I would like to record here an account of the first Republic Day celebrations as told to me by my father, Nooruddin Ahmed in his own words: “As the nephew of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, (son of Azad’s elder brother Maulana Abu-n-Nasr ‘Aah’ Ghulam Yasin), I had the unique privilege of witnessing historic scenes of popular rejoicing at the dawn of Independence on August 15, 1947, passing of the Constitution of India on November 26, 1949 and ushering of the Republic of India, on January 26, 1950 from the viewers’ gallery as a commoner since Maulana Azad didn’t believe in giving special privileges to anyone near and dear to him.
The Constitution adopted by the Constituent Assembly represented the framework of the government of the Republic of India. The Constitution signifies the sovereignty of the people of India.
I recall the unprecedented scenes of popular enthusiasm, celebrations and singing of national songs on August 14-15, 1947. Gandhiji was then staying in Calcutta in pursuance of his peace mission. I was staying with him. His presence in riot-torn Calcutta created a miracle. Hindus and Muslims, who were unable to come out of their houses for months together forgot their differences and embraced each other. I had the privilege of witnessing the passing of the Constitution from the press gallery of the Central Hall of Parliament on November 26, 1949. The Constituent assembly had met in this high-domed hall. Loud and prolonged cheers and thumping of desks greeted the passing of the Constitution. Several members shouted “vande mataram” and “Bharat mata ki jai” in chorus.
Babu Rajendra Prasad, president of the Constituent Assembly, in his speech before putting the motion to pass paid tributes to Mahatma Gandhi and said that `I shall only hope that all those whose good fortune it may be to work this Constitution in future, will remember that it was a unique victory which we achieved by unique method taught by the Father of the Nation, and it is up to us to preserve and protect the Independence that we have won and to make it really bear fruit for the man in the street.’ After the Constitution was passed, the historic session of the Constituent Assembly ended with the singing of the national anthem `Jana-gana-mana…’ by Purnima Banerjee, a veteran freedom fighter and sister of the late freedom fighter, Aruna Asaf Ali.
The Constituent assembly elected Rajendra Prasad as President of the Indian Republic at a special session on January 24, 1950. India became a Republic on January 26, 1950 amidst rejoicings, fanfare of trumpets and booming of guns. A proclamation announcing the new status of India was read out by the last Governor General C.
Rajagopalachari, heralding that from January 26, 1950 India, this is, Bharat, shall be a sovereign democratic republic. It was a memorable and proud day for the whole nation. The high-domed circular Darbar Hall of Rashtrapati Bhavan (then known as Government House) was brilliantly lit. Over 500 guests had assembled inside the hall. President Sukarno of Indonesia, his wife and several members of the diplomatic corps, members of the Constituent Assembly and prominent citizens had graced the occasion. It was a historic occasion when Rajendra Prasad, was administered the oath of his office. The Chief Justice of India, Sir Hiralal Kania, read the oath of office in Hindi. Rajendra Prasad repeated it sentence by sentence. The President was dressed in black achkan, white churidar and a white Gandhi cap. The outgoing Governor General, C. Rajagopalachari, our first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, beaming with pride and joy, the deputy prime minister, Sardar Patel, the iron-man of India, cabinet ministers, judges of the Supreme Court and the auditor-general of India, were present in the hall to witness this biggest national ceremony of the 20th century.
Nehru and his other Cabinet colleagues were sworn-in soon after. Speaker of Lok Sabha, G.V. Mavalankar, sat in the front row. Outside the Darbar Hall, there were unforgettable scenes of jubilation. Large crowds of men, women and children had assembled in the forecourt of Rashtrapati Bhavan. Many of them had come from the adjoining States to witness the ceremony. The capital wore the look of a national festival. Thousands visited Rajghat, the Mahatma’s samadhi to pay their respectful homage. In the Darbar Hall, for the first time the national emblem of Ashoka pillar with three lions was placed near the throne where in the past the British Viceroys used to sit. I have had the rare opportunity of witnessing many swearing-in and investiture ceremonies presided over by respective Presidents and I consider it my deep privilege to have seen so many momentous occasions in modern Indian history from such close quarters.
