History These Are The 15 Women Who Helped Draft The Indian Constitution

These Are The 15 Women Who Helped Draft The Indian Constitution

On this Republic Day, let us take a look at the fifteen powerful women who helped draft the Indian Constitution.

The Constitution of India was adopted by the elected Constituent Assembly on 26 November 1949 and came into effect on 26 January 1950. The total membership of the Constituent Assembly was 389. While we all remember Dr. B R Ambedkar as the Father of the Constitution and other pioneering male members who helped draft the Indian Constitution, the contribution of the fifteen female members of the Constituent Assembly is easily forgotten.

On this Republic Day, let’s take a look at the powerful women who helped draft our Constitution.

1Ammu Swaminathan

Ammu Swaminathan: These Are The 15 Women Who Helped Draft The Indian Constitution
Image Credit: The Indian Express

Ammu Swaminathan was born into an upper caste Hindu family in Anakkara of Palghat district, Kerala. She formed the Women’s India Association in 1917 in Madras, along with Annie Besant, Margaret Cousins, Malathi Patwardhan, Mrs Dadabhoy and Mrs Ambujammal. She became a part of the Constituent Assembly from the Madras Constituency in 1946.

In a speech during the discussion on the motion by Dr B R Ambedkar to pass the draft Constitution on November 24, 1949, an optimistic and confident Ammu said, “People outside have been saying that India did not give equal rights to her women. Now we can say that when the Indian people themselves framed their Constitution they have given rights to women equal with every other citizen of the country.”

She was elected to the Lok Sabha in 1952 and Rajya Sabha in 1954.  In 1959, an avid film buff, Ammu became the Vice President of the Federation of Film Societies with Satyajit Ray as President. She also presided over the Bharat Scouts and Guides (1960-65) and the Censor Board.

2. Dakshayani Velayudhan

Dakshayani Velayudhan was born on July 4, 1912, on the island of Bolgatty in Cochin. She was the leader of the (then titled) Depressed Classes. Belonging to the Pulaya community who were severely discriminated against, she was among the first generation of people to be educated from the community and the first woman to wear an upper cloth.

In 1945, Dakshayani was nominated to the Cochin Legislative Council by the State Government.She was the first and only Dalit woman to be elected to the Constituent Assembly in 1946. Dakshayani sided with B R Ambedkar on many issues related to the Scheduled Caste community during the Constituent Assembly debates.

3. Begum Aizaz Rasul

Begum Aizaz Rasul: These Are The 15 Women Who Helped Draft The Indian Constitution
Image Credit: NDTV

Born into the princely family of Malerkotla, she was married to the young landowner  Nawaab Aizaz Rasul. She was the only Muslim woman member of the Constituent Assembly. With the enactment of the Government of India Act 1935, Begum and her husband joined the Muslim League and entered electoral politics. In the 1937 elections, she was elected to the U.P. Legislative Assembly.

In 1950, the Muslim League in India dissolved and Begum Aizaz Rasul joined Congress. She was elected to the Rajya Sabha in 1952 and was a member of the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly from 1969 to 1990. Between, 1969 and 1971, she was the Minister for Social Welfare and Minorities. In 2000, she was awarded a Padma Bhushan for her contribution to social work.

4. Durgabai Deshmukh

Durgabai Deshmukh: These Are The 15 Women Who Helped Draft The Indian Constitution
Image Source: Women’s Web

Durgabai Deshmukh was born in Rajahmundry on 15 July 1909. At twelve years of age, she participated in the Non-Co-operation Movement and along with Andhra Kesari T. Prakasam, she participated in the Salt Satyagraha movement in Madras city in May 1930.  In 1936, she established the Andhra Mahila Sabha, which within a decade became a great institution of education and social welfare in the city of Madras.

She was the Chairwoman of several central organizations like Central Social Welfare Board, National Council for Women’s Education and National Committee On Girls’ and Women’s Education. She was a Member of Parliament and the Planning Commission.

