42nd Constitutional Amendment Act 1976

Also called: Mini-Constitution, Forty-second Amendment Act 1976, 42nd Amendment · Topic: Amendment of the Constitution and the Basic Structure · NCERT: Class 7, Ch 10 "The Constitution of India: An Introduction"; Class 11, Ch 2 "Rights in the Indian Constitution"; Class 11, Ch 9 "Constitution as a Living Document"; Class 12, Ch 6 "The Crisis of Democratic Order"

Meaning

The 42nd Constitutional Amendment Act, 1976 was an Emergency-era amendment. It changed the Preamble, the Seventh Schedule and 53 articles, so it is called the "mini-Constitution". Among other changes, it added "socialist", "secular" and "integrity" to the Preamble, added Fundamental Duties and new Directive Principles, made the Lok Sabha and state assembly terms six years, and cut down the power of the courts.

It matters because it tested how far Parliament can go in amending the Constitution. Parts of it were struck down by the courts or undone by the 43rd (1977) and 44th (1978) Amendments. Other parts, such as the Fundamental Duties and the words "socialist" and "secular", are still in force today.

Explanation

Why it was made and why it is called a "mini-Constitution"

• Context: the Emergency (1975–77).
• An internal emergency under Art. 352 was in force from June 1975 to March 1977.

• During this time Parliament passed amendments that made the government stronger and the courts weaker.

• The Swaran Singh Committee: the 42nd Amendment was based on this committee's work.

• Why it is called a "mini-Constitution": it made so many changes that it almost rewrote the Constitution.
• NCERT says it changed the Preamble, the Seventh Schedule and 53 articles.
• It was passed while many opposition MPs were in jail.

Its main parts

1. Preamble and values

• It added "socialist", "secular" and "integrity" to the Preamble. The phrase became "unity and integrity of the Nation". This is the only time the Preamble has been amended [3].
• It added Fundamental Duties in Part IVA (Art. 51A). There were ten duties in 1976. They are moral duties of citizens, and courts cannot enforce them [3].

2. Directive Principles of State Policy (DPSP)

• DPSPs are goals the state should keep in mind when it makes laws. Courts cannot enforce them.
• New directives were added:
• Art. 39(f): healthy development of children
• Art. 39A: equal justice and free legal aid
• Art. 43A: workers' share in running industries

• Art. 48A: protection of the environment, forests and wildlife

• Art. 31C was extended to all directives.

• Art. 31C protects laws that carry out directives from challenge under Arts. 14 and 19.
• Before 1976 it covered only Art. 39(b)–(c).

3. Executive and legislature

• The terms of the Lok Sabha and the state assemblies went from five to six years.
• Art. 74(1) was changed so that the President must act on the advice of the Council of Ministers.

4. Tribunals and federal changes

• Arts. 323A–323B allowed tribunals for service matters and other subjects. A tribunal works like a special court for one kind of case.
• Five subjects moved from the State List to the Concurrent List, so both the Union and the states can now make laws on them:
• education
• forests
• protection of wild animals and birds
• weights and measures
• administration of justice

Curbs on the courts and on the basic structure

• Basic structure: Parliament can amend any part of the Constitution under Art. 368. But it cannot destroy the Constitution's core features, such as democracy, the rule of law or judicial review (the power of courts to strike down laws that break the Constitution). This limit came from Kesavananda Bharati (1973).
• Art. 368(4): no amendment could be "called in question in any court".
• Art. 368(5): Parliament's constituent power (its power to amend the Constitution) would have no limit.

• Effect: together, these two clauses tried to cancel the basic structure doctrine.

• Art. 32A: in Art. 32 cases, the Supreme Court could not consider whether state laws were valid.

• Art. 131A: only the Supreme Court could decide whether central laws were valid.
• Art. 226A: High Courts could not decide whether central laws were valid.
• Art. 31D: gave special powers to make laws against "anti-national activities".

Why it was controversial

• It was legal in form.
• It passed with the special majority that Art. 368 requires.

• The states ratified it (formally approved it).

• It was weak in legitimacy, for two reasons:

• Context: it was passed during the Emergency, with opposition MPs in jail.
• Content: it attacked judicial review and changed the balance of the Constitution.

