Fundamental rights are contained in Part III of the Constitution.
These rights are vital for the development of the individual and promote his dignity and welfare.
As these rights are guaranteed by the constitution, the government can change them only through constitutional amendments.
However, the government is authorised to impose reasonable restrictions on the rights.
But whether these restrictions we reasonable or not is to be decided by the courts.

The Fundamental Rights protect the rights and liberties of the people against encroachment by the government.
The objective of the inclusion of Fundamental Rights in the Constitution is to establish 'a government of law and not of man'.
The importance of fundamental Rights was emphasised by Justice Bhagwati in Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India case thus

The Constitution classifies the Fundamental Rights into six categories.
Right to property removed from the list of Fundamental Rights by the 44th Amendment in 1978, now totally six categories in constitution.
These are:
1. Right to Equality (Articles 14-18)
2. Right to Freedom (Articles 19-22)
3. Right to Exploitation (Articles 23-24)
4. Right to Freedom of Religion(Articles 25-28)
5. Cultural and educational rights (Articles 29-30)
6. Right to Constitutional Remedies (Articles 32-35)

Below rights are given to citizens of India by liberal interpretation by various provisions of the constitution
1. Right to property
2. Implied rights
3. Right to Information
4. Right to Education

Article 14: Every citizen is assured equality before law and equal protection of law within the territory of India.
Article 15: It also implies absence of special privileges by reasons of birth, creed or the like in favour of any individual. The state cannot make any discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth .
Article 16: In matters of public employment also, all citizens are assured equality of opportunity and no person can be denied employment on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex, descent, place of birth, residence or any of them.
Article 17: To ensure genuine equality, untouchability has been abolished and its practice in any form has been made an offence punishable in accordance with law.
Article 18: abolishes all titles, except military and academic. However, the right to equality is not absolute and the state is free to make special provisions for women and children and take special steps for the advancement of the socially and educationally backward classes of citizens.

The Constitution guarantees the citizens six fundamental freedoms under Article 19 of the Constitution. These include
freedom of Speech and expression;
freedom of peaceful assembly without arms;
freedom to form association;
freedom of movement throughout the territory of India;
freedom to reside and settle in any part of India;
freedom to practice any profession and carry on any occupation, trade or business.
The original Constitution also guaranteed the Indian citizens freedom to acquire, hold and dispose of their property. However, this freedom was dropped by the Forty-fourth Amendment.

Freedom of speech and expression implies that the citizens are free to express their views, beliefs and convictions freely and without inhibitions by word of mouth, through writing, printing, pictures or any other manner.
However, this right is not absolute and reasonable restrictions can be imposed on the exercise of this right in the interest or on the grounds of security of the state; friendly relations with foreign countries; public order, decency and morality; contempt of court; defamation; incitement to offence against sovereign integrity of India.

Freedom to assemble gives the citizens the right to assemble peacefully and without arms. This also includes the right to hold public meetings and demonstrations and to take out peaceful processions.
The only restriction on the assembly is that it must be peaceful and unarmed. However, the state can impose reasonable restrictions on the freedom of the assembly in the interests of sovereignty and integrity of India or public order.

Freedom of association guarantees to all citizens the right to form associations and unions.
However, the state can impose reasonable restrictions on this freedom in the interests of sovereignty and integrity of India or public order or morality.

Freedom of movement and residence implies that the citizens are free to move throughout the territory of India and to reside and settle in any part of the territory of India.
However, the state can impose restrictions on this freedom in the interests of the general public or for the protection of the interests of any Scheduled Tribe.

Freedom of profession and trade assures all citizens the right to practice any profession or to carry on any occupation, trade, or business.
As in the case of other freedoms, this freedom can also be restricted by the state and reasonable restrictions imposed in the interest of the general public.
Thus, the state may deny to a citizen the freedom to carry on trade or business in noxious, hazardous or dangerous goods like intoxicating drugs or liquors.

Article 20
Article 20: The Constitution guards the citizens right to freedom by providing that no person shall be convicted of an offence except for the violation of law in force at the time of the commission of the act charged as an offence.
No person shall be punished for the same offence more than once and no person shall be compelled to be a witness against himself.
Article 21
Article 21: The Constitution guarantees protection of life and personal liberty except according to procedure established by law.
Article 21A: guarantees free and compulsory education to all children of the age of six to fourteen years. Citizens are assured protection against arrest and detention.
Article 22
Article 22: A citizen arrested under any law has to be informed of the grounds for his arrest, and has the right to consult and to be defended by a legal practitioner of his choice.
Each detained person has to be produced before the nearest magistrate within a period of 24 hours of such an arrest and cannot be kept in police custody beyond that period without the authority of the magistrate.
However, under exceptional circumstances the state can curb the right to freedom and detain a person under the Preventive Detention Act on the grounds of suspicion of committing anti-national activities.

