The Republic of India is also known as Bharat. This union of states is governed by a constitution which declares it to be a sovereign secular socialist and a democratic nation which has a parliamentary system.
The Constitution of India was adopted on 26th of November in the year 1949 by the constituent assembly. The constitution came into effect from 26th January 1950. It provides and accepts a parliamentary government which has several unitary features and is federal in its structure.
The President is the head of the Constitution. The parliament consists of the President and the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha according to Article 79 of the Constitution. But according to Article 74(1), the real powers of governing are in the hands of the Prime minister and his council of ministers.
Six Fundamental Rights according to the Constitution of India:
Constitution of India defined the fundamental rights, fundamental duties of citizens of India as well as the directive principles of state policy. According to these the government decisions, policy making and conduct of citizens are regulated and monitored. It is a vital section of the constitution. This right also entitled people to visit and move freely in public places maintained by the state.
Fundamental rights are by the basic rights of a human. These are defined in part 3 of our constitution and applied to all citizens irrespective of their place of birth, race, caste, religion, gender or creed. Fundamental rights include seven basic rights such as:
- Right to equality: This encompasses the principle of equality of all citizens before the law without making any discrimination. It includes social equality. All people are treated equally by the law in similar situations. No discrimination shall be made based of religion, caste, race, sex, or place of birth.
- Right to freedom: This guarantees human rights that were considered vital by the people who framed the constitution. There are some required restrictions too that are imposed on individual’s freedom for the benefit of the society. It includes freedom of movement, freedom of assembly without arms, freedom of association, freedom of expression and speech.
- Right against exploitation: This right prohibits beggars and child labor too. It aims to prevent the exploitation of the weaker sections of the society at large. Human trafficking is made a punishable offense by law. Also, forced labor is prohibited, and there can be no bonded labor system prevalent in the country.
- Right to freedom of religion: This provides freedom to all citizens to choose a religion they want to and maintains the secular nature of the country. State and central government must treat all religions equally, impartially and neutrally.
- Cultural and educational rights: This is aimed to protect the rights of religious, cultural and linguistic minorities and enables them to protect their heritage and protects the individuals from any discrimination. The state cannot impose any other external culture on these people with force. But the state can reserve some seats in educational and cultural organizations for these minorities and backward classes.
- Right to Constitutional remedies: This right empowers the citizen of India to approach the Supreme Court or other courts to seek protection from infringement or enforcement of their fundamental rights. This fundamental right is designed to protect all other fundamental rights of an individual or a group of people.
Conclusion:
This constitution is designed to protect the rights of its citizens, but some anti-social elements use it for dividing the people. It is up to the people of India to be aware and united against them and live according to the rules set by the Constitution.