Motilal Nehru’s 165th Birth Anniversary: Legacy of the Nehru Report and Constitutional Vision

However, his most enduring contribution to modern India is the Nehru Report of 1928. This document was a response to Lord Birkenhead’s taunt that Indians were incapable of producing a consensus-based constitutional scheme. As the chairman of the committee appointed by the All Parties Conference, Motilal Nehru drafted a blueprint that demanded 'Dominion Status' for India. While this led to a generational divide with younger leaders like Jawaharlal Nehru and Subhas Chandra Bose—who demanded 'Purna Swaraj' (Complete Independence)—the report was revolutionary in its content. The Nehru Report advocated for nineteen fundamental rights, including the right to vote for all adults (universal adult suffrage) and equal rights for women. It proposed a secular state and, crucially, rejected separate electorates in favor of joint electorates with reservation of seats for minorities. These principles later became the bedrock of the Constitution of India, 1950. UPSC Relevance: This topic is vital for Modern Indian History (GS Paper I) and Constitutional Underpinnings (GS Paper II). It illustrates the transition of the freedom struggle in the 1920s and provides historical context for the evolution of fundamental rights and secularism in the Indian polity. Aspirants can use this to discuss the indigenous roots of Indian democracy and the strategic role of the Swarajists.