In the Constitution and practice

• How it was made: under Art. 368 (the power to amend the Constitution), during the emergency proclaimed under Art. 352.
• Where its lasting changes sit today:
• Preamble: "socialist", "secular", "integrity"
• Part IVA, Art. 51A: Fundamental Duties
• Arts. 39(f), 39A, 43A, 48A: new directives
• Arts. 323A–323B: tribunals

• Seventh Schedule: five subjects moved to the Concurrent List

• 43rd Amendment (1977), passed by the Janata government:

• It gave back the powers of the Supreme Court and the High Courts.
• It removed Arts. 32A, 131A and 226A and related provisions.

• It repealed Art. 31D.

• 44th Amendment (1978), passed by the Janata government:

• It brought back five-year terms for the Lok Sabha and the state assemblies.
• It added a proviso (an extra condition) to Art. 74(1): the President can send the ministers' advice back once for reconsideration, but must accept the advice given after that.

• NCERT says that with this amendment, "the constitutional balance was restored."

• Minerva Mills v. Union of India (1980):

• It struck down Art. 368(4) and (5) because they violated the basic structure [4].

• It also struck down Section 4 of the 42nd Amendment, the part that had extended Art. 31C to all directives [4].

• Dr Balram Singh v. Union of India (25 November 2024): the Supreme Court upheld the words "socialist" and "secular" in the Preamble [5].

• Here "socialism" means economic and social upliftment. It does not stop private business, which Art. 19(1)(g) protects [5].
• The Court found no good reason to challenge the amendment nearly 44 years after it was made [5].

Don't confuse with

• 44th Amendment (1978): this amendment replaced "internal disturbance" with "armed rebellion" as a ground for a national emergency [2]. The 42nd left "internal disturbance" in place. The 44th also made property a legal right under Art. 300A.
• 43rd Amendment (1977): this one removed Arts. 32A, 131A, 226A and 31D. The 44th did not.
• 39th Amendment (1975): this one added Art. 329A, which took election disputes of the PM and the Speaker away from the courts. Indira Gandhi v. Raj Narain (1975) struck down Art. 329A(4). That case was about the 39th Amendment, not the 42nd.
• 38th Amendment (1975): this one stopped courts from examining the President's decision to proclaim an emergency or issue an ordinance (non-justiciability). The 42nd Amendment did not do this.

Prelims Hooks

• "Socialist", "secular" and "integrity" were added to the Preamble by the 42nd Amendment (1976). It is the only amendment of the Preamble so far. The Supreme Court upheld these words in Dr Balram Singh v. UoI (2024) [3][5].
• Fundamental Duties: Part IVA, Art. 51A, added by the 42nd Amendment. There were ten duties in 1976, and courts cannot enforce them [3].
• Arts. 39A, 43A and 48A were added by the 42nd Amendment. Education, forests, wild animals and birds, weights and measures, and administration of justice moved to the Concurrent List under the same Act.
• Art. 368(4)–(5) were added by the 42nd Amendment and struck down in Minerva Mills (1980) [4].
• Trap: Arts. 32A, 131A, 226A and 31D were inserted by the 42nd Amendment and removed by the 43rd (1977), not the 44th.
• Trap: the 42nd Amendment made ministerial advice binding on the President (Art. 74(1)) and set six-year terms for the Lok Sabha and state assemblies. "Armed rebellion" and the "return advice once" proviso came from the 44th.

Mains Points

• Legal but not legitimate:
• The 42nd Amendment met every formal rule of Art. 368: it had the special majority and state ratification.
• Its legitimacy was weak because it was passed with the opposition in jail and it attacked judicial review.

• Lesson: following the procedure alone does not protect a constitution. The basic structure doctrine limits what an amendment can contain, as Minerva Mills (1980) showed [4].

• Courts and politics both did the work:

• The courts struck down Art. 368(4)–(5) and the wider Art. 31C [4].
• Most of the restoration came from the 1977 vote and the 43rd and 44th Amendments.

• This is a good example of judicial and political checks working together.

• A mixed legacy:

• Some parts tried to concentrate power: six-year terms, Arts. 32A, 131A and 226A, and Art. 368(4)–(5). These were removed.
• Other parts were reforms that still survive and are widely accepted: the Fundamental Duties, Arts. 39A and 48A, tribunals, and "socialist" and "secular", which the Supreme Court upheld in 2024 [5].
• A balanced GS-II answer should keep these two groups separate.

Related concepts

• 38th Constitutional Amendment Act 1975
• 39th Constitutional Amendment Act 1975
• Indira Gandhi v. Raj Narain case
• 43rd Constitutional Amendment Act 1977
• 44th Constitutional Amendment Act 1978

Read more

• The Emergency amendments and the restoration