In this article you will learn about the Difference Between Fundamental Rights and Directive Principles.
Fundamental Rights and Directive Principles are two important concepts found in the Constitution of many democratic countries, including India. While both aim to protect the interests and welfare of citizens, they differ in their nature, enforceability, and purpose.
Fundamental Rights
Fundamental Rights are individual rights that are considered essential for the overall development and well-being of citizens. They are enshrined in the Constitution and are enforceable by the courts. The primary purpose of fundamental rights is to guarantee certain freedoms and protections to individuals, ensuring their dignity and equality before the law. These rights include :
- Right to Equality : Ensures equality before the law, prohibits discrimination, and promotes equal opportunity.
- Right to Freedom : Guarantees freedom of speech, expression, assembly, movement, and religion.
- Right against Exploitation : Prohibits forced labour, child labour, and human trafficking.
- Right to Freedom of Religion : Allows individuals to freely profess, practice, and propagate any religion.
- Cultural and Educational Rights : Protects the rights of minorities to preserve their culture and language, and promotes education.
Directive Principles of State Policy
Directive Principles of State Policy, also known as DPSPs, are guidelines and principles given to the state by the Constitution. They are not legally enforceable by the courts, unlike fundamental rights. DPSPs provide a framework for the government to formulate laws and policies that promote the welfare of the people and establish a just society. They cover a wide range of socio-economic and political objectives, including :
- Social Justice : Ensuring equal opportunities, providing livelihood, and eliminating inequalities.
- Economic Welfare : Promoting a just and equitable distribution of resources, minimising economic disparities, and eradicating poverty.
- Educational and Cultural Upliftment : Ensuring free and compulsory education, preserving cultural heritage, and promoting scientific temper.
- Public Health : Promoting public health, sanitation, and family welfare measures.
- Environmental Protection : Protecting and improving the environment, safeguarding forests, wildlife, and natural resources.
Issue of relationship between Fundamental Rights and Directive Principles of State Policy
No democratic political system can be completed without providing for the politico-civil as well as socio-economic dimensions of democracy. Fundamental Rights as enshrined in Part III of the Indian Constitution constitutes the civil-political dimension of Indian Democracy. These stand constitutionally granted and guaranteed. The Directive Principles, as enshrined in part IV of the Indian Constitution constitutes the socio-economic dimension of the Indian Democracy which the state is to achieve through appropriate legislation. No one can question the attempts of the state to implement the Directive Principles. However, the existence of some conflict between some of the Fundamental Rights and Directive Principles, at times, makes such attempts controversial.
In the past, the Right to Equality, the Right to Freedom and the Right to Property as contained in Articles 14 to 18, 19 to 12 and 31 respectively often got involved in a controversy with several laws which were enacted by the state for implementing the Directive Principles contained in Article 39(b), 39(c) and others. Before the deletion of the Right to Property (Article 19(1)f and 31) from Part 3 of the Indian Constitution, that is before the enactment of 44th Amendment Act, there remained a continuous conflict between it and the Directive Principles mentioned under Article 39. Article 19(1)(g) guarantees the freedom to practise any profession or to carry on any occupation, trade, commerce or business whereas Article 47 calls upon the state to introduce prohibition and to ban cow slaughter. Fundamental Rights do not involve the right to work, education and public assistance but Article 41 of Part 4 calls upon the state to make effective provisions for securing them.
Further, the Indian Constitution on the one hand declares that the Directive Principles of State Policy are not justiciable but on the other hand observes that these will be fundamental in the governance of the country. It makes it a responsibility of the state to implement the Directive Principles through appropriate legislation and in doing so, the government often finds itself limited by the existence of constitutionally guarded and legally sanctioned Fundamental Rights of the people. Because of these two major reasons, the problem of relationship between the Fundamental Rights and the Directive Principles of State Policy continued to remain present during 195 to 1980 in the Indian Political System. There existed a discernible difference between the perceptions of the Parliament and the Supreme Court over the issue of the relationship between these two important parts of the Indian Constitution.
This article on Difference Between Fundamental Rights and Directive Principles is contributed by Dipshikha Anand. If you like LawStudyPoint.com do follow us on our Twitter handle.