9 min readConcept sheetSection A MCQ (1 mark) and objective (2 marks, two parts); Section B very short answer (2 marks), often with a choice

Rights, duties and what makes a right fundamental

Rights are claims that society or the State accepts; duties are what we owe others. Rights in Part III are fundamental because courts enforce them: they are justiciable.

Where they areFundamental rights are in Part III of the Constitution of India

Six fundamental rightsEquality; freedom; against exploitation; freedom of religion; cultural and educational; constitutional remedies

JusticiableCan be enforced in a court; a law that takes away a fundamental right can be declared invalid

Right to propertyRemoved from the list in 1978 by the 44th Constitutional Amendment; now only a legal right

What rights and duties mean

A right is a claim of a person that is needed for his or her growth, and that society or the State accepts. Rights set limits on what other people, and the government, may do to us. If you have a right to life, no one is free to kill you. A duty is something a person is expected or required to do. Parents have a duty to care for their children. A teacher has a duty to teach. Rights and duties complete each other: one has little meaning without the other.

Rights and duties: two sides of one coin

RightsWhat we expect others to do for us, or not to do to us. Example: the right to use a public park, a city bus or a government hospital.

DutiesWhat we must do for others. Example: letting others use the same park or bus, and not damaging it. If we have freedom, we must not misuse it to harm anyone.

Think of rights and duties as the two wheels of one cart: life moves smoothly only when both turn together.

Activity: my rights and my duties

Do this in your notebook. It takes about ten minutes.

1
Make two tables. Head one My rights and the other My duties.
2
Give each table three columns: family, friends and neighbourhood.
3
Write two rights in each column.
Family example: to be cared for, and to be sent to school.
4
Write two duties in each column.
Neighbourhood example: keep the lane clean, and keep noise low at night.
5★
Draw a line from each right to the duty that matches it. Note how almost every right has a matching duty.

★ key step

The six fundamental rights at a glance

Right	Articles	Main idea
Right to equality	14 to 18	Equal treatment by law, no discrimination, untouchability and titles ended
Right to freedom	19 to 22	Six freedoms, protection when accused of a crime, life and personal liberty, safeguards on arrest
Right against exploitation	23 and 24	No trafficking in human beings, no forced labour, no child labour in hazardous work
Right to freedom of religion	25 to 28	Freedom to follow, practise and spread any religion; the State has no religion of its own
Cultural and educational rights	29 and 30	Minorities may protect their language and culture and run their own educational institutions
Right to constitutional remedies	32	Go to the Supreme Court if a fundamental right is violated

Why these rights are called fundamental

They are written in the Constitution, which guarantees them.
They are justiciable: if one is violated, a person can go to a court to get it protected.
If the government makes a law that takes away a fundamental right, the courts can declare it invalid.
They are not unlimited. The Constitution allows exceptions and reasonable restrictions.
Some, such as equality before law and freedom of religion, protect every person in India, foreigners too. Others, such as the six freedoms of Article 19, are for citizens only.
There were seven at first. The Right to Property was removed in 1978 by the 44th Amendment. You can still own and sell property: it is now an ordinary legal right.

In real life

If a shop or a public well turns someone away because of caste, that person can go to court, since fundamental rights are justiciable. Rights also bring duties: if you use a city bus or a public tap, leave it usable for the next person.

Exam angle

1 marks: “Why are fundamental rights called justiciable?” Because a person can go to a court to enforce them when they are violated.

2 marks: “Ramesh says the Constitution of India has seven fundamental rights. Is he right? Name any two of the rights it has today.” No. There were seven until 1978, when the 44th Amendment removed the right to property; there are six today. Any two of: right to equality, right to freedom, right against exploitation, right to freedom of religion, cultural and educational rights, right to constitutional remedies.

3 marks: “Define a right and a duty. Show with one example how every right brings a duty with it.” Right: a claim needed for a person's growth, accepted by society or the State. Duty: what a person is expected to do for others. Related: every right brings a duty to respect the same right of others. Example: the right to use a public park means a duty to let others use it and keep it clean. They complete each other.

Remember it

Six rights: Every Free Earth Respects Cultural Rights (Equality, Freedom, against Exploitation, Religion, Cultural and educational, Remedies).