CONSTITUENT ASSEMBLY DEBATES 85
when we have forfeited the sympathy and goodwill of our neighbouring provinces, it is indeed a great re-assuring feature. I, as a member from “West Bengal, especially find myself elated to think that henceforth when this Constitution is passed, when this clause of single citizenship, with its equal rights and privileges all over India, is passed, the door of our neighbouring provinces will be open to us, so that our unfortunate brethern from the Eastern Pakistan, will find a breathing space in our neighbouring provinces…….
*Shri V. I. Muniswamy Pillai (Madras : General) : Mr. VicePresident, Sir, nobody in this august Assembly or outside can belittle the efforts and the services rendered by the Drafting Committee that has presented the Draft Constitution for the approval of this House. The future generation will feel great pride that this Drafting Coommittee has been able to digest the various constitutions that are obtaining in the world today and to cull from them such of the provisions as are needed for the elevation of this great subcontinent…….
With these few observation, I congratulate the President and members of the Drafting Committee for their great service in presenting the Draft Constitution to this Assembly and I commend the motion to this House for its acceptance.
†Shrimati Dakshayani Velayudhan (Madras : General): Mr. VicePresident, Sir, now that the draft is before us for general discussion, I request you to permit me to express my views on the same. The able and eloquent Chairman of the Drafting Committee has done his duty creditably within the scope of the general set-up of the new State of India. I feel that even if he wanted he could not have gone beyond the broad principles under which transfer of power took place and I therefore think that any criticism that is levelled against him is totally uncharitable and undeserved. Even if there is any blame—and I think there is—it should go only to those of us who are present here and who were sent for the purpose of framing a Constitution and on whom responsibilities were conferred by the dumb millions of this land who by virtue of their suffering for independence had great hopes when they sent us to this Assembly. But this does not mean that I have not got any criticism about the Draft…….
*CAD, Vol. VII, 8th November 1948, p. 308.
† Ibid., 310.