Learning In The Shadows: How The Digital Divide Silences India’s Right To Education
- IJLLR Journal
- May 8
- 2 min read
Rudrali Deshpande, New Law College, BVDU
I. INTRODUCTION
The stark contrast of Mumbai’s mobile library vans, which lend smart devices to children so they could attend online classes during COVID-19, against the backdrop of remote rural areas, which are not able to access either the internet or devices, illustrates a much larger constitutional issue: how can we fulfil the RTE when there exists such a large digital divide in our society? The RTE guarantees free and compulsory education to children between the ages of 6-14 years; however, for many of the millions of children in India who do not have access to the internet or appropriate devices or digital literacy, the constitutional promise of an RTE has not been fulfilled. As pointed out by one commentator, because of the large number of people in rural areas who do not have access to the internet or the right devices, large segments of the population in rural India will never be able to participate in digital education.
This essay will examine how the digital divide has evolved into a constitutional divide, thereby violating the right to equal treatment, dignity, and substantive realisation of the RTE for all children in India.
II. TRACING THE EVOLUTION OF RTE: JUDICIAL RECOGNITION TO CONSTITUTIONAL GUARANTEE
A. Evolution of the Right to Education:Article 21 to Article 21A
The evolution of the Right to Education in India illustrates how statutory provisions, constitutional modifications, and judicial action have contributed to its gradual establishment as an independent, enforceable social ground right. Before it emerged as an independent fundamental human right. Education was recognised as a component of Article 21. The Supreme Court of India interpreted Article 21 as encompassing the right of individuals to have education to assist their ability to live that right with dignity in Mohini Jain v. State of Karnataka. Subsequently, the Court upheld its interpretation of Article 21 through Unni Krishnan v. State of Andhra Pradesh, wherein it reaffirmed that every child from 6-14 years of age has the right to free education. These judicial decisions served as the basis upon which Parliament enacted the 86th Amendment to the Constitution of India, which added Article 21A. As a result, the right to education progressed from a judicially construed concept to a constitutional requirement mandating the State to provide free education in primary schools for every child aged 6-14 years.