Right Against Exploitation (Articles 23-24) Article 23 : This right seeks to protect the weaker sections against exploitation by unscrupulous persons or even the state.
It prohibits traffic in human beings and begar (making a person work without wages or adequate compensation)
Article 24: imposes restrictions on the employment of children below the age of 14 in factories, mines and other hazardous jobs.

Right to Freedom of Religion (Articles 25-28) Article 25 : Every citizen is free to profess, practise and propagate any religion.
Article 27 : The state can neither patronise any particular religion nor ask any citizen to pay taxes for the promotion of any religion.
Article 28 : No religious instructions can be imparted in educational institutions maintained by the state or receiving aid from it. The right to freedom of religion is not absolute and can be restricted on the grounds of public order, morality and health.

Article 29: The Constitution permits the minorities to conserve their language, script and culture, and establish and administer educational institutions for this purpose.
Article 30:
The state does not discriminate about providing aid to educational institutions on ground of religion or language.
No citizen can be denied admission to any educational institution maintained or aided by the state on grounds only of religion, race, caste or language.

Article 32 :
This right was described by Dr B.R.Ambedkar as 'the heart and soul of the Constitution'.
This right gives every citizen the right to approach the Supreme Court for the enforcement of his/her Fundamental Rights.
The Supreme Court can issue writs in the nature of habeas corpus, mandamus, prohibition, quo waranto and certiorari.

The Parliament can also empower any other court to exercise the right to enforce Fundamental Rights within its jurisdiction.
Even the state High Courts can issue various writs for the enforcement of the Fundamental Rights.
Thus, both the Supreme Court and the High Courts enjoy concurrent jurisdiction and an affected person can approach either for the enforcement of Fundamental Rights.

Right to Property (Article 31). One of the seven fundamental Rights granted by the constitution to its citizens.
It permitted the citizens to acquire, hold, dispose of property.
The state could not acquire the Property of one citizen without compensation.
The government enacts several laws to reform the land ownership and structures
This resulted in enormous litigation. Ultimately On June 20, 1978 the Government omitted Right to Property from the list of fundamental rights and made right to property a legal right

The citizens of India have been granted certain rights through liberal interpretation of the various provisions of the Constitution.
Some of the rights which have been provided to the citizens include right to live with dignity;
Right to Privacy;
Right to speedy trial;
freedom of press etc

Right to Information: The right to information has been granted to citizens under the Information Act passed by the Indian Parliament in 2005.
The Act entitles every citizen to have access to information controlled by public authorities of both the Union and the State governments.
The main objective of this right is to make the government open, transparent, responsive and accountable to the people.

According to this law people can seek any information from the government, which is duty bound to provide the requisite information within a specified period of 30 days.
If the concerned authorities do not provide correct and timely information, complaint can be lodged with the Central Information Commission/State Information Commission.
If the requested information is denied to a person, he/she must be informed of the reasons for refusal.
It may further be noted that the law does not apply to Jammu and Kashmir or security agencies like IB, RAW and BSF.
The other areas which have been excluded from the jurisdiction of the law include cabinet papers, legal advice relating to decision making, information likely to breach the privileges of the Parliament and state legislatures, etc.

This right has been granted by the 86th Constitutional Amendment carried out in 2002.
The Amendment, through Article 21A, stipulates that the

The Act also enjoins upon the parents to send their children to school by including it as a Fundamental Duty under Article 51A.
Further, it enjoins on the State to endeavour to provide early childhood care and education to all children until they complete six years of age.
It may be noted that if a child is denied this right he can take the State to court.

Five types of writs can be issued by the Supreme Court or the High Courts for the protection of the Fundamental Rights of the Indian citizens.
These writs are as under.
1.Habeas Corpus
2.Mandamus
3.Prohibition
4.Certiorari
5.Quo Warranto

Habeas Corpus: This writ is issued in the form of an order calling upon a person who has detained another person to bring that person before the court to let it know under what authority he has detained that person.
If the court does not find any legal justification for detention, it can order immediate release of the detained person.
It may be noted that this writ is not issued if either the person arrested or the person against whom the writ is issued is outside the jurisdiction of the court; or if the person has been imprisoned by a court of law on a criminal charge; or the person is involved in proceedings for contempt of court or Parliament.

