FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS

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FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS

 
The Fundamental Rights are a crucial part of the Indian Constitution and are enshrined in Part III, Articles 12 to 35. These rights guarantee certain basic freedoms and protections to every citizen of India, ensuring individual liberty, equality, and justice. The framers of the Constitution considered Fundamental Rights as the cornerstone of a democratic and just society, providing citizens with the means to challenge any arbitrary actions of the state and safeguard their dignity and rights. Here is an overview of the Fundamental Rights of the Indian Constitution:
 
1.Definition of State (Article 12)
State includes the following:
  • Government and Parliament of India (Unions executive and legislative organs)
  • Government and legislatures of the States
  • Local Authorities (e.g. district boards, PRIs, ULBs, etc)
  • Other authorities, statutory or non-statutory (e.g. LIC, ONGC)
  • SC: Article 12 includes even private bodies working as an instrument of the State
  • The actions of these agencies can be challenged in court for violating FRs.
Article 13
  • Provides for judicial review; all Laws that are inconsistent with or in derogation of any FR shall be void.
  • Supreme Court under Article 32 and High Court under Article 226 have the power of judicial reviews.
  • "Law" for the purposes of Article 13 is→ Laws enacted by legislatures, ordinances, Executive legislation like order, bye-laws, rule- regulation or notification, Custom or usage having the force of Laws
  • Article 13 does not define a CA as a Law, but SC said that a CA can be challenged for violating an FR that forms a part of the basic structure of the Constitution (Keshavananda Bharati case, 1973).
2.Right to Equality (Articles 14-18):
This right ensures equality before the law and prohibits discrimination on the grounds of religion, race, caste, sex, or place of birth. It guarantees equal protection of laws to all citizens and prohibits any form of untouchability. It also abolishes titles except for military or academic distinctions.
 
Article 14: Equality before the Law or the Equal Protection of Law

It provides that the state- shall not deny to any person equality before the law or equal protection of the laws within the territory of India.
Two aspects are at hand:
1. Equality before Law:
2. Equal Protection of Law
 
Equality Before Law (British Origin + Negative connotation):
  • Absence of any special privileges in favor of any person;
  • Equal subjection of all persons to ordinary law of land administered by ordinary law courts;
  • No person is above the law.
Equal Protection of Law (American Origin + positive notion):
  • Equality of treatment under equal circumstances, both in privileges conferred and liabilities
  • imposed by the laws;
  • Similar application of the same laws to all persons who are similarly situated; Like, should be treated alike without any discrimination.
Art.14 forbids class legislation, it permits the reasonable classification of persons, objects and
transactions by the law.
Confers right to all persons (citizens and foreigners) and includes Legal Persons.
Rule of Law (by A V Dicey) (a basic feature of the constitution): the concept of ‘Equality before Law’ is an element of the Rule of Law.

Rule of Law has 3 fundamental principles:
  • Absence of arbitrary power - applicable to the Indian System.
  • Equality before the law - applicable to the Indian System
  • The primacy of individual rights – not applicable, as the constitution is the source of individual rights.
Exceptions to Equality:
  • President of India and Governor, Foreign sovereigns and diplomats, UNO and its agencies.
  • Art 31C: SC held that where “Art 31C comes in, Art 14 goes out”.
  • Art 361A: No person is liable for any civil or criminal proceedings in any court in respect of publication in news reports of true reports of any proceedings of parliament or the state legislature.
  • Art 105: Parliamentary privilege of members of parliament.
  • Art 194: Privileges of members of the state legislature in the legislature or any committee thereof.
Article 15: Prohibition of Discrimination on certain grounds
 
