Fundamental Rights is a charter of rights
contained in the Constitution of India. It guarantees civil liberties
such that all Indians can lead their lives in peace and harmony as
citizens of India. These include individual rights common to most
liberal democracies, such as equality before law, freedom of speech and
expression, freedom of association and peaceful assembly, freedom to
practice religion, and the right to constitutional remedies for the
protection of civil rights by means of writs such as habeas corpus.
The Fundamental Rights are defined as
basic human freedoms which every Indian citizen has the right to enjoy
for a proper and harmonious development of personality. These rights
universally apply to all citizens, irrespective of race, place of birth,
religion, caste, creed, color or Gender. They are enforceable by the
courts, subject to certain restrictions. The seven fundamental rights
recognised by the constitution are:
1. Right to equality,
including equality before law, prohibition of discrimination on grounds
of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth, and equality of
opportunity in matters of employment
2. Right to freedom of speech
and expression, assembly, association or union, movement, residence,
and right to practice any profession or occupation (some of these rights
are subject to security of the State, friendly relations with foreign
countries, public order, decency or morality)
3. Right against exploitation, prohibiting all forms of forced labour, child labour and traffic in human beings;
4. Right to freedom of conscience and free profession, practice, and propagation of religion;
5. Right of any section of citizens to conserve
their culture, language or script, and right of minorities to establish
and administer educational institutions of their choice; and
6. Right to constitutional remedies for enforcement of Fundamental Rights.
7. Right to education
Fundamental rights for Indians have also
been aimed at overturning the inequalities of pre-independence social
practices. Specifically, they have also been used to abolish
untouchability and hence prohibit discrimination on the grounds of
religion, race, caste, sex, or place of birth.
