protect their rights, in order to actually safeguard such rights. Whether it be the right to drink, or to be a prostitute, or to butcher cows, or to carry/produce goods; the book delves into the approach the Courts took to such challenges, which was often a mixture of hesitancy coupled with uncertainty.
As a new state was formed, the republican government was trying to carve out a new image of itself, one which hugely differed from its colonial ancestor. In order to do so, it proceeded to enact a whole statuary which regulated the livelihood of people who in turn, engaged with the government in the courtroom using their right of judicial remedies.
It truly is a fascinating read, with each page bursting with knowledge, and a prose highlighting the ever-wide and often uncertain relations between the legislature and the judiciary. It doesn't stop at analysing past events, but draws reasonable causes and conclusions for such events.
A beautiful read; one which gives perspective to an individual about the many before him who have struggled for the rights and liberties he/she so gaily enjoys today.
February 20, 2020
An amazing book that has increased my own understanding of constitutional litigation, the post-colonial state, and market-state interactions in post-independence India.
December 27, 2025
I never thought I would enjoy (I don't know if enjoy is the right word here) a book on legal theory, litigation case studies and legal precedents by the judiciary as much till I read this book.
The People’s Constitution by Rohit De is a interesting book that reframed how I think about law, judicial and executive power, and democracy in India. The Indian constitution strives to give economic and political freedom (with some constraints) to Indian citizens. Rather than treating the Constitution as a lofty legal text interpreted only by judges and lawyers, De shows how ordinary citizens - traders, workers, religious minorities, and marginalized communities like sex workers - have continually shaped its meaning through activism, resistance, litigation, and everyday acts of negotiation with the state.
One of the book’s most striking arguments is that unpopular laws rarely survive intact, no matter how forcefully the state tries to impose them as can be seen in the case of prohibition laws at the dawn of Indian independence. When the application of law feels unnatural or unjust, people find ways to subvert it, bend it, or challenge it outright. Courts, De reminds us, do not always reflect the popular will, yet the Constitution itself remains a living document - one whose meaning is constantly reworked by the people it governs.
The historical sections are particularly illuminating. De traces how wartime emergency laws introduced by the colonial British administration during World War II - meant to be temporary to control the economy of an important colony India- became embedded in independent India’s legal and bureaucratic machinery post independence. These colonial controls over commerce and movement directly fed into the paternalistic mindset of the postcolonial state and laid the groundwork for the License Raj. The unsettling question the book raises is how a republic born in opposition to colonial rule ended up normalizing many of its most coercive legal instruments some of which unfortunately continues to this day.
De’s analysis of India’s legal inheritance is equally nuanced. Indian courts draw heavily from British and American precedents, especially in matters of commerce and regulation, yet India charted a very different postwar path. While many countries participating and affected by the war such as the US, UK, Germany and Japan moved toward free markets after World War II, India doubled down on protectionism. Debates over administrative law thus became debates about the relationship between the state and the market - and about how much control a supposedly democratic state should exercise over economic life and constant negotiation of the boundary , especially with the bureaucracy. This was especially true as India embraced socialist ideals as well as the five year planning cycles modeled on the Soviet state.
What I found most compelling is how De links this legal history to contemporary politics. The paternalistic regulation of traders and businesses by a bureaucracy long dominated by the Congress party, he argues, helped fuel resentment that later found expression in the rise of the BJP in the 1980s. Law, in this telling, is not neutral neither is the judiciary (with the benefit of hindsight), it shapes political allegiances and social outcomes in lasting ways.
Perhaps the most hopeful thread in the book is its account of how constitutional equality and access to courts empowered marginalized communities like sex workers and Muslim butchers. Litigation became a tool not just for justice, but for bargaining with the state and pushing back against arbitrary bureaucratic power - vestiges of which still persist today.
The People’s Constitution is not just a legal history, it is a portrait of democracy in action, messy and imperfect. It left me with a deeper appreciation of the Constitution not as a static document handed down from above, but as a living document which is something continuously remade, tweaked and perfected through judicial and legislative means.
