Two of the four pillars of democracy, judiciary and the legislature,To be able to implement any principle or policy effectively and on a large scale, it’s important to bring into effect a law that upholds that intention or decision. India is an inclusive society and a democracy where not only is the voice important but also the means to express or amplify it.
A vibrant democracy and a diverse society, India is an eclectic mix of cultures, ethnicities, religions, traditions, genders, etc. There are several laws in place that ensure all sections of the society enjoy an equal status and are able to exercise their rights in a constitutional manner and avail whatever privileges they deserve. Two of the four pillars of democracy, judiciary and the legislature, play an important role in creating laws for inclusion and upholding the same.
Constitutional provisions on inclusion
The freedom of religion is laid down extensively in the Indian Constitution. In a country of the size of India, religious harmony is critical and when social shackles fail, the law comes into play to ensure that. Article 15 ensures ‘Prohibition of discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth’. The State shall not discriminate against any citizen on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex, and place of birth or any of them.
No citizen shall, on ground only of religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth or any of them, be subject to any disability, liability, restriction or condition with regard to – access to shops, public restaurants, hotels and places of public entertainment; or the use of wells, tanks, bathing ghats, roads and places of public resort maintained whole or partly out of State funds or dedicated to the use of general public.
The Article further states that provisions in this Article or elsewhere shall not prevent the State from making any special provision for women and children, or for the advancement of any socially and educationally backward classes of citizens or for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes, or from making any special provision, by law, for the advancement of any socially and educationally backward classes of citizens or for the Scheduled Castes or the Scheduled Tribes in so far as such special provisions relate to their admission to educational institutions including private educational institutions, whether aided or unaided by the State, other than