India’s great Constitution and glorious past

By M L Satyan

Bengaluru, Jan 29, 2022: I begin this write-up by quoting an interesting and educative WhatsApp message.

“How many Indians (educated people, scholars, teachers, social/human rights activists) know that the Constitution of India was written by hand. No instrument was used to write the whole constitution. Prem Bihari Narayan Rayzada, a resident of Delhi, wrote this huge book, the entire constitution, in italic style with his own hands.”

Prem Bihari was a famous calligraphy writer of that time. He was born on December 16, 1901, in the family of a renowned handwriting researcher in Delhi. He lost his parents at a young age. He became a man to his grandfather Ram Prasad Saxena and uncle Chatur Bihari Narayan Saxena. His grandfather Ram Prasad was a calligrapher. He was a scholar of Persian and English. He taught Persian to high-ranking officials of the British government.

Ram Prasad used to teach calligraphy art to Prem Bihari from an early age for beautiful handwriting. After graduating from St. Stephen’s College, Delhi, Prem Bihari started practicing calligraphy art learned from his grandfather. Gradually his name began to spread side by side for the beautiful handwriting. When the constitution was ready for printing, the then Prime Minister of India Jawaharlal Nehru summoned Prem Bihari. Nehru wanted to write the constitution in handwritten calligraphy in italic letters instead of printing it.

That is why he called Prem Bihari. When Prem Bihari approached him, Nehruji asked him to handwrite the constitution in italic style and asked him what fee he would take. Prem Bihari told Nehruji, “Not a single penny. By the grace of God, I have all the things and I am quite happy with my life.” After saying this, he made a request to Nehruji, “I have one reservation – that on every page of constitution I will write my name and on the last page I will write my name along with my grandfather’s name.” Nehruji accepted his request. He was given a house to write this constitution. Sitting there, Premji wrote the manuscript of the entire constitution.

Before he started writing, Prem Bihari Narayan came to Shantiniketan on 29 November 1949 with the then President of India, Shri Rajendra Prasad, at the behest of Nehruji. They discussed with the famous painter Nandalal Basu and decided how and with what part of the leaf Prem Bihari would write, Nandalal Basu would decorate the rest of the blank part of the leaf.

Nandalal Bose and some of his students from Shantiniketan filled these gaps with impeccable imagery. Mohenjo-daro seals, Ramayana, Mahabharata, Life of Gautam Buddha, Promotion of Buddhism by Emperor Ashoka, Meeting of Vikramaditya, Emperor Akbar and Mughal Empire.

Prem Bihari needed 432 pen holders to write the Indian constitution and he used nib number 303. The nibs were brought from England and Czechoslovakia. He wrote the manuscript of the entire constitution for six long months in a room in the Constitution Hall of India. 251 pages of parchment paper had to be used to write the constitution. The weight of the constitution is 3 kg 650 grams. The constitution is 22 inches long and 16 inches wide.” – Unquote.

Prem Bihari, who did this marvellous job, died on February 17, 1986. As his death anniversary is fast approaching, the spontaneous questions that come to mind are: How many Indians will remember this person at least on his death anniversary? Will the ruling government organise a small ceremony or function in honour of this great person and his family?

Indeed, great works were done by all freedom fighters, Mahatma Gandhi, Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi and the Congress Party. They had laid a strong foundation in all sectors in order to make India a progressing country.

What do we witness today? It is sad to note that the ruling government headed by the PM who has obtained a degree in “Entire Political Science” and his colleagues are trying to do everything possible against the Indian Constitution and destroy the glorious past.

The recent happenings raise certain valid questions: Can any sensible Indian, any politician or political party deny that India was under the British rule? Can we forget our colonial past? Can we erase easily what good and bad that happened during the British period? Can we hide the present Parliament building by constructing a new Central Vista building? If so, why the existing palatial Rashtrapathi Bhavan is left out or untouched? Does it not bear the stamp of the colonial past?

The Amar Jawan Jyoti at India Gate existed as a sign of the colonial period and honoured all the soldiers who sacrificed their lives for the country. Why did that Jyoti got merged with the War Memorial Jyoti? Was it not a clear step to mitigate the colonial past? Why Nathaji’s statue is being erected in the place of Amar Jawan Jyoti at the India Gate?

The ruling political party or its allies did nothing during the freedom struggle. Why should they try to mitigate the glorious past and bring in a new history? By now every sensible Indian is becoming aware of the ‘hidden agenda” of the ruling government. Recreating a new history by mitigating or meddling with the past history will never help the country to progress.

There are many burning issues like decrease in employment; increase in unemployment; growing unrest among the youth; economic crisis; privatization of all profit-making government agencies/companies; de-monetization and its negative consequences; growing discrimination of marginalised and minority communities; non-stop atrocities on women and young girls; increasing child-deaths due to malnutrition or under-nourishment; mismanagement of Covid-19 crisis; death of more than 700 farmers and injustice done to the farmers and farming sector etc.

Instead of tackling these burning issues, the ruling government’s attention is set on non-priority areas like State-level elections; election campaigns; selling of profit-yielding public sector companies; construction of Central Vista; buying sophisticated aircrafts and Cars for the President and PM to travel; accumulating wealth through PM Care Fund etc. Why does the government waste huge amount of tax-payer’s money for these non-essential activities?

Let every sensible and responsible Indian keep raising valid questions and make constructive criticisms with an optimistic mindset in order to protect the glorious past of India.