The People’s Constitution by Rohit De is a interesting book that reframed how I think about law, judicial and executive power, and democracy in India. The Indian constitution strives to give economic and political freedom (with some constraints) to Indian citizens. Rather than treating the Constitution as a lofty legal text interpreted only by judges and lawyers, De shows how ordinary citizens - traders, workers, religious minorities, and marginalized communities like sex workers - have continually shaped its meaning through activism, resistance, litigation, and everyday acts of negotiation with the state.
One of the book’s most striking arguments is that unpopular laws rarely survive intact, no matter how forcefully the state tries to impose them as can be seen in the case of prohibition laws at the dawn of Indian independence. When the application of law feels unnatural or unjust, people find ways to subvert it, bend it, or challenge it outright. Courts, De reminds us, do not always reflect the popular will, yet the Constitution itself remains a living document - one whose meaning is constantly reworked by the people it governs.
The historical sections are particularly illuminating. De traces how wartime emergency laws introduced by the colonial British administration during World War II - meant to be temporary to control the economy of an important colony India- became embedded in independent India’s legal and bureaucratic machinery post independence. These colonial controls over commerce and movement directly fed into the paternalistic mindset of the postcolonial state and laid the groundwork for the License Raj. The unsettling question the book raises is how a republic born in opposition to colonial rule ended up normalizing many of its most coercive legal instruments some of which unfortunately continues to this day.
De’s analysis of India’s legal inheritance is equally nuanced. Indian courts draw heavily from British and American precedents, especially in matters of commerce and regulation, yet India charted a very different postwar path. While many countries participating and affected by the war such as the US, UK, Germany and Japan moved toward free markets after World War II, India doubled down on protectionism. Debates over administrative law thus became debates about the relationship between the state and the market - and about how much control a supposedly democratic state should exercise over economic life and constant negotiation of the boundary , especially with the bureaucracy. This was especially true as India embraced socialist ideals as well as the five year planning cycles modeled on the Soviet state.
What I found most compelling is how De links this legal history to contemporary politics. The paternalistic regulation of traders and businesses by a bureaucracy long dominated by the Congress party, he argues, helped fuel resentment that later found expression in the rise of the BJP in the 1980s. Law, in this telling, is not neutral neither is the judiciary (with the benefit of hindsight), it shapes political allegiances and social outcomes in lasting ways.
Perhaps the most hopeful thread in the book is its account of how constitutional equality and access to courts empowered marginalized communities like sex workers and Muslim butchers. Litigation became a tool not just for justice, but for bargaining with the state and pushing back against arbitrary bureaucratic power - vestiges of which still persist today.
The People’s Constitution is not just a legal history, it is a portrait of democracy in action, messy and imperfect. It left me with a deeper appreciation of the Constitution not as a static document handed down from above, but as a living document which is something continuously remade, tweaked and perfected through judicial and legislative means.
July 27, 2022
“The Constitution is not for the exclusive benefit of governments and states… it also exists for the common man, for the poor and the humble… for the butcher, the baker and the candlestick maker.”
These words of Justice Vivian Bose, quoted multiple times in the book, effectively sum up the entire piece of work. The premise of the book challenges the (erroneous) notion that some carry: that the Constitution of India is a document for the elite and for the well-off. The book deals with four cases of Constitutional Law in India that demonstrate how the Constitution is not only for the elites and the affluent, but for every citizen of India. And for this, De chooses an interesting bunch of cases. The first case deals with Prohibition Laws of Bombay and their Constitutionality, filed by a Parsi journalist who sough to get it declared in contravention of his fundamental right. The second case deals with Marwari traders who challenged the system of commodity control. The third case deals with Muslim butchers who challenged the Cow Slaughter Prohibition Laws on the grounds that they effectively denied them the right to freely practice the profession of their choice (in this case, butchery). The result was that a total ban on butchery was declared non-feasible. Lastly, the fourth case deals with a Petition filed by a Prostitute against the SITA act. Her contention was that the act denied her the right to free practice of any profession of her choice. The Petition was dismissed since the Act had not impacted her personally, but the judge was empathetic to her arguments.
