Fundamental Rights, Directive Principles and

Fundamental Duties of India

The Fundamental Rights, Directive Principles of State Policy and Fundamental Duties are
sections of the Constitution of India that prescribe the fundamental obligations of the State to its
citizens and the duties of the citizens to the State. [note 1]These sections comprise a constitutional bill of
rights for government policy-making and the behaviour and conduct of citizens. These sections are
considered vital elements of the constitution, which was developed between 1947 and 1949 by
the Constituent Assembly of India.
The Fundamental Rights are defined as the basic human rights of all citizens. These rights, defined
in Part III of the Constitution, apply irrespective of race, place of birth, religion, caste, creed or sex.
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 and passing
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 IVA of the Constitution,
concern individuals and the nation. Like the Directive Principles, they are not legally enforceable.

HISTORY
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.[1] 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historical documents such as England's Bill of Rights, the United States Bill of Rights and France's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.[2] 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. [3]
The experiences of the First World War, the unsatisfactory Montague-Chelmsford reforms 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. [5] The
Commonwealth of India Bill, drafted by Annie Beasant in 1925, specifically included demands for
seven fundamental rights individual liberty, freedom of conscience, free expression of
opinion, freedom of assembly, non-discrimination on the ground of sex, free elementary education
and free use of public spaces.[6] 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
Indian.
In 1931, the Indian National Congress, at its Karachi session, adopted a resolution committing 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, abolition of capital
punishment and freedom of movement.[8] Drafted by Jawaharlal Nehru, 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. [9] 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 "standard of conduct for the legislatures, government and the courts". [10]
During the final stages of the British Raj, the 1946 Cabinet Mission to India proposed a Constituent
Assembly to draft a Constitution for India as part of the process of transfer of power.[11] 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. [12] . Accordingly, the Advisory Committee was
constituted in January 1947 with 64 members, and from among these a twelve-member subcommittee on Fundamental Rights was appointed under the chairmanship of J.B. Kripalani in
February 1947.[13] The drafting of the Fundamental Rights was influenced by the adoption of
the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the U.N. General Assembly and the activities of
the United Nations Human Rights Commission,[15] as well as decisions of the U.S. Supreme Court in
interpreting the Bill of Rights in the American Constitution. [16] 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.[17] The Fundamental Duties were later added to the Constitution by the 42nd
Amendment in 1976.[18]

Fundamental RighTS
The Fundamental Rights, embodied in Part III of the Constitution, guarantee civil rights to all Indians,
and prevent the State from encroaching on individual liberty while simultaneously placing upon it an
obligation to protect the citizens' rights from encroachment by society.[19] Seven fundamental rights
were originally provided by the Constitution right to equality, right to freedom, right against
exploitation, right to freedom of religion, cultural and educational rights, right to property and right to
constitutional remedies.[20] However, the right to property was removed from Part III of the
Constitution by the 44th Amendment in 1978.[21][note 2]
The purpose of the Fundamental Rights is to preserve individual liberty and democratic principles
based on equality of all members of society.[22] They act as limitations on the powers of the legislature
and executive, under Article 13,[note 3] and in case of any violation of these rights the Supreme Court of
India and the High Courts of the states have the power to declare such legislative or executive action
as unconstitutional and void.[23]

Right to Equality
. It is embodied in Articles 1416, which collectively encompass the general principles of equality
before law and non-discrimination,[33] and Articles 1718 which collectively further the philosophy of
social equality.[34] Article 14 guarantees equality before law as well as equal protection of the law to
all persons within the territory of India.[note 5] This includes the equal subjection of all persons to the
authority of law, as well as equal treatment of persons in similar circumstances. [35]
Article 15 prohibits discrimination on the grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth, or
any of them. However, the State is not precluded from making special provisions for women and
children or any socially and educationally backward classes of citizens, including the Scheduled
Castes and Scheduled Tribes. This exception has been provided since the classes of people
mentioned therein are considered deprived and in need of special protection.[38] Article 16 guarantees
equality of opportunity in matters of public employment and prevents the State from discriminating
against anyone in matters of employment on the grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex, descent,
place of birth, place of residence or any of them. The practice of untouchability has been declared an

offence punishable by law under Article 17, and the Protection of Civil Rights Act, 1955 has been
enacted by the Parliament to further this objective. [34] Article 18 prohibits the State from conferring
any titles other than military or academic distinctions, and the citizens of India cannot accept titles
from a foreign state. Thus, Indian aristocratic titles and titles of nobility conferred by the British have
been abolished. However, awards such as the Bharat Ratna have been held to be valid by the
Supreme Court on the ground that they are merely decorations and cannot be used by the recipient
as a title.[40][41]