The state shall not discriminate against any citizen only on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex, or place of birth.
No citizen shall be subjected to any disability, liability, restriction, or condition on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex, or place of birth with regard to
  • Access to shops, public restraints, hotels, and places of public entertainment
  • The use of wells, talks, bathing Ghats, roads places of public resort dedicated to the use of the general public or maintained wholly or partially by the state
  • Thus, under the second provision, discrimination by both the state and private individuals is prohibited.
Exceptions to non-discrimination:
  • Special provisions for women and children
  • Special provisions for the advancement of social and educational backward classes of citizens or for SCs and STs regarding their admission to educational institutions, aided or unaided by the state, except minority educational institutions (93rd CA 2005).
  • Centre enacted the Central Educational Institutions (Reservation in Admission) Act 2006 to give a 27% quota to OBCs.
  • 2008: SC directed the central government to exclude the creamy layer of OBCs while implementing the law.
Article 16: Equality of Opportunity in Matters of Public Employment
  • It stands for equality of opportunity for all citizens in matters of employment or appointment to any office under the State.
  • There would be unbiased treatment amongst the citizens for any employment or office under the State on grounds of only religion, race, caste, sex and descent, place of birth, or residence.
Exceptions
  • In a state or union territory, a municipal government, or another authority, residence may be required as a condition of employment or appointment. Except for Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, the Public Employment (Requirement as to Residence) Act of 1957, which expired in 1974, there is no such provision for any state.
  • Reservation of appointments can be provided by the state in support of any backward class that is not adequately represented in the state services.
  • A law can offer that the incumbent of an office related to a religious or denominational institution or a member of its governing body should belong to a particular religion or denomination.
  • Provision for the reservation of up to 10% of appointments or posts has been permitted to the states in support of any economically weaker sections of citizens.
The Constitution (103rd Amendment) Act, 2019 has added a new provision – Article 16(6) where the state may make any provision for the reservation of appointments or posts in favor of any economically weaker sections of citizens in addition to the existing reservation and subject to a maximum of 10 percent.
The reservation of up to 10% for “economically weaker sections” in educational institutions and public employment will be in addition to the existing reservation.
 
Article 17: Abolition of Untouchability
  • “Untouchability” and its practice in any shape or form have been outlawed by the provisions of the Untouchability (Offenses) Act, of 1955, and have been recognized as a punishable offense.
  • Untouchability should not be understood verbatim rather it has a wider connotation as it can be traced back from its history.
  • It’s an absolute right which means there is no exception bonded to this article.
  • The Supreme Court alleged that the right under Article 17 is available against private individuals and it is the Constitutional obligation of the State to take necessary action to ensure that this right is not violated.
Article 18: Abolition of Titles
  • No title, other than a military or academic distinction shall be granted by the State;
  • No citizen of India shall acknowledge any title from any foreign state; and
  • A foreigner holding any office of profit or trust under the state cannot accept any title from any foreign state without the consent of the president.
  • Without the approval of the President, no individual holding an office of profit or trust office under the State can accept any present emolument or office of any kind from or under any foreign State.
  • However, the Constitutional validity of the National Awards (Bharat Ratna, Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan, and Padma Shri) have been upheld by the honorable Supreme Court but there are reasonable restrictions over these titles i.e. should not be used as suffixes, or prefixes to the names of awardees. Otherwise, the awards shall be forfeited.
3.Right to Freedom: (Articles 19-22)
It contains the right to freedom which is considered as the heart of the Indian Constitution as it gives basic and vital rights to the citizens of India.
 
Article 19: Article 19 assures all citizens the six rights and they are as follows:
  • Article (a): Right to freedom of speech and expression.
  • Article (b): Right to assemble peacefully and without arms.
  • Article (c): Right to form associations or unions or co-operative societies. However, the right to acquire recognition of the association is not a fundamental right. The Supreme Court alleged that the trade unions have no guaranteed right to effective bargaining or right to strike or right to announce a lockout. The right to strike can be managed by an appropriate industrial law.
  • Article (d): Right to move freely all through the territory of India. The freedom of movement has two magnitudes, viz.
  1. Internal (right to move within the country) Article 19 guards this.
  2. External (right to move out of the country and right to come back to the country) Article 21 guards this.
  • Article (e): Right to reside and settle in any fraction of the territory of India.
  • Article (g): Right to practice any profession or to take on any trade, occupation or business.
Restrictions: The State can impose reasonable restrictions on the exercise of the freedom of speech and expression on the grounds of:
  • Sovereignty and integrity of India,
  • Security of the state,
  • Friendly relations with overseas states,
  • Public order,
  • Decency or morality,
  • Contempt of court,
  • Defamation and
  • Incitement to an offense.
Also, note that the six rights guaranteed by Article 19 can be suspended only when a National Emergency is announced on the grounds of war or external aggression (i.e., external emergency) and not on the ground of armed rebellion (i.e. internal emergency).
 