The striking part about this is that all the parties here are people one may call "marginalised." It is an appreciable feat that the Constitution offers remedy even to the most marginalised people in the society, and equally commendable is the fact that these people put enough trust and confidence in the Constitution that they move the courts seeking to enforce their rights.
Therefore, the Constitution cannot be called a document only for the lawyers, the elites and the affluent. In fact, it is a document, in the immortal words of Justice Vivian, for "the butchers, the bakers, and the candlestick-makers."
These words of Justice Vivian Bose, quoted multiple times in the book, effectively sum up the entire piece of work. The premise of the book challenges the (erroneous) notion that some carry: that the Constitution of India is a document for the elite and for the well-off. The book deals with four cases of Constitutional Law in India that demonstrate how the Constitution is not only for the elites and the affluent, but for every citizen of India. And for this, De chooses an interesting bunch of cases. The first case deals with Prohibition Laws of Bombay and their Constitutionality, filed by a Parsi journalist who sough to get it declared in contravention of his fundamental right. The second case deals with Marwari traders who challenged the system of commodity control. The third case deals with Muslim butchers who challenged the Cow Slaughter Prohibition Laws on the grounds that they effectively denied them the right to freely practice the profession of their choice (in this case, butchery). The result was that a total ban on butchery was declared non-feasible. Lastly, the fourth case deals with a Petition filed by a Prostitute against the SITA act. Her contention was that the act denied her the right to free practice of any profession of her choice. The Petition was dismissed since the Act had not impacted her personally, but the judge was empathetic to her arguments.
The striking part about this is that all the parties here are people one may call "marginalised." It is an appreciable feat that the Constitution offers remedy even to the most marginalised people in the society, and equally commendable is the fact that these people put enough trust and confidence in the Constitution that they move the courts seeking to enforce their rights.
Therefore, the Constitution cannot be called a document only for the lawyers, the elites and the affluent. In fact, it is a document, in the immortal words of Justice Vivian, for "the butchers, the bakers, and the candlestick-makers."
November 15, 2021
This was one of those books that I picked up purely on interest, with very minimal background in the field.
This book seeks to present various cases linked with the lives of ordinary people to show how the Constitution of India is meant for all Indians. He walks the reader though a trend of judgements where common people actively engaged with the judicial system for their rights. This enriched the meaning of the new democratic republic, which many did not see coming so soon after independence. Their were some limitations to this but the extent to which various sections of the society engaged, especially the minorities was heartening to read about.
In his book the author highlights the role played by the judiciary in acting as the final custodians for redressal in the society. One can see how the courts were strongly against bureaucratic arbitrariness but also reluctant to overturn laws passed by a majority government.
As a layman, it was an interesting insight for me to see the complexity in interpreting and enacting laws. Another thing that became apparent to me was how precise the nature of law is, and how one needs to be exact in their arguments.
Despite proposing the book as every layman's read, I found it to be slightly technical and requiring a deep level of focus. The author has worked hard to keep the language of the book simple and humorous by sprinkling the different cases with interesting stories. That made the book endearing to me, but a sense of complexity kept lingering.
I would not call this book an easy or quick read. But I would say it's an interesting one to pick up. I think it would make a good choice for someone with legal background or for someone who is interested in how the Indian society has interacted with the Constitution.
I would give this book a solid 3.5/5 rating but thanks to Goodreads that's going to be rounded down to 3/5.
This book seeks to present various cases linked with the lives of ordinary people to show how the Constitution of India is meant for all Indians. He walks the reader though a trend of judgements where common people actively engaged with the judicial system for their rights. This enriched the meaning of the new democratic republic, which many did not see coming so soon after independence. Their were some limitations to this but the extent to which various sections of the society engaged, especially the minorities was heartening to read about.
