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Subject: Polity

  • Karnataka Gambling Law: Ambit and the High Court Challenge

    Last month, the Karnataka legislature passed a legislation to amend the Karnataka Police Act, 1963, making all forms of gambling, including online, a cognisable and non-bailable offence.

    Gambling Law

    • The Karnataka Police (Amendment) Act, 2021 was notified and came into force.
    • It is aimed for broadening the scope of gambling beyond what has been defined by law.
    • It was passed despite similar laws introduced in Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Telangana having faced legal challenges.

    What forms of gambling does the new law cover?

    • The amended law covers all forms of wagering or betting “in connection with any game of chance” with the exception of horse racing and lotteries.
    • It also puts betting on the skills of others in the category of gambling.
    • It provides an exception only to any pure game of skill and not to “wagering by persons taking part in such game of skill”.

    Penalties prescribed

    • It enhances maximum punishment for owners of gambling centres from one year to three years of imprisonment and fines from Rs 1,000 to Rs 1 lakh.
    • The minimum punishment proposed is six months instead of the current one month and the fine is Rs 10,000 instead of Rs 500.

    Implications of the law

    • Since the new law came into effect, several online gaming firms have geo-locked their apps and sites in Karnataka to prevent attracting police action if customers access the sites.

    Legal issues raised by the amended laws

    One of the primary grounds on which the new gaming laws in these states has been challenged is:

    • Games of skill: This been clubbed along with games of chance in the definition of gaming, if the games of skill are played for prizes or bets.
    • Violation of FR: Gaming companies have argued — successfully that competitive games of skill are business activities protected under Article 19 (1) (g) of the Constitution.
    • Other examples: Rummy and horse racing have been classified by the courts as games of skill that do not come under the purview of gaming laws.
    • Competence of the state: It has been argued that states do not have “legislative competence” to prohibit games of skill and that only games of chance can be regulated for gambling and betting.

    Why has Karnataka amended the law?

    • Ban on online gambling: The statement of objects and reasons justify that the new law is needed to make gambling a cognisable and non-bailable offence (gambling in public streets remains cognisable and bailable).
    • More power to Police: Other reasons cited is that police cannot raid gambling dens without a formal written order from a magistrate, since gambling is a non-cognisable and bailable offence.
    • Public demands for ban: Recent public interest litigations seeking a ban on online gaming and betting, too, have been a trigger for the amendments.
    • Illicit use of cyber-space: The new law has also been introduced to include the use of cyberspace as defined in the IT Act 2000 to curb the menace of gaming through internet.

    Will these amendments stand the test of law?

    • As mentioned, a similar law in Tamil Nadu was struck down by the Madras High Court as being ultra vires after it was challenged by online gaming firms.
    • The court ruled that- Games and sporting activities in the physical form cannot be equated with games conducted in virtual mode or in cyberspace.
    • However, when it comes to card games or board games such as chess or Scrabble, there is no distinction between the skill involved in the physical form of the activity or in the virtual form.
    • The HC said both rummy and poker are games of skill.

     

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  • How Political Parties are registered in India?

    Former Punjab CM has announced that he will be forming his own political party in Punjab ahead of the state assembly elections.

    Registering a Political Party

    • The registration of all political parties is governed by the provisions of the Representation of the People Act, 1951.
    • According to the Election Commission (EC), any party seeking registration has to submit an application to the Commission within a period of 30 days.
    • This is done as per guidelines prescribed by the EC in exercise of the powers conferred by Article 324 of the Constitution and Section 29A of the RP Act, 1951.

    Note: There is no procedure available for de-registration of dormant political parties.

    Process of registration

    • The applicant is asked to publish a proposed party name in two national daily newspapers and two local daily newspapers, and provide two days for submitting objections, if any.
    • The notice for publication is also displayed on the website of the Election Commission.

    Why registering with the EC is important?

    • It is not mandatory to register with the Election Commission.
    • However, registering as a political party with the EC has its advantage in terms of intending to avail itself of the provisions of the RP Act, 1951.
    • The candidates set up by a political party registered with the EC will get preference in the matter of allotment of free symbols vis-Ă -vis purely independent candidates.
    • More importantly, these registered political parties, over course of time, can get recognition as a ‘state party’ or a ‘national party’.

    How EC recognises a political party as a state or national party?

    For recognition as a NATIONAL PARTY, the conditions specified are:

    1. a 6% vote share in the last Assembly polls in each of any four states, as well as four seats in the last Lok Sabha polls; or
    2. 2% of all Lok Sabha seats in the last such election, with MPs elected from at least three states; or
    3. recognition as a state party in at least four states.

