Indian Polity & Constitution

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Important Constitutional Amendments

⏱ 7 min read🧩 4 question types🎯 13 practice Q

The idea in one minute

Procedure: Article 368 — simple majority for some (outside Art. 368), special majority for most; ratification by half the State legislatures for federal provisions (election of President, extent of executive power, SC/HC, representation of states, 7th Schedule, Art. 368 itself). The basic structure doctrine (Kesavananda Bharati, 1973) limits amendment power.

Important amendments (PYQ bank)

Am.	Year	What it did
1st	1951	Added 9th Schedule; reasonable restrictions on FRs; Arts. 31A, 31B
7th	1956	States reorganisation; abolished A/B/C/D class states
24th	1971	Parliament can amend Fundamental Rights
42nd	1976	"Mini-Constitution": Socialist-Secular-Integrity in Preamble; Fundamental Duties; education, forests, wildlife to Concurrent List; LS term 5→6 yrs (reverted by 44th)
44th	1978	Deleted Right to Property (Art. 300A); "armed rebellion" replaced "internal disturbance" in Art. 352
52nd	1985	Anti-defection law — Tenth Schedule
61st	1988	Voting age 21 → 18
65th	1990	National Commission for SC/ST (Art. 338)
69th	1991	Delhi named National Capital Territory; own Assembly
71st	1992	Konkani, Manipuri, Nepali added to 8th Schedule
73rd / 74th	1992	Constitutional status to Panchayats / Municipalities; 11th & 12th Schedules
86th	2002	Art. 21A — Right to Education; 11th Fundamental Duty
89th	2003	Separate National Commission for ST (Art. 338A)
91st	2003	CoM limited to 15% of House strength
92nd	2003	Bodo, Dogri, Maithili, Santhali added — 22 languages
97th	2011	Co-operative societies; Part IX-B
99th	2014	NJAC (struck down in 2015)
100th	2015	India–Bangladesh Land Boundary Agreement
101st	2016	GST; Art. 279A GST Council
102nd	2018	Constitutional status to National Commission for Backward Classes (Art. 338B)
103rd	2019	10% EWS reservation (Arts. 15(6), 16(6))
104th	2020	Extended SC/ST reservation in legislatures 10 years; ended Anglo-Indian nominated seats
105th	2021	Restored States' power to identify OBCs (Art. 342A)
106th	2023	Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam — 1/3rd seats for women in Lok Sabha and State Assemblies (to take effect after delimitation following a census)

How the Constitution is amended — Article 368

Amendment power sits in Part XX, Article 368 (borrowed from South Africa). Three routes:

Simple majority of Parliament (outside Article 368): creating new states, altering state boundaries, citizenship rules, salaries of constitutional functionaries, the Second, Fifth and Sixth Schedules.
Special majority (Article 368 route): majority of total membership of each House plus two-thirds of members present and voting — used for most amendments, including Fundamental Rights.
Special majority + ratification by half the state legislatures — for federal provisions: election of the President (54–55), extent of Union/state executive power, Articles 73/162, Supreme Court and High Courts (124–147, 214–231, 241), distribution of legislative power and the Seventh Schedule, representation of states in Parliament, and Article 368 itself.

There is no special convention for joint sittings — a Constitution Amendment Bill never goes to a joint sitting — and the President must give assent (24th Amendment). There is no time limit for state ratification.

The landmarks

Amendment	What it did
1st, 1951	Ninth Schedule; Articles 31A/31B; 'reasonable restrictions' on free speech
7th, 1956	States reorganisation; abolished A/B/C/D state classes; repealed Part VII
24th, 1971	Parliament can amend any part, including Fundamental Rights
42nd, 1976	'Mini-Constitution': socialist, secular, integrity; Fundamental Duties; tribunals; DPSP primacy attempt; LS term extended to 6 years
44th, 1978	Property deleted from FRs (Article 300A); 'armed rebellion' replaced 'internal disturbance'; emergency approvals tightened; LS term back to 5 years
52nd, 1985	Anti-defection law (Tenth Schedule)
61st, 1989	Voting age 21 → 18 (Article 326)
69th, 1991	Delhi as National Capital Territory
73rd / 74th, 1992	Panchayats (Part IX, 11th Schedule) and Municipalities (Part IX-A, 12th Schedule)
86th, 2002	Article 21A (education 6–14); Article 45 rewritten; 11th Fundamental Duty
91st, 2003	Council of Ministers capped at 15% (min 12); defection bar tightened
92nd, 2003	Bodo, Dogri, Maithili, Santhali added to the Eighth Schedule (22 languages)
97th, 2011	Cooperative societies — new Part IX-B; 'cooperative societies' added to Article 19(1)(c)
99th, 2014	NJAC — struck down by the Supreme Court (2015)
100th, 2015	India–Bangladesh Land Boundary Agreement
101st, 2016	GST (Articles 246A, 269A, 279A — GST Council)
102nd, 2018	National Commission for Backward Classes given constitutional status (Article 338B)
103rd, 2019	10% reservation for EWS (Articles 15(6), 16(6))
104th, 2020	Ended Anglo-Indian nomination; extended SC/ST reservation in legislatures
105th, 2021	Restored states' power to identify SEBCs (OBCs)
106th, 2023	One-third seats for women in Lok Sabha, state assemblies and Delhi assembly (after delimitation, for 15 years)

The most recent number to remember: 106 amendments so far (the 106th was enacted in September 2023).

