Imagine reading a beautifully written book without an introduction or preface, or saying without an index, obviously this would cause a mess or ambiguity in the mind of a reader taking this book for the first time. Similarly, the preamble to a constitution embodies the fundamental values and philosophy on which the constitution is founded, as well as the aims and objectives that the founding fathers of the constitution imposed on the body politic. The importance and usefulness of the preamble has been emphasized in several decisions of the Supreme Court of India. The preamble of a law sets out the main objectives with which legislation is to be carried out. [15] It is a kind of introduction to the Statute and often very useful for understanding political and legislative intentions. It expresses “what we have thought or dreamed for so long.” [16] He solemnly embodies all the ideas and aspirations for which the country had fought under British rule. [17] The preamble is not enforceable in court, but it successfully promotes and names the objectives that the Constitution seeks to establish and promote, and also assists in the interpretation of the law wherever ambiguity arises. By combining the ideals of political, social and economic democracy with those of equality and fraternity, the preamble seeks to establish what Mahatma Gandhi described as the India of my dreams: “An India in which the poorest feel that it is their country where an effective voice is created? An India in which all communities must live in perfect harmony.” The preamble serves the following points: – 1) It indicates the sources from which the constitution originated, namely the Indian people. (2) It contains the terms of the operative part which apply the Constitution. 3) It explains the freedoms that the Indian people intended to secure to all citizens and the type of government and basic policies that were to be established. The preamble seems to have had a greater influence outside of legal opinions in statements by leaders of the political branches of government, often taking into account various debates throughout the country`s history. For example, during the First Congress debates on the constitutionality of the Bank of the United States, prominent members of Congress such as Elbridge Gerry of Massachusetts cited the preamble to indicate the general purposes for which the Constitution was created and to justify the creation of a National Bank to promote the common welfare.14FootnoteSee 2 Annals of Cong.

1947–48 (1791). And the preamble appeared in early congressional debates about the new administration`s role in foreign policy. For example, Henry Southard of New Jersey cited the preamble during the Tenth Congress when he argued that Congress should arm and equip the United States militia, recognizing that the goal of the establishment [federal] government was to provide a common defense against foreign enemies.15FootnoteSee 17 Annals of Cong. 1047 (1807). Perhaps one of the most famous references to the preamble in the halls of Congress came in a speech by Senator Daniel Webster amid the nullity debates of the 1830s, in which he cited the preamble to argue that the Constitution was eternal and immortal, establishing a union that would last forever.16Footnote Daniel Webster, The Constitution is not a pact between sovereign States (16. February 1833), reprinted in 3 The Works of Daniel Webster 452, 471 (9th edition 1856). It is sometimes observed that the phrase “We the people of the United States” was inserted into the Constitutional Convention by the “Style Committee”, which chose these words — instead of “We, the people of the States of.”, followed by a list of thirteen states, for a simple practical reason: it was not clear how many states would actually ratify the proposed new Constitution. (Article VII declared that the Constitution would take effect as soon as nine of the thirteen states ratified it; and coincidentally, two states, North Carolina and Rhode Island, did not ratify it until after George Washington was sworn in as the first president under the Constitution.) The Style Committee could therefore not decide with certainty to list all States in the preamble.