Fundamental Rights (Articles 12 to 35)

Fundamental Rights are enshrined in Part III(Article 12-35) of the Indian Constitution.

Fundamental rights have the legal meaning as the Constitution allows for their enforcement, empowering citizens to preserve, respect, and uphold the rule of law. Fundamental Rights are essential for the development of individuals to the fullest potential and the country. They integrate an individual into society while also providing educational value, allowing a citizen to recognize the importance of all members of society.

Table of Contents

Fundamental Right provided by Constitution
Right to Equality
Right to Freedom
Right Against Exploitation
Right to Freedom of Religion
Cultural and Educational Rights
Right to Constitutional Remedies
Definition of State
Laws inconsistent with Fundamental Rights
Important Features
Limitations
Conclusion

Fundamental Rights provided by Indian Constitution

Fundamental Rights	Article	Provisions
Right to Equality	14	Equality Before Law
15	Prohibition of Discrimination
16	Equality of Opportunity in Public Employment
17	Abolition of Untouchability
18	Abolition of Titles
Right to Freedom	19	Protection of 6 Rights Right to freedom of speech and expression. Right to assemble peaceably and without arms. Right to form associations or unions or co-operative societies. Right to move freely throughout the territory of India. Right to reside and settle in any part of the territory of India. Right to practice any profession or to carry on any occupation, trade or business.
20	Protection in Respect of Conviction for Offences
21	Protection of Life and Personal Liberty
21-A	Right to Education
22	Protection Against Arrest and Detention
Right Against Exploitation	23	Prohibition of Human Trafficking and Forced Labour
24	Prohibition of Child Labour
Right to Freedom of Religion	25	Freedom of Conscience, Profession, Practice and Propagation
26	Freedom to Manage Religious Affairs
27	Freedom from Taxation for Promotion of a Religion
28	Freedom from Attending Religious Instruction
Educational and Cultural Rights	29	Protection of Interests of Minorities
30	Right of Minorities to Establish and Administer Educational Institutions
Right to Constitutional Remedies	32	Right to remedies for the enforcement of the fundamental rights using five writs: Habeas Corpus – to direct the release of a person detained unlawfully. Mandamus – to direct a public authority to do its duty. Quo Warranto – to direct a person to vacate an office assumed wrongfully. Prohibition – to prohibit a lower court from proceeding on a case. Certiorari – the power of the higher court to remove a proceeding from a lower court and bring it before itself.
33	Empowers the Parliament to restrict or abrogate the fundamental rights of the ‘Members of the Armed Forces, paramilitary forces, police forces, intelligence agencies and analogous forces
34	Provides for the restrictions on fundamental rights while martial law(military rule) is in force
35	Empowers the Parliament to make laws on Fundamental Rights

Right to equality (Articles 14 – 18)

The right to equality guarantees that everyone is treated equally before the law, that discrimination on numerous grounds is prohibited, that everyone is treated equally in terms of public employment, and that untouchability and titles are abolished.

Article 14

Equality before the law and equal protection of the law
The State shall not deny to any person equality before the law or the equal protection of the laws within the territory of India.
The word person includes legal persons, viz, statutory corporations, companies, registered societies, or any other type of legal person.

Article 15

Prohibition of discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth.
No citizen shall, on the ground only of religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth or any of them, be subject to any disability, liability, restriction or condition with regard to –
- access to shops, public restaurants, hotels, and places of public entertainment; or
- the use of wells, tanks, bathing ghats, roads, and places of public resorts maintained whole or partly out of State funds or dedicated to the use of the general public.

Article 16

Equality of opportunity for all citizens in matters of employment or appointment to any office under the state.
No citizen shall be ineligible for or discriminated against in respect of, any employment or office under the State on grounds of only religion, race, caste, sex, descent, place of birth, residence.

Article 17

Abolition of untouchability
The enforcement of any disability arising out of “Untouchability” shall be an offense punishable in accordance with the law.

Article 18

Abolition of titles
Except for academic or military titles, the state shall not confer any titles.
The article also prevents Indian nationals from accepting titles from other countries.
The title Rai Bahadur, Khan Bahadur, and other titles bestowed by the British Empire are abolished in this article.
This category does not include awards such as the Padma Shri, Padma Bhushan, Padma Vibhushan, Bharat Ratna, and military honors such as the Ashok Chakra and Param Vir Chakra.

