
The Fundamental Rights, Directive Principles of State Policy and Fundamental Duties are sections of the
Constitution of India
The Constitution of India is the supreme law of India, legal document of India, and the longest written national constitution in the world. The document lays down the framework that demarcates fundamental political code, structure, procedures ...
that prescribe the fundamental obligations of the states to its citizens and the duties and the rights of the citizens to the State.
These sections are considered vital elements of the constitution, which was developed between 1949 by the
Constituent Assembly of India.
The
''Fundamental Rights'' are defined in Part III of the Indian Constitution from article 12 to 35 and applied irrespective of race, birth place, religion,
caste
A caste is a Essentialism, fixed social group into which an individual is born within a particular system of social stratification: a caste system. Within such a system, individuals are expected to marry exclusively within the same caste (en ...
, creed, sex, gender, and equality of opportunity in matters of employment. They are enforceable by the courts, subject to specific restrictions.
The
''Directive Principles of State Policy'' are guidelines for the framing of laws by the government. These provisions, set out in Part IV of the Constitution, are not enforceable by the courts, but the principles on which they are based are fundamental guidelines for governance that the State is expected to apply in framing any policies and passing of laws.
The ''Fundamental Duties'' are defined as the moral obligations of all citizens to help promote a spirit of patriotism and to uphold the unity of India. These duties set out in Part IV–A of the Constitution, concern individuals and the nation. Like the Directive Principles, they are not enforceable by courts unless otherwise made enforceable by parliamentary law.
History
The Fundamental Rights and Directive Principles had their origins in the
India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
n independence movement, which strove to achieve the limits of liberty and social welfare as the goals of an independent Indian state. The development of constitutional rights in India was inspired by historical documents such as England's Bill of Rights, the
United States Bill of Rights
The United States Bill of Rights comprises the first ten list of amendments to the United States Constitution, amendments to the United States Constitution. It was proposed following the often bitter 1787–88 debate over the Timeline of dr ...
and
France's Declaration of the Rights of Man. The demand for civil liberties formed an important part of the Indian independence movement, with one of the objectives of the
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party, or simply the Congress, is a political parties in India, political party in India with deep roots in most regions of India. Founded on 28 December 1885, it was the first mo ...
(INC) being to end discrimination between the
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies.
* British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...
rulers and their Indian subjects. This demand was explicitly mentioned in resolutions adopted by the INC between 1917 and 1919. The demands articulated in these resolutions included granting to Indians the rights to equality before the law, free speech, trial by juries composed at least half of Indian members, political power, and equal terms for bearing arms as British citizens.
The unsatisfactory
Montagu–Chelmsford Reforms
The Montagu–Chelmsford Reforms or more concisely the Mont–Ford Reforms, were introduced by the colonial government to introduce self-governing institutions gradually in British India. The reforms take their name from Edwin Montagu, the Sec ...
of 1919, and the rise to prominence of
M. K. Gandhi in the Indian independence movement marked a change in the attitude of its leaders towards articulating demands for civil rights. The focus shifted from demanding equality of status between Indians and the British to assuring liberty for all Indians. The Commonwealth of India Bill, drafted by
Annie Besant in 1925, specifically included demands for seven fundamental rights – individual liberty,
freedom of conscience, free expression of opinion,
freedom of assembly
Freedom of assembly, sometimes used interchangeably with the freedom of association, is the individual right or ability of individuals to peaceably assemble and collectively express, promote, pursue, and defend their ideas. The right to free ...
, non-discrimination on the ground of sex, free elementary education and free use of public spaces. In 1927, the INC resolved to set up a committee to draft a "Swaraj Constitution" for India based on a declaration of rights that would provide safeguards against oppression. The 11-member committee, led by
Motilal Nehru, was constituted in 1928. Its report made a number of recommendations, including proposing guaranteed fundamental rights to all Indians. These rights resembled those of the
American Constitution and those adopted by post-war European countries, and several of them were adopted from the 1925 Bill. Several of these provisions were later replicated in various parts of the Indian Constitution, including the Fundamental Right itself to the defence of civil rights and economic freedom, with the stated objectives of putting an end to exploitation, providing social security and implementing land reforms. Other new rights proposed by the resolution were the prohibition of State titles,
universal adult franchise, the abolition of capital punishment and freedom of movement. Drafted by
Jawaharlal Nehru
Jawaharlal Nehru (14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat, and statesman who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20th century. Nehru was a pr ...
