5 Most Important Fundamental Rights for (Indians)
What makes the world's largest democracy so unique?
Well, the answers are so many.
From the pages of history to the great Indian heritage lifestyle, everything adds to the beauty of this ever-youthful nation.
There are 123 known democracies globally, and India is the largest of them all, with diverse languages, ethnicities, religions, lifestyles living in harmony.
Not only is the largest, but the Indian constitution the most complex among the world's all constitutions.
So the question comes, how do we manage the mammoth 1.3 billion population and live like a vast extended family?
From culture, tradition, and values, the answers are many, but for today, let's look at the lawful side to it.
Every Indian citizen is granted six fundamental rights which cut across all the borders within the country.
These rights ensure every Indian life with their head held high and have a dignified lifestyle of their own choice. Let's have a look at the fundamental rights of India.
1. Right to Equality:
The Right to Equality comes under Articles 14 to 18.
The right to equality implies that every national citizen living in the country is equal before the law and shall never be discriminated against one another based on race, caste, gender, sexual orientation, region, and religion.
The same shall be applied in the areas of employment and state matters as well.
Equality legally supports women to claim equal remuneration fees that their male colleagues receive in their work fields.
Long years back, there were significant issues in the Indian social fabric with the caste system.
The concepts of untouchables and racism were in the hearts of the high-caste Hindu Brahmins.
This discriminating approach was legally abolished many years back, just after independence in 1947, when the six fundamental rights came into effect.
2. Right to Freedom:
The Rights of Freedom implies the liberty of the free Indian people who snatched their independence from the British bondage in 1947 after numerous movements and extreme bloodshed.
The clauses of Right to Freedom come under the article between 19 and 22.
With the right to freedom, the citizens of India get access to freedom of expression, organize assemblies, choose professions, and move within the state with freedom.
Right to Freedom enables the Indian citizens to talk their minds aloud, to consume the food of their choice, to wear the dress they like, and to make friends of their choice.
In India, you can marry the person of your choice with the power of the Right to Freedom.
The right to privacy is a new clause recently added to this right among the fundamental rights in India.
3. Right against Exploitation
Rights against Exploitation give Indians the strength to protest against any unjust and oppression.
Rights against Exploitation are explained in articles number 23 and 24.
With this fundamental rights article, as an Indian citizen, you can never be forced to work against your will, and as a child, no one can make you their employee unless you are 14 years of age.
Any forced labor, or child labor, or human trafficking is a strictly punishable criminal offense and cant be bypassed at any cost.
Women and child trafficking have been a major issue in this country for a long time.
If you are willing and courageous enough, you can stand against this sin with the help of the Indian Penal Code.
You can file a case against anyone who tries to exploit you in any form, may it be mental, physical, or sexual.
The Rights given to the Indians make the country safer for everyone to live with dignity and to rebel whenever it is necessary.
4. Right to Freedom of Religion
The Preamble of our Indian Constitution begins like this, We, the people of India, having solemnly resolved to constitute India into a Sovereign Socialist Secular Democratic Republic.
In the quoted line, the word secular refers to the "Freedom of Religion".
The Rights to Freedom of Religion comes under Articles 25 to 28.
As a follower of any religion, you are free to practice and propagate your religion and ideologies and manage your religious affairs peacefully without any interference from the state.
In a country with multiple religions openly following and propagating their beliefs, this right gives you the freedom to do so.
In India, Inter-caste, inter-state, inter-religion marriages are legal because of these rights. You are free to choose your religion and observe the rituals.
You can promote any religion in this country, but you cannot spread wrong things about any specific religion.
5. Cultural and Educational rights
Articles 29 and 30 speak about the cultural and educational rights in India.
According to the Indian fundamental rights, you have the full right to protect your culture, language, and traditions.
You can choose to establish educational institutions preferable to your set of cultures.
You have complete freedom to choose your academic career and cultural orientation. In some of the interior parts of Indian villages, sometimes the culture of the village people is violated.
To the Indian constitution, tribal culture is as valuable as your Brahmin culture.
The Indian Government is bound to save any of these cultures that are in danger. The Rights to Constitutional Remedies are depicted in Article 32.
According to B.R. Ambedkar, this right is the heart and soul of the constitution, as it gives you the power to seek the change of the constitution if you feel something is going wrong within the nation.
Proper implementation of all the six rights mentioned above enables every Indian citizen to live a healthy and free life.
To Conclude,
Above are the rights that every citizen of the country enjoys, and the guardians of fundamental rights see to it that every law gets implemented by the concerned authorities.
It is not enough to have the rights only, but every Indian citizen must be aware of their rights from a young age; otherwise, you cannot stand against unjust despite there being remedies.
Every citizen must know their rights.
There lies the beauty of our nation that keeps our social fabric intact.