In his book the author highlights the role played by the judiciary in acting as the final custodians for redressal in the society. One can see how the courts were strongly against bureaucratic arbitrariness but also reluctant to overturn laws passed by a majority government.
As a layman, it was an interesting insight for me to see the complexity in interpreting and enacting laws. Another thing that became apparent to me was how precise the nature of law is, and how one needs to be exact in their arguments.
Despite proposing the book as every layman's read, I found it to be slightly technical and requiring a deep level of focus. The author has worked hard to keep the language of the book simple and humorous by sprinkling the different cases with interesting stories. That made the book endearing to me, but a sense of complexity kept lingering.
I would not call this book an easy or quick read. But I would say it's an interesting one to pick up. I think it would make a good choice for someone with legal background or for someone who is interested in how the Indian society has interacted with the Constitution.
I would give this book a solid 3.5/5 rating but thanks to Goodreads that's going to be rounded down to 3/5.
September 11, 2019
“A People’s Constitution” is a book that is truly like no other. It takes us back to the 1950s, in the early days of the Indian republic. It shows us how ordinary citizens, rather surprisingly, engaged with the Indian constitution, the judiciary and the state, in order to enforce the rights they believed they had.
It focuses on four major issues of contention: the liquor prohibition, the essential supplies act, the banning of cow slaughter and that of prostitution.
All the litigants in these cases come from marginalised communities - the Parsis in the case of liquor, the marwari traders in the case of ESA, Qureshi butchers in the case of cow slaughter, and prostitutes in the case of well, prostitution.
The book is well researched and written, if a little bit repetitive and slow at points. But the main theme is the juxtaposition between the way the newly formed government saw its citizens - as Srirupa Roy says: “Nehruvian India’s most frequently invoked figure was that of the ‘infantile citizen’ requiring state tutelage and protection.” This really hits home by the end of the book.
In their zeal to un-colonialise themselves, the new leaders often found themselves putting into place laws that disrupted rights previously held under colonial rule. It is here that we find the stories of “A People’s Constitution.”
This is a bit of a slow read, and one you want to take your time on. The anecdotes will delight you and entertain you at times, and break your heart a little at others, but it is an interesting look at the lives of a subsection of the common man and woman in the 1950s. I learned a great deal from this book and I’m sure other readers will as well.
It focuses on four major issues of contention: the liquor prohibition, the essential supplies act, the banning of cow slaughter and that of prostitution.
All the litigants in these cases come from marginalised communities - the Parsis in the case of liquor, the marwari traders in the case of ESA, Qureshi butchers in the case of cow slaughter, and prostitutes in the case of well, prostitution.
The book is well researched and written, if a little bit repetitive and slow at points. But the main theme is the juxtaposition between the way the newly formed government saw its citizens - as Srirupa Roy says: “Nehruvian India’s most frequently invoked figure was that of the ‘infantile citizen’ requiring state tutelage and protection.” This really hits home by the end of the book.
In their zeal to un-colonialise themselves, the new leaders often found themselves putting into place laws that disrupted rights previously held under colonial rule. It is here that we find the stories of “A People’s Constitution.”
This is a bit of a slow read, and one you want to take your time on. The anecdotes will delight you and entertain you at times, and break your heart a little at others, but it is an interesting look at the lives of a subsection of the common man and woman in the 1950s. I learned a great deal from this book and I’m sure other readers will as well.
August 9, 2022
I'd been looking forward to read this book since it launched, especially because I had seen previews of two of its chapters (on cow slaughter and prostitution) at earlier presentations by the author. Substantively, it did not disappoint at all. Legal history is a wonderful discipline that brings a certain depth of and perspective in understanding how law affects society - and in the study of petitioners in major Constitutional cases, tremendous insight into how society sees the law and uses it to claim rights. The book is an exploration, through archival material, of these back alleys of four big (and controversial) Constitutional cases from the early days of the Supreme Court of India (and indeed the Constitution itself). It was particularly interesting to read this book in 2022, when many of these festering sores have again broken out in the present day body politic, and the Supreme Court - as well as Indian Constitutional law - have undergone a fair bit of evolution since the 1950s.
