“History Behind Celebrating Republic Day”
We all know that January 26 is celebrated as the Republic Day of India. It is among the three main holidays, along with Independence Day and Gandhi Jayanti. But, do you have any idea about why it is known as “Republic Day” and why the day of “January 26” was chosen to celebrate this big day? I bet that some of you have no about it. So, before you dig into its deep history, here’s what you must know.
Why the word “Republic” was chosen?
The word “Republic” was chosen because it means a form of government in which power is clearly vested in the people of our country, who exercise their control in the elected leaders.
Why “26th January”?
In history, some of the Indian leaders were in support of Dominion Status (the right to govern) which indirectly states that the kings of U.K would still continue to be the constitutional head of India. Few leaders were aware of this and they, including Bhagat Singh stood forward to demand the “complete freedom” from British, and this inspired congress leaders like Jawaharlal Nehru and Subhash Chandra Bose. They tried hard and a resolution was also passed to the British but they rejected it saying that “India is not capable for Dominion Status”.
Later, in a Lahore session, Jawaharlal Nehru was chosen as a President and he demanded complete independence (Purna Swaraj) and thus, to celebrate this occasion, last Sunday of January i.e. 26th January (surprisingly) was fixed.
In 1947, on August 15, India finally gained the complete independence from the British rulers.
After two years, Indian constitution was formed on Nov.26. And earlier, those who were part of the 1st Independence Celebration i.e. on January 1930, decided to celebrate Republic Day on January 26th. Hence, they waited 2 months for it, and this is how the day was permanently chosen to celebrate Republic Day.
Brief history about it –
On August 15, 1947, India achieved its freedom from the hands of British after the “Indian Independence Movement” known for peaceful non-violence battle by Mahatma Gandhi. The Indian Independence Act of 1947 later led to the freedom of our country. The parliament of U.K then divided the country into two nations i.e. India and Pakistan.
Even though India received its freedom on August 15, our nation didn’t have permanent set of laws, and the laws were mainly based on the Govt. of India Act 1935. Later to set a permanent constitution, a draft was sent to the committee members on 28th August, 1947. The constitution was prepared and it was then sent to the Assembly on 4th November 1947. The Assembly thus discussed about it openly in front of public for 166 days, then went for a period of 2 years, 11 months and 18 days before adoption of the complete permanent constitution. After few modifications, total 308 members of the Assembly signed the copies in English and Hindi on 24th January. After two days i.e. on 26th January, it came out in front of all the public.
This is History Behind Celebrating Republic Day – Well, now that you’re aware about the history behind celebrating Republic Day, let your friends know about it too. And, tomorrow we are going to celebrate the 68th Republic Day of India. So, be proud and unfurl our India National Flag.