, the resolution, which later formed the basis for some of the Directive Principles, placed the primary responsibility of carrying out social reform on the State, and marked the increasing influence of socialism and Gandhian philosophy on the independence movement. The final phase of the Independence movement saw a reiteration of the socialist principles of the 1930s, along with an increased focus on minority rights – which had become an issue of major political concern by then – which were published in the
Sapru Report in 1945. The report, apart from stressing on protecting the rights of minorities, also sought to prescribe a "The Fundamental Rights and Directive Principles had their origins in the Indian independence movement, which strove to achieve the values of liberty and social welfare as the goals of an independent Indian state. The development of constitutional rights in India was inspired by historical documents such as England's Bill of Rights, the United States Bill of Rights and France's Declaration of the Rights of Man. The demand for civil liberties formed an important part of the Indian independence movement, with one of the objectives of the Indian National Congress (INC) being to end discrimination between the British rulers and their Indian subjects. This demand was explicitly mentioned in resolutions adopted by the INC between 1917 and 1919. The demands articulated in these resolutions included granting to Indians the rights to equality before the law, free speech, trial by juries composed at least half of Indian members, political power, and equal terms for bearing arms as British citizens. standard of conduct for the legislatures, government and the courts".
During the final stages of the
British Raj
The British Raj ( ; from Hindustani language, Hindustani , 'reign', 'rule' or 'government') was the colonial rule of the British The Crown, Crown on the Indian subcontinent,
*
* lasting from 1858 to 1947.
*
* It is also called Crown rule ...
, the
1946 Cabinet Mission to India
A cabinet mission went to India on 24 March 1946 to discuss the transfer of power from the British government to the Indian political leadership with the aim of preserving India's unity and granting its independence. Formed at the initiative of ...
proposed a Constituent Assembly to draft a Constitution for India as part of the process of transfer of power. The Constituent Assembly of India, composed of indirectly elected representatives from the
British provinces and
Princely states, commenced its proceedings in December 1946, and completed drafting the Constitution of India by November 1949. According to the Cabinet Mission plan, the Assembly was to have an Advisory Committee to advise it on the nature and extent of
fundamental rights, protection of minorities and administration of tribal areas. Accordingly, the Advisory Committee was constituted in January 1947 with 64 members, and from among these a twelve-member sub-committee on Fundamental Rights was appointed under the chairmanship of
J. B. Kripalani in February 1947. The sub-committee drafted the Fundamental Rights and submitted its report to the committee by April 1947, and later that month the Committee placed it before the Assembly, which debated and discussed the rights over the course of the following year, adopting the drafts of most of them by, December 1948. The drafting of the Fundamental Rights was influenced by the adoption of the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is an international document adopted by the United Nations General Assembly that enshrines the Human rights, rights and freedoms of all human beings. Drafted by a UN Drafting of the Universal D ...
by the
U.N. General Assembly and the activities of the
United Nations Human Rights Commission, as well as decisions of the
U.S. Supreme Court in interpreting the Bill of Rights in the
American Constitution. The Directive Principles, which were also drafted by the sub-committee on Fundamental Rights, expounded the socialist precepts of the Indian independence movement, and were inspired by similar principles contained in the
Irish Constitution. The Fundamental Duties were later added to the Constitution by the
42nd Amendment in 1976.
Fundamental Rights
The Fundamental Rights, embodied in Part III of the Constitution, guarantee civil rights to all Indians and prevent the State from encroaching an individual's liberty while simultaneously placing upon it an obligation to protect the citizens' rights from encroachment by society.
Seven main fundamental rights were originally provided by the Constitution:
# Right to equality 2. Right to freedom 3. Right against exploitation 4. Right to freedom of religion 5. Cultural and 6. Educational rights, and 7. Right to constitutional remedies.
However, the right to property was removed from Part III of the Constitution by the
44th Amendment in 1978.
The purpose of the Fundamental Rights is to preserve individual liberty and democratic principles based on equality of all members of society. Dr. Ambedkar said that the responsibility of the legislature is not just to provide fundamental rights but also and rather, more importantly, to safeguard them.
