According to John Locke, the “common good” or “good of mankind” is the
goal of the state. A state is an entity that is created to preserve the life and
uphold the dignity of its citizens. Its goal is to uphold the rights of each
individual in order to preserve their lifestyle and sense of dignity. If the state
is not performing its duty, an individual cannot have rights.
The Supreme Court noted that Part III’s goal is to defend the freedoms and
liberties granted by this section from state incursion. The themes of human
rights, individual dignity, and national unity and dignity are present in Parts
III and IV. These components function as the state’s respective Positive Duty,
which is to act for the welfare of the Person, and Negative Obligation, which
is not to interfere with the Individual’s Liberty.
Definition & Essentials
“In this part, unless the context otherwise requires, “the State” includes the
Government and Parliament of India and the Government and the Legislature
of each of the States and all local or other authorities within the territory of
India or under the
control of the Government of India.”
According to Article 12 the term ‘State’ includes:
1. Government (Union and state) Government:
the institutions of society that make laws, such as the legislative, executive,
and judicial branches as well as the administrative and executive branches.
The legislative branch is made up of the lower house, Lok Sabha, and the
upper house, Rajya Sabha. The president of India is the head of state and
can wield power either directly or through officers who report to him. The
Judiciary is comprised of the Supreme Court, High Courts, and numerous
district-level civil, criminal, and family courts.
2. Parliament and State Legislature
Parliament: The parliament comprises of the President of India, the lower
house of the parliament that is the Lok Sabha as well as the upper house of
the Parliament, that is the Rajya Sabha. State Legislature: The legislative
body at the state level is the State Legislature. It comprises of the state
legislative assembly and the state legislative council.
3. Local Authorities
According to Webster’s Dictionary; “Authority” meansa person or body
exercising power to command. When read under Article 12, the word
authority means the power to make laws (or orders, regulations, bye-laws,
notification etc.) which have the force of law. It also includes the power to
enforce those laws.
The term Local authority includes the following:
a. Local government: According to Entry 5 of the List II of VII Schedule ‘local
government’ includes a municipal corporation, improvement trust, district
boards, mining settlement authorities and other local authorities for the
purpose of local self-government or village administration.
b. Village Panchayat: In the case of Ajit Singh v. State of Punjab AIR 1996 (2)
SCC 215 , it was held that within the meaning of the term local authority,
village panchayat is also included.
In Mohammad Yasin v. Town Area Committee AIR 1952 SC 115, the Supreme
Court held that to be characterized as a ‘local authority’ the authority
concerned must;
Have a separate legal existence as a corporate body
Not be a mere government agency but must be legally an independent
entity
Function in a defined area
Be wholly or partly, directly or indirectly, elected by the inhabitants of the
area
Enjoy a certain degree of autonomy (complete or partial)
4. Other Authorities
In Rajasthan Electricity Board v. Mohan Lal AIR 1967 SC 1857 , the Supreme
Court held that ‘other authorities’ would include all authorities created by the
constitution or statute on whom powers are conferred by law.
Such statutory authority need not be engaged in performing government or
sovereign functions. The court emphasized that it is immaterial that the
power conferred on the body is of a commercial nature or not.
5. Territory of India
Article 1(3) of the Constitution of India states that; “The territory of India
shall comprise-(a)the territories of the States;(b) the Union territories
specified in the First Schedule; and (c) such other territories as may be
acquired.” In the case of Masthan Sahib v. Chief Commissioner, the court
held that the territory of India for the purposes of Article 12 means the
territory of India as defined in Article 1(3).
6. Control of the government of India
Under Article 12, the control of the Government does not necessarily mean
that the body must be under the absolute direction of the government. It
merely means that the government must have some form of control over the
functioning of the [Link] because a body is a statutory body, does not
mean that it is ‘State’. Both statutory, as well as non-statutory bodies, can be
considered as a ‘State’ if they get financial resources from the government
and the government exercises a deep pervasive control over it.