Constitutional Journey Of Changing Dimensions Of Right To Life In India

Constitutional Journey Of Changing Dimensions Of Right To Life In India In Light Of Apex Court Judgements

Deepak Kumar, LL.B., Amity Law School, Lucknow, Amity University Uttar Pradesh

ABSTRACT

The Indian Constitution is most Fundamental Law of the Land. It envisages for its people an equal access to Political, Social and Economic Democracy. With this vision, our founding fathers had adopted a Universal Adult Franchise instead of voting rights for a special few. Our Indian Constitution is a Living Document which has evolved over the course of more than seven decades. The most crucial human right is the right to life. The Right to Life and Personal Liberty is mentioned in Article 21 of Part III of our Indian Constitution. Right to Life is the soul of the Indian Constitution. It is what gives the essence to the concept of a welfare state. A welfare state is one where the government actively promotes and protects the welfare of its people. The interpretation of Right to life has been done by Indian Judiciary quite literally in the early years , however later they adopted a more liberal approach. Nowadays, among many other things, the right to life includes the rights to education, a clean environment, a speedy trial, and housing. The real test of a Democratic Country is how the human or basic inalienable rights of the citizens are protected . United States of America is the oldest Democracy in the world but we hear about mass incarceration of persons of colour especially the black population. Equality is the first requirement for a right based society. From the creation of our Constitution, the goal has been to lessen prejudice and advance towards an egalitarian society. India is the largest democracy in the world. There are a few success stories but a lot of lacunae still lie. Right to Life and Personal liberty will remain an incomplete chapter unless it is extended in full spirit to reduce gender discrimination, caste-based discrimination, class discrimination etc. Till the concept of us versus them exist, we cannot achieve the results which have been envisioned by the Constitution makers.

Keywords: Living Document, Right to Life, welfare state, inalienable rights, egalitarian society.