Article 1 of the Indian Constitution:

Article 1 of the Indian Constitution tells us about the name and territory of the union. According to article 1:

• India, that is Bharat, shall be a Union of States.
• The States and the territories thereof shall be as specified in the First Schedule.
• The territory of India shall consist of:
  • The territories of the states,
  • The Union territories, and
  • Any territory that may be acquired in the future.

 

Article 1 of the Indian Constitution Explained:

On November 15th and 17th, 1948, and September 17th and 18th, 1949, draught Article 1 was debated. Article 1 refers to India, or Bharat, as a ‘Union of States,’ not a ‘Federation of States.’ This clause covers two topics: the name of the country and the form of polity.

History of Article 1 of the Indian Constitution:

In the Constituent Assembly, there was no consensus on the name of the country. Some members campaigned for the traditional name (Bharat), while others preferred the current name (India). As a result, the Constituent Assembly had to choose between the two (‘India, that is, Bharat’). Second, the country is referred to as a “Union,” despite the fact that its Constitution is federal in nature.

The term “Union of States” has been favored over “Federation of States” by Dr. B.R. Ambedkar for two reasons: first, the Indian Federation is not the outcome of an agreement among the states, as the American Federation is; and second, the states have no power to resign from the federation.

Because it is indestructible, the federation is known as the Union. The country is a single entity that has been separated into states solely for administrative purposes.

Important points on Article 1 of the Indian Constitution:

• According to Article 1, India’s land is divided into three categories:
  • Territories of the states.
  • Union territories.
  • Territories that the Indian government may acquire at any time.
• The names of states and union territories and their territorial extent are mentioned in the first schedule of the Constitution.
• At present, there are 28 states and 9 union territories.
• The provisions of the Constitution pertaining to the states are applicable to all the states in the same manner.
• However, the special provisions (under Part XXI) applicable to the States of Maharashtra, Gujarat, Nagaland, Assam, Manipur, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Sikkim, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh, Goa, and Karnataka override the general provisions relating to the states as a class.
• Notably, the ‘Territory of India’ is a broader term than the ‘Union of India,’ because the latter solely refers to states, whilst the former encompasses not only states but also union territories and areas that the Government of India may acquire at any time in the future.
• The states are members of the federal system and share a power distribution with the central government.
• The central government, on the other hand, administers the union territories and acquired areas directly.
• As a sovereign state, India can acquire foreign lands by the means recognized by international law, such as cession (by treaty, purchase, gift, lease, or plebiscite), occupation (by a recognized ruler), conquest, or subjection.
• Since the Constitution’s inception, India has gained various foreign territories, including Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Goa, Daman and Diu, Puducherry, and Sikkim.