Mysuru: “We cannot understand our Constitution, if we cannot understand our country,” opined retired Judge of Karnataka High Court Justice H.N. Nagamohan Das.

He was addressing the gathering at ‘Samvidhana Odu,’ an awareness programme on laws, organised jointly by the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA), Mysore Bar Association, Education Department and Law School, University of Mysore, at Kalamandira in city yesterday.

Continuing, Das said that 190 countries in the world have their own Constitution and India was one among them. In every country, the citizens have read their Constitution and are following it, he said and added that we too should read, understand and follow our Constitution.

The retired Justice said that our Constitution was approved and our country became Republic in 1950 and added that our country has developed since then. Ever since the Constitution came into existence, it has united everyone from Kashmir to Kanyakumari, he added.

Giving statistics about the development due to our Constitution, he said that the percentage of literacy which was 20 percent before Independence, has gone up to 80 percent, poverty, which was 70 percent has come down to 20 percent now and the import of food items is stopped and now the country is exporting food.

Das said that our Constitution has brought a lot of reforms among women, dalits, minorities besides helping the country in achieving many things in Science and Space Technologies.

Earlier, Principal District and Sessions Judge and DLSA Mysuru Chairman S.K. Vontigodi, who inaugurated the programme, said that Nagamohan Das has been conducting the programmes at many places to create awareness about our Constitution and added that Rights and Laws were the base of our Constitution which should be a part of our lives.

He further said that Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, only after studying the Constitutions of various countries, framed our Constitution, which is the greatest among all Constitutions.

Deputy Commissioner Abhiram G. Sankar, DCP M. Muthuraj, ACP Shama Mishra, Senior Civil Judge and DLSA Mysuru Member-Secretary B.P. Devamane, Director and Dean of Law School – University of Mysore Dr. C. Basavaraju, Mysore Bar Association President S. Anand Kumar, teachers, law students and members of the public attended the programme.