She was also associated with the Andhra Educational Society, New Delhi. Durgabai was awarded the fourth Nehru Literary Award in 1971 for her outstanding contribution to the promotion of literacy in India. In 1975, she was awarded the Padma Vibhushan.

5. Hansa Jivraj Mehta

Hansa Mehta: These Are The 15 Women Who Helped Draft The Indian Constitution
Image Credit: The Indian Express

Born on July 3, 1897, to the Dewan of Baroda Manubhai Nandshankar Mehta, Hansa Mehta studied journalism and sociology in England. Along with being a reformer and social activist, she was also an educator and writer.

She wrote many books for children in Gujarati and also translated many English stories including the Gulliver’s Travels. She was elected to the Bombay Schools Committee in 1926 and became president of All India Women’s Conference in 1945–46.

In her presidential address at the All India Women’s Conference convention held in Hyderabad, she proposed a Charter of Women’s Rights. She held different posts in India from 1945 to 1960, such as the vice-chancellor of SNDT Women’s University, member of the All India Secondary Board of Education, president of Inter-University Board of India and vice-chancellor of Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, among others.

6. Kamla Chaudhary

Kamla Chaudhary was born in an affluent family of Lucknow, however, it was still a struggle for her to continue her education. Moving away from her family’s loyalty to the imperial government, she joined the nationalists and was an active participant in the Civil Disobedience Movement launched by Gandhi in 1930.

She was vice-president of the All India Congress Committee in its fifty-fourth session and was elected as a member of the Lok Sabha in the late seventies. Chaudhary was also a celebrated fiction writer and her stories usually dealt with women’s inner worlds or the emergence of India as a modern nation.

7. Leela Roy

Leela Roy: These Are The 15 Women Who Helped Draft The Indian Constitution
Image Credit: Wikipedia

Leela Roy was born in Goalpara, Assam in October 1900. Her father was a deputy magistrate and sympathised with the Nationalist Movement. She graduated from Bethune College in 1921 and became assistant secretary to the All Bengal Women’s Suffrage Committee and arranged meetings to demand women’s rights.

In 1923, with her friends, she founded the Dipali Sangha and established schools which became centres of political discussion in which noted leaders participated. Later, in 1926, the Chhatri Sangha, an association of women students in Dacca and Kolkata, was founded. She was instrumental in forming the Dacca Mahila Satyagraha Sangha, which played an active role in the anti-salt tax movement. She became the editor of a journal, Jayashree, which had the blessing of Rabindranath Tagore.

In 1937, she joined the Congress and in the next year, founded the Bengal Provincial Congress Women’s Organisation. She became a member of the women’s subcommittee formed by Subash Chandra Bose and when Bose went to jail in 1940, she was nominated the editor of the Forward Bloc Weekly.

Before leaving India, Netaji gave complete charge of party activities to Leela Roy and her husband. In 1947, she founded the Jatiya Mahila Sanghati, a women’s organisation in West Bengal. In 1960, she became the chairwoman of the new party formed with the merger of the Forward Bloc (Subhasist) and the Praja Socialist Party but was disappointed with its working.

8. Malati Choudhury

Malati Choudhury: These Are The 15 Women Who Helped Draft The Indian Constitution
Image Credit: Woman Odisha

Malati Choudhury was born in 1904 to a distinguished family in East Bengal (now Bangladesh). In the year 1921, at the age of 16, Malati Choudhury was sent to Santiniketan where she got admitted to Viswa-Bharati.

She married Nabakrushna Choudhuri, who later became the Chief Minister of Odisha and shifted to Odisha in 1927. During the Salt Satyagraha, Malati Choudhury, accompanied by her husband joined the Indian National Congress and participated in the movement. They educated and communicated with the people to create a favourable environment for Satyagraha.

In 1933, she formed Utkal Congress Samajvadi Karmi Sangh along with her husband which later came to be known as the Orissa Provincial Branch of the All India Congress Socialist Party. In 1934, she joined Gandhiji in his famous “padayatra” in Orissa. She set up several organisations such as the Bajiraut Chhatravas for the upliftment of vulnerable communities in Odisha. She protested against the proclamation of Emergency by Indira Gandhi and was eventually imprisoned.

