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Fundamental Duties

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5 views

Fundamental Duties

Uploaded by

satejmalbari2003
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Fundamental duties

The fundamental duties which were added by the 42nd Amendment Act of the Constitution in 1976,
in addition to creating and promoting culture, also strengthen the hands of the legislature in
enforcing these duties vis-a-vis the fundamental rights.

The list of 11 Fundamental Duties under Article 51-A to be obeyed by every Indian citizen is given in
the table below:

S.No 11 Fundamental Duties

1. Abide by the Indian Constitution and respect its ideals and institutions, the National Flag and the National
Anthem

2. Cherish and follow the noble ideals that inspired the national struggle for freedom

3. Uphold and protect the sovereignty, unity and integrity of India

4. Defend the country and render national service when called upon to do so

5. Promote harmony and the spirit of common brotherhood amongst all the people of India transcending
religious, linguistic and regional or sectional diversities and to renounce practices derogatory to the
dignity of women

6. Value and preserve the rich heritage of the country’s composite culture

7. Protect and improve the natural environment including forests, lakes, rivers and wildlife and to have
compassion for living creatures

8. Develop scientific temper, humanism and the spirit of inquiry and reform

9. Safeguard public property and to abjure violence

10. Strive towards excellence in all spheres of individual and collective activity so that the nation constantly
rises to higher levels of endeavour and achievement

11. Provide opportunities for education to his child or ward between the age of six and fourteen years. (This
duty was added by the 86th Constitutional Amendment Act, 2002)

Importance of Fundamental Duties – Part IV-A


Fundamental Duties are an inalienable part of fundamental rights. The importance of these are given
in the table below:

S.No Importance of Fundamental Duties

1. They remind Indian Citizens of their duty towards their society, fellow citizens and the nation

2. They warn citizens against anti-national and anti-social activities

3. They inspire citizens & promote a sense of discipline and commitment among them

4. They help the courts in examining and determining the constitutional validity of a law

Criticism of Fundamental Duties


The Fundamental Duties mentioned in Part IVA of the Constitution have been criticized on the
following grounds:

 They have been described by critics as a code of moral precepts due to their non-justiciable
character. Their inclusion in the Constitution was described by the critics as superfluous. This
is because the duties included in the Constitution as fundamental would be performed by
the people even though they were not incorporated into the Constitution.

 Some of the duties are vague, ambiguous and difficult to be understood by the common
man.

 The list of duties is not exhaustive as it does not cover other important duties like casting
votes, paying taxes, family planning and so on. In fact, the duty to pay taxes was
recommended by the Swaran Singh Committee.

 The critics said that the inclusion of fundamental duties as an appendage to Part IV of the
Constitution has reduced their value and significance. They should have been added after
Part III so as to keep them on par with Fundamental Rights.

 Swaran Singh’s Committee recommended more than 10 Fundamental Duties, however, not
all were included in the Constitution. Those duties recommended by the committee which
were not accepted were:

1. Citizens to be penalized/punished by the parliament for any non-compliance with or


refusal to observe any of the duties.

2. The punishments/penalties decided by the Parliament shall not be called in question


in any court on the ground of infringement of any of Fundamental Rights or on the
ground of repugnancy to any other provision of the Constitution.

3. Duty to pay taxes.

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