Article 20: Protection in Respect for Conviction for Offences

Article 20 provides the protection of citizens in respect of conviction for offenses. It guarantees immunity from a conviction for offences on the following grounds:

1. Retrospective criminal legislation: This is also known as ex-post-facto criminal legislation. Any individual can be convicted only for violation of a law in force at the time of the commission of the act.
  • This means that criminal statutes cannot be applied retrospectively.
  • This immunity does not extend to preventive arrest and it also does not apply to the tribunal.
  • An individual cannot be subjected to a penalty that is greater than what is required by statute for the offence committed. For example, In the Nirbhaya case, there was a demand to alter the law for giving capital punishment to juveniles, but criminal law cannot be modified amid this legislation.
2. Double jeopardy: This specifies that a person cannot be convicted for the same offence more than once.
 
3. No self-incrimination: Article 20(3) entails the protection against self- incrimination extends to both oral evidence and documentary evidence. Nevertheless, it does not extend to (i) compulsory exhibition of the body, (ii) compulsion to give specimen signature, thumb impression, blood specimens, and (iii) compulsory production of material objects.
 
Article 21: Protection of life and personal liberty
  • Article 21 declares that no person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty except
    according to procedures established by law.
  • It is available to both citizens and non-citizens.
  • Goplana case (1950): Protection under Article 21 is available only against arbitrary
    executive action and not from arbitrary legislative action.
  • Menaka case (1978): The right to life and personal liberty of a person can be deprived by the law provided the procedure prescribed by that law is reasonable, fair, and just.
Rights included under Article 21
  • Right to live with human dignity; Right to a decent environment including pollution-free water and air and protection against hazardous industries.
  • Right to livelihood; Right to shelter; Right to health; Right to free education up to 14 years of age; Right to free legal aid; Right against solitary confinement; Right to a speedy trial; Right against custodial harassment; Right to emergency medical aid; Right to timely medical treatment in a government hospital; Right of women to be treated with decency and dignity; Right against public hanging; Right of appeal from a judgment of conviction; Right to social security and protection of the family; Right to social and economic justice and empowerment; Right to sleep; Right to freedom from noise pollution, Right to electricity and Right to Privacy.
Right to education (Article 21-A):
  • It envisages free and compulsory education for all children between the ages of 6 to 14 years to be granted by the state. Hence, this provision makes only elementary education a Fundamental Right and not higher or professional education.
  • The Ramamurthy committee in the 1992 program of action projected the need for compulsory education.
  • Later in 1993, J. P. Unnikrishnan Vs. The state of Andhra Pradesh paved the way for providing the necessary infrastructure for primary education.
  • In pursuance of Article 21-A, the Parliament passed the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009. (86th Constitutional Amendment Act, 2002).
Article 22: Protection against arbitrary arrest and detention
  • Article 22 envisages protection for persons under both kinds of detention namely, punitive and preventive.
  • Punitive detention: to punish a person after conviction for an offence in a court.
  • Preventive detention: Detention of a person lacking trial and conviction by a court. i.e. to prevent a person from committing a crime in the future.
  • After an individual has been arrested, this right comes into play. It is not a fundamental right to be free of detention and arrest; rather, the objective of this right is to avoid arbitrary detention and arrest.
The article provides the following safeguards:
  • Article 22(1): Any person detained must be told of the reason for his detention. Furthermore, he cannot be refused the right to speak with an attorney.
    Supreme Court in Joginder Kumar Vs. State of Uttar Pradesh 1994 case entailed for informing the arrested person and it is ground for his arrest
  • Article 22(2): Within 24 hours of his detention, the accused person should be produced before a judicial magistrate.
  • Article 22(3): No person who has been detained can be held in custody for longer than the judicial magistrate has decided.
4.Rights against Exploitation (Articles 23 and 24)
 