The only quibble I have with the book - and it is a significant one - is the shoddy editing. The copy I read was rife with typos and other errors, mostly in the footnotes but also occasionally in the main text. Given the impeccable quality of the research it is not only jarring to the reader, but also in my opinion disrespects the work. For this reason an otherwise five-star book loses one in my rating.
The only quibble I have with the book - and it is a significant one - is the shoddy editing. The copy I read was rife with typos and other errors, mostly in the footnotes but also occasionally in the main text. Given the impeccable quality of the research it is not only jarring to the reader, but also in my opinion disrespects the work. For this reason an otherwise five-star book loses one in my rating.
July 23, 2023
A People’s Constitution seeks to uncover the various ways the Constitution reconstituted everyday postcolonial life. Rohit De urges us to look beyond the judicial verdict, drawing us into a close reading of the petitions filed by politically marginalized subjects—a process that allows us a glimpse into the life-worlds that enabled this novel and contentious form of engagement with the state.
De folds together the stories of Parsi bootleggers, Marwari traders, Muslim butchers, and prostitutes into a narrative of a new vocabulary made possible by the Constitution. In so doing, the book’s ambition, I think, gets the better of it; as De admits, some of these—Parsis and Marwari traders, chiefly—were privileged communities. In Bombay, Parsis constituted the bulk of lawyers; Marwaris, throughout India, were a powerful petty bourgeois community. Comprehending these vastly disparate groups as “subaltern” deprives the word of meaning.
However, De’s project—of understanding how the Constitution intervened in daily life and, in turn, how postcolonial subjects negotiated this new terrain—is a powerful challenge to Indian legal literature, most of which views the making of the Constitution as an élite-driven top-down project. Absent in their analyses is how Constitutional meanings were received and reimagined—something De excellently uncovers.
De folds together the stories of Parsi bootleggers, Marwari traders, Muslim butchers, and prostitutes into a narrative of a new vocabulary made possible by the Constitution. In so doing, the book’s ambition, I think, gets the better of it; as De admits, some of these—Parsis and Marwari traders, chiefly—were privileged communities. In Bombay, Parsis constituted the bulk of lawyers; Marwaris, throughout India, were a powerful petty bourgeois community. Comprehending these vastly disparate groups as “subaltern” deprives the word of meaning.
However, De’s project—of understanding how the Constitution intervened in daily life and, in turn, how postcolonial subjects negotiated this new terrain—is a powerful challenge to Indian legal literature, most of which views the making of the Constitution as an élite-driven top-down project. Absent in their analyses is how Constitutional meanings were received and reimagined—something De excellently uncovers.
March 2, 2020
Rohit De presents the much needed human touch to the study of constitutional history. While most accounts of constitutional law and history have dwelt on judgements and comments of the learned judges, De provides an original and energizing account of the role of the common people in constitutional history. The book provides an objective counter to the early pessimism that a constitution premised on Western values and designed by a group of intellectuals would fail to meet the realities of a hungry and unlettered nation. Contrary to these cynicism, the commoners, which included one of the most marginalized and stigmatized groups (e.g., prostitutes and butchers), were quick to recognize the powers of a liberal constitution and used it as an effective tool to negotiate with a popularly elected government. The book presents a vivid account of the courtrooms as stage for a dialogue between the state and the citizen, in the first 20 years of postcolonial India. Besides the historical account, the book presents a non-polemical criticism to a certain thought process among the urban educated class that remains dismissive, and at times ominous, about the role of the common unlettered citizen in social change, especially via legal route.
