Celebration of 70th Constitution Day
As part of the year-long celebrations to commemorate the adoption of the Constitution of India, High Commission of India, Kuala Lumpur organised an inaugural event to commemorate 70th Constitution Day at the Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Indian Cultural Centre, (NSCBICC) Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur on 26 November 2019.
2. High Commissioner of India to Malaysia, Shri Mridul Kumar presided over the event. Eminent advocate and leading Constitutional expert Dato’ Dr Cyrus V Das was the Key Note speaker. In his address, Dato’ Cyrus emphasised on the key features and extraordinary resilience of the Indian Constitution, as has been evident in its continued working over the last seven decades. He also elaborated on the influence of the Indian Constitution on the Malaysian Constitution, highlighting the common features adopted by the Malaysian Constitution makers from the Indian Constitution.
3. High Commissioner in his address noted that it was 26 November 1949 that the Constituent Assembly of India adopted the Constitution of India, which later came into force on 26 January 1950. In the year 2015, India marked the 125th birth anniversary of the Father of the Indian Constitution and Chairman of the Drafting Committee of the Constituent Assembly, Babasaheb Dr Bhim Rao Ambedkar. On 19 November 2015, through a Gazette notification, Government of India, declared 26 November as ‘Constitution Day’ as a tribute to him, and has been observed annually ever since.
4. During the event, Preamble of the Constitution of India was read out in both Hindi & English. A two-minute animation video themed “India: Spirit of Freedom” and the documentary “Making of Indian Constitution” (Lok Sabha TV production) were screened.
5. The event was attended by around 100 select persons from different walks of life, including YB Tuan Ganabatirau, Selangor State Executive Counsellor, Dato’ Varghese George, respected Judge, Court of Appeal, legal fraternity, members of the Ambedkar Society, local community associations and members from the media.
6. As part of the celebrations, to create awareness at school level about the Indian Constitution and also about the Father of the Indian Constitution, HCI, KL organised in partnership with Global Indian International School, Kuala Lumpur, a quiz competition on the topic “Dr B. R. Ambedkar, the father of our Indian Constitution”. 50 School children enthusiastically participated in the event. The event was very well received.
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