K.M. Munshi
Also called: Kanaiyalal Maneklal Munshi · Topic: Framing the Indian Constitution · NCERT: Class 12, Ch 4 "Framing the Constitution"
Meaning
K.M. Munshi (Kanaiyalal Maneklal Munshi, 1887-1971) was a lawyer and writer from Gujarat. He was a member of the Constituent Assembly, the body that wrote India's Constitution between 1946 and 1949. He sat on the Drafting Committee, which was headed by B.R. Ambedkar. He and Alladi Krishnaswamy Aiyar of Madras were the main lawyers working alongside Ambedkar, turning ideas into careful constitutional text.
Example
Munshi worked with Gopalaswami Ayyangar on the "Munshi-Ayyangar formula", the compromise on official language. Under it, Hindi in the Devanagari script became the official language, and English was to continue for all official purposes for fifteen years.
Don't confuse with
- Alladi Krishnaswamy Aiyar: also a lawyer on the Drafting Committee, but he came from Madras, not Gujarat.
- S.N. Mukherjee: the Chief Draughtsman. He was a civil servant who put proposals into legal language. He was not a member of the Assembly.
Related concepts
- Rajendra Prasad
- B.R. Ambedkar
- Drafting Committee of the Constituent Assembly
- Alladi Krishnaswamy Aiyar
- B.N. Rau
- S.N. Mukherjee
- Women in the Constituent Assembly
- Rajkumari Amrit Kaur
- Vijayalakshmi Pandit
- Sucheta Kripalani