Right to Freedom
The Right to Freedom is covered in Articles 1922, with the view of guaranteeing individual rights
that were considered vital by the framers of the Constitution, and these Articles also include certain
restrictions that may be imposed by the State on individual liberty under specified conditions. Article
19 guarantees six freedoms in the nature of civil rights, which are available only to citizens of India. [42]
[43]
These include the freedom of speech and expression, freedom of assembly without
arms, freedom of association, freedom of movement throughout the territory of India,freedom to
reside and settle in any part of the country of India and the freedom to practise any profession. All
these freedoms are subject to reasonable restrictions that may imposed on them by the State, listed
under Article 19 itself. The grounds for imposing these restrictions vary according to the freedom
sought to be restricted, and include national security, public order, decency and morality, contempt of
court, incitement to offences, and defamation.
The freedoms guaranteed by Article 19 are further sought to be protected by Articles 2022. [45] The
scope of these articles, particularly with respect to the doctrine of due process, was heavily debated
by the Constituent Assembly. It was argued, especially by Benegal Narsing Rau, that the
incorporation of such a clause would hamper social legislation and cause procedural difficulties in
maintaining order, and therefore it ought to be excluded from the Constitution altogether.[46] The
Constituent Assembly in 1948 eventually omitted the phrase "due process" in favour of "procedure
established by law".[47] As a result, Article 21, which prevents the encroachment of life or personal
liberty by the State except in accordance with the procedure established by law,[note 6] was, until 1978,
construed narrowly as being restricted to executive action. However, in 1978, the Supreme Court in
the case of Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India extended the protection of Article 21 to legislative
action, holding that any law laying down a procedure must be just, fair and reasonable, [48] and
effectively reading due process into Article 21.[49] In the same case, the Supreme Court also ruled that
"life" under Article 21 meant more than a mere "animal existence"; it would include the right to live
with human dignity and all other aspects which made life "meaningful, complete and worth living".
[50]
Subsequent judicial interpretation has broadened the scope of Article 21 to include within it a
number of rights including those to livelihood, clean environment, good health, speedy trial and
humanitarian treatment while imprisoned.

Right against Exploitation

The Right against Exploitation, contained in Articles 2324, lays down certain provisions to prevent
exploitation of the weaker sections of the society by individuals or the State. [58] Article 23 provides
prohibits human trafficking, making it an offence punishable by law, and also prohibitsforced
labour or any act of compelling a person to work without wages where he was legally entitled not to
work or to receive remuneration for it. However, it permits the State to impose compulsory service for
public purposes, including conscription and community service.[59][60] The Bonded Labour system
(Abolition) Act, 1976, has been enacted by Parliament to give effect to this Article. [61] Article 24
prohibits the employment of children below the age of 14 years in factories, mines and other
hazardous jobs. Parliament has enacted the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986,
providing regulations for the abolition of, and penalties for employing, child labour, as well as
provisions for rehabilitation of former child labourers. [62]

Right to Freedom of Religion[edit]

See also: Secularism in India

The Right to Freedom of Religion, covered in Articles 2528, provides religious freedom to all
citizens and ensures a secular state in India. According to the Constitution, there is no official State
religion, and the State is required to treat all religions impartially and neutrally.[63] Article 25
guarantees all persons the freedom of conscience and the right to preach, practice and propagate
any religion of their choice. This right is, however, subject to public order, morality and health, and
the power of the State to take measures for social welfare and reform. The right to propagate,
however, does not include the right to convert another individual, since it would amount to an
infringement of the other's right to freedom of conscience. [65] Article 26 guarantees all religious
denominations and sects, subject to public order, morality and health, to manage their own affairs in
matters of religion, set up institutions of their own for charitable or religious purposes, and own,
acquire and manage property in accordance with law. Article 27 guarantees that no person can be
compelled to pay taxes for the promotion of any particular religion or religious institution. [67]Article 28
prohibits religious instruction in a wholly State-funded educational institution, and educational
institutions receiving aid from the State cannot compel any of their members to receive religious
instruction or attend religious worship without their (or their guardian's) consent. [63]

Cultural and Educational Rights[edit]