9. Purnima Banerjee

Purnima Banerjee was the secretary of the Indian National Congress committee in Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh. She was one among a radical network of women from Uttar Pradesh who stood at the forefront of the freedom movement in late 1930’s and 40’s.

She was arrested for her participation in the Satyagraha and Quit India Movement. One of the more striking aspects of Purnima Banerjee’s speeches in the Constituent Assembly was her steadfast commitment to a socialist ideology. As secretary for the city committee, she was responsible for engaging and organizing trade unions, kisan meetings and work towards greater rural engagement.

10. Rajkumari Amrit Kaur

Amrit Kaur: These Are The 15 Women Who Helped Draft The Indian Constitution
Image Credit: India Today

Amrit Kaur was born on 2 February 1889 in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. She was India’s first Health Minister and she held that post for ten years. Daughter of Harnam Singh, son of the erstwhile Maharaja of Kapurthala, she was educated at the Sherborne School for Girls in Dorset, England, but gave it all up to become Mahatma Gandhi’s secretary for 16 years.

She was the founder of All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) and argued for its autonomy. She was a firm believer in women’s education, their participation in sports and their healthcare. She set up the Tuberculosis Association of India, the Central Leprosy and Research Institute, was vice chair of the board of governors of the League of Red Cross Societies and chair of the executive committee of St John’s Ambulance Society. When she died in 1964, The New York Times called her “a princess in her nation’s service”.

11. Renuka Ray 

Renuka Ray: These Are The 15 Women Who Helped Draft The Indian Constitution
Image Credit: India Netzone

Renuka Ray was the daughter of Satish Chandra Mukherjee, an ICS officer, and Charulata Mukherjee, a social worker and member of the All India Women’s Conference (AIWC). As a young girl, Renuka lived for a while in London and completed her BA from the London School of Economics.

In 1934. as legal secretary of the AIWC, she submitted a document titled ‘Legal Disabilities of Women in India; A Plea for a Commission of Enquiry’. This articulated the AIWC’s disappointment with the treatment of the Sharda Bill and their commitment to the legal review of the situation of women before the law in India. Renuka argued for a uniform personal law code, saying that the position of Indian women was one of the most iniquitous in the world.

From 1943 to 1946 she was a member of the Central Legislative Assembly, then of the Constituent Assembly and the Provisional Parliament. In 1952–57, she served on the West Bengal Legislative Assembly as Minister for Relief and Rehabilitation. In 1957 and again in 1962, she was the member for Malda of the Lok Sabha.

She was also President of the AIWC in 1952, served on the Planning Commission and on the governing body of Visva Bharati University in Shanti Niketan. She served as a Minister for Relief and Rehabilitation. She established the All Bengal Women’s Union and the Women’s Coordinating Council.

12. Sarojini Naidu

Sarojini Naidu: These Are The 15 Women Who Helped Draft The Indian Constitution
Image Credit: Famous People

Sarojini Naidu was born on Feb 13, 1879, in Hyderabad, India. She was the first Indian woman to be president of the Indian National Congress and to be appointed as an Indian state governor. She is popularly called “the Nightingale of India”.

She studied at King’s College, London, and later at Girton College, Cambridge. After some experience in the suffragist campaign in England, she was drawn to India’s Congress movement and to Mahatma Gandhi’s Non-cooperation Movement. In 1924 she travelled to Africa in the interest of Indians there and toured North America, lecturing on the Congress movement, in 1928–29.Back in India, her anti-British activity brought her a number of prison sentences (1930, 1932 and 1942–43). She accompanied Gandhi to London for the inconclusive second session of the Round Table Conference in 1931. Sarojini Naidu was also known for her literary prowess and in 1914 she was elected a fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.