This writ is an order by a superior court commanding a person or a public authority to do or forbear to do something in the nature of public duty.
This writ can also be issued against the government, and the courts or judicial bodies that have refused to perform their duty.

This writ is issued by the Supreme Court or a High Court to an inferior court forbidding it to continue proceedings in a case in excess of its jurisdiction.
This writ can also be issued in cases where the court or tribunal assumes jurisdiction under a law which itself contravenes some Fundamental Right guaranteed by the Constitution.

This writ is issued by a superior court to an inferior court or body exercising judicial or quasi-judicial powers, to remove a suit from such inferior court of body and adjudicate upon the validity of the proceedings.
The main objective of this writ is to ensure that an inferior court or tribunal does not usurp jurisdiction which it legally does not possess.
The writ can also be issued if the court acts in a matter which is within its jurisdiction, but commits 'error of law'.

This writ is issued by a court to prevent a person from holding an office to which he is not entitled.
The writ can be issued only if the office is public, created by statute or by the Constitution, or there has been a contravention of the Constitution, or there has been a contravention of the Constitution or statute in appointing the person to that office.
In short, the writ ensures that a public Office is not usurped by an unlawful claimant.

When the President makes a proclamation of emergency under Article 352, the freedoms guaranteed under Article 19 are automatically suspended.
During the proclamation of emergency no law or executive order issued by the state can be challenged on the ground that it is inconsistent with the rights guaranteed by Article 19.
The President can suspend other Fundamental Rights through specific orders, but these orders must be approved by the Parliament.
It may be observed that such orders of the President may extend to the whole or any part of the territory of India.

The Fundamental Rights guaranteed by the Constitution have the following special features:
1. They are more sacrosanct than rights granted by ordinary laws because they have been guaranteed by the Constitution.
2. They are not absolute and are subject to reasonable restrictions.
3. They are justifiable and can be enforced through the courts.
4. The Fundamental Rights (including the right to constitutional remedies) may be suspended during a national emergency.
5. Certain Fundamental Rights granted by the Constitution are not available to certain sections of society. Thus, the members of armed forces and police are not permitted to make use of their political rights

6. These rights are available only against the state and not against private parties or individuals.
7. The Fundamental Rights are both positive and negative. While the Fundamental Rights which confer certain privileges on citizens are positive, others which prevent the state from conferring certain special privileges are negative.
8. While some of the rights are available only to the citizens, others are available to foreigners and legal persons.
9. If a person is deprived of his fundamental rights by the state he can directly move the Supreme Court for their enforcement.
10. The application of the fundamental rights can be restricted if martial law is in operation in a particular area.

In the Golaknath case(1967) the Supreme Court held by a majority of six to five that the Parliament had no power to amend any of the provisions of Part III to take away or abridge the Fundamental Rights.
The Indira Gandhi government in 1971 carried out the 24th Amendment with a view to assert the right of the Parliament to amend any part of the Constitution, including the Fundamental Rights.
This amendment was challenged in the court, but the Supreme Court in Keshavanand Bharti case formally conceded the right to Parliament to amend any part of the Constitution.
However, it ruled that the Parliament could not destroy the basic structure of the Constitution

The 42nd Amendment carried out in 1976 asserted that the Parliament had unlimited power to amend the Constitution.
But in the Minerva Mills case of 1980 and Waman Rao case (1981) the Supreme Court struck down those provisions of the 42nd Amendment which granted unlimited amending power to
the Parliament.
Thus, at present the Parliament can amend any part of the Constitution, including Part III dealing with Fundamental Rights, provided it does not disturb the basic structure of the Constitution.

The Constitution outlines the Fundamental Duties of the Indian citizens, which were incorporated in the Constitution by the 42nd Amendment Act in 1976.
These duties have been specified in Article 51A and include the following:
1. to abide by the Constitution and respect its ideals and institutions, the National Flag and the National Anthem;
2. to cherish and follow the noble ideals which inspired our national struggle for freedom;
3. to uphold and protect the sovereignty, unity and integrity of India;
4. to defend the country and render national service when called upon to do so;
5. to promote harmony and the spirit of common brotherhood among all the people of India transcending religious, linguistic and regional or sectional diversities; to renounce practices derogatory to the dignity of women;

6. to value and preserve the rich heritage of our composite culture;
7. to protect and improve the natural environment including forests, lakes, rivers and wild life, and to have compassion for living creatures;
8. to develop a scientific temper; humanism and the spirit of inquiry and reform;
9. to safeguard public property and to abjure violence; and
10. 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.
11. A new fundamental duty was added to the constitution by the 86th Amendment Act, which added right to education with a view to provide individual rights a sense of social responsibility.
The above duties are enforceable by law and the Parliament can by law provide penalties for failure to fulfill these duties and obligations.