They act as limitations on the powers of the legislature and executive, under Article 13,
and in case of any violation of these rights the
Supreme Court of India
The Supreme Court of India is the supreme judiciary of India, judicial authority and the supreme court, highest court of the Republic of India. It is the final Appellate court, court of appeal for all civil and criminal cases in India. It also ...
and the
High Courts of the states have the power to declare such legislative or executive action as unconstitutional and void. These rights are largely enforceable against the State, which as per the wide definition provided in Article 12, includes not only the legislative and executive wings of the federal and state governments, but also local administrative authorities and other agencies and institutions which discharge public functions or are of a governmental character.
However, there are certain rights – such as those in Articles 15, 17, 18, 23, 24 – that are also available against private individuals. Further, certain Fundamental Rights – including those under Articles 14, 20, 21, 25 – apply to persons of any nationality upon Indian soil, while others – such as those under Articles 15, 16, 19, 30 – are applicable only to
citizens of India.
The Fundamental Rights are not absolute and are subject to reasonable restrictions as necessary for the protection of public interest.
In the ''
Kesavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala'' case in 1973,
the Supreme Court, overruling a previous decision of 1967, held that the Fundamental Rights could be amended, subject to judicial review in case such an amendment violated the
basic structure of the Constitution. The Fundamental Rights can be enhanced, removed or otherwise altered through a
constitutional amendment
A constitutional amendment (or constitutional alteration) is a modification of the constitution of a polity, organization or other type of entity. Amendments are often interwoven into the relevant sections of an existing constitution, directly alt ...
, passed by a two-thirds majority of each
House of Parliament. The imposition of a
state of emergency
A state of emergency is a situation in which a government is empowered to put through policies that it would normally not be permitted to do, for the safety and protection of its citizens. A government can declare such a state before, during, o ...
may lead to a temporary suspension any of the Fundamental Rights, excluding Articles 20 and 21, by order of the President. The President may, by order, suspend the right to constitutional remedies as well, thereby barring citizens from approaching the Supreme Court for the enforcement of any of the Fundamental Rights, except Articles 20 and 21, during the period of the emergency. Parliament may also restrict the application of the Fundamental Rights to members of the
Indian Armed Forces
The Indian Armed Forces are the armed forces, military forces of the India, Republic of India. It consists of three professional uniformed services: the Indian Army, the Indian Navy, and the Indian Air Force.—— Additionally, the Indian Ar ...
and the police, in order to ensure proper discharge of their duties and the maintenance of discipline, by a law made under Article 33.
Directive Principles of State Policy
The Directive Principles of State Policy, embodied in Part IV of the Constitution, are directions given to the state to guide the establishment of an economic and social democracy, as proposed by the
Preamble
A preamble () is an introductory and expressionary statement in a document that explains the document's purpose and underlying philosophy. When applied to the opening paragraphs of a statute, it may recite historical facts pertinent to the su ...
.
They set forth the
humanitarian and
socialist
Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...
instructions that were the aim of social revolution envisaged in India by the Constituent Assembly. The state is expected to keep these principles in mind while framing laws and policies, even though they are
non-justiciable in nature. The Directive Principles may be classified under the following categories: ideals that the state ought to strive towards achieving; directions for the exercise of legislative and executive power; and rights of the citizens which the State must aim towards securing.
Despite being non-justiciable, the Directive Principles act as a check on the state; theorised as a yardstick in the hands of the electorate and the opposition to measure the performance of a government at the time of an election. Article 37, while stating that the Directive Principles are not enforceable in any court of law, declares them to be "fundamental to the governance of the country" and imposes an obligation on the State to apply them in matters of legislation. Thus, they serve to emphasise the
welfare state
A welfare state is a form of government in which the State (polity), state (or a well-established network of social institutions) protects and promotes the economic and social well-being of its citizens, based upon the principles of equal oppor ...
model of the Constitution and emphasise the positive duty of the state to promote the welfare of the people by affirming social, economic and political justice, as well as to fight
income inequality and ensure individual dignity, as mandated.
Article 39 lays down certain principles of policy to be followed by the State, including providing an adequate means of livelihood for all citizens,
equal pay for equal work for men and women, proper working conditions, reduction of the concentration of wealth and means of production from the hands of a few, and distribution of community resources to "subserve the common good". These clauses highlight the Constitutional objectives of building an
egalitarian
Egalitarianism (; also equalitarianism) is a school of thought within political philosophy that builds on the concept of social equality, prioritizing it for all people. Egalitarian doctrines are generally characterized by the idea that all h ...
social order and establishing a welfare state, by bringing about a social revolution assisted by the State, and have been used to support the
nationalisation of mineral resources as well as public utilities. Further, several legislation pertaining to
agrarian reform
Land reform (also known as agrarian reform) involves the changing of laws, regulations, or customs regarding land ownership, land use, and land transfers. The reforms may be initiated by governments, by interested groups, or by revolution.