Sucheta Kriplani: These Are The 15 Women Who Helped Draft The Indian Constitution
Image Credit: India

13. Sucheta Kriplani

Sucheta Kriplani was born in 1908 in present-day Haryana’s Ambala town. She is especially remembered for her role in the Quit India Movement of 1942. Kripalani also established the women’s wing of the Congress party in 1940.Post-independence, Kripalani’s political stint included serving as an MP from New Delhi and then also as the Minister of Labour, Community Development and Industry in Uttar Pradesh’s state government. She took over as the chief minister of UP from Chandra Bhanu Gupta and occupied the top post till 1967. She was India’s first woman Chief Minister.

14. Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit

Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit: These Are The 15 Women Who Helped Draft The Indian Constitution
Image Credit: Encyclopaedia

Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit was born in Allahabad on August 18, 1900, and she was the sister of India’s first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru. She was imprisoned by the British on three different occasions, in 1932-1933, 1940, and 1942-1943.

Pandit’s long career in politics officially began with her election to the Allahabad Municipal Board. In 1936, she was elected to the Assembly of the United Provinces, and in 1937 became minister of local self-government and public health—the first Indian woman ever to become a cabinet minister.

Like all Congress party officeholders, she resigned in 1939 to protest against the British government’s declaration that India was a participant in World War II. In September 1953,  she was appointed as the first woman and the first Asian to be elected president of the U.N. General Assembly.

15. Annie Mascarene

Annie Mascrene: These Are The 15 Women Who Helped Draft The Indian Constitution
Image Credit: Veethi

Annie Mascarene was born into a Latin Catholic family belonging to Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala. She was one of the first women to join the Travancore State Congress and became the first woman to be part of the Travancore State Congress Working Committee. She was one of the leaders of the movements for independence and integration with the Indian nation in the Travancore State.

For her political activism, she was imprisoned for various periods from 1939—47. Mascarene was elected to the First Lok Sabha in the Indian general election, 1951. She was the first woman MP from Kerala and one of only 10 elected to Parliament in those elections. Prior to her election to Parliament,  she had served briefly as Minister in Charge of Health and Power during 1949-1950.

Also read in Hindi: इन 15 महिलाओं ने भारतीय संविधान बनाने में दिया था अपना योगदान


Featured Illustration: Ritika Banerjee for Feminism in India

Comments:

  1. Ira Saxena says:

    Yoshita thank you so much for finding this historical photo that figures my mother Kamala Chaudhry. I had not seen it earlier.
    Ira Saxena saxena.ira@gmail.com

  2. Ira Saxena says:

    It has been a delight to see this photo of my mother, Kamala Chaudhry. Thanks to Yoshita Srivastava for finding it. Feel so proud of the august group.

  3. Debi says:

    Excellent article. Yoshita. Really inspiring.

  4. Suraj Kumar says:

    It’s very important for my project

  5. Bhawna says:

    hii Yoshita thank you for providing these imp. information and pictures to us.

  6. Bhawna says:

    thank you Yoshita for providing us these pictures and information.

  7. Jayashree khandige says:

    Thank you for the information Yoshita . Please write an artical in national daily and all the leading magazines about all the drafting committee members . I am tired of people who take advantage of one single name . I am a political since & a law graduate.

  8. RAGHWENDER SRIVASTAVA says:

    Thanks to Yoshita Srivastava for providing these picture & information. I want talk to you about these picture & information.

  9. K.prabhakar reddy says:

    Sir nice information tq

  10. Supravhat Mukherji says:

    Superb thought provoking

  11. Sunol says:

    Frankly I doubt this claim

  12. G.S.Satya says:

    Pranams to all these Bharat Nari Manis.
    For their leadership and service to Bharat.
    I am proud that the women in India were and are so advanced and respected.I had the honor of meeting Smt.Vijayalakshmi Pundit in 1968 in Rochester NY.My wife and I spent 3 hrs conversing with her and got some insights into the life of the Nehru family,first hand.

