INTRODUCTION
Our
Indian constitution is deemed to be a unique constitution. The founders of the
Constitution were mindful of the significance of human dignity and dignity and
therefore incorporated the word human dignity in the Preamble to the
Constitution of India. Fundamental rights are the most important features of
the Constitution. “There are various rights provided by the Constitution i.e. Right
to Equality, right to Freedom, right to Freedom of Religion, right to
Constitutional Remedy, right against Exploitation along with Right to Cultural
and Education, which all mostly talk about inalienable, sacred, inalienable and
inherent rights.”[i]
The Constitution guarantees equal rights to all citizens, without prejudice.
The Constitution provide for the fundamental rights to protect and preserves
the human dignity.
The
Indian Constitution guarantees equal justice for all and prevents the state
from depriving the life and personal freedom of anyone without the procedure
laid down by law. The preamble of the
Indian Constitution itself makes it clear that equality exists among all Indian
people, and this is the reason that all persons, including lawmakers and supporters
of the law, are all equal in front of the law and also offers with equal
justice apart from their caste and religion to all the people of India. “Justice
Mishra Ragnath pointed in Paramanda
Katara v. Union of India[ii]
that preserving life is of the utmost importance, for if one’s life is
lost, status qunte ante (the way things were before) cannot be recovered for
resurrection is beyond man’s ability. If we round up, then we found that this
right inevitably and logically demands the highest degree of protection. It
denotes the significance of human existence because of this it is widely
referred to as the highest fundamental rights. Since Maneka Gandhi’s[iii]case
the Supreme Court's reading of Article 21 of the Constitution has marked the
beginning of a new period of extension of the right to life horizons. Right to
life is one of the important fundamental rights.”
HUMAN DIGNITY
Human
dignity is related to human life and as fundamental rights it has statutory jurisprudential
meaning. Dignity refers to the display of human honor and personal
qualifications and is a universal human concern. Defense from abuse and
infringement of alienable rights is correlated with the concept of human
dignity. The word human dignity is widely used to defend the individual’s
reputation and honor, without the individual being unable to survive on earth.
Each one has their own dignity and they live only for that. Human dignity
attaches to the individual with its own actions and position in society. Human
dignity also treated as an individual’s honor and position or status. “In
preamble the Constitution used the word ‘dignity’, the preamble reads as
‘assuring the dignity of the person and the nation’s unity and integrity. Dignity can be ensured if every member of the
community feels that he or she is a decent member and no one can humiliate,
threaten, abuse and ridicule him or her on the basis of caste, religion, gender
and stats etc.”[iv]
Human dignity implies a dignified state of honor, integrity, equal status and
is fundamentally mentally linked with human life irrespective of the person's
caste, religion, sex, color. Through pride in
integrity, each culture has its own standards and retains its integrity, honor
and reputation as normal.
The
Indian Constitution did not expressly set out the right to dignity in “Part III
of the Indian Constitution”, but the Supreme Court recognized these rights as
mentioned in Article 14, 19 and 21. In several cases, the Supreme Court has
also stated that fundamental rights are denied even to the prisoners. It holds
certain universal rights including the right to be treated with equality and
respect for human dignity.
In
the case of “Jolly George Varghese v.
The Bank of Cochin”[v],
Justice Krishna Iyer talked about Article 21 along with the importance of
human dignity and the basic integrity of human beings treasured in Article 21,
read in Article 14 and 19, obliges the State not to prosecute, except in
compliance with legislation which is broad, fair and rational in its procedural
nature and it is well founded that the right to life enshrined in “Article 21
of India’s Constitution” covers within its broad light to a life worth living,
all the basic necessities of living.
Article 21 of the Constitution of India
has been used by the Supreme Court in a very imaginative and inventive way to
enhance the living condition and quality of human life. “In the case of Keshavananda Bharti v. State of Kerala[vi] the court observe it as a basic
principle of the constitution of India. It has been made clear that the
preamble comprises the basic elements of the Indian Republic which can be used
to define which assess the true nature of the various fundamental rights. The Court of first
instance based its many decisions and interpreted the right with the aid of the word "dignity" of
the individual used in the preamble.”
INTERPRETATION OF HUMAN DIGNITY BY SUPREME COURT
The
Indian Supreme Court extracted a list of civil rights in all senses from the
concept of 'human dignity' provided by the right to life. “In Kartar Singh v. State of Punjab[vii],
the Supreme Court held that democracy aims not only at independence from unreasonable
constraint, but also at the right to protect the requirements that are
necessary to the complete growth of personality.”
“In
Consumer Education and Research Centre
v. Union of India [viii]the
right to life requires security of the worker’s health and resilience is a
basic requirement for a person to be able to live with human dignity. The right to human dignity, social security,
the right to rest and recreation are basic human rights in the Preamble and Article
38 and 39 of the constitution for a worker guaranteed by the charter of human
rights.”
“In
Francis Coraile Mullin v. Administrator,
Union Territory of Delhi [ix]the
Supreme Court observed that the right to life strengthened by the fact that
Article 21 cannot be limited to mere animal nature implies something far more
than just physical survival. The right to life requires the right to live with
human dignity and everything that comes with it, including the basic
necessities of life such as proper diet, clothes and shelter over the head and facilities
for reading, writing and expressing oneself in a number of ways, roaming
openly, interacting and interacting with other people.”
“In
D.K Basu v. State of West Bengal[x]
torture in custody is a naked violation of human dignity and degradation which destroys
individual personality to a larger extent. It is seen that an attack on human
dignity and every time human dignity is injured, society takes a step
backwards- the flag of humanity must fly half-mast on any such occasion.”
“In
Sunil Batra v. Delhi Administration [xi] it
would certainly be arbitrary and questionable under Article 14 to treat human
being who offends human dignity, imposes avoidable torture and reduces the man
to the level of a beast.”
In
“Unni Krishnan, J.P v. State of A.P”
[xii]the
honorable Court has presented Article 21 as the right to live with human
dignity and all that entails. The Right to education is inextricably linked to
the right to life. In other words, the right to education coincides with the
basic rights enshrined in Part III of the Constitution. The state has a statutory obligation to
provide educational institutions for the benefit of citizens, at all levels. Education
benefits can’t be confined to richer classes.
CONCLUSION
The Supreme Court has used Article 21 of the Indian Constitution in a very innovative manner and strongly recommended the rights of the Indian people, and the Court took a major step in extending the scope of Article 21, arguing that the right to life includes living with Human Dignity.
[i] Interpretation of Human
Rights In India, available at: https://www.legalserviceindia.com/legal/article-1200-interpretation-of-human-rights-in-india.html (last visited on
10-03-2022)
[ii] AIR 2039, 1989 SCR (3)
997
[iii] AIR 597, 1978 SCR (2)
621
[iv] Preamble To The Indian
Constitution, available at: https://www.legalserviceindia.com/legal/article-750-preamble-to-the-indian-constitution.html (last visited on
10-03-2022)
[v] AIR 470, 1980 SCR (2)
913
[vi] AIR 1973 SC 1461
[vii] AIR 1787, 1962 SCR (2)
395
[viii] AIR 1995 SC
[ix] SCC 608(1981)
[x] AIR 1997 SC 610[12]
[xi] AIR 1978 SC 1675[15]
[xii] AIR 1993 SC 2178[16]
About the Author: This post is prepared by Aman Tiwari, Law Student at Delhi Metropolitan Education affiliated to Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University. He can be reached at amantiwari990@gmail.com
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