Lan ...
and
land tenure
In Common law#History, common law systems, land tenure, from the French verb "" means "to hold", is the legal regime in which land "owned" by an individual is possessed by someone else who is said to "hold" the land, based on an agreement betw ...
have been enacted by the federal and state governments, in order to ensure equitable distribution of land resources.
Articles 41–43 mandate the State to endeavour to secure to all citizens the
right to work
The right to work is the concept that people have a human right to work, or to engage in productive employment, and should not be prevented from doing so. The right to work, enshrined in the United Nations 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Ri ...
, a
living wage,
social security
Welfare spending is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specifically to social insurance ...
,
maternity relief, and a decent
standard of living
Standard of living is the level of income, comforts and services available to an individual, community or society. A contributing factor to an individual's quality of life, standard of living is generally concerned with objective metrics outsid ...
. These provisions aim at establishing a socialist state as envisaged in the Preamble.
Article 43 also places upon the State the responsibility of promoting
cottage industries
The putting-out system is a means of subcontracting work, like a tailor. Historically, it was also known as the workshop system and the domestic system. In putting-out, work is contracted by a central agent to subcontractors who complete the p ...
, and the federal government has, in furtherance of this, established several Boards for the promotion of
khadi,
handloom
A loom is a device used to weaving, weave cloth and tapestry. The basic purpose of any loom is to hold the Warp (weaving), warp threads under tension (mechanics), tension to facilitate the interweaving of the weft threads. The precise shape of ...
s etc., in coordination with the state governments. Article 39A requires the State to provide free
legal aid to ensure that opportunities for securing justice are available to all citizens irrespective of economic or other disabilities. Article 43A mandates the State to work towards securing the participation of workers in the management of industries.
The State, under Article 46, is also mandated to promote the interests of and work for the economic uplift of the
scheduled castes and scheduled tribes and protect them from discrimination and exploitation. Several enactments, including two Constitutional amendments, have been passed to give effect to this provision.
Article 44 encourages the State to secure a
uniform civil code for all citizens, by eliminating discrepancies between various
personal laws currently in force in the country. However, this has remained a "dead letter" despite numerous reminders from the Supreme Court to implement the provision. Article 45 originally mandated the State to provide free and compulsory education to children between the ages of six and fourteen years, but after the 86th Amendment in 2002, this has been converted into a Fundamental Right and replaced by an obligation upon the State to secure childhood care to all children below the age of six.
[86th Amendment Act, 2002]
.
Article 47 commits the State to raise the standard of living and improve public health, and prohibit the consumption of
intoxicating drinks and drugs injurious to health. As a consequence, partial or total
prohibition
Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic b ...
has been introduced in several states, but financial constraints have prevented its full-fledged application. The State is also mandated by
Article 48 to organise agriculture and
animal husbandry
Animal husbandry is the branch of agriculture concerned with animals that are raised for meat, animal fiber, fibre, milk, or other products. It includes day-to-day care, management, production, nutrition, selective breeding, and the raising ...
on modern and scientific lines by improving breeds and
prohibiting slaughter of cattle. Article 48A mandates the State to
protect the environment and safeguard the forests and wildlife of the country, while Article 49 places an obligation upon the State to ensure the preservation of monuments and objects of national importance. Article 50 requires the State to ensure the separation of judiciary from executive in public services, in order to ensure
judicial independence
Judicial independence is the concept that the judiciary should be independent from the other branches of government. That is, courts should not be subject to improper influence from the other branches of government or from private or partisan inte ...
, and federal legislation has been enacted to achieve this objective. The State, according to
Article 51, must also strive for the promotion of international peace and security, and Parliament has been empowered under Article 253 to make laws giving effect to
international treaties.
Fundamental Duties
The
fundamental duties of citizens were added to the constitution by the 42nd Amendment in 1976, upon the recommendations of the
Swaran Singh Committee that was constituted by the government earlier that year.
Originally ten in number, the fundamental duties were increased to eleven by the 86th Amendment in 2002, which added a duty on every parent or guardian to ensure that their child or ward was provided opportunities for education between the ages of six and fourteen years.
