Why is a School organising International Conferences of Chief Justices of the World of the Constitution of India

Why is a School organising International Conferences of

Chief Justices of the World

on Article 51 of the Constitution of India?

People of Lucknow have Appreciated the Vision of CMS

The people of Lucknow have so greatly appreciated the CMS philosophy of ‘Jai Jagat’ and the school’s globalism-oriented approach to education that their support helped CMS grow in strength from only five students in 1959 to over 47,000 students presently on roll, and is recognised by the Guinness Book of World Records as the world's largest school in a single city.

CMS is a Distinctive School

CMS is a distinctive school where the first period of 30 minutes is solely devoted to morning prayers and in which prayers of all religions are said on a common platform. Its moral education books contain teachings from all major religions of the world and the children are taught universal values of oneness of God, unity of religions and oneness of humankind. CMS organises over 20 international events every year for students of primary to higher secondary levels to provide international exposure to them so that they develop an international perspective and a global vision and become active agents of social transformation, promoting world unity and world peace.

A Modern School must Concern Itself with the Affairs of the Age

In this age of globalization, no person or society can live in isolation. Events in various parts of the world affect their life, even if such events like war or low intensity conflicts or environmental degradation, take place in far off areas or countries. For example, deforestation in a country is bound to affect not only the climate of a neighbouring country, but may also disturb the environmental balance of the world, resulting in climatic changes and adversely affecting rainfall. Besides, since the economies of various countries are interdependent, especially in view of quick means of transportation and even quicker means of communication, every person is affected by events like wars, conflicts and acts of terrorism.

...Over the Years Thousands of Children have Visited CMS and Expressed Apprehensions about their Future

Over the years, thousands of children have been coming to CMS from different parts of India and abroad to participate in the various international educational events along with the children of CMS. During the course of these interactions, many children have presented their views and expressed apprehensions about their future.

Children’s Voice inspired CMS to take up the Cause of their Future

These apprehensions of children and their aspirations to do something about them inspired and motivated the CMS family to strive for international peace and security in order to safeguard the future of the world's two billion children.

Having worked with children for over four decades, the founders of CMS, Mr Jagdish and Dr (Mrs) Bharti Gandhi, take a long-term view of education. In their meaningful education model, only preparing children for the three ‘Rs is not an adequate provision for a child’s future in a global village and in a world fraught with dangers. Material education alone is not adequate. Children must be given human and divine education as well. Such a balanced education is the best preparation of children in the 21st century. They must be inspired to become proactive leaders of thought and prepared to bring about profound social transformation. Children’s consciousness must be widened to envelop the whole world.

No one feels the pain of these young students, their anxious concern for the future and their enormous potential to make a difference more than Mr. Jagdish Gandhi who believe that a school must inspire human greatness and bring out human nobility. It must produce fruits. School must be the lighthouse of society and lead the way. CMS believes that children are the single most powerful common denominator for all the nations of the world and their safety and security are the issues which no one can ignore.

Letter of a Child from Grenada (West Indies)

Children’s worry is expressed in a letter printed herein received from two brothers — Nathanael Daniel and Randy Daniel from Grenada (West Indies) — dated 7th December 2001, who wrote,“It is advisable further to protect our right to play, our right to rest, our right to be educated, our right to be loved, our right to eat, our right to live peacefully... Because of our numberless needs at our young age and because of our numberless demands when we get old, let us join hands and plan the future. May your country (India) be the exemplary leader to open the paths to a wonderful and flourishing world."

Judgment of the Supreme Court of the Philippines

Rights of children, minors and those yet unborn, to file a petition concerning their rights to a balanced and healthy ecology to sustain the health and life of minors has been upheld by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines, Hon’ble Mr. Justice Hilario G. Davide, Jr., as underlined in the box below-

Judgement of the Supreme Court of the Philippines

“Rights of Children born and yet unborn”

In the case of Oposa V. Factoran, Chief Justice, the Honorable Hilario G. Davide, Jr., eloquently upheld the right of minors and those yet unborn to file a petition concerned with the right to a balanced and healthful ecology. Sustaining the position of the minors, he ratiocinated thus —

“This case, however, has a special and novel element. Petitioner minors assert that they represent their generation as well as generations yet unborn. We find no difficulty in ruling that they can, for themselves, for others of their generation and for the succeeding generation, file a class suit. Their personality to sue on behalf of the succeeding generations can only be based on the concept of intergenerational responsibility in so far as the right to a balanced and healthful ecology is concerned. Such a right, as hereinafter expounded, considers the ‘rhythm and harmony of nature’. Nature means the created world in its entirety. Such rhythm and harmony indispensably include, inter alia, the judicious disposition, utilization, management, renewal and conservation of the country’s forest, mineral, land, waters, fisheries, wildlife, off-shore areas and other natural resources to the end that their exploration, development and utilization be equitable accessible to the present as well as future generations. Needless to say, every generation has a responsibility to the next to preserve that rhythm and harmony for the full enjoyment of a balanced and healthful ecology. Put a little differently, the minors’ assertion of their right to a sound environment constitutes, at the same time, the performance of their obligation to ensure the protection of that right for the generations to come.”

World Peace is the Fruit that will Grow on the Tree of World Unity

of India and to educate the world about its legal and constitutional persuasive authority. CMS has, therefore, established a separate Department of World Unity and Peace Education.

Implications of Article 51 of the Constitution of India

Here it would be pertinent to recall Article 51 of the Constitution of India which, inter alia, provides, “The State shall endeavour to ... foster respect for International Law.” It should be noted that Article 51 of the Constitution of India says “the State ‘shall’ endeavour,”. It does not state that the state ‘may’ or ‘should,’ implying that the State has to endeavour and therefore, we have no choice in this regard. Moreover, the word ‘State’ denotes the government, and each and every citizen of India who owes allegiance to the Constitution of India.

There is No Enforceable International Law Today

The fact is that there is no enforceable international law existing in the world today that is equally applicable to all the countries and peoples of the world. What is generally referred to as ‘International Law’ refers to conventions and treaties between two or more countries and not duly enacted ‘International Law’. Moreover, a law that does not carry a penalty for its violation cannot be called a law at all. In this sense, there is indeed no international law in the world, in the absence of which there is total lawlessness as reflected in the increased instances of international terrorism and stockpiling of weapons of mass destruction by various countries of the world. (There are nearly 36,000 nuclear bombs in the world: Russia 22,500, USA 12,070, France 500, China 450, UK 380, India 65 and Pakistan 25. Apart from the above, 80 countries in the world have stockpiled chemical and biological weapons of mass destruction).

Children’s Situation in the World Today

A recent report of the Washington-based Population Research Bureau states that over THREE MILLION children die every year due to pollution, while another study by the National Geographic says that over 19,000 children die EVERY DAY due to starvation. Clearly, there is an urgent need for immediate action to safeguard the rights of the world’s children.....

On the occasion of Millennium+ 5 Summit organized by the United Nations, the CMS students organized a March demanding a NEW WORLD ORDER. The March was led by Hon’ble Dr. R. P. Singh Vice-Chancellor of Lucknow University and Mr. Jagdish Gandhi (not in the picture).


Mr Gandhi’s letter to UN Secretary General requesting to accept 100,000 peace appeals and for taking action at the Millennium Summit for a New World Order.

To, October 31, 1999
His Excellency Dr. Kofi A. Annan
Secretary Generaly, United Nations Headquarters
S-3800, New York, N.Y. 10017 USA
Fax : (212) 9632 155

Sub: Request for kind acceptance of 100,000 signed Peace Appeals from Citizens of the United Nations

Your Excellency,

We are thankful for Your Excellency’s kind message sent to us on 11th October, 99, by Mr. Richard Amdur, Second Officer in Your Excellency’s Executive Office, for the Peace Millennium Festival organised by us on United Nations Day, the 24th October 99. As conveyed in our earlier letter dated October, 24, your Excellency’s message was read out by Mr. John Fagerskiold, State UNICEF Representative, before a distinguished audience of over 1,500 which consisted of Principals, Teachers, school children and Government officials, at the Peace Millennium Festival.

We had requested Your Excellency to grant an appointment to our director Mrs. Bharti Gandhi, in New York, and receive the 100,000 signed Peace Appeals that our students had collected. Unfortunately, your decision not to meet Mrs. Gandhi, conveyed through Mr. Gillian Sorensen, Assistant Secretary General, External Affairs, came a little late and Mrs. Gandhi had already left for New York where she is presently staying, awaiting an appointment with Your Excellency.

In his letter Mr. Sorensen had pointed out that the United Nations does not support the idea of a World Government, and that indeed most countries would oppose this idea as it would involve a loss of sovereignty for them. In this regard we would like to draw your kind attention to the following words from the Agenda Item 30 of the Fifty Third Session of the General Assembly on United Nations Reform : Measures and Proposals, Thematic Framework for the Millennium Summit Report of the Secretary General :

  1. “the theme or themes (of the Millennium Summit) should ... reflect a common aspiration for ... establishment of a new international political and economic order” (para III section 8).
  2. “the Millennium Summit will prove to be more than a celebratory event” (para V section 11) Mr. John Huddleston of the International Monetary Fund, presented an article on The Elements of World Govt. at a Conference on a New World Order held at Dublin, Ireland in 1992. The article details the basic elements of a World Govt and also deals with the issue of loss of sovereignty by coutries if a World Govt comes into being
    Now we most humbly request Your Excellency to kindly consider the following:
  1. Mrs Gandhi is representing the 100,000 Citizens of the United Nations, who are also signatories to an appeal to save mankind from the impending eco-catastrophe or a nuclear holocaust by forming a World Govt capable of taking effective action on these vital issues
  2. The Millennium Summit to be held in New York on September 6, 2000 presents a golden opportunity to take decisive action for shaping a New World Order. This New World Order must be an improvement on the UNO just as the UN itself was a definite improvement on the League of Nations. If this New World Order has to be effective, it must have the power to be able to save mankind from the impending eco-doom or nuclear disaster. This would in any case involve some loss of sovereignty by all countries. This New World Order will undoubtedly come about sooner or later. The only choice that countries have is whether they accept it on their own and voluntarily bring it about or whether they accept it only after another World War.

In the end we would like to register our deep disappointment that the Hon’ble Secretary General has declined to meet our director Mrs. Gandhi who is representing 100,000 Citizens of the United Naitons appealing for World Peace. We humbly request you to please reconsider your decision. We would like to point out that the 100,00 Appeals that Mrs. Gandhi has taken with her to New York can greatly strengthen the Hon’ble Secretary General’s hands in persuading the leaders to respect the will of the Citizens of the United Nations. If the Hon’ble Secreatry General can grant an audience to Mrs. Gandhi, she is willing to extend her stay in the USA by another week or so to a time that suits the Secretary General.

You are therefore requested to grant an appointment for Mrs. Gandhi with your good self who has proved himself to be statesman of rare prescient and foresight and whose wonderful initiative, the Millennium Summit will undoubtedly prove to be a turning point for mankind.

In the USA, Mrs. Gandhi can be contacted at the following address of our daughter Dr. Sunita Gandhi who was earlier with the World Bank and who is now working in the field of education through her NGO, the Council for Global Education in Washington D.C.

Mrs. Bharti Gandhi
c/o The Council for Global Education
1270, New Hampshire Avenue, N.W.,
Washington D.C., USA
Ph: 202 496 9780, Res. : 202-659-8485
Fax: 202 496 9781

We would also like to bring to your kind notice that we have already taken the Hon’ble Secretary General’s UN Day message very seriously and we have already started sending Appeals for support to all the Head of States and Head of Govts of all member countries of the UNO, asking them to remember September 6, 2000 as a date that could prove to be a turning point for the world if our leaders approach the Millennium Summit. Our campaign will continue at least till the 6th of September 2000.
Thanking You, Yours sincerely,

(Jagdish Gandhi)
Manager, CMS &
President, Peace Millennium Festival