The Cultural and Educational rights, given in Articles 29 and 30, are measures to protect the rights of
cultural, linguistic and religious minorities, by enabling them to conserve their heritage and protecting
them against discrimination.[68] Article 29 grants any section of citizens having a distinct language,
script culture of its own, the right to conserve and develop the same, and thus safeguards the rights
of minorities by preventing the State from imposing any external culture on them. [68][69] It also prohibits
discrimination against any citizen for admission into any educational institutions maintained or aided
by the State, on the grounds only of religion, race, caste, language or any of them. However, this is
subject to reservation of a reasonable number of seats by the State for socially and educationally
backward classes, as well as reservation of up to 50 percent of seats in any educational institution
run by a minority community for citizens belonging to that community.[70]
Article 30 confers upon all religious and linguistic minorities the right to set up and administer
educational institutions of their choice in order to preserve and develop their own culture, and
prohibits the State, while granting aid, from discriminating against any institution on the basis of the
fact that it is administered by a religious or cultural minority.[69]The term "minority", while not defined in
the Constitution, has been interpreted by the Supreme Court to mean any community which
numerically forms less than 50% of the population of the state in which it seeks to avail the right
under Article 30.

Right to Constitutional Remedies[edit]

The Right to Constitutional Remedies empowers citizens to approach the Supreme Court of India to
seek enforcement, or protection against infringement, of their Fundamental Rights. [73] Article 32
provides a guaranteed remedy, in the form of a Fundamental Right itself, for enforcement of all the
other Fundamental Rights, and the Supreme Court is designated as the protector of these rights by
the Constitution.[74] The Supreme Court has been empowered to issue writs, namely habeas
corpus, mandamus, prohibition,certiorari and quo warranto, for the enforcement of the Fundamental
Rights, while the High Courts have been empowered under Article 226 which is not a Fundamental
Right in itself to issue these prerogative writs even in cases not involving the violation of
Fundamental Rights.[75] The Supreme Court has the jurisdiction to enforce the Fundamental Rights
even against private bodies, and in case of any violation, award compensation as well to the affected
individual. Exercise of jurisdiction by the Supreme Court can also besuo motu or on the basis of
a public interest litigation.[73] This right cannot be suspended, except under the provisions of Article
359 when a state of emergency is declared.[74]

Directive Principles of State Policy[edit]

Main article: Directive Principles in India

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.[76] They set forth the humanitarian and socialist instructions that were the aim of social
revolution envisaged in India by the Constituent Assembly.[77] 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. [76]
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. [78] 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. [79] Thus, they serve to
emphasise the welfare statemodel 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
fightincome inequality and ensure individual dignity, as mandated by Article 38. [80][81]
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".

Fundamental Duties[edit]
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.[18][99] 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.
[52]
The other Fundamental Duties obligate all citizens to respect the national symbols of India,
including the Constitution, to cherish its heritage, preserve its composite culture and assist in it
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. [100] Citizens are morally obligated by the Constitution to perform these
duties. However, like the Directive Principles, these are non-justifiable, without any legal sanction in
case of their violation or non-compliance.[99] The Fundamental Duties noted in the constitution are as
follows:[102]
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 value and preserve the rich heritage of our composite culture;

to protect and improve the natural environment including forests, lakes, rivers and wild life,
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;

Criticism and analysis[edit]

Fewer children are now employed in hazardous environments, but their employment in nonhazardous jobs, prevalently as domestic help, violates the spirit of the constitution in the eyes of
many critics and human rights advocates. More than 16.5 million children are in employment.
[103]
India was ranked 88 out of 159 countries in 2005, according to the degree to which corruption is
perceived to exist among public officials and politicians. [104] The year 19901991 was declared as the
"Year of Social Justice" in the memory of B.R. Ambedkar.[105] The government provides free textbooks
to students belonging to scheduled castes and tribes pursuing medicine and engineering courses.
During 20022003, a sum of Rs. 4.77 crore (47.7 million) was released for this purpose. [106] In order
to protect scheduled castes and tribes from discrimination, the government enacted the Scheduled
Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, prescribing severe punishments for
such actions.[107]
The Minimum Wages Act of 1948 empowers government to fix minimum wages for people working
across the economic spectrum.[108] The Consumer Protection Act of 1986provides for the better
protection of consumers. The Equal Remuneration Act of 1976 provides for equal pay for equal work
for both men and women.
A system of elected village councils, known as Panchayati Raj covers almost all states and territories
of India.[111] One-third of the total number of seats have been reserved for women in Panchayats at
every level; and in the case of Bihar, half the seats have been reserved for women.[112][113] The
judiciary has been separated from the executive "in all the states and territories except Jammu and
Kashmir and Nagaland."[106] .[114]
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. The Shah Bano
case (198586) 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 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. [115]

Relationship between the Fundamental Rights, Directive

Principles and Fundamental Duties[edit]
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 31.
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.[116] The Fundamental Rights and Directive Principles
have also been used together in forming the basis of legislation for social welfare.[117] The Supreme
Court, after the judgement 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.[118] 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.[119] .[