Editor’s Pick

ON 9 DECEMBER 1946, the constituent assembly met for the first time in the Constitution Hall—now known as the Central Hall of the old parliament—in New Delhi. The inaugural session began with the introduction of Sachchidananda Sinha, the temporary chairman of the assembly. A total of 207 representatives, including nine women, were present on the first day.

This historic assembly marked the beginning of an extraordinary journey—to craft a Constitution that would lay the foundation for an independent and democratic India. The first session of the constituent assembly lasted from 9 December to 23 December 1946. There were 11 sessions in all, spanning 165 days of deliberations in which the members deliberated on the country’s future.

The assembly had 389 members, of which 292 were elected by the provincial assemblies in a system similar to the one used to elect Rajya Sabha members today. They were accompanied by 93 members representing the Indian princely states and 4 members representing the chief commissioners' provinces.

The provincial election was held in December 1945, in which the Indian National Congress emerged as the largest party with 925 seats out of 1,585 seats that went to polls.