March 2, 2021
In this book, Rohit De presents thorough research on four landmark cases in a comprehendible format:
- Alcohol prohibition
- Commodity control
- Cow protection law
- Prostitution as a profession
The cases are from around the time when India had recently become a republic and was trying to set a path in law beyond opinions on ethics and religion. It wasn't an easy task then, but the proceeds of these cases paved a path (bold in a few dimensions) for the constitution to be shaped further. The cases then involved people who were unaware of the law and how it functioned - nevertheless, the debates that took ensued made a difference for large sects of the society. These cases affected the masses who most often did not understand the law but the laws very directly affected their everyday lives - by means of being able to continue with their livelihoods or observing their cultural identities. The decisions (or path) were often not boolean but finding grounds for coexistence keeping the precedents from the past aside.
Although the book is an arduous read, Rohit De has done a wonderful job in presenting academic literature to readers who may wish to better their understanding of law without having to research into technicalities.
- Alcohol prohibition
- Commodity control
- Cow protection law
- Prostitution as a profession
The cases are from around the time when India had recently become a republic and was trying to set a path in law beyond opinions on ethics and religion. It wasn't an easy task then, but the proceeds of these cases paved a path (bold in a few dimensions) for the constitution to be shaped further. The cases then involved people who were unaware of the law and how it functioned - nevertheless, the debates that took ensued made a difference for large sects of the society. These cases affected the masses who most often did not understand the law but the laws very directly affected their everyday lives - by means of being able to continue with their livelihoods or observing their cultural identities. The decisions (or path) were often not boolean but finding grounds for coexistence keeping the precedents from the past aside.
Although the book is an arduous read, Rohit De has done a wonderful job in presenting academic literature to readers who may wish to better their understanding of law without having to research into technicalities.
Read
October 30, 2019Constitution is considered as backbone of administration of a country. It can be also a solace for a ordinary Govt. officer like Behram Khurshed Pesikaka or a Marwadi businessman Harishankar Bagla or a butcher Mohd. Hanif Qureshi and ultimately a prostitute Husna Bai who dared to file petition against Govt. of India for securing their right.
"This book explores how the Indian Constitution,..... a product of elite consensus, became part of the experience of ordinary Indians in the first decade of independence. It traces the process through which the Constitution emerged as the dominant field for politics." In simple word, this book shows how Indian Constitution played role to awake "Constitutional Consciousness" in mind of people who toiled day and night in the street.
Apart from those case studies, this book narrates the development of Supreme Court, hidden archive of Supreme Court and its construction. Though the language can be one of the drawback of this book, however, when one senior research scholar in law at Yale Law School is the author, then one must not expects colloquial English from him.
"This book explores how the Indian Constitution,..... a product of elite consensus, became part of the experience of ordinary Indians in the first decade of independence. It traces the process through which the Constitution emerged as the dominant field for politics." In simple word, this book shows how Indian Constitution played role to awake "Constitutional Consciousness" in mind of people who toiled day and night in the street.
Apart from those case studies, this book narrates the development of Supreme Court, hidden archive of Supreme Court and its construction. Though the language can be one of the drawback of this book, however, when one senior research scholar in law at Yale Law School is the author, then one must not expects colloquial English from him.
September 9, 2019
A good read. Nothing in it for serious practitioners. The point the author tries to make is that the Indian Constitution is not simply a project by the "bourgeois" and for the "bourgeois" but it is mostly, the proletariat i.e. minorities like Parsis, Muslims, prostitutes etc., who have utilized the constitution to assert the rights guaranteed to them.
There is a chapter wise discussion with respect to legal challenges mounted by the "subaltern" to laws banning cow slaughter, prostitution, alcohol etc., The whole discussion feels dated, partly due to how old the cases actually are and also, due to the choice of safe/conventional cases which the author has chosen to examine; yet the selection also makes one realize how the same issues like cow slaughter, alcohol consumption etc., are plaguing the society/legal system even today.
In my opinion, it is a decent one-time read. My enthusiasm for the book faded with each passing chapter.
There is a chapter wise discussion with respect to legal challenges mounted by the "subaltern" to laws banning cow slaughter, prostitution, alcohol etc., The whole discussion feels dated, partly due to how old the cases actually are and also, due to the choice of safe/conventional cases which the author has chosen to examine; yet the selection also makes one realize how the same issues like cow slaughter, alcohol consumption etc., are plaguing the society/legal system even today.
