Borrowed features of the Constitution is a guaranteed question in Polity. The pattern is always the same — a feature is given and you have to name the country it came from. There are only about ten countries involved, so the whole topic is small enough to master completely. This post gives you the full country-wise table with the reason behind each borrowing, and 15 real questions from past papers.
Key Points (Quick Revision)
- Government of India Act 1935 is the largest single source — nearly 250 articles come from it
- Britain — Parliamentary system, rule of law, single citizenship
- USA — Fundamental Rights, judicial review, President's impeachment
- Ireland — Directive Principles of State Policy
- USSR — Fundamental Duties
1. Why the Constitution borrowed features
The Constituent Assembly did not copy blindly. It studied constitutions across the world and picked what suited India's conditions. Dr BR Ambedkar defended this openly, saying there was nothing to be ashamed of in borrowing what works.
The largest source is not another country at all. It is the Government of India Act 1935, a British law already in force in India. Nearly 250 of our articles trace back to it, including the federal structure, the office of Governor, the judiciary and the public service commissions. It appears in exams regularly, so remember it as the single biggest source.
2. Britain and the United States
These two countries account for the largest share of borrowed features, and most exam questions come from this pair.
| Country | Borrowed features |
|---|---|
| Britain | Parliamentary form of government · Rule of law · Legislative procedure · Single citizenship · Cabinet system · Prerogative writs · Bicameralism · Office of the Speaker |
| United States | Fundamental Rights · Independence of judiciary · Judicial review · Impeachment of the President · Removal of Supreme Court and High Court judges · Post of Vice-President · Preamble |
One distinction is asked repeatedly. Fundamental Rights came from the USA, while Directive Principles came from Ireland. Students mix these two more than any other pair in this topic.
📌 Exam Focus
- Asked most often: Fundamental Rights (USA), Directive Principles (Ireland), Fundamental Duties (USSR)
- Common trap: Fundamental Rights and Directive Principles are placed in the same question as options
- Remember: the Preamble's idea came from the USA, but its wording of Liberty, Equality and Fraternity came from France
3. Other countries and what came from each
| Country | Borrowed features |
|---|---|
| Ireland | Directive Principles of State Policy · Nomination of members to Rajya Sabha · Method of election of the President |
| Canada | Federation with a strong Centre · Residuary powers with the Centre · Appointment of Governors by the Centre · Advisory jurisdiction of the Supreme Court |
| Australia | Concurrent List · Freedom of trade and commerce · Joint sitting of the two Houses |
| USSR (Russia) | Fundamental Duties · Ideal of justice — social, economic and political — in the Preamble |
| France | Republic · Ideals of Liberty, Equality and Fraternity in the Preamble |
| South Africa | Procedure for amendment of the Constitution · Election of Rajya Sabha members |
| Germany (Weimar) | Suspension of Fundamental Rights during an Emergency |
| Japan | Procedure established by law |
| Government of India Act 1935 | Federal scheme · Office of Governor · Judiciary · Public Service Commissions · Emergency provisions · Administrative details |
4. Pairs that get confused
Exams rarely ask an easy pairing. They ask the ones students mix up. These four cause the most errors.
| Feature | Correct source | Often confused with |
|---|---|---|
| Fundamental Rights | USA | Britain |
| Directive Principles | Ireland | USA |
| Fundamental Duties | USSR | Ireland |
| Concurrent List | Australia | Canada |
| Emergency provisions | Germany and GoI Act 1935 | USA |
| Amendment procedure | South Africa | USA |
5. How it is asked in exams — 15 PYQs
- Fundamental Rights in the Indian Constitution are borrowed from? — USA (SSC CGL 2023)
- Directive Principles of State Policy are taken from? — Ireland (SSC CHSL 2023)
- Fundamental Duties were borrowed from which country? — USSR (SSC MTS 2023)
- The parliamentary form of government is borrowed from? — Britain (RRB NTPC 2024)
- The Concurrent List is taken from the constitution of? — Australia (SSC CGL 2022)
- Which is the largest single source of the Indian Constitution? — Government of India Act 1935 (SSC GD 2024)
- The idea of a federation with a strong Centre is borrowed from? — Canada (SSC CHSL 2024)
- The procedure for amending the Constitution is taken from? — South Africa (SSC CPO 2023)
- Liberty, Equality and Fraternity in the Preamble come from? — France (RRB Group D 2024)
- Judicial review is borrowed from which country? — USA (SSC MTS 2024)
- Suspension of Fundamental Rights during an Emergency is taken from? — Germany (Weimar) (SSC CGL 2024)
- Single citizenship is borrowed from? — Britain (RRB NTPC 2025)
- The method of election of the President is taken from? — Ireland (SSC CHSL 2022)
- The concept of procedure established by law comes from? — Japan (SSC GD 2023)
- Joint sitting of both Houses of Parliament is borrowed from? — Australia (SSC CGL 2023)
6. Quick Revision
⚡ Country to Feature
- Britain — Parliament, rule of law, single citizenship, Speaker
- USA — Fundamental Rights, judicial review, Vice-President, impeachment
- Ireland — Directive Principles, President's election method
- Canada — strong Centre, residuary powers, Governors
- Australia — Concurrent List, joint sitting, trade freedom
- USSR — Fundamental Duties
- France — Republic, Liberty Equality Fraternity
- South Africa — amendment procedure
- Germany — Emergency suspension of rights
- Japan — procedure established by law
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the largest source of the Indian Constitution?
The Government of India Act 1935 is the single largest source. Nearly 250 articles trace back to it, including the federal scheme, the office of Governor, the judiciary, public service commissions and emergency provisions. It is not a foreign constitution but a British law already operating in India.
From where are Fundamental Rights borrowed?
Fundamental Rights are borrowed from the Constitution of the United States, along with judicial review, the independence of the judiciary, the office of Vice-President and the impeachment procedure for the President. Do not confuse this with Directive Principles, which came from Ireland.
Which country gave us Fundamental Duties?
Fundamental Duties were borrowed from the USSR, now Russia. They were not part of the original Constitution and were added later by the 42nd Amendment in 1976 on the recommendation of the Swaran Singh Committee.
What is the difference between the sources of the Preamble?
The idea and structure of the Preamble were inspired by the United States Constitution. The specific ideals of Liberty, Equality and Fraternity came from the French Revolution, and the ideal of justice — social, economic and political — came from the USSR. So the Preamble draws on three sources, which is why it appears in tricky questions.
How many questions come from this topic in exams?
Usually one question per paper in SSC and Railway exams, and the format is almost always the same: a feature is given and you name the country. Since only about ten countries are involved, this topic can be mastered completely, which makes it one of the safest scoring areas in Polity.
For more Polity topics in simple language, see our Polity notes and Governors-General and Viceroys post. Preparing for a specific exam? Start with the Bihar Daroga guide or the 100 Hour GS Course.