Human Rights

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Human Rights We live in a wide and varied world and yet we share a common bond. The history of humankind is marked by efforts to ensure respect for the dignity of all. The concept of human rights was introduced and developed by thinkers from various cultural and religious traditions. Important contributions to the  promotion of this this idea was m made ade by statesm statesmen en and lawyers an and d gradually w written ritten norms establishing the protection of the rights of individuals were inscribed in national laws. Steps were also taken to establish interna international tional human rights standards, in particular in the nineteenth century and after the First World War. However, it was only in the second half of the twentieth century that a comprehensive international system of human rights promotion and  protection was set up. This w was as mainly due to the effort effortss of the United N Nations, ations, its specialized agencies and regional intergovernmental organizations. organizations. 1.1 Tracing the History of Human Rights

where does the history of human rights begin? begin? There are two different approaches on studying its origin. One would argue whether its origin should be traced to the legacy of European Enlightenment as a result of which the concept of nation-state developed and morality became one of the tools of governance. This ultimately brought down the feudal structure and challenged the divine rights of the kings . there is another theory that floated in the development of human rights history. It is believed to be encrypted in the secular and religious traditions. The concepts of  progressive punishment can be traced to to Hammurabi„s  Hammurabi„s Code in ancient Babylon; the Hindu and Buddhist religions offered the earliest defenses of the respect for all, extended to the ecosystem ecosystem;; Confucianism promoted mass education; the ancient Greeks and Romans endorsed natural laws and the capacity of each person to question; Christianity and Islam advocated brotherhood and at the same time, they endorsed a moral conduct during wars. Therefore, most of the universal cultures tended to rationalize unequal treatment of people. But it is equally true that the real foundation of human rights in the modern world lies in the European enlightenment era. During this period the concern for rights of woman and practice of slavery were addressed. Human rights are also rooted in the  philosophical laws laws of natural rrights ights and na natural tural law. law. Plato  Plato (427BC-348BC) (427BC-348BC) can be said to be the earliest philosophers who suggeste suggested d the universal ethical conduct and in a way indirectly advocated natural rights of people. Similarly Similarly Aristotle  Aristotle (384BC-322BC) said that justice, virtue and rights according to the different

 

kinds of socio-politic socio-politico o constitution and circumstanc circumstances. es. Cicero (106BC-43BC), (106BC-43BC), one the most renowned jurist and statesman laid down the foundation of natural rights and human rights in his work 'laws' 'laws' (52BC). (52BC). According to him there should be univer universal sal human rights laws tthat hat would go beyond customary and civil laws. In Greece, there are evidences of equal freedom of speech, equality before law, right to vote, right to trade, similar rights were secured to the Romans by the  jus  'jus civile' of the Roman law. Thus, it can be a general agreement that the origin of the human rights is usually agreed to be found in the Greco-Roman natural law and doctrines of Stoicism. 1.2 The Enlightenment Thinkers

Thomas Hobbes: Hobbes ―Leviathan‖ ―Leviathan‖ published  published in England England in 1651 could be considered as the first work on the power sharing between the king and the natural rights of the individual. The leviathan world did not advocate the formal restraint of power. It allowed few natural rights to the individuals who have willingly delegated rest of their natural rights to the state or the ruler. Therefore, Leviathan gave the concept of ―social contract‖ i.e.:- the power to govern comes

from the consent of the governed. John Locke: Locke advocated the natural liberty and equality of human beings. According to Locke- “Man was born free with a title to perfect freedom, and an un control led e enj nj oy oyme ment nt of all the ri ghts and pri vil ege ges s of th e law of nature   , equally with any other man, or number of men in the w world.; orld.; he had „by natu r e a po powe werr to pr eser ve hi s pr prope operr ty, that i s, hi s l i f e, li l i be berr ty and estate tates s

against the injuries and attempts of other men”. Thus Locke was considered as a strong advocate of natural rights. His influence could be seen in the US Declaration of independence in 1776. Locke’s contribution can also be  be   observed when we recollect the preamble of the universal Declaration of Human Rights which says, “Whereas it is essential, if man is not  to b e c o m p e l l e d to h a v e r e c o u r s e , a s a l as as t r e s o r t , t o r e b e l llii o n a g a i n s t t y r a n n y a n d o p p r e s s i o n , t h a t h u m a n r i g h t s s h o u l d b e p r o t e c t e d

by the rule of law.”  

Baron de Montesquieu: Montesquieu's contribution in ―the Enlightenm Enlightenment‖ ent‖ remains a landmark contribution on the power structures of government and separation of power. He advanced the theory of social contract. He emphasized on the idea that everyone was born with certain natural rights which no authority could take away. This was the fundamental base of the French Declaration of the Rights.

 

The 'social contract theory' of Thomas Hobbes and John Locke. Relate it with natural rights and their contribution to the human rights concept of 19th century. 1.3 The Modern Concept of Human Rights In the contemporary world, human rights are directly traced to the Universal

Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and subsequent treatise they are mainly thought of as being political in nature as these rights are directed to the states and it is the state's responsibility to ensure its effectiveness. Therefore, human rights are  primarily not interpersona interpersonall rights. Accor According ding to Prof Professor essor Alan  Alan Gewrith Gewrith,, Human rights arise not from the general good, but from the conditions of human agency and the logical structure of reasons. He argued that, since all normal human beings engage in a self-conscious actio action n in a way where his/her existence is successfully protected. This leads to the universal acceptance of certain rights which may be termed as human rights.  James Griffin saw human rights as the rights given in consistence with the  prevailing senses senses with the obje objective ctive of universal universal good and ffunctioning unctioning of h human uman autonomy. According to John to John Rawls, Rawls, all moral beliefs are inferential and such beliefs would  be broadly accepted only when it is in reflective eequilibrium. quilibrium. It means that ssociety ociety functions as a system of cooperation which is rational, reasonable, and free and equal –  equal  –  which  which rearranges itself to conceptualize social justice and in a way to assure human rights. 1.4 Categorization of Human Rights

Human rights are not generic and abstract but they are numerous and at the same time specific. To simplify the understanding, human rights may be categorized broadly into following types: 1. Security rights that are protected against criminal offences like murder, rape etc. 2. Rights against the abuse of legal system like false imprisonment, excessive excessive  punishments etc. 3. Freedom rights as in the areas of thought speech and expression. 4. Rights of political participation like forming an assembly, protest etc. 5. Equality rights that ensure non discrimination by the state and its agency. 6. Social rights that ensure basic healthcare, education and livelihood. 7. Minority rights which protect people from genocide, ethnic cleansing etc. Most of the above rights have been incorporated in the UDHR and other treatises. However, the idea of human rights has moral base and no country can shy away to

 

 bring these rights rights in their d domestic omestic laws if they claim to be a responsibl responsiblee nation irrespective of international laws and treatises. .5 Human Rights before the First World War Prior to early 1930s there there was no real concept of human rights in the IInternational nternational law. There was a usual practice that human rights are state subject and international agencies or other nations have no right to interfere in the sovereignty of the country. Thus in case of human rights violation by the state and nonstate actors on the individual, there was no proper mechanism to address such issues on the international front. This made the concept of human rights nonexistent and abstract in the law book of many governments. However two notable achievements could be mentioned: 1. Abolition of slave trade: The nineteenth century saw a clear progress in the abolition of slave trade. Slavery was made illegal in England in 1771 after Somersett’s case. By beginning of nineteenth century England and USA had already passed the legislation to outlaw slave trade from their territory. The Proclamation of 1863 by the President of United States Abraham Lincoln against slavery is the best and famous example of the ongoing attempt to ban slavery at that time. It is to be noted countries like Cuba and Brazil still practiced slavery in their domestic land. Later on the anti slavery that International Law was established in 1839, which could be considered as one of the oldest nongovernment organizations that existed. 1.5.1 Causalities of War 1. This period also saw the concern for the individual causalities due to war or  people who were prisoners of war. Many coun countries tries agreed to safeguard the minimum rights of the individual or foreigners imprisoned in a war or likewise. Therefore, a seed of humanitarian law was sown during this time, which further resulted in the establishment of the International committee of the Red Cross by  Henry Dunant. 1.6 The League of Nations and its approach towards human rights issue After the First World War the League of Nations came into existence. It was then considered as the principal international organizatio organization n responsible for maintaining  peace and harmony harmony in the world. L Later, ater, in 1919, Covenant Covenant on the L League eague of nation was concluded whose preamble was read as follows: “The main aim of the organi zation is to promote in ter ter national coo coope perr ation and achiev achieve e inte interr nation national al  peace and security.”  security.”  

The League of Nations passed International Conventions Conventions on the Abolition of Slavery and the Slave trade in 1926. With this, slave trade was legally banned in the international forum and the league promoted bilateral tie ups to make antislavery

 

laws effective for the member countries. The league also faced issues regarding minority rights. It was because, after the First World War, the t he political map of Europe was redrawn and many ethnic groups became minority in their new country. There was gross violation of their rights which was a great concern for the League of Nations. However, this individual violation of the human rights could not be addressed by the organization due to lack of clarity on the status of human rights violation and internationa internationall arrangements. According to one of the celebrated political analyst Laard, he concluded that“The assumptions of national sovereignty were  alm os ostt accepte accepted de eve verr ywh ywhe er e. Regul ation Regul ations s re regardi gardi ng th e r estr icti ons on th the e fr eedom of pre pr ess, of spe pee ech an and d expr ession , im impri pri sonment for poli ti tical cal off ences nces,, pe perr secuti on on rracial acial gr oun ounds ds,, all thes these e thi things ngs we werr e de deplor plor ed and de denou nou nce nced. d. B But ut it was wide widely ly acce accepted pted that th the ey we werr e ul tim ate atell y the s sole ole res respons ponsii bil ity of the lega legall gove goverr nm nme ent of the ter ter r itor y in que ques stion tion;; and not th the er efor e matte matterr s ove overr whi ch  foreign individuals individuals or gove governments rnments cou could ld take action legitimately.”  

1.7 Human Rights after the Second World War Human rights and democracy were the moral bases on which the Second World War was fought. As early as in 1941, the President of United States spoke of the  ‗four essential essential human freedom freedoms„. s„. Those were- (freedom of speech and expression, freedom of every person to worship God in his own way, freedom from want and freedom from fear). Thus, it was clear that the world was aligning itself with the safeguarding of human rights protection globally. The atrocities of Nazis were still fresh and it was a concerted effort of the world community to join together and ensure that the future generations do not have to witness the onslaught and barbarous act like in World Wars. What Hitler and its  Nazis had done to to the Jews was declared as a cr crime ime against hum humanity. anity. Therefore, the main focus of the immediate post war crisis was to frame International human rights laws and attempt started to create legal instruments which could protect human rights of the individual against the state or non-state actors. One of such endeavor could be about the framing of the UN Charter in San Francisco in 1945. At the conference, the member delegates agreed to an International Bill of Rights however it did not materialise. The two World Wars had shaken even the most politically aggressive countries of the world, particularly in Europe. This resulted in the self-realization by nations of the injustice done to mankind in the struggle for political conquest.

The Preamble of UN Charter

“The peoples of United N Nations ations wer weree determined  to  to save succeeding generations  from the scourge scourge of war, w which hich twice in o our ur life time has has brought unt untold old sorrow to mankind, and to reaffirm faith faith in fundamental fundamental human rights , in the dig dignity nity and worth of the human person , in the equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small…..”  small…..” 

 

With the framing of the United Nations, human rights officially got its recognition and today it has become the subject of concern for the international community. community. Human Rights under the UN charter: In the San  Francisco Conference Conference,, it was agreed by the delegates that there should be an International Bill of Hum Human an rights however, due to lack of  proper coordination, coordination, it was no nott given a shape, However, detailed detailed provisions of human rights was infused in the UN Charter which played a vital role in the future making of covenants and agencies of human rights. Some of the provisions were as follows: United Nations determined to reaffirm ffaith aith in the fundamental hum human an rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person in the equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small….  small….  international cooperation in promoting and encouraging respect for human rights and for freedoms for all, irrespective of caste, religion, sex and race would be equal for United Nations. task for the realization of promotion of human rights and fundamental freedoms.  provisions: –  higher  higher standard of living  –  full  full employment  –  economic  economic and social progress  –  international  international cultural and educational cooperation  –  international  international social health and related problems cooperate in achieving the set forth target in Article 55. cil (ECOSOC) to make proper recommendationss for the promotion of human rights and fundamental freedom for recommendation all. It is to be noted that, the Charter is a global Constitution without a bill of rights and it has not defined human rights anywhere in the charter. There is also no provision in the charter to make the provisions as legal binding for the member states. 1.8 Limitation of United Nation with respect to human rights

 

Even though there was mention of human rights in the main body of the charter, it did not any way made the member state commit to the cause. With certain  provisions as in Article 55( 55(c) c) read with Ar Article ticle 56 simple simple advised mem member ber states to follow and practice human rights as prescribed in Article 55. Therefore without any legal obligations to the implementatio implementation n of human rights it proved weak and ineffective when it was brought in the practice. Nevertheless, the  political thinkers thinkers believed that iin n spite of suc such h limitations U United nited Nation ccould ould be applauded to initiate the human rights concern effectively on international  platform. Under Article 68 of the UN Charter empowers, Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) to constitute a commission for the promotion of human rights and such other commissions as may be required for the performance of its functions. Accordingly a commission on human rights was approved by the general assembly on February 12, 1946. The commission was composed of 18 members who were elected by ECOSOC. Each state member selected its own representatives. The Commission Commission as determined by its terms of reference, was directed to recommend and report on the following terms. 1. on International Bill of Rights. 2. the protection on minorities. 3. discrimination on grounds on religion, sex, race and language. 4. international declaration and conventions on civil liberties, status on women, freedom of expression. The commission has set up intensive machinery and procedures to monitor compliance by states with regard to international human rights law and investigate any kind of human rights violation.It is done mainly by sending a fact finding missions to countries. 1.10 Human Rights Council (HRC) In one of the World Summit in New York 2005 number of global issues were discussed and it was finally decided that UN Human Rights Council should be formed which shall be responsible for the  protection of human human rights and ffundamental undamental free freedoms doms for all without any kind of distinction. On March 2006, the General Assembly adopted a resolution to establish Human Rights Council  based in Geneva. It shall function aass subsidiary subsidiary organ of the General Assembly. 1.10.1 Composition of HRC

 

It consists of 47 members who are elected directly and individually by secret ballot  by the majority of the mem member ber of the General A Assembly. ssembly. The membership is based on equitable geographical distribution. 13 member from African Group,13 from Asian Group, 6 from Eastern European Group and 7 from Western European group and other states. Membership is open to all members of General Assembly. 1.11 Universal Declaration of Human Rights

In 1946 UN Commission Commission on Human Right Rightss were constituted to frame the International Bill of Rights, It was an attempt to create human rights instrument globally and for all nations and people. The The drafting committee consisting of eight countries were formed which was chaired by Eleanor Roosevelt. Followi Following ng many sessions and meetings, on 10 December 1948, the UDHR (Universa (Universall Declaration on Human Rights) resolution was passed by 48 members of the UN General Assembly and the 8 communist countries abstained from voting. These 48 states had backed the Declaration as the ‗common standard of achievement for all  peoples and all nations.‘ The Universal Declaration consisted of 30  30   Articles along with Preamble. This was the first cornerstone in a process to evolve the International Bill of Rights. The International Bill of Rights includes UDHR, ICCPR and ICESCR. The three together forms International Bill of Rights out of which the UN General Assembly had to wait another two decades for the last two to becomethe effective. two International covenants were adopted in 1966 codifying two setsThe of rights mentioned in the Universal Declaration. International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and International Covenants on social Economic and Cultural Rights came into force in 1976. The UDHR was passed in the General Assembly without without any vote of dissent however there were eight countries who abstained from voting. These countries were mainly communist ideology in the likes of Poland, USSR etc,

 

Human Rights are given to us by the virtue of birth, only because we are human. These are inseparable, inter-dependent and there is no discrimination in provision of these rights. Human rights are what every human being is entitled to; to allow them freedom to live a dignified, secure life of their choice. They include rights related to the safety of the person; the right to be free from coercion by other individuals, groups or governments; governments; the right to social benefits, rest and leisure; and the right to a good basic education and many more such rights. In Hindu philosophy, dharma‟ is perhaps the closest word to 'human rights'. Actually, dharma has many levels of meaning: law, norms of conduct, truth, right, ritual, justice, morality, destiny, religion, and more. 'Vasudhaib Kutumbakam' (the world is our family) is the underlying Hindu philosophy. In particular, this  philosophy says says that rights ar aree not confine confined d to humans aalone; lone; animals and plants also have such rights. (In fact, this is a part of the Jain  philosophy too.) Human rights ar aree not rights o only; nly; they are als also o duties, and bo both th are inter-dependent. Hindu philosophy looks at society and the universe as a whole. This differs from the Western view of the 'individual-bas 'individual-based' ed' notion of human rights. In fact, most Asian societies reject the individualistic approach to human rights. The Buddhist doctrine, for example, does not accept the concept of life based on the self or ego. It emphasises the holistic nature of things. The rock edicts of Ashoka (in the 3rdcentury BC) proclaim the emperor’ emperor’ss concern for the well being of the hill-dwellers. hill-dwellers. This line of thinkin thinking g shows concern for tthe he disadvantaged people, runs through all the ages and has produced bold advocates like Jyotiba Phule, Periyar and Ambedkar in the recent years. India passed the Protection of Human Rights Act in 1993. 1 993. In spite of this and the fact that India has signed the IBR, people are not treated as equals and there is a great divide in the society based on the caste, creed and religion. Almost every week you can read about incidents which can distinctly be linked with human rights violation making headlines in the newspapers. What can a country, especially one that has signed the ICCPR or the ICESCR, do to make these universal rights available to its people? The economic rights, of course, would depend on the resources that a nation can muster. But what about the civil and political rights? According to the Vienna Declaration,  poverty and backwardness backwardness cann cannot ot be offered as rea reasons sons for not not subscribin subscribing g to the universal nature of human rights. It is hence important to know that being citizen of India what rights do we have according to Constitut Constitution ion of India and if trespassed what legal action can be taken against it. Human rights like education,

 

health, food, work, information; clean environment, peace, etc are accessed by all even children, women, disadvantaged, minorities, bonded labourers and prisoners. All laws and regulations laid by the constitution and law enforcing agencies are  binding for the the protection of rrights ights and viol violation ation of these m may ay lead to prosec prosecution. ution. But it is also true that internal and external destructive powers in the countryterrorism, civil movements, militancy militancy etc. mock our legal system. It also aims to endanger the unity and integrity of India. In the personal context several rights are granted to citizens. Civil and political rights are the entitlements relating to fair and equal treatment, to justice and  political freedom and to general security security,, Some of them are

ivacy, family, home and marriage.

 

Human Rights are Indespensible and Inevitable

Lack of human rights may hinder the ethical, natural, societal and spiritual development of individuals. Human rights are extremely essential for the development of a conducive environment to augment the physical and moral life of society. Human Rights Support and Advocate the Esteem of Humans

Thus, human rights advocate that every individual should be treated with esteem irrespective of gender, social or economic status. For instance, a law was passed in India in the year 1993, which forbade human beings from transporting human excreta. This law is called 'Employment of Manual Scavengers and Dry D ry Latrines (Prohibition) Act' . 3. Human Rights are Universal  No one class of people, however privileged they may be, have a monopoly monopoly over human rights. They are essentially universal 4. Human Rights are Inalienable 'Inalienable' means unable to be taken away. When we say human rights are inalienable we are saying that the rights are inherent in us and we cannot give it away or renounce it. For example, if an individual gives, even in writing, telling the police that he should be arrested for a crime that he has committed and be locked up without a trial, it cannot cannot be considered a valid statement. This This would be a violation of his/her basic human right to 5. Human Rights are Dynamic Human rights are ever changing, constantly dependent on the change in the  political, economic, economic, social or env environmental ironmental str structures uctures of the S State. tate. For exam example, ple, the right to adequate treatment during illness has been conferred through various schemes of the Government of India. Some of these schemes include free medical treatment in public hospitals and regular and free medical examination and free medical consultation for schools and providing education to the physically challenged

 

6. Human Rights are Essential for Gratificati Gratification on of Aspirations

Every human being is entitled to attain his/her aims in life. Human rights refer to those requirements which are absolutely essential to attain this aim. These essential rights should not be curtailed by any authority. 7. Human Rights are Never Absolute . Humanity lives in a society which invariably places some limitations on certain  privileges and freedoms. freedoms. Hum Human an rights are those rrestricted estricted privileges privileges or  prerogatives, which which are beneficial beneficial for the society or humanity at lar large. ge. These are acknowledged and attested by the state through its legislation. Each of these rights comes with restriction restrictionss 8. Human Rights Restrains State Power. Human rights imply that all citizens have rightful demands upon his or her society for certain freedoms and assistance. Thus we could say that human rights confine the power of the government. They either essential essentially ly levy limitations on the

 power of the government government to prev prevent ent the violati violation on of the basic hum human an rights of individuals, or they may lead to setting up of certain obligations for the government for non- interference interference in the personal life of cit citizens. izens. This is clearly indicated in the six freedoms freedoms mentioned in the Right to Freedom in the Indian Constitution. (Article 19 1.5) 1.16 India's Freedom Struggle, Human Rights and Constituent Assembly The struggle for Human Rights in India gained momentum during the rule of the Britishers. It was during the British rule that the Indians witnessed grave violation of their rights. One of the biggest examples of such violations is the Rowlatt Act of 1919, which which provided extensive powers tto o the British Gover Government. nment. It allowed British officials to carry out indefinite arrests, detention of individuals and allowed them to perform/ execute warrantless searc searches hes and seizures. It also restricted people from public gatherings and censored the media. Therefore, the extensive powers given to the officials resulted in the gross violation of human rights of the masses. Similarly, Similarly, the Vernacular Press Act (1878), the Indian Councils Act (1892), the Indian Councils Act (1909) etc, also were marked  by the violation of of basic hum human an rights of individ individuals. uals. Later, on d due ue to the rise of the feeling of nationalism amongst the Indians, the struggle for the attainment of human rights began in India. To do so the Indians not only opposed the Britishers  by various revolts revolts but also deve developed loped and placed certain certain demands before before the Britishers, for the achievement of their basic human rights. One such demand was the Nehru Commission Report of 1928 (with Motilal Nehru as its Chairman) Chairman)..

 

The Nehru Report not only proposed constitutional reforms for India but also demanded a Dominion Status for India and universal suffrage for all, including the religious and ethnic minorities. It also laid emphasis on limiting the power of the Government and proposed to protect the fundamental rights of the people, which were denied most frequently by the colonial administra administration. tion. The next development took place in 1931, when the Indian National Congress approved several resolutions for the protection of fundamental civil rights and social rights of the Indians. Minimum wage, abolition of untouchability and the abolition of forced labour were some of the issues adopted in the ensuing resolutions. A notable development during the period took place on December 1948, when the United Nations General Assembly accepted and implimented the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Besides this, the United Nations also requested its member nations to recognise the basic human rights in the corresponding constitutions of their countries. This development had a significant impact on the Constitution of India  1.17 Human Rights in the Constitution of India

The work of drafting the Constitution of India was done by the Constituent Assembly. The Constituent Assembly Assembly began its work on December 9, 1946. After several discussions and debates the Constituti Constitution on of India was finally adopted on January 26, 1950. The framers of the Indian Constitutio Constitution n were greatly influenced by the idea of human rights and most of the human rights incorporated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. While the civil and political rights have been incorporated in Part III of the Indian Constitution, i.e. (Fundamental Rights). The Economic Social and Cultural Rights have been incorporated in Part IV of the States Policy). The Constitution of India as said above, provides some Fundamental Rights to its citizens. The fundamental human rights ascertained by the Constitu Constitution tion of India, were influenced by many rights that had been endorsed by several countries. England's Bill of Rights (1689), the United States Bill of Rights (December 15, 1791) and the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen of France (created during the Revolution of 1789) were the main influences that went into the making of the Fundamental Human Rights of the Constitution of India. The Fundamental Rights are included in Part III of the Constitution. (Articles 12-35). These rights were finalized by a committee of the Constituent Assembly headed by Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.

 

*These rights have not been defined in the Constitution but it has been agreed upon that they are essential which is why they are called Fundamental Rights because they are the most essential rights and are above all ordinary laws. Thus unlike ordinary laws they can be altered only through a constitutional amendment. Contrary to other justifiable rights the Fundamental rights are protected by a constitutional remedy. Thus the Fundamental Rights are not absolute but have been subjected to certain restrictions restrictions.. (*by way of an application direct to the supreme court under Article 32, Part III.) The Indian Constitution assures certain Fundamental Rights to all the citizens of India. The Constitution of India gives the greatest priority to these civil liberties. They are guaranteed to be above all other laws of the nation. They encompass many basic individual rights like equality before the law, freedom of speech and expression, freedom of association and peaceful assembly, freedom of religion and the right to constitutional remedies for the protection of civil rights, for instance the Habeas the  Habeas Corpus Corpus.. The Fundamental Rights were incorporated in the Indian constitution with the aim to eradicate the inequalities and discriminatory discriminatory social  practices of the past. They ab abolished olished the practice of untouchability and also forbid differentiation differentiatio n on the basis of gender, religion, race, caste, or place of birth. It also  prohibited discrimination discrimination between between human beings aand nd atrocities like like forced labo labour. ur. They even protected cultural and educational rights of minorities by safeguard safeguarding ing the right to retain their unique culture and discrete languages. The minorities were also given the freedom to set up and execute their own educational institutions. There are six Fundamental Rights enshrined in the Indian Constitution. Right to Equality Right to Freedom Right against Exploitation Right to to Freed Freedom om o off Religion Cultural and E Educational ducational R Rights ights Right to Constitutional Remedies Right to Property has been deleted from the list of Fundamental th Rights by the 44 Constitutio Constitutional nal Amendment Act of 1978. Now it is a legal right under Article 300(A) In 2002, Article 21(A) was incorporated by the 86th constitution constitutional al amendment act. Primary education has also been made a Fundamental Right under the Right to Life and Personal Liberty. It says that "the children in the age group of six to fourteen  years shall be provided provided free and compulsor compulsoryy education" education" by  by the State. Fundamental Fundamental Rights are not absolute but have been subjected to certain restrictions. The Constitution equips the states with the provision of imposing restrictions on these rights at times, for upholding the independence, sovereignty and integrity of India.  Nevertheless, the right to life and and personal liberty liberty cannot be suspended. suspended. Sim Similarly, ilarly, the six freedoms (Right to freedom) also bear some restrictions. They can be suspended automatically during the state of emergency

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