    For recognition as a STATE PARTY, any one of five conditions needs to be satisfied:

    1. two seats plus a 6% vote share in the last Assembly election in that state; or
    2. one seat plus a 6% vote share in the last Lok Sabha election from that state; or
    3. 3% of the total Assembly seats or 3 seats, whichever is more; or
    4. one of every 25 Lok Sabha seats (or an equivalent fraction) from a state; or
    5. an 8% state-wide vote share in either the last Lok Sabha or the last Assembly polls.

    Benefits for recognized parties

    • This is subject to the fulfilment of the conditions prescribed by the Commission in the Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order, 1968.

    (a) Reserved Sybol

    • If a party is recognised as a ‘state party’, it is entitled for exclusive allotment of its reserved symbol to the candidates set up by it in the state in which it is so recognised. If a party is recognised as a ‘national party’ it is entitled for exclusive allotment of its reserved symbol to the candidates set up by it throughout India.

    (b) Proposer for nomination

    • Recognised ‘state’ and ‘national’ parties need only one proposer for filing the nomination.

    (c) Campaigning benefits

    • They are also entitled for two sets of electoral rolls free of cost and broadcast/telecast facilities over state-owned Akashvani/Doordarshan during the general elections.

     

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  • Religious Conversion and Quota Benefits

    In a retaliatory move, a state minister has alleged about a decorated officer serving in the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), has benefitted from the reservation for Scheduled Castes (SCs) despite being Muslim.

    Do you know?

    If the quota/caste certificate is found to be false, the government servant is be removed or dismissed from the service.  There are many who are arranging EWS quota certificates based on forged evidences. Beware.

    Quota and religion

    • The Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950, lays down that no person professing a religion different from the Hindu or Sikh or Buddhist religion can be deemed to be a member of an SC.
    • However, this provision has been amended several times.
    • The original order under which only Hindus were classified as SCs, was amended to include Sikhs in 1956, and Buddhists in 1990.

    Rules of Religion in eligibility for the SC Quota

    • There is a 15 per cent quota for SCs in government jobs.
    • But Hindu SCs who convert to Islam lose their SC status, and are no longer eligible for the quota.

    A brochure on the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), site lays down the position on SC status and conversions:

    1. A person shall be held to be a member of a SC or ST if he belongs to a caste, or a tribe which has been declared as such.
    2. No person who professes a religion different from the Hindu or the Sikh religion shall be deemed to be a member of the SCs.
    3. Further a person belonging to a SC or ST will continue to be deemed as such irrespective of his/her marriage to a non-Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe.
    4. However, a convert or re-convert to Hinduism and Sikhism shall be accepted as a member of SC if he has been received back and accepted as a member of the concerned SC.
    5. No such religion-based bar, however, operates for STs and Other Backward Classes (OBCs).

    What about STs?

    • The rights of a person belonging to a Scheduled Tribe are independent of his/her religious faith.

    Is the exclusion of Muslims and Christians discriminatory?

    • Petitions have been filed in the Supreme Court seeking the inclusion of Muslims and Christians in the SC category.
    • In 2008, the National Commission on Minorities concluded that there was a case for inclusion Dalit Christians and Dalit Muslims in the SC category.
    • In January 2020, the SC agreed to examine a plea by the National Council of Dalit Christians to make the government’s affirmative action programmes religion-neutral.
    • The plea is pending before the court.

    In inter-caste marriages, can mother’s caste be the caste of the couple’s child?

    • The child carries the caste of the father, and caste certificates are issued on this basis.
    • However, courts have taken note of the surroundings in which the child was brought up.
    • In Rameshbhai Dabhai Naika vs State of Gujarat & Ors (2012), the Supreme Court has set a precedence.
    • In an inter-caste marriage or a marriage between a tribal and a non-tribal there may be a presumption that the child has the caste of the father.
    • This presumption may be stronger in the case where husband belongs to a forward caste.
    • In 2006, then Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment has proposed that children born of inter-caste marriages should get SC status if either parent belongs to a SC.

    Govt. stance on this

    • In 2006, then Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment has proposed that children born of inter-caste marriages should get SC status if either parent belongs to a SC.
    • A proposal was to be placed before the Cabinet in April 2008, but was withdrawn at the last minute.
    • There was resistance to the suggestion from many quarters, including the National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC).

     

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  • Analysing the Supreme Court’s Pegasus order

    Context

    The Supreme Court of India has appointed a committee presided by Justice (Retd.) R V Raveendran to inquire into the Pegasus revelations.

    Terms of reference

    • The court’s terms of reference include queries on, “What steps/actions have been taken by the Union of India after reports were published in the year 2019 about hacking of WhatsApp accounts”, and, “Whether any Pegasus suite of spyware was acquired by the Union of India, or any State Government, or any central or state agency for use against the citizens of India”.
    • The constitution of this committee marks an important step towards accountability for the victims and the larger public on the use of Pegasus.

    Significance of the committee on Pegasus issue

    1) Transparency and disclosure

    • The order of the court constituting the committee attains significance for three clear reasons.
    • The first is the court’s continuing insistence on transparency and disclosure by the Union government.
    • The only filing made in court by the government was a limited affidavit, containing short paragraphs of generalised denials and the sole annexure of a statement by the Minister for Electronics and IT before Parliament.
    • Immediately, the Supreme Court pointed out that these are inadequate and provided further time.

    2) The SC’s approach towards national security

    • The second reason is the Supreme Court’s firm approach towards the national security submissions by the Union government.
    • The court correctly applied the settled convention on legal pleadings and affidavits by asking the government to, “necessarily plead and prove the facts which indicate that the information sought must be kept secret as their divulgence would affect national security concerns.”
    • The second aspect of the national security argument is how the court balances it with the fundamental right to privacy.
    • Here, drawing from the framework of the K S Puttaswamy judgment the court specifically states that, “national security cannot be the bugbear that the judiciary shies away from, by virtue of its mere mentioning” and, “mere invocation of national security by the State does not render the Court a mute spectator”.
    • These are significant observations that, when followed as precedent, will bolster confidence in constitutional adjudications especially when courts demand evidence on arguments of “national security” to avoid generalised statements made to evade accountability.

    3)  Rejection of the suggestion by the Solicitor-General to constitute a government committee of experts

    • The court correctly notes that even though the Pegasus revelations were first made on November 1, 2019, there has been little movement on any official inquiry.
    • It also records the genuine apprehension of the petitioners, many of whom are victims of Pegasus, that since the sale of this malware can only be made to governments, they fear the involvement of state agencies.

    Challenges

    • These include the functioning of the committee and the cooperation of government witnesses, the publication of the report so as to ensure public confidence and, ultimately, the directions and remedy provided by the Supreme Court.

    Conclusion

    Hence, the constitution of this committee provides hope. At the same time, any honest assessment should consider the more challenging tasks ahead.

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  • Supreme Court forms committee to examine Pegasus allegations

    The Supreme Court has appointed an independent expert technical committee overseen by a former apex court judge, Justice R.V. Raveendran, to examine allegations that the government used Israeli spyware, Pegasus, to snoop on its own citizens.

    Why need a committee?

    • Decisions in cases seeking enforcement of fundamental rights are based on facts.
    • The task of determining these facts, when they are disputed or unknown, are often assigned to committees, which act as an agent of the court.
    • Such committees or fact-finding teams can summon individuals, prepare ground reports, and inform the court.
    • The Pegasus case involves technical questions, and requires extensive fact-finding for the court to determine whether fundamental rights were violated, and to pass suitable orders.

    Functions of the committee:

    What is Pegasus?

    • All spyware do what the name suggests — they spy on people through their phones.
    • Pegasus works by sending an exploit link, and if the target user clicks on the link, the malware or the code that allows the surveillance is installed on the user’s phone.
    • A presumably newer version of the malware does not even require a target user to click a link.
    • Once Pegasus is installed, the attacker has complete access to the target user’s phone.

    Why in news?

    • The three-judge bench, headed by CJI N V Ramana rejected the government’s plea to let it constitute an expert panel to investigate the issue.

    What did the SC rule?

    • The SC order broadly addresses three issues that have been flagged in the Pegasus row:
    1. Citizen’s right to privacy (Article 21)
    2. Judicial review when the executive invokes national security (Article 13, Article 32)

    (Article 13: declares that any law which contravenes any of the provisions of the part of Funda­mental Rights shall be void.

    Articles 32 and 226 entrusts the roles of the protector and guarantor of fundamental rights to the Supreme and High Courts.)

    1. Implications of surveillance on free speech

    [A] Upholding Right to Privacy

    • The Court, pointing to its own judgment in K S Puttaswamy Case (2017) has said that “right to privacy (under Article 21) is as sacrosanct as human existence.
    • It is inalienable to human dignity and autonomy.
    • While agreeing that it is not an absolute right, the Court has said any restrictions “must necessarily pass constitutional scrutiny”.
    • Any surveillance or snooping done on an individual by the state or any outside agency is an infringement of that person’s right to privacy.
    • Hence, any violation of that right by the state, even in national interest, has to follow procedures established by the law.

    [B] Linking surveillance and censorship

    • The Court has also drawn a link between:
    1. Surveillance, especially the knowledge that one is under the threat of being spied on”, and
    2. Censorship, particularly self-censorship, to reflect on the potential chilling effect that snooping techniques may have
    • The chilling effect surveillance can produce, is an assault on the vital public-watchdog role of the press, which may undermine the ability of the press to provide accurate and reliable information.

    [C] Constituting a panel

    • The Court has constituted a panel of experts under former SC judge Justice R V Raveendran.
    • It has sharply defined the questions it needs to ask and find answers to: Was any Pegasus suite of spyware acquired by the central or any state government for use against the citizens of India.
    • It would inquire under what law, rule, guidelines, protocol or lawful procedure was such deployment made.
    • These are vital questions at the heart of a citizen’s basic rights.

    Significance of the Judgement

    • The order is a strong rebuttal of the government’s specious and self-serving use of national security.
    • The Court has ruled that the state does not get a free pass every time the spectre of ‘national security’ is raised.
    • This also means “no omnibus prohibition can be called for against judicial review” if the matter impinges on national security.

     

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  • What is National Population Register?

    The latest form of the National Population Register (NPR) appears to have retained contentious questions such as “mother tongue, place of birth of father and mother and last place of residence”.

    National Population Register

    • The NPR is a Register of usual residents of the country.
    • It is being prepared at the local (Village/sub-Town), sub-District, District, State and National level.
    • This is carried under provisions of the Citizenship Act 1955 and the Citizenship (Registration of Citizens and issue of National Identity Cards) Rules, 2003.
    • It is mandatory for every usual resident of India to register in the NPR.
    • A usual resident is defined for the purposes of NPR as a person who has resided in a local area for the past 6 months or more or a person who intends to reside in that area for the next 6 months or more.

    Why NPR is under fire?

    • Though NPR was first compiled in 2010 and updated in 2015, the new questions were part of a trial exercise involving 30 lakh respondents in September 2019.
    • The exercise has perceived the first step toward the compilation of the National Register of Indian Citizens (NRC) according to Citizenship Rules, 2003.

    Questions in NPR

    • In 2020 NPR, the respondent will have to specify the “name of State and district” if the place of birth of father and mother is in India and mention the country’s name if not born here.
    • The form will collect details on 14 parameters of all family members.
    • The sub-heads include passport number, relationship to head of the family, whether divorced/widowed or separated, mother tongue, if non-worker, cultivator, labourer, government employee, daily wage earner among others.
    • The form also has a column on Aadhar, mobile phone, Voter ID and driving license number, which are to be provided if available with the respondent.

    How are NRIC and NPR related?

    • Out of the NPR, a set of all usual residents of India, the government proposes to create a database of “citizens of India”.
    • Thus, the “National Register of Indian Citizens” (NRIC) is a sub-set of the NPR.
    • The NRIC will be prepared at the local, sub-district, district and State levels after verifying the citizenship status of the residents.
    • The rules say the particulars of every family and individual found in the Population Register shall be verified and scrutinized by the Local Registrar.

    How NPR is different from Census?

    • The census involves a detailed questionnaire — there were 29 items to be filled up in the 2011 census.
    • They are aimed at eliciting the particulars of every person, including age, sex, marital status, children, occupation, birthplace, mother tongue, religion, disability and whether they belonged to any SC or ST.
    • On the other hand, the NPR collects basic demographic data and biometric particulars.
    • While the census is legally backed by the Census Act, 1948, the NPR is a mechanism outlined in a set of rules framed under the Citizenship Act, 1955.

     

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  • Step towards more LGBTQIA+ affirmative medical curriculum doesn’t go far enough

    Context

    The National Medical Commission (NMC), the body responsible for regulating medical education in India, released an advisory regarding the LGBTQIA+ community and the necessary changes in the competencies of its competency-based medical education (CBME) curriculum.

    Exclusion of LGBTQIA+ community in medication

    • Medical education in India has focussed only on the binary of male and female, heterosexuality and cis-gendered lives, while excluding homosexuality and gender non-binary and transgender issues.
    • This results in the exclusion of the LGBTQIA+ community.
    • Even with the release of the competency-based medical curriculum in August 2019, the curriculum continues to include a queerphobic syllabus.

    About the NMC notification

    • The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019 mandates governments to take measures for the “review of medical curriculum and research for doctors to address their [transgender] specific health issues,” but no action has been taken since then.
    • In June 2021, in response to a case filed by a queer couple, the Madras High Court laid down a set of guidelines and directed the NMC to ban queerphobic practices such as conversion therapy which aims to forcibly change the sexual orientation of a person.
    • In its notification, the NMC has advised medical colleges to teach gender in a way that is not derogatory to the queer community.
    • The authors of medical textbooks have also been asked to amend the books to remove any harmful contents regarding virginity and the queer community.

    Issues with the NMC notification

    • While the NMC advisory title mentions necessary changes in the competencies of its CBME curriculum, there are no specifications on what these changes are.
    •  At the same time, the CBME curriculum itself mentions queerphobic things that are to be taught to students.
    • Certain acts are called as sexual offences even though the Supreme Court has read down Section 377. 
    •  Also, the competencies which will make a future Indian doctor respectful and empathetic in treating a queer patient are missing.

    Way forward

    • The NMC must start by recognising the flaws in its own CBME curriculum and explicitly state the changes required.
    • Specific guidelines on how to make healthcare queer-affirmative are needed.
    • The directive also needs to specify changes across several subjects and not just forensic medicine and psychiatry.
    •  For this, there needs to be a participatory stakeholder consultation towards the development of a queer-affirmative curriculum.
    • Finally, there needs to be clarity on what the NMC plans to do for tackling queerphobia in the current set of health professionals.

    Consider the question “The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019 mandates governments to take measures for the review of the medical curriculum. In light of this, discuss the changes needed in the medical curriculum regarding the LGBTQIA+ community.”

    Conclusion

    Without these changes, equitable access to healthcare for queer persons will remain a faraway dream.

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  • Internal democracy in political parties

    Context

    It is obvious that institutional intermediaries in a representative democracy must themselves be democratic. However, beyond the rhetoric, internal democracy in a political party is less straightforward.

    How democratic accountability in a political party is different from that in a country

    • Democratic accountability in a political party is qualitatively different from that in a country.
    • A political party is a collaborative platform to capture state power to achieve a certain vision for society. 
    • In a country, there are sharp differences between citizens on the vision and values themselves and the role of democracy is not just to create a framework to negotiate conflict but to ensure that the state is representative of the largest section of the electorate through periodic elections.
    • Thus, while democracy at the level of the country is a bottom-up opportunity to change direction altogether, democratic accountability in a political party exists within an ideological framework.

    Is internal elections for party leadership a solution?

    • Subversion of internal institutional process: Proponents underestimate the ability of existing repositories of power to subvert internal institutional processes to consolidate power and maintain the status quo.
    • Independence of lower level: the assumption that the lower levels would be independent and hold the higher levels of leadership to account glosses over the many ways power asserts itself.
    • Independence and quality of electorate: The outcome of internal elections is contingent on the independence and quality of the electorate.
    • In indirect elections (through delegates), the electorate would likely mirror the existing balance of power.
    • In direct elections, there is a concern of ideological dilution and/or capture through opportunistic membership.
    • It is evident that internal elections may factionalise power but cannot establish normative accountability, which extends to all members of the party along three interconnected axes of ideology, organisation and competence.
    • Normative accountability is thus rooted in a dynamic context and is necessarily a deliberative process.

    Democratic functioning in political parties is not an end in itself

    • Unlike for the state, democracy is not an end in itself for a political party.
    • The highest possible attainment of individual well-being and individual self-will through a democratic state is an end in itself.
    • The purpose of a political party is the acquisition of state power.
    • Democratic functioning may be an ideological imperative, operational choice, or legitimising tactic but it is not an end in itself for a political party.

    Way forward

    • Instead of looking at internal party processes, one way to decentralise power is by getting rid of the anti-defection law.
    • The need to canvass votes in the legislature will create room for negotiation in the party organisation too.
    • Most importantly, this reform will impose a similar burden on all political parties and may create space to change the overall political culture.

    Consider the question “Lack of internal democratic functioning in the political parties has bearing on the overall political functioning of the country. Examine the factors responsible for its lack in India and suggest measures to encourage it.”

    Conclusion

    The role of democracy is not just to create a framework to negotiate conflict but to ensure that the state is representative of the largest section of the electorate through periodic elections.

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  • Bengal can’t bar CBI, Centre tells Supreme Court

    The Union Government has told the Supreme Court West Bengal state govt does not have any “absolute” power to keep the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) from investigating crimes inside the State.

    What is the issue?

    • A case of post-poll violence was transferred to the CBI by the Calcutta High Court.
    • Hence the State Police is under a cloud.
    • In a response to this, the West Bengal had filed a suit against the Union of India under Article 131 of the Constitution.

    What is Article 131 of Indian Constitution?

    • Article 131 states talks about the original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court on matters subject to the provisions of Constitution between the Government of India and one or more States.
    • Thus, the Article allows a state to file a suit in the Supreme Court in case of any dispute that it may have with the central government, invoking the court’s “original jurisdiction”.

    Why WB challenged the Union govt?

    • The State has challenged the CBI’s jurisdiction to register FIRs and conduct investigations in the State in myriad cases.
    • West Bengal said it had withdrawn “general consent” to the CBI way back in 2018.
    • The State said the CBI’s actions were a direct attack on the federal structure of governance.

    What is this ‘General Consent’ about?

    • Unlike the National Investigation Agency (NIA), which is governed by its own NIA Act and has jurisdiction across the country, the CBI is governed by the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act.
    • This makes consent of a state government mandatory for conducting an investigation in that state.
    • Hence the CBI has jurisdiction only over central government departments and employees.
    • However, it can investigate a case involving state government employees or a violent crime in a given state only with the consent of state government.

    Arguments made by Centre

    • The Centre said that the CBI was an autonomous body not controlled by the Union Government.
    • Hence the suit was misplaced and should be dismissed.

    Back2Basics:

    Central Bureau of Investigation: Composition, Functions

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  • Farmers have Right to Protest, but can’t block roads: SC

    The Supreme Court has said farmers protesting at Delhi borders against the three farms laws have the right to agitate but they cannot block roads indefinitely.

    For students with Sociology optional, can someone list the differences between- Dissent, Protest, Agitation and Movement?

    What is Protest?

    • When a group, community, or even a person goes up to protest, it is usually to showcase their disapproval or demur against any action, policy, statement, etc of state or government or any organization.
    • Mostly the flow of protest is driven through political waves that also demonstrate the collective organization of people to make the government or state address their issues and take steps to overcome them.

    Issues with ongoing protest in Delhi

    • The question as to the absolute nature of the right to protest is not even a question in the true sense here.
    • We have seen the vandalism protest at Red Fort last year.
    • Hence the rights mentioned above are subject to reasonable restrictions under 19 (2) and 19 (3) on grounds such as sovereignty and integrity of India, and public order.

    Right to Protest in India

    • The right to protest is the manifestation of three FRs:
    1. Right to Freedom of Assembly
    2. Right to Freedom of Association and
    3. Right to Freedom of Speech
    • The Constitution of India provides the right of freedom, given in Article 19 with the view of guaranteeing individual rights that were considered vital by the framers of the constitution.
    • The Right to protest peacefully is enshrined in Article 19(1) (a) guarantees the freedom of speech and expression; Article 19(1) (b) assures citizens the right to assemble peaceably and without arms.

    In detail: Article 19(1)

    It states that All citizens shall have the right:

    • (a) to freedom of speech and expression;
    • (b) to assemble peaceably and without arms;
    • (c) to form associations or unions;
    • (d) to move freely throughout the territory of India;
    • (e) to reside and settle in any part of the territory of India; and
    • (f) omitted
    • (g) to practice any profession, or to carry on any occupation, trade or business

    Do you know?

    Right to Internet is a fundamental right and is an essential part of freedom of speech and expression. One might get confused if it is an FR under Article 21.

    Reasonable restrictions do exist in practice

    • Fundamental rights do not live in isolation. The right of the protester has to be balanced with the right of the commuter. They have to co-exist in mutual respect.
    • Article 19(2) imposes reasonable restrictions on this.
    • The court held it was entirely the responsibility of the administration to prevent encroachments in public spaces.

    Conclusion

    • Democracy and dissent go hand in hand, but then the demonstrations expressing dissent have to be in designated places alone.
    • The present case was not even one of the protests taking place in an undesignated area but was a blockage of a public way which caused grave inconvenience to commuters.

     

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