Article 21 of Indian Constitution indianconstitutions.com/article-21-of-indian-constitution hari
May 30, 2020
Introduction (Article 21 Protection of Life and Personal Liberty) Article 21 is also known as the ‘Magna Carta’ of the constitution. Here Magna Carta means the most important and descriptive article of the constitution. It declares that no person shall be deprived of his life for personal liberty except according to the procedure established by law. This Right (Article 21 of Indian Constitution) available to both citizens and non-citizens.
Article 21 of Indian Constitution
Judiciary Deduced Rights (Article 21 of Indian Constitution) In recent years scouts, have been expanding the scope of the Right to life and liability. Article 21of Indian Constitution has been enriched in 1/6
the number of cases to safeguard the rights of the different sections of the society. In Francis college vs Union territory of Delhi, the former chief justice of India PN Bhagwati said- the right to live with human dignity and all that goes along with it namely the bare necessities of life such as advocate, nutrition, clothing, and shelter. Similarly, in Bandhua Mukti Morcha vs Union of India where the questions of bondage and rehabilitation of some labours were involved Justice Bhagwati observed that it is the fundamental right of everyone in this country to live with dignity and free from exploitation. therefore, the protection of the health and strength of the workers should not be compromised at any cost. Unnikrishnan case supreme court held that the Right to education is a fundamental right at the objective set forth the Preamble of Indian Constitution can be achieved only when education is provided to the citizen of the country. 86th constitutional amendment act introduced article 21a which reads States shall provide free and compulsory education to all the citizens of the age 6 to 14 years in such a manner as the state may by law determine. it was made operational by the government with the right to free and compulsory education act which was passed by the parliament in August 2009. Personal liberty according to dicey, personal liability means a person’s rights not to be subjected to imprisonment arrest or any other physical coercion in any matter that does not admit of legal justification. In Article 21 of Indian Constitution, the word Liberty is qualified by the word personal. the intent is to differentiate it from article 19. In the famous Gopalan case 1950, the supreme court has taken a narrow interpretation of article 21.it held that the protection under article 21 is available only against arbitrary executive action and not from arbitrary legislative action. this means that the state can deprive the right to life and personal liberty of a person based on the law. This is because of the expression ‘procedure established by law’ in Article 21 which is different from the expression ‘due process of law’ contained in the American constitution.hence the validity of a law that has prescribed a procedure cannot be questioned on the ground that the law 2/6
is unreasonable unfair or in. secondly, the supreme court held that personal liberty means only liberty relating to the person or body of the individual. But in the Menaka case (1978), the supreme court overruled its judgment in the Gopalan by taking a wider interpretation of Article 21 of Indian Constitution. therefore it ruled that the right to life and personal liberty of a person can be described by law provided the procedure prescribed by that law is reasonable, fair, and just which are an important and critical aspect of due process of law. In other words, it is introduced American expression ‘ due process of law’. In effect, the protection under Article 21 of Indian Constitution should be available not only against arbitrary executive action but also against arbitrary legislative action. Further, the court held at ‘ right to life’ as embodied in article 21 is not merely confined to animal existence or survival but it includes within its ambit the right to live with human dignity and all those aspects of life which go to make a man’s life meaningful complete and worth leaving. it also ruled that the expression of personal liberty in article 21. Is of the widest amplitude and it covers a variety of right that go to constitute the personal liberties of a man. The supreme court has reaffirmed its judgment in the Maneka case in the subsequent cases. Also read: Right to live with human dignity.
recently of upholding criminal prosecution section 499 and section 500 of IPC in defamation cage supreme court held that mutual respect is the fulcrum of fraternity that assures dignity and right to reputation is a constituent of article 21 which cannot be compromised. Right to the decent environment
including pollution-free water and air and protection against hazardous industries like the case of the constitution of National green tribunal or the cage of the art of living Right to livelihood 3/6
pavement dwellers case 1986 and Olga Tellis case 1985. Right to privacy
kharak Singh vs State of Uttar Pradesh 1964 . in R. Rajagopal vs State of Tamil Nadu, the supreme court held that the right to privacy is a right to be left alone. however, in recent years partly due to the rise of the new social media and for the public order and national security reasons as well, the right to privacy has come under pressure. In 1996, in the people’s union of civil Liberties case, the supreme court affirmed that even though the right to privacy not explicitly provided but can now be read as the critical and essential ingredient of right to personal liberty. A committee headed by justice AP shah dealing comprehensively with the law of privacy has recommended an overarching law to protect privacy with specific principles and personal data in the private and public affairs. the report also suggested the sitting up of privacy commissioners at both central and state levels. Right to shelter
entitlement programs like Indira Awas Yojana and Raju Awas Yojana are based on this philosophy. Right to health
National health mission. Right to free education
up to 14 years of age as we have seen in the Unnikrishnan case verdict 1993. Right to free legal aid
so that no person can be denied justice based on his socio-economic backwardness. for example, the socio-economic weaker sections get free legal aid through public prosecutors. Rights against solitary confinement
in Devendra pal Singh Bhullar case verdict where supreme court criticised solitary confinement causing the danger to the right to life and leaves along 4/6
with psychological tsunamis. Right to a speedy trial
Devendra Pal Singh Buller case verdict of supreme court commuting the death sentence citing the region of inordinate delay as one of the reasons affecting the psychological state and affecting the right to life. Right against handcuffing Right against inhuman treatment Right against delayed execution Right to travel abroad Right against bonded labour Rights against custodial harassment Rights to emergency medical aid Right to timely medical treatment in the government hospital Right not to be driven out of a state Right to fair trial. Right of prisoner to have necessities of life. Right of women to be treated with decency and dignity. Right against public hanging. Right to hearing. Right to information
The RTI Act 2005 is based on this article along with reading it with the right to freedom of speech and expression. Right to reputation
criminal defamation case verdict 1. In 2009 Justice katju declared the right to water as a part of the right to life guaranteed by Article 21 of Indian Constitution. 5/6
2. Supreme court in Ramdev case the apex court ruled the Right to Sleep is a part of the Right to life. It commands that “sleep is important for the human beings to keep up the delicate balance of health necessary for its existence and its survival so fundamental and basic requirement without that the existence of life itself would be in peril. Euthanasia and Aruna Shanbough case
In 2011 Supreme Court was responding to the plea to end the life (euthanasia) of Arunashanbough who was sexually assaulted and attacked and was driven into a vegetative state made by activist journalist Pinki Virani turn down the Mercy killing petition. the court in this landmark judgement however allowed passive euthanasia in the country.
Right to Education (Article 21A ) Article 21A declares that the state shall provide free and compulsory education to all children of the age of 6 to 14 years in such manner as the state may determine. thus, this provision makes only elementary education a fundamental right and not higher or professional education. this provision was added by the 86th Constitutional Amendment Act of 2002. this amendment is a major milestone in the country’s aim to achieve Read more… For more Notes and References pls visit – https://www.indianconstitutions.com/ Also, read about it: Article 15 of indian constitution Article 16 of Indian Constitution Article 20 of Indian Constitution Preamble of Indian Constitution List of 12 schedule of Indian Constitution All Salients Featuers of Indian Constitution
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