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Dr B.R. Ambedkar had said. "“There is nothing to be ashamed of in borrowing. It involves no plagiarism. Nobody holds any patent rights in the fundamental ideas of a Constitution".” Indian Constitution is a bag of borrowings. The purpose of the makers of the Constitution was not to produce an original or unique Constitution. What they wanted was to produce a good and workable Constitution. Therefore, in the making of the Indian Constitution an effort was made to take the best ideas from different Constitutions. In addition to the Government of India Act, 1935 the Indian Constitution is inspired by British, Irish, American, Canadian and many other Constitutions of the world. Thus, the idea of a federal structure, the office of the Governor, the Judiciary, Public Service Commission, Emergency, and many administrative details already existed in the Government of India Act, 1935. With some modifications the Constitution adopted these ideas. From the British Constitution our Constitution makers adopted many ideas. Parliamentary form of government (with bicameral legislature and Cabinet system), prerogative writs, idea of single citizenship, idea of rule of law, institution of Speaker in the House, procedure of law-making. Parliamentary privileges, and the office of the Comptroller and Auditor General are some of the things that are borrowed from British Constitution. The Preamble of the Indian Constitution is inspired by the American Constitution in as much as it lays down the source of authority and sets the ideals.

The American Constitution also serves as the source of the idea of fundamental rights, electoral college, independence of Judiciary, judicial review, and equal protection of laws. President is the supreme commander of armed forces in the US and also in India. From the Irish Constitution the Constitution makers took the idea of directive principles of state policy, the advisory jurisdiction of the Supreme Court of India, the election procedure of the President of India, and also the idea of the nomination of members to Rajya Sabha. The idea of freedom of trade and commerce within the country and between the States is borrowed from the Australian Constitution. An “"Australian Common Market"” was one of the main objectives of the movement by the Australian people towards federation. India attempts to emulate the Australian ideal by providing in Article 301 that trade commerce and intercourse shall be free except according to the restrictions provided in Part XIII of the Constitution. Provision for the joint sitting of both the Houses of Parliament and concurrent law-making powers of the Union and the State are also borrowed from the Australian Constitution. From the French Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen which has existed since 1789 and the Constitution of 1791 that the ideals of "“Liberty, Equality and Fraternity"” set forth in the Preamble to the Constitution of India were derived. Canadian Constitution was the inspiration behind the provisions like distribution of powers between Centre and the State and the residual powers with the Central Government Besides these main borrowings, Indian Constitution has also borrowed the ideas from the then USSR and German Constitutions. The idea of suspension of fundamental rights during Emergency was there in the German Constitution of 1919, and the idea of fundamental duties was therein the Constitution of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republic.

What is the source of the election of the President of India in the constitution?

A) The U.S. Constitution

B) The Irish Constitution

C) The Australian Constitution

D) The Canadian Constitution