*To read more on this topic click on this link Right to Equality

Right to Freedom

Right to freedom (Articles 19 – 22)

The right to freedom ensures citizens’ ability to live a dignified life, among other things.

Article 19

It guarantees to all citizens the six rights

to freedom of speech and expression
to assemble peaceably and without arms
to form associations or unions or co-operative societies
to move freely throughout the territory of India
to reside and settle in any part of the territory of India
to practice any profession, or to carry on any occupation, trade or business.

Article 20

Protection in respect of conviction for the offense.
No ex-post-facto law – No person shall be convicted of any offense except for violation of a law in force at the time of the commission of the act charged as an offence, not be subjected to a penalty greater than that which might have been inflicted under the law in force at the time of the commission of the offense.
No double jeopardy – No person shall be prosecuted and punished for the same offense more than once.
No self-incrimination – No person accused of any offense shall be compelled to be a witness against himself.

Article 21

Protection of life and personal liberty
No person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty except according to procedure established by law
This right has been labeled the “heart of fundamental rights” by the Supreme Court.
Article 21A declares that the State shall provide free and compulsory education to all children of 6 to 14 years in such manner as the State may by law determine. ( 86th constitutional amendment act 2002 )

Article 22

Protection against arrest and detention
Its purpose is not to punish a person for a past offense but to prevent him from committing an offense in the near future.

*To read more on this topic click on this link Right to Freedom

Right to Freedom of Religion

Right Against Exploitation

Right against exploitation (Articles 23 – 24)

These are crucial Fundamental Rights that ensure that no citizen is subjected to any form of forced labor.

Article 23

Prohibition of traffic in human beings and forced labor.
It prohibits other similar forms of forced labor like bonded labor.

Article 24

Prohibition of employment of children in factories, etc.
No child below the age of fourteen years shall be employed to work in any factory or mine or engaged in any other hazardous employment.

*To read more on this topic click on this link Right against Exploitation

Right to Freedom of Religion

Right to freedom of religion (Articles 25–28)

Article 25

Freedom of conscience and free profession, practice, and propagation of religion
Article 25 guarantees the freedom of conscience, the freedom to profess, practice, and propagate religion to all citizens.

Article 26

Freedom to manage religious affairs
Article protects collective freedom of religion.

Article 27

Freedom as to payment of taxes for promotion of any particular religion.
The state should not spend the public money collected by way of tax for the promotion or maintenance of any particular religion.

Article 28

Freedom from attending religious instructions.
No religious instruction shall be provided in any educational institution wholly maintained out of state funds.

*To read more on this topic click on this link Right to Freedom of Religion

Cultural and Educational Rights

Cultural and educational rights (Articles 29 – 30)

Article 29

Protection of interests of minorities
Any section of the citizens residing in any part of India having a distinct language, script or culture of its own, shall have the right to conserve the same.

Article 30

Rights of minorities to establish and administer educational institutions.

*To read more on this topic click on this link Cultural and Educational Rights

Right to Constitutional Remedies

Right to Constitutional Remedies (Article 32)

The Constitution establishes legal remedies to protect these rights from violations by the state or other institutions/individuals. It allows Indian citizens to petition the Supreme Court or High Courts to have their rights enforced.
Parliament can also empower any other court to issue similar writs under Article 32.

Types of writs are:

Habeas Corpus
Certiorari
Prohibition
Mandamus
Quo Warranto

*To read more on this topic click on this link Right to Constitutional Remedies

Article 33

Armed force and fundamental rights
It empowers the parliament to restrict or abrogate fundamental rights of the members of police force, paramilitary, armed force, intelligence agencies and analogous forces.

*To read more on this topic click on this link Article 33

Article 34

Martial law and fundamental rights
Restriction on fundamental rights while martial law is in force.

*To read more on this topic click on this link Article 34

Article 35

The article lays down that the powers to make laws, to give effect to certain specified fundamental rights, shall vest only in parliament, not in state legislatures.

*To read more on this topic click on this link Article 35

Definition of State

The Constitution of India has defined the word ‘State’ for the purpose of Part -III and Part – IV. In State of West Bengal v/s Subodh Gopal Bose , the Supreme Court observed that the object of Part -III is to provide protection to the rights and freedoms guaranteed under this part by the invasion of ‘State’.

*To read more on this topic click on this link Article 12

Laws inconsistent with Fundamental Rights

According to Article 13, the parliament and state legislatures are being terminated from making such laws that may infringe or take away the fundamental rights that are being guaranteed by the Indian constitution itself.
Article 13 of the constitution talks about the four principles relating to fundamental rights.
Article 13(1) talks about the pre-constitutional laws i.e the day from which the constitution came in existence there were many laws in the country and when the constitution came into existence fundamental rights do came, therefore the laws before the existence of the constitution must prove their compatibility with the fundamental rights, only then these laws would be considered to be valid otherwise they would be declared to be void.
Article 13 (2) talks about the post-constitutional laws i.e it says that Once the constitution is framed and put into operation, no state can make laws that take away or limit an individual’s fundamental rights, and if they do, they will be declared null and void until the degree of the violation is determined.
Article 13(3) talks about the meaning of law i.e the laws whether by-laws, notifications, rules, regulations, customs, usage, etc if do effect the legal rights of the citizens do come under the definition of law, this would be considered as laws under article
Article 13 (4) gave birth to a Basic Structure doctrine to our constitution. It prohibits the parliament to make laws or amendments which are inconsistent with the fundamental rights. The doctrine being mentioned above is the Basic Structure Doctrine. The Supreme Court has observed that Article 13 refers to a ‘legislative’ law (made by a legislature) and does not include a ‘constituent law (made to amend the Constitution).

*To read more on this topic click on this link Article 13

Important Features

Fundamental Rights – Important Features

Fundamental Rights are Universal:

The Fundamental Rights enshrined in our Constitution are bestowed upon each and every citizen of the Republic without any consideration of religion, caste, creed, colour or sex.

Fundamental Rights are Justiciable:

If the State, an individual, or a group of people infringe on our rights, we have the right to go to the courts and have them redressed. Even a law passed by the country’s legislature might be overturned by the courts if it infringes on any of our Constitution’s Fundamental Rights.

Fundamental Rights are amendable:

Fundamental rights are not inviolable and unchangeable. Any aspect of the Constitution, including Fundamental Rights, can be amended by Parliament.

Special Rights for the minorities:

Minorities of all kinds are guaranteed some specific rights under the Fundamental Rights. This is in addition to the Constitution’s guarantee of its secular nature.
They have been accorded cultural and educational rights.
It outlaws untouchability and makes it a criminal offense.
It has also granted special protections to women, children, and the weaker sections of society.

Integral part of the Constitution:

Fundamental Rights are an essential component of the Constitution and so cannot be taken away by regular legislation.
If a bill approved by any legislature in the country violates the Constitution’s guarantees of rights, it will be deemed null and void.

Detailed and comprehensive:

Part III of the Constitution lays out a comprehensive list of rights.
Each article’s scope and limitations have been described in a comprehensive manner

Limitations

Limitations of Fundamental Rights

The Fundamental rights enshrined by the Constitution are subjected to reasonable restrictions as well as Limitations as follows:

Lack of Social and Economic Rights:

Political rights make up the majority of the list of fundamental rights. There are no provisions establishing important social and economic rights like the right to social security, the right to labour, the right to employment, and so on. Other countries’ constitutions, such as China’s, give for such rights.

Lack of Clarity:

Many phrases and words used under the definitions of various fundamental rights are found to be not clear or vague as their explanation is not given anywhere in the Constitution of India. Words such as, ‘Public order’, ‘minorities’, reasonable restrictions’, etc. belong to this category.

Not Permanent:

Fundamental rights can be curtailed or abolished by Parliament. The abolition of the fundamental right to property is an example of this. They have been criticized for becoming a play tool in the hands of the politicians having majority support in the Parliament. Hence they lack permanency.

Provision during Emergencies:

Fundamental rights are criticized on the basis of their temporary suspension during the operation of a National Emergency (except for the fundamental rights defined under Articles 20 and 21 all fundamental rights are suspended during an emergency.

Preventive Detention:

Provisions for the concept of Preventive Detention are criticized by many and the reason for this is said to be that it takes away the spirit and substance of fundamental rights as it confers arbitrary powers on the State.

Expensive Remedy:

The judicial processes are far too expensive, preventing the average man from having his rights enforced in the courts because not everyone has the financial means or even the time to go through them

Why these rights are Known as Fundamental Rights? Because of two factors, these rights are known as fundamental rights: They are guaranteed under the Constitution. They can be sued (enforceable by courts). A person can go to court if they believe they have been violated.

Conclusion

Fundamental rights are extremely important in the lives of all citizens. These rights can protect us in times of complexity and hardship, and they can also help us evolve into better human beings, which is why all rights are human needs.