In my opinion, it is a decent one-time read. My enthusiasm for the book faded with each passing chapter.
May 14, 2024
A refreshing and entertaining take on the early days of India's constitutional journey and how common citizens knocked at the doors of the courts to keep the govt in check. De makes a convincing point of how pervasive constitutionalism became in India at during the early days of the Republic and how Indians from different walks of life mobilized and petitioned the courts on matter of fundamental rights, rights to do business, directive principles etc. The India of the 50s was poor and underdeveloped by all means, yet Indians showed remarkable savvy-ness when it came to navigating the new constitution and raising voices when they felt the constitution was eventually failing in its duty to protect the the people and create a welfare state.
Rohit De is one of those rare scholars who manages to break down legal issues for the lay person like me and describe them with a flair of a thriller novelist. Highly recommend
Rohit De is one of those rare scholars who manages to break down legal issues for the lay person like me and describe them with a flair of a thriller novelist. Highly recommend
March 13, 2022
You know the subject is well researched when 30% of the book is filled with Notes and a Bibliography. Rohit deals with less known and unappreciated mechanisms of the workings of Indian courts. He selects four cases in the post-independence era and describes in painstaking detail, how they shaped the Indian society at large. The book starts with an interesting story and moved on to establish the multi-faceted nature of the Indian constitution. The constitution is seen both as a Triumph and an Illusion.
However, as a novice reader of the subject, I began to lose interest after the first chapter as it began to get more nuanced, but at the same time, more and more complex and repetitive. It's a wonderful book for someone deep into Indian Law, but the book could be made simpler for the uninitiated like me.
However, as a novice reader of the subject, I began to lose interest after the first chapter as it began to get more nuanced, but at the same time, more and more complex and repetitive. It's a wonderful book for someone deep into Indian Law, but the book could be made simpler for the uninitiated like me.
January 1, 2021
Pretty fascinating read. It highlights how the constitution came into existence in the initial years and its flaws as an elitist document at times. The book picks 4 cases, filed by unlikely commoners (butcher, prostitutes, traders) and how they shaped certain legislations in future. The constitution was assumed (& should ideally be) to be a tool for state to govern in an infant republic but cases like these have paved its way to become a weapon for citizen to exercise their rights against state, a bedrock for any democracy. It’s a legal journal of sort so it does get heavy at times with jargons but it should b by and large comprehensible for most of us.
February 21, 2023
Rohit De's book tells the story of how common people started shaping the legal life of constitution through writs. The premise is convincingly argued and even provides a ray of hope in otherwise bleak times of Indian judiciary. But the optimism is probably limited given that the actual sections of populations who are shown asserting their rights through constitutional rights are quite limited. It would have been interesting to see the political science/sociological angle of this legal history: who, who-not, how and why of the cases discussed
December 15, 2019
This is a book about how various discriminated communities in India have used the constitution to challenge the state. While the Indian constitution is usually thought to be an elite construct, the author shows how the 'people' have engaged with it in ingenuous ways. At places dense with legal details, but manages to read like a story in most parts. Situates the legal battles in sociopolitics and history aptly. A somewhat challenging, but rewarding read.
August 26, 2020
Covered many interesting cases and provided an alternative sociological and legal reasoning that would have been interpreted otherwise on a bare perusal of the cases in consideration. The linkage between different cases and the contextual history woven is a treat to read. Makes up for a interesting alternative views.
December 26, 2020
Loopholes of our constitution are on full monty now, being leveraged by oligarchs and new age politicos
However seeds were sown by ulta moralist state and politicians immediately post independence, who perhaps never imagined these voids in the constitution shall be abused in future so shamelessly
However seeds were sown by ulta moralist state and politicians immediately post independence, who perhaps never imagined these voids in the constitution shall be abused in future so shamelessly
Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews