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Fundamental Duties

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Santosh Singh
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3 views

Fundamental Duties

Uploaded by

Santosh Singh
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 are dealt with Article 51A under Part-IV A of the Indian Constitution.
42nd Amendment Act of 1976 added 10 Fundamental Duties to the Indian Constitution. 86th
Amendment Act 2002 later added 11th Fundamental Duty to the list. Swaran Singh Committee in
1976 recommended Fundamental Duties, the necessity of which was felt during the internal
emergency of 1975-77.

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

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

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 the 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
vote, 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.

POINTS TO BE REMEMBERED

● The Fundamental Duties are confined to Indian citizens only and do not extend to foreigners
unlike a few Fundamental Rights
● They are also nonjusticiable similar to Directive Principle of State Policies
● There is no legal sanction against their violation

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