"The Preamble is the most precious part of the Constitution. It is the soul of the Constitution. It is a key to the Constitution. It is a proper yardstick with which one can measure the worth of the Constitution."
Pandit Thakur Das
There are many controversies about the Preamble, and the biggest one is, whether it is a part of the Constitution of India. Three important cases which made Preamble questionable at times are :
| Case Name | Case Details |
|---|---|
| Berubari Union Case of 1960 | Supreme Court gave a traditional decision and mentioned that Preamble is not a part of the Constitution but Preamble is important. It is like a key to the minds of the Constitution makers. Thus, it helps in interpretation of ambiguous provisions of the Indian Constitution. |
| Kesavananda Bharti Case of 1973 and LIC of India Case of 1995 | Supreme Court rejected its earlier opinion which stated "Preamble is not a part of the Constitution" and stated "Preambe IS a part of the Constitution", and the Constitution should be read and interpreted in the light of the grand and noble vision expressed in the Preamble |
The Current opinion held by the supreme court is :
- The Preamble is neither a source of power to legislature nor a prohibition upon the powers of legislature.
- It is non-justiciable, i.e., its provisions are not enforceable in courts of law.
In the Kesavananda Bharti case, it was urged that the Preamble cannot be amended as it is not a part of the Constitution (decision of Berubari Union Case). The petitioner contended that the amending power in Article 368 cannot be used to destroy or damage the basic elements or the fundamental features of the Constitution, which are enshrined in the Preamble.
So, finally the court stated that decision of Berubari Union Case was wrong and Preamble is a part of the constitution, so, it can be amended except the "basic features".
Till now, Preamble has been amended only once, by the 42nd Constitutional Amendment Act of 1976.
