The Indian Constitution — Social Science STD 8 — Question

In large societies in which different communities of people live together, the rules are formulated through consensus, and in modern countries this consensus is usually available in written form. A written set of principles according to which a state or organization is governed is called a constitution.
The constitution serves several purposes:

• First, it lays out certain ideals that form the basis of the kind of country that we as citizens aspire to live in.
• A constitution tells us what the fundamental nature of our society is. A country is usually made up of different communities of people who share certain beliefs but may not necessarily agree on all issues.
• A constitution helps serve as a set of rules and principles that all persons in a country can agree upon as the basis of the way in which they want the country to be governed.
• This includes not only the type of government but also an agreement on certain ideals that they all believe the country should uphold.
• The other important purpose of a constitution is to define the nature of a country’s political system.
• The constitution often lays down rules that guard against this misuse of power by our political leaders.

Another important function that a constitution plays in a democracy is to ensure that a dominant group does not use its power against. Other, less powerful people or groups.
Another reason why we need to have a constitution is precisely to prevent tyranny or domination by the majority of a minority.
The last significant reason why we need a constitution is to save us from ourselves.