Question types you will see

Each type: how to recognise it, the method step by step, and one question to try.

Type 1very common3 practice Q

Amendment procedure and state ratification

How to spot it:

'Which provisions need ratification by half the states', 'what majority amends Fundamental Rights', statement sets on Article 368.

Method

Special majority = majority of total membership of each House + two-thirds present and voting; Fundamental Rights are amended by this route.
Ratification (half the state legislatures) is needed only for federal items: President's election, SC/HCs, Seventh Schedule, state representation in Parliament, Union-state executive power, Article 368.
Simple-majority items (new states, boundaries) sit outside Article 368; a Constitutional Amendment Bill never goes to a joint sitting.

Try this

Amendment of which of the following requires ratification by at least half of the state legislatures?

Show solution

Any change touching federal provisions — e.g. the election of the President, the Seventh Schedule, or the representation of states in Parliament (besides a special majority in Parliament).

Type 2very common2 practice Q

42nd and 44th — the twin landmarks

How to spot it:

'Which amendment is called the Mini-Constitution', 'which amendment removed the right to property', 'armed rebellion replaced internal disturbance by which amendment'.

Method

42nd (1976): socialist/secular/integrity, Fundamental Duties, tribunals, DPSP-primacy line, LS term to 6 years — the 'Mini-Constitution'.
44th (1978): property out of Part III (300A), 'armed rebellion' replaces 'internal disturbance', emergency approval window cut to one month, LS term back to 5 years.
The two travel as a pair — 42nd added, 44th corrected.

Try this

The words 'armed rebellion' in Article 352 replaced which earlier expression?

Show solution

'Internal disturbance' — substituted by the 44th Amendment Act, 1978, to make the emergency ground more specific and serious.

Type 3common3 practice Q

Recent amendments (2016–2023)

How to spot it:

'The 101st Amendment deals with', 'the 103rd Amendment provides for', 'the 106th Amendment is about', matching amendments 101–106 to provisions.

Method

101st = GST, 102nd = NCBC constitutional status (Art 338B), 103rd = EWS 10% (15(6), 16(6)), 104th = Anglo-Indian nomination ended, 105th = states identify OBCs, 106th = women's one-third reservation.
99th (NJAC) was struck down — remember it as the amendment that never survived.
100th = India–Bangladesh Land Boundary; 97th = cooperative societies.

Try this

The 106th Constitutional Amendment Act (2023) provides for —

Show solution

One-third reservation of seats for women in the Lok Sabha, state legislative assemblies and the Delhi assembly — to operate after the next delimitation, for 15 years.

Type 4common3 practice Q

Older amendments: one-line recall

How to spot it:

'Voting age was lowered by which amendment', 'anti-defection law was added by', 'which amendment made Delhi the NCT', 'which amendment added the Ninth Schedule'.

Method

Numbers ladder: 1st — Ninth Schedule; 7th — states reorganisation; 52nd — defection; 61st — vote at 18; 69th — Delhi NCT.
73rd/74th — PRI/Municipalities; 86th — 21A; 91st — 15% ministry cap; 92nd — four languages.
Pair each number with a one-word hook: 61-eighteen, 69-Delhi, 101-GST.

Try this

The voting age in elections to the Lok Sabha and state assemblies was reduced from 21 to 18 years by the —

Show solution

61st Constitutional Amendment Act, 1989, which amended Article 326.

Shortcuts that save time

⚡ Amendment decade clusters

1950s structural (1st, 7th) • 1970s power (24, 42, 44) • 1980s politics (52 anti-defection, 61 voting age) • 1990s grass-roots (73, 74) + language (71, 92) • 2000s rights (86, 91, 97) • 2010s-20s economy-equality (101 GST, 102 OBC, 103 EWS, 104 seats, 105 OBC-identify, 106 women).

Example

Which amendment lowered the voting age from 21 to 18?

Show solution

The 61st Amendment, 1988 (Art. 326).

⚡ 42 vs 44 tug-of-war

Whatever the 42nd tightened, the 44th loosened: term 6→5 years, 'internal disturbance'→'armed rebellion', property FR→300A legal right.

Example

Which amendment changed the ground for National Emergency from 'internal disturbance' to 'armed rebellion'?

Show solution

The 44th Amendment, 1978.

Mistakes to avoid

Where most students lose marks on this subtopic.

Mistake 01

Attributing EWS (10%) to the 102nd — it is the 103rd; the 102nd made NCBC constitutional.

Mistake 02

Assuming the 106th applies at once — it awaits delimitation after a census.

Mistake 03

Thinking NJAC still operates — the 99th Amendment was struck down in 2015.

Quick revision

Read this the night before the exam.

Three routes: simple majority (outside 368), special majority, special majority + half-state ratification.
Ratification list = federal items: President's election, SC/HCs, Seventh Schedule, state representation, Article 368.
42nd = Mini-Constitution; 44th = property out, 'armed rebellion' in; 52nd = defection; 61st = vote at 18.
73/74 = PRI + Municipalities; 86 = 21A + 11th duty; 101 = GST; 103 = EWS 10%; 106 = women's one-third.
Constitutional Amendment Bills: no joint sitting; President's assent obligatory (24th Amendment).

Practice: 13 questions

Sets of 10, mixed across the question types above. Every answer has a step-by-step explanation.

Topic test · 13 questions

Suggested time 5 min · wrong answers go to your mistake notebook automatically.

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