Article 23: Prohibition of Traffic in human beings and forced labour
  • This Act outlaws traffic in human beings, beggars (forced labour), and other similar forms of forced labour.
  • An individual is protected from the State as well as private persons.
  • Parliament has promulgated the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956, and the Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, 1976 to punish for such traffic.
Exception
  • Compulsory service for public purposes has been kept out of the purview of this prohibition. For instance, social service or military service for which it is not bound to pay.
  • However, while imposing such service, the State should be unbiased with respect to the selection or recruitment on the grounds of race, religion, caste, or class.
Article 24: Prohibition of employment of children in factories, mines, etc.
  • As per this Article, children less than 14 years of age are prohibited from working in any factory, mines, or other hazardous activities like construction work or railway. However, a child can be employed in any harmless or innocent work.
  • The Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, of 1986, is the most significant law in this direction.
  • This was a landmark law passed to combat the pervasive problem of child labour in India. It specified when and how children could be working, as well as when and how this was prohibited.
  • A child is described as a person who has not yet completed his or her 14th year of age. The 1986 Act forbids children from serving in 13 professions and 57 processes.
Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Act, 2016
  • This Act completely forbids the employment of children below 14 years of age.
  • It also prohibits individuals between the ages of 14 and 18 from working in hazardous occupations or procedures. This amendment act increased the severity of the penalties for those who break the rule.
  • The children are allowed to be employed in convinced family occupations and also as artists provided their education is not hampered.
Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Rules, 2017
  • In 2017, the government released the above Rules in order to include a broad and detailed structure for child and adolescent labour’s prevention, prohibition, rescue and rehabilitation.
  • The Rules explained concerns relating to the jobs of family businesses, as well as providing protection for artists by defining working hours and conditions.
5.Right to Freedom of Religion (Article 25 – 28)
 
Article 25: Freedom of Conscience and free profession, practice and Propagation of Religion
It envisages the Right to choose one's own religion i.e. freedom of conscience followed by Right to profess, practice, and propagate their religion.
Article 25 incorporates the following explanations:
1. The Sikhs are allowed to wear and carry kirpans.
2. In this sense, Hindus means Jains, Sikhs, and Buddhists.
  • According to the Supreme Court guidelines Right to propagate should not coincide with the Right to convert.
  • Although voluntary conversion is permitted under Article 25 and laws can be made against forced conversion as in the case of M.P., Orissa, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, and Tamil Nadu have been legislated by making forced conversion a penal offence.
Article 26: Freedom to manage religious affairs
  • It provides for every religious denomination or a section of it to set up and maintain institutions for religious and charitable purposes and manage their religious affairs.
  • They might also acquire and own movable and immovable properties and administer such properties in accordance with the law.
According to the Supreme Court, a religious denomination must meet three criteria:
  • It should be a group of people who share a set of values (doctrines) that they believe are beneficial to their spiritual well-being;
  • It should have a common organization; and
  • It should have a distinct name.
Article 27: Freedom from Taxation for the Promotion of a Religion
  • No one shall be forced to pay any taxes if the proceeds are used to pay for expenditures related to the propagation or preservation of a specific religion or religious denomination.
  • It means that the state shall not raise a religious tax and also that the state cannot spend its secular taxes for any particular religion as it would go against its secular character.
  • This means that the taxes might be used for the promotion or maintenance of all religions.
  • A fee can be levied on pilgrims by the government to offer them some special service or safety measures. In the same way, a fee might be levied on religious endowments for meeting the regulation expenditure.
Article 28: Freedom from attendance of religious instructions or worship in educational institutions:
Article 28 claims to distinguish between various forms of educational institutions:
  1. Institutions maintained by the State completely.
  2. Institutions administered by the State but recognized under any endowment or trust.
  3. Institutions recognized by the State.
  4. Institutions receiving aid from the State.
Religious instruction is completely prohibited in (a), while religious instruction is allowed in (b). Religious instruction is allowed on a voluntary basis in (c) and (d).
 
6.Educational and Cultural Rights (Articles 29 and 30)

Article 29: Protection of Interests of Minorities
  • Article 29(1) envisages all citizen groups that reside in India having a distinct culture, language, and script, shall have the right to conserve their culture and language.
  • It is an Absolute right and there are no ‘reasonable restrictions’ in the concern of the general public here.
  • Article 29(2): The State shall not refuse admission into educational institutes maintained by it or those that receive aids from it to any person on the basis of race, religion, caste, language, etc. This right is agreed to by individuals and not any community.
  • Article 29 awards protection to both religious minorities as well as linguistic minorities. This Article upholds the spirit of “Unity in Diversity”.
  • As per the Supreme Court, this Article is not just confined to Minorities as commonly presumed. Since the words ‘section of citizens’ as mentioned in the Article shall encompass both minority as well as majority.
Article 30: Right of Minorities to Establish and Administer Educational Institutions
  • It provides the following rights to minorities, whether religious or linguistic.
  • All minorities might have the right to set up and administer educational institutions of their choice.
  • The State's compensation sum for the forced acquisition of any property of a minority educational institution shall not limit or abrogate the right guaranteed to them. This clause was introduced by the 44th Amendment Act of 1978 to protect minorities' rights in this regard. The Act removed the right to property as a Fundamental Right (Article 31).
  • In awarding aid, the State shall not discriminate against any educational institution managed by a minority.
  • Article 30 is limited to minorities only (religious or linguistic) and unlike Article 29.
  • Extension of aid by the State does not change the nature and character of the minority educational institutions. The conditions shall be imposed by the State to ensure proper utilization of the aid, without however diluting or abridging the right under Article 30 (1).
7.Right to Constitutional Remedies (Article 32)
  • Rights without remedies for violation of those rights are meaningless. Thus, Article 32 talks about the right to remedies for the enforcement of the fundamental rights of an aggrieved citizen.
  • The right to get Fundamental Rights secured is in itself a fundamental right. This makes fundamental rights real.
  • Dr. B. R. Ambedkar described this article as the very soul of the Constitution and the very heart of it.
  • The Supreme Court has alleged that Article 32 is a basic feature of the Constitution.
What is a Writ?
 
A writ is an order given by the Supreme Court and High Courts of India to carry out their orders for the execution of the affected person's fundamental right and/or legal right. The Supreme Court can issue writs under Article 32 of the Constitution whereas the High Courts can issue writs under Article 226.
 
Type of Writs and their Capacity
 
The writs issued may comprise habeas corpus, mandamus, prohibition, and certiorari, and quo warranto.
 
Habeas Corpus
  • This means “to have the body of” i.e. to present an arrested or detained person before the court(illegal detention).
  • It can be issued against both public and private individuals.
  • Issued to inform the court of the reasons for his detention and to explain the ‘day and cause' of his detention.
  • It is the most effective way to defend individual liberty from arbitrary detention by any executive authority.
  • Habeas Corpus is a prerogative writ that applies equally to all aggrieved parties. The aggrieved party, or someone acting on their behalf, may petition the court for the issuance of this writ.
Mandamus
  • Mandamus means- ‘We Command’.
  • Provided to governmental or semi-governmental or judicial bodies: inferior court, tribunal, board, corporation, or person required to perform their respective duties which they have either willingly or unwillingly refused to perform as fixed by law.
  • The writ can be issued only to impose the mandatory legal duty, not a discretionary function.
  • It shall not be issued to a private individual.
Certiorari
  • A superior court may issue an order directing an inferior court or tribunal to transmit the records of a case or matter that is pending before them.
  • An inferior court's decision is nullified if it is found to be without authority or in violation of natural justice standards.
  • Its object is to protect that the jurisdiction of an inferior court or tribunals is properly exercised.
  • Unlike Habeas Corpus, it should be used only by the person aggrieved, not by any other person.
Prohibition
  • Prohibition is provided by the Supreme Court or a High Court to an inferior court, preventing it from dealing with a case that falls outside of its jurisdiction.
  • It is only applicable when the inferior court or tribunal has not yet reached a decision. Certiorari can be granted even after a decision has been reached by the court or tribunal.
    Prohibition wholly deals with matters of jurisdictional defects, whereas Certiorari is only substantially concerned with such defects.
  • The remedies under both Prohibition and Certiorari fall against a judicial or quasi-judicial body, not against an executive body.
  • Thus the writ of prohibition is opposite to the mandamus in so far as unlike the mandamus that directs activity, the writ of prohibition directs inactivity.
Quo-Warranto
  • Means “by what authority”.
  • It is issued by the court to investigate the validity of a person's appointment to a public office in order to avoid the person's unlawful occupation of the office.
  • The writ of quo-warranto can be provided only in case of a substantive public office of a permanent character shaped by a statute or by the Constitution. It shall not be issued in cases of ministerial office or private office.
8.Other Articles
Article 33

By law, the Parliament shall limit or abolish Fundamental Rights in the application to:
  • The members of the Paramilitary Forces, Armed Forces, intelligence agencies, and police forces.
  • The forces involved in the maintenance of public order.
The prerogative to make laws under this article lies only with the Parliament and not the state legislatures. Laws made under it shall not be challenged in any court of law for their violation of fundamental rights.
A parliamentary law passed under Article 33 can also exclude the Court Martials (tribunals established under Military law) from the writ jurisdiction of the Supreme Court and High Court, so far as the enforcement of Fundamental Rights is concerned.
 
Article 34
  • It provides for the restriction of the fundamental laws when Martial law is imposed in any of the parts of the country.
  • The Supreme Court said that the declaration of martial law does not ipso facto result in the suspension of the writ of habeas corpus.
  • It provides immunity to any public servant or any such person against actions taken during the operation of Martial law.
Article 35
  • Article 35 states that only the Parliament, not the state legislatures, has the power to make laws and give effect to those specific fundamental rights.
  • Article 16(3), 32(3), 33, and 34: matters pertaining to these articles are the prerogative of the Parliament only.
  • Any legislation in effect immediately prior to the adoption of this Constitution to be made under Article 372 can only be amended by the Parliament.
9.Exceptions to Fundamental Rights: Article 31A, Article 31B & Article 31C

Article 31A

Saves five categories of Laws from beings challenged and invalidated on the ground of contravention of FRs conferred by Article 14 and Article 19. They are related to agricultural lands reforms, industry, and commerce and include
  • Acquisition of estates and related rights by the state
  • Taking over the management of properties by the State
  • Amalgamation of corporations
  • Extinguishment or modification of rights of directors or shareholders of corporations.
Does not immunize a state from judicial review unless an Act under it has been reserved
for the President's consideration and has received her assent.
Compensation has to be paid at market value when the state acquires that land held by the person under her personal cultivation, and the land is within the statutory ceiling limit.
 
Article 31B
  • Saves acts and regulations in the 9th Schedule from being challenged and invalidated on grounds of contravention of FRs.
  • The scope of Article 31B is wider than that of Article 31A.
  • Jan 2007 SC: there cannot be any blanket immunity from Judicial review.
  • Judicial review under the 9th Schedule is a part of the basic structure of the Constitution; laws put under the 9th Schedule after April 24, 1973, are open to challenge in court.
Article 31C
  • Inserted by 25th CAA 1971.
  • No Law that seeks to implement that socialistic DPSPs of Article 39(b) and 39(c) shall be void on the contravention of FRs under Article 14, or 19.
  • No Law containing a declaration that it is for giving effect to such policy shall be questioned on the ground that it does not give effect to such policy.
  • 42nd CA 1976 tried to extend the first part of the article to include all DPSPs and not just Article 39 b and c.
  • Declared as unconstitutional and invalid by the Supreme Court in the Minerva Mills case (1980).
Rights outside Part III (Constitutional rights' or legal rights' or non-fundamental rights)
  • Article 265: No tax shall be levied or collected except by authority of Law. (Part XII).
  • Article 300A: No person shall be deprived of his property save by authority of Law. (Part XII).
  • Article 301: Trade, commerce, and intercourse throughout the territory of India shall be free. (Part XIII).
  • Article 326: The elections to the LS and the State Legislative Assembly shall be on the basis of adult suffrage (Part XV).
  • In case of violation of these rights, the aggrieved can move the HC by an ordinary suit or under Article 226 (writ jurisdiction of the High Court).
 
Previous year Questions
 
1. Other than the Fundamental Rights, which of the following parts of the Constitution of India reflect/reflect the principles and provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1918)? (UPSC 2020)
1. Preamble
2. Directive Principles of State Policy
3. Fundamental Duties
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
A. 1 and 2 only
B. 2 only
C. 1 and 3 only
D. 1, 2 and 3
Answer: D
 
2.  With reference to the writs issued by the Courts in India, consider the following statements: (UPSC 2022)
1. Mandamus will not lie against a private organization unless it is entrusted with a public duty.
2. Mandamus will not lie against a Company even though it may be a Government Company.
3. Any public-minded person can be a petitioner to move the Court to obtain the writ of Quo Warranto.
Which of the statements given above is correct?
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3
Answer: a
 
3. What is the position of the Right to Property in India? (UPSC 2021)
(a) Legal right available to citizens only
(b) Legal right available to any person
(c) Fundamental Rights available to citizens only
(d) Neither fundamental Right nor legal right
Answer: b
 
4.  With reference to India, consider the following statements: (UPSC 2021)
1. Judicial custody means an accused is in the custody of the concerned magistrate and such accused is locked up in a police station, not in jail.
2. During judicial custody, the police officer in charge of the case is not allowed to interrogate the suspect without the approval of the court.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2
Answer: b
 
5. A legislation which confers on the executive or administrative authority an unguided and uncontrolled discretionary power in the matter of the application of law violates which one of the following Articles of the Constitution of India? (UPSC 2021)
(a) Article 14
(b) Article 28
(c) Article 32
(d) Article 44
Answer: a
 
6. Which one of the following best defines the term “State”? (UPSC 2021)
(a) A community of persons permanently occupying a definite territory independent of external control and possessing an organized government.
(b) A politically organized people of a definite territory possessing an authority to govern them, maintain law and order, protect their natural rights, and safeguard their means of sustenance.
(c) A number of persons who have been living in a definite territory for a very long time with their own culture, tradition, and government.
(d) A society permanently living in a definite with a central authority, an executive responsible to the central authority, and an independent judiciary.
Answer: a
 
7. ‘Right to Privacy’ is protected under which Article of the constitution of India? (UPSC 2021)
(a) Article 15
(b) Article 19
(c) Article 21
(d) Article 29
Answer: c
 
8. Which one of the following categories of ‘Fundamental Rights incorporated against untouchability as a form of discrimination? (UPSC 2020)
(a) Right against Exploitation
(b) Right to Freedom
(c) Right to Constitutional Remedies
(d) Right to Equality
Answer: b
 
9. Which Article of the Constitution of India safeguards one’s right to marry the person of one’s choice? (UPSC 2019)
(a) Article 19
(b) Article 21
(c) Article 25
(d) Article 29
Answer: b
 
10. Which of the following are regarded as the main features of the “Rule of Law”? (UPSC 2018)
  1. Limitation of powers
  2. Equality before the law
  3. People’s responsibility to the Government
  4. Liberty and civil rights

Select the correct answer using the code given below :

(a) 1 and 3 only

(b) 2 and 4 only

(c) 1, 2, and 4 only

(d) 1, 2, 3 and 4

Answer: c

11. Right to Privacy is protected as an intrinsic part of the Right to Life and Personal Liberty. Which of the following in the Constitution of India correctly and appropriately imply the above statement? (UPSC 2018)

(a) Article 14 and the provisions under the 42nd Amendment to the Constitution

(b) Article 17 and the Directive Principles of State Policy in Part IV

(c) Article 21 and the freedoms guaranteed in Part. III

(d) Article 24 and the provisions under the 44th Amendment to the Constitution

Answer: c

12.  In the context of India, which one of the following is the correct relationship between Rights and Duties? (UPSC 2017)

(a) Rights are correlative with Duties.

(b) Rights are personal and hence independent of society and Duties.

(c) Rights, not Duties, are important for the advancement of the personality of the citizen.

(d) Duties, not Rights, are important for the stability of the State.

Answer: a

13. Which of the following are envisaged by the Right against Exploitation in the Constitution of India? (UPSC 2017)

  1. Prohibition of traffic in human beings and forced labour
  2. Abolition of untouchability
  3. Protection of the interests of minorities
  4. Prohibition of employment of children in factories and mines

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

(a) 1, 2, and 4 only

(b) 2, 3, and 4 only

(c) 1 and 4 only

(d) 1, 2, 3 and 4

 Answer: c
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