Ambitions and aspirations of the framers of the Constituion are contained in Part IV of the Constitution. In addition several other Articles of the Constitution viz, Art 350. Art. 351 and Art. 335 also deal with Directive Principles
The Directive Principles aim at providing the social and economic base of a genuine democracy.
These principles are not enforceable through courts and are merely directives which the government has to keep in mind while framing policy.

The Directive Principles of State Policy differ from Fundamental Rights in the following respects:
1. Directive Principles are positive instructions to the government to work for the attainment of self objectives. Fundamental Rights are injunctions to the government to refrain from doing certain things.
2. Directive Principles are not enforceable through courts. Courts cannot take any action against the government if it ignores or violates them. Fundamental Rights are enforceable through courts.
3. Directive Principles are inferior to Fundamental Rights because in case of conflict between the two, the latter must get precedence.

Important Directive Principles Broadly speaking, there are three types of Directive Principles:
Economic or Socialist: These principles aim at providing social and economic justice and ushering in welfare state. They require the state, under Article 39
(a) to provide adequate means of livelihood to all Citizens;
(b) to prevent concentration of wealth and means of production and ensure equitable distribution of wealth and material resources;
(c) to secure equal pay for equal work to men as well as women;
(d) to ensure a decent standard of living and leisure for all workers;
(e) to provide necessary opportunities and facilities to children and youth to prevent their exploitation; and
(f) to make efforts to secure the right to work, education and public assistance in case of unemployment, sickness, old age, etc. (Article 40)

Gandhian Principles: These principles are the embodiment of the Gandhian programme for reconstruction. These include
(a) the establishment of village panchayats powerful enough to function as units of self-governance; (Article 41)
(b) the promotion of educational and economic interests of weaker sections of society; (Article 46)
(c) the promotion of cottage industries; (Article 43)
(d) the prohibition of intoxicating drugs and drinks; and (Article 47)
(e) prevention of the slaughter of cows, calves and other milch cattle, etc. (Article 48)

Liberal Principles These principles are based on liberal thinking and emphasis the need for
1. a uniform civil code for the country; (Article 44)
2. free and compulsory education for all children up to the age of 14 years; (Article 45)
3. separation of the judiciary and executive; (Article 47)
4. provision of free legal aid to economically backward classes, to ensure that opportunities for securing justice are not denied to any citizen by reason of economic to other disabilities; (Article 39A)
5. organisation of agriculture and animal husbandry along scientific lines; (Article 48)
6. securing the participation of workers in the management of industries; (Article 43A)
7. protection and improvement of environment; safeguarding the forests and wildlife of the country; (Article 48A) and
8. protecting monuments and places of artistic or historical importance (Article 49).
These principles lay emphasis on the promotion of international peace and security; maintenance of just and honorable relations between nations; fostering of respect for international law and treaty obligations; and encouraging the settlement of international disputes through arbitration, etc. (see Article 51)

Several new directive principles have been added through subsequent amendments . The 42nd amendment added four new directive principles. These include
(i) State shall secure opportunities for healthy development of children (Article 39);
(ii) state shall promote equal justice and provide free legal aid to the poor (Art. 39);
(iii), the state shall take steps to secure the participation of the workers in the management of industries (Art. 43A);
(iv) the state shall protect and improve the environment and safeguard forests and wildlife (Art. 48A).
In 1978 the 44th amendment added another directive principle which requires the state to minimise inequalities in income, status, facilities and opportunities (Article 38).
Again in 2002 an amendment was carried out in the directive principles, and the state was directed to provide early childhood care and education to all children between the age of 6 and fourteen.

In 1984, the Supreme Court held that although Directive Principles are not enforceable, yet the court should make a real attempt at harmonising and reconciling the Directive Principles and the Fundamental Rights and any conflict between the two should be avoided as far as possible.
The court observed that the founding fathers of the Constitution did not make these principles enforceable because they wanted to give to the government sufficient latitude to implement these principles from time to time according to capacity, situation and circumstances, holding at the same time that both being parts of the basic structure of the Constitution, are complementary.

This quiz has been prepared with questions related to Indian Polity-Rights and duties. These question were asked in various competitive exams across India. You can practice these questions to gain more knowledge.

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