  13. Dilip Pawar says:

    उत्तम मांडणी केली आहे महिलांचा सहभागाची गरज आहे या गोष्टींची आठवण करून दिली अभिनंदन

  14. रामRam Katke Deputy Registrar Govt of Maharashtra says:

    Very nice that these woman’s work with great Constitution father Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar. But why didn’t they support Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar in adopting Hindu Code Bill. The said bill was previously assured by PM Nehru.

    • Sujeet says:

      It was Dr. Rajendra Prasad who was president of the committee. How can Dr. Ambedkar getting entire credit.

      • Kaushik says:

        There is drafting committee, where constitution was draft. Dr. Babasaheb was head of the drafting committee and not only that he was the only person who attended all 44 meeting and drafted constitution. You should read more….

    • Sudhakar Sardar says:

      Really so! May be most of them were merely ornamental!

  15. Kaushik says:

    There is no woman in drafting committee. Your article title is wrong. Do correct title as soon as possible.

    • Vijay Gokhale says:

      The article title says “women who helped draft the constitution”. In the first paragraph itself they have described as members of constituent assembly and not drafting committee. Every member of the constituent assembly contributed to the making of the constitution. It is a result of collective wisdom of all members. Drafting committee finally drafted the constitution based on the contribution of every member.

  16. Mona Desai says:

    Wonderful and mind blowing information. It’s an unique article.

  17. Ashok Sahu. says:

    A wonderful and rare photograph of 15 eminent personalities who were members in Constituent Assembly that drafted the Constitution of India. Women in India were in the forefront as leaders since time immemorial. As compared to the West, Women leaders in India are more advanced in positive sense during these modern days too.

  18. Peea P Bal says:

    Thanks Yoshita for sharing this information with the public and it is indeed a pleasure to see my grand aunt’s name featured in this article. Leela Roy had been an inspiration for many women and she was a champion in the women’s Education. Salute to all mighty women.
    Peea

  19. समंदर says:

    या सर्व महिलांची नावे लक्षात ठेवायची झाल्यास एखादी लिंक तयार केली आहे का कुणी

  20. S Pal says:

    and 6 of them were Bengalis! 40% !!

    7. Leela Roy
    8. Malati Choudhury
    9. Purnima Banerjee
    11. Renuka Ray
    12. Sarojini Naidu
    13. Sucheta Kriplani

  21. Kiran says:

    काय मदत केली ड्राफ्ट मध्ये यामध्ये फक्त यांची वयक्तिक माहीती आहे. हिंदू कोड बिलाच्या वेळेस या स्त्रियां कोठे होत्या.

  22. श्रीधर बुवाजी शेलार says:

    या सर्व महिला कोणत्या मतदार संघामधून संविधान सभेवर निवडून आल्या,हेही जरा सांगितले असते तर बरे झाले असते.बरे या इतक्या विद्वान होत्या तर यांचं कर्तृत्व कोणालाच कसे माहित नाही.आणखीन एक महत्त्वाचा प्रश्न मला या विद्वान लेखिकेला विचारायचे आहे की,
    डॉ . बाबासाहेब आंबेडकर यांनी हिंदू कोड बिल संसदेमध्ये मांडले तेव्हा,या विचारवंत महिला,गप्प का बसल्या,बरे यातील बऱ्याच जनी खासदार होत्या.याचे उत्तर मिळेल काय???

  23. Suma says:

    Very Informative!

  24. SANJAY Ghosh says:

    Really it was very informative …
    Our future generations will be able to know.

  25. Ravi Bhangaonkar says:

    Role of women is important. It was recognised at that time also. We as a society donot give their due. Talking about % of some area is not necessary. They were Indians. That’s enough.

  26. Koushik says:

    But what contribution they did is question, these information is about their political career

  27. Ramesh S Phadke says:

    Indian women should be discovered and recognized as how big important role they are.

