16 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES
service either for military purposes or for social purposes for the State. My suggestion would be that at this stage we should not drop the Explanation, but leave it as it is and have the whole matter reconsidered when the Provincial Constitution and the Federal Constitution are drafted in their final form.
- Dr. B. R. Ambedkar : May I make a suggestion ? We have heard the arguments of Sir Alladi Krishnaswami Ayyar who has said that according to his reading of the rulings of the Supreme Court of the United States, even if the Explanation was not there, the State would be permitted to have compulsory military service. Fortunately, for me I also happened to look into the very same cases which I am sure Sir Alladi has in mind. I think he will agree with me, if he looks at the reasoning of the judgment given by the Supreme Court, he will find that they proceeded on the hypothesis that in a political organisation the free citizen has a duty to support the Government and as every citizen has a duty to support the Government therefore compulsory military law was doing nothing more than calling upon the citizen to do the duty which he already owes to the State. I submit that that is a very precarious foundation for so important a subject as the necessity of compulsory military service for the defence of the State.
I submit that we ought not to rest content with that kind of reasoning which the Supreme Court in India may adopt or may not adopt. Therefore, my suggestion is this, that, just as in the case of the other clause dealing with citizenship you were good enough to remit the matter to a small Committee to have it further examined, it will be desirable that this question as to whether the Explanation should be retained or not may also be remitted to a small committee which should report to this House. It will then be possible for the House to take a correct decision in the matter.
Mr. President : I think it is not necessary to have any further discussion if the suggestion which has been made by Dr. Ambedkar is acceptable to the House.
Mr. R. K. Sidhwa (C.P. and Berar : General) : The question regarding compulsory military service may be discussed here.
Mr. President: We are not deciding here whether we ought to have conscription or not. The question is whether under fundamental rights conscription is prohibited. I think it is best to refer it to the same committee to which the other clause has been remitted.
*CAD, Vol. III. 1st May 1947, pp. 483-84.