Important Constitutional Amendments (Part-II)

1. The Fifty-fifth Amendment, 1986, conferred statehood on Arunachal Pradesh. 

2. The Fifty-sixth Amendment, 1987, the Hind version of the Constitution of India was accepted for all purposes and statehood was conferred on the UT of Goa. 

3. The Sixty-first Amendment, 1989, reduced the voting age from 21 years to 18 years for the Lok Sabha as well as the Assemblies. 

4. The Seventy-third Amendment, 1992 (Panchayati Raj Bill) seeks to provide, among other things, Gram Sabha in villages, constitution of Panchayats at the village and other levels, direct elections to all seats in Panchayats and reservation of seats for SC and ST and fixing of tenure of 5 years for Panchayats. 

5. The Seventy-fourth Amendment, 1993, (Nagarpalika Bill) provides for, among other things, the constitution of three types of municipalities and the reservation of seats in every municipality for the SC/ST, women and the OBCs. 

6. The Seventy-seventh Amendment, 1995, provides for continuing the existing policy of reservation in promotions for SC/STs. It also made changing of Article 16 of the Constitution mandatory by inserting a new Clause (4A). 

7. The Seventy-ninth Amendment, 1999 provides for the extension of reservations of seats for SC/STs and Anglo-Indians in the House of the people and in the State Legislative Assemblies for an additional 10 years. 

8. The Eightieth Amendment, 2000, provides for an alternative tax sharing scheme between the Union and state governments, as per recommendations of the 10th Finance Commission. Henceforth, 26 percent of the total Union taxes and duties would be assigned to the state governments in lieu of their existing share in income tax, excise, duties, special excise duties and grants in lieu of tax on railway passenger fares.

9. The Eighty-fourth Amendment, 2001, states the number of representatives in the Lok Sabha and State Assemblies were to freeze to current levels for the next 25 years (till 2026). 

10. The Eighty-sixth Amendment, 2002, deals with the insertion of a new Article 21A after Article 21. The new Article 21A deals with Right to Education. ‘The State shall provide free and compulsory education to all children from the age to 6 to 14 years in such a manner as the State may, by law, determine’. 

11. The Eighty-ninth Amendment, 2003, provides for the Amendment of Article 338. There shall be a National Commission for the SCs and a National Commission for STs. ‘Subject to the provisions of any law made in this behalf by Parliament, the Commission shall consist of a Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and three other Members and the conditions of service and tenure of office of the Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and other Members so appointed shall be such as the President may be rule determine’.  

12. The Ninety-first Amendment, 2003, provides for the Amendment of Article 75. The total number of Ministers, including the Prime Minister, in the Council of Ministers, shall not exceed 15 percent of the total number of members of the House of the people. A member of either House of Parliament belonging to any political party who is disqualified for being a member of that House under paragraph 2 of the Tenth schedule shall also be disqualified to be to appointed as a Minister under Clause (1) ‘for duration of the period commencing from the date of his disqualification till the date on which the term of his office as such members would expire or where he contests any election to either House of Parliament before the expiry of such period, till the date on which he is declared elected, whichever is earlier.