  28. Sowmya says:

    ಎಲ್ಲ ತಾಯಂದಿರಿಗೆ ನನ್ನ ನಮಸ್ಕಾರ
    ನಿಮ್ಮ ಸಮಯ ನಿಮ್ಮ ಸಹಕಾರ ಇಂದು ಭಾರತ ಜಗತ್ತಿನ ಮಹಿಳೆಯರೆಲ್ಲಾ ನೆನಪಿಸುವ ಸಮಯ ಬಂದಿದೆ.. ಕೇವಲ ಪುರುಷ ಪ್ರಾಧಾನ್ಯ ಈ ದೇಶದಲ್ಲಿ ನೀವೆಲ್ಲರೂ ಭಾರತದ ಸಂವಿಧಾನ ಕ್ಕೆ ಸಾಕಷ್ಟು ಜೊತೆಗಿದ್ದು ಕೆಲಸ ಮಾಡಿರುತ್ತೀರಿ.. ಅದು ಅಂಬೇಡ್ಕರ್ ಸರ್ ರವರ ಪ್ರೇರಣೆಯಿಂದಲೇ ಮಹಿಳೆಯರನ್ನು ಭಾಗವಹಿಸುವಿಕೆ ಮತ್ತು ಜೊತೆಗೂಡಿ ಕೆಲಸ ನಿರ್ವಹಿಸಿದ್ದು ಬಹಳ ಹೆಮ್ಮೆಯ ವಿಷಯ….
    ಅಂಬೇಡ್ಕರ್ ಸರ್ ಹೇಳಿದಂತೆ ದೇಶ ಅಭಿವೃದ್ಧಿ ಆಗಿದೆ ಅಂದರೇ ಅಲ್ಲಿನ ಮಹಿಳೆಯರ ಸ್ಥಿತಿ ಗತಿ ಮೊದಲು ನೋಡಿ ನಂತರೆ ಅಭಿವೃದ್ಧಿ ಕಾಣುತ್ತೆ ಅಂತ… ಅಂತಹ ಕಾಲಘಟ್ಟದಲ್ಲಿ ನೀವೆಲ್ಲರೂ ಇದ್ದೀರಿ ಥ್ಯಾಂಕ್ಯೂ ಎಲ್ಲರಿಗೂ ಪ್ರೀತಿಯಿಂದ
    – ಸೌಮ್ಯಾ ಕೆ.ಆರ್
    ಸಾಮಾಜಿಕ ಕಾರ್ಯಕರ್ತೆ ಮತ್ತು ಲೇಖಕಿ

  29. Snigdha Panigrahi says:

    A very noble idea to impact upon present generation young minds to visualise great icons of India , it will inspire some & that’s the achievement.

  30. Sunduraj Balaraju says:

    kUDOS TO ALL . Inspite of the best efforts they were unable to support equal share in India. and Indu Code Bill was defeated, Dr Ambedkar Resigned Law Minister for the cause of Women.It was not given wide publicity. Even today wemen did not understand the sacrifice by Dr BR Ambedker Till date Equality of oppurtunity and empowerment is not given to women .she has been treated ill very Unfortunate

  31. AASHISH RAJ says:

    Hi there, very good and valuable information. From where did you find this info. Many important facts of history are either been hidden or buried

  32. Ravi Bale says:

    Good information. Feels great to know there was so much female presence and leadership with capacity.

  33. ಶೋಭಾ.ಹೆಚ್.ಜಿ Shobha.H.G says:

    We waited from longtime for this initiative of the women development & Challenges. We don’ t want only policy changes of status of women in india, it should be implementation for every women group from bottom to top as well as in all sector, dimension, categories & different aspects.
    We should involve ourselves for chang the society & implementation of policy, otherwise it couldn’t.

  34. Sonam Sachdeva says:

    it’s 299 not 389

  35. Imran Raza says:

    Thanks for giving me correct detail

  36. Nildhwaj says:

    Salute to these great women, but I disagree that the details mentioned in this article are incorrect, these women were not the members of drafting committee, so they did not contribute to draft the Indian constitution, they had just expressed their views on the draft, drafted by the drafting committee under the chairmanship of Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar. The eminent women were the members of the first constituent assembly who placed their views on drafted constitution, for more details please refer the volumes of constitutional debates. so please verify the details before publishing it.

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