The other fundamental duties obligate all citizens to respect the national symbols of India, including the constitution, to cherish its
heritage
Heritage may refer to:
History and society
* A heritage asset A heritage asset is an item which has value because of its contribution to a nation's society, knowledge and/or culture. Such items are usually physical assets, but some countries also ...
, preserve its
composite culture and assist in its
defence. They also obligate all Indians to promote the spirit of common brotherhood, protect the environment and public property, develop
scientific temper, abjure violence, and strive towards excellence in all spheres of life.
In case of violation of fundamental duties enshrined in the constitution by a citizen including
President,
Vice President
A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...
,
Speaker,
parliament members,
state legislative members, etc., it amounts to contempt of the constitution which is punishable under
Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act, 1971. Supreme court has ruled that these fundamental duties can also help the court to decide the constitutionality of a law passed by the legislature. There is reference to such duties in international instruments such as the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is an international document adopted by the United Nations General Assembly that enshrines the Human rights, rights and freedoms of all human beings. Drafted by a UN Drafting of the Universal D ...
and
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) is a multilateral treaty that commits nations to respect the civil and political rights of individuals, including the right to life, freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom ...
, and Article 51A brings the Indian constitution into conformity with these treaties.
The fundamental duties noted in the constitution are as follows:
It shall be the duty of every citizen of India —
# To abide by the Constitution and respect its ideals and institutions, the National Flag and the National Anthem;
# To cherish and follow the noble ideals which inspired our national struggle for freedom;
# To uphold and protect the sovereignty, unity, and integrity of India;
# To defend the country and render national service when called upon to do so;
# To promote harmony and the spirit of common brotherhood amongst all the people of India transcending religious, linguistic, and regional or sectional diversities; to renounce practices derogatory to the dignity of women;
# To value and preserve the rich heritage of our composite culture;
# To protect and improve the natural environment including forests, lakes, rivers, wildlife and to have compassion for living creatures;
# To develop the scientific temper, humanism, and the spirit of inquiry and reform;
# To safeguard public property and to abjure violence;
# To strive towards excellence in all spheres of individual and collective activity so that the nation constantly rises to higher levels of endeavor and achievement;
# Who is a parent or guardian, to provide opportunities for education to his child, or as the case may be, ward between the age of six to fourteen years.
Criticism and analysis
Children are now unemployed in hazardous environments, but their employment in hazardous jobs, prevalently as domestic help, violates the spirit of the constitution in the eyes of many critics and human rights advocates. 16.5 million children are in employment. India was ranked 88 out of 159 countries in 2005, according to the degree to which
corruption
Corruption is a form of dishonesty or a criminal offense that is undertaken by a person or an organization that is entrusted in a position of authority to acquire illicit benefits or abuse power for one's gain. Corruption may involve activities ...
is perceived to exist among public officials and politicians.
The year 1990–1991 was declared as the "Year of Social Justice" in the memory of B.R. Ambedkar. The government provides free textbooks to students belonging to scheduled castes and tribes pursuing medicine and engineering courses. During 2002–2003, a sum of
Rs. 4.77 crore (47.7 million) was released for this purpose.
[Tayal, B.B. & Jacob, A. (2005), ''Indian History, World Developments and Civics'', p. A-45] In order to protect scheduled castes and tribes from discrimination, the government enacted the
, prescribing severe punishments for such actions.
The
''Minimum Wages Act'' of 1948 empowers government to fix minimum wages for people working across the economic spectrum. The ''
Consumer Protection Act of 1986'' provides for the better protection of consumers. The ''Equal Remuneration Act'' of 1976 provides for equal pay for equal work for both men and women. The ''
Sampoorna Grameen Rozgar Yojana'' (Universal Rural Employment Program) was launched in 2001 to attain the objective of providing gainful employment for the rural poor. The program was implemented through the
Panchayati Raj institutions.
A system of elected village councils, known as
Panchayati Raj covers almost all
states and territories of India
India is a federalism, federal union comprising 28 federated state, states and 8 union territory, union territories, for a total of 36 subnational entities. The states and union territories are further subdivided into 800 List of districts ...
. One-third of the total of number of seats have been reserved for women in Panchayats at every level; and in the case of
Bihar
Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, the List of states and union territories of India by are ...
, half the seats have been reserved for women. The judiciary has been separated from the executive "in all the states and territories except
Jammu and Kashmir and
Nagaland
Nagaland () is a States and union territories of India, state in the northeast India, north-eastern region of India. It is bordered by the Indian states of Arunachal Pradesh to the north, Assam to the west, Manipur to the south, and the Naga Sel ...
."
India supported the
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...
in peace-keeping activities, with the
Indian Army
The Indian Army (IA) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the Land warfare, land-based branch and largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Commander-in-Chief, Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head ...
having participated in 37 UN peace-keeping operations.
The implementation of a
uniform civil code for all citizens has not been achieved owing to widespread opposition from various religious groups and
political parties
A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular area's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or p ...
. The
Shah Bano case (1985–86) provoked a political firestorm in India when the Supreme Court ruled that
Shah Bano, a Muslim woman who had been divorced by her husband in 1978 was entitled to receive
alimony
Alimony, also called aliment (Scotland), maintenance (England, Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland, Wales, Canada, New Zealand), spousal support (U.S., Canada) and spouse maintenance (Australia), is a legal obligation on a person to provide ...
from her former husband under Indian law applicable for all Indian women. This decision evoked outrage in the Muslim community, which sought the application of the
Muslim personal law and in response the Parliament passed the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act, 1986 overturning the Supreme Court's verdict.
This act provoked further outrage, as jurists, critics and politicians alleged that the fundamental right of equality for all citizens irrespective of religion or gender was being jettisoned to preserve the interests of distinct religious communities. The verdict and the legislation remain a source of heated debate, with many citing the issue as a prime example of the poor implementation of Fundamental Rights.
Per
Article 38 (1),
prompt rendering of the justice by courts is part of animating judiciary. Rendering prompt justice is the foremost purpose of the constitution as enshrined in the
Preamble to the Constitution also. However the judiciary is failing in this respect by causing inordinate delay considering time of rendering justice in a case arbitrarily is its constitutional liberty.
Most of the fundamental rights are violated in courtrooms in either criminal cases or civil cases. Before they get into the court with their matters everyone should be aware of these 5 writs which are 1. Habeas Corpus, 2. Mandamus, 3. Certiorari, 4. Prohibition, 5. Quo Warranto.
Relationship between the Fundamental Rights, Directive Principles and Fundamental Duties
The Directive Principles have been used to uphold the Constitutional validity of legislations in case of a conflict with the Fundamental Rights. Article 31C, added by the 25th Amendment in 1971, provided that any law made to give effect to the Directive Principles in Article 39(b)–(c) would not be invalid on the grounds that they derogated from the Fundamental Rights conferred by Articles 14, 19 and 21. The application of this article was sought to be extended to all the Directive Principles by the 42nd Amendment in 1976, but the Supreme Court struck down the extension as void on the ground that it violated the basic structure of the Constitution. The Fundamental Rights and Directive Principles have also been used together in forming the basis of legislation for
social welfare
Welfare spending is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specifically to social insurance p ...
. The Supreme Court, after the judgment in the ''
Kesavananda Bharati'' case, has adopted the view of the Fundamental Rights and Directive Principles being complementary to each other, each supplementing the other's role in aiming at the same goal of establishing a welfare state by means of social revolution.
Similarly, the Supreme Court has used the Fundamental Duties to uphold the Constitutional validity of statutes which seeks to promote the objects laid out in the Fundamental Duties.
These Duties have also been held to be obligatory for all citizens, subject to the State enforcing the same by means of a valid law.
The Supreme Court has also issued directions to the State in this regard, with a view towards making the provisions effective and enabling citizens to properly perform their duties.
See also
*
Fundamental Rights in India
*
Writs in Indian law
*
Human rights in India
*
Constitutional economics
Constitutional economics is a research program in economics and constitutionalism that has been described as explaining the choice "of alternative sets of legal-institutional-constitutional rules that constrain the choices and activities of econom ...
*
Rule according to higher law
The rule according to a higher law is a philosophical concept that no law may be enforced by the government unless it conforms with certain universal principles (written or unwritten) of fairness, morality, and justice. Thus, ''the rule accordin ...
Notes
References
Footnotes
Bibliography
*
*
*
Further reading
* Date of ruling 15 December 1995
*
* ''
Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India''; AIR 1978 S.C. 597, (1978).
*
*
* Article 29 of
''Universal Declaration of Human Rights and International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights''.
External links
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fundamental Rights, Directive Principles And Fundamental Duties Of India
Fundamental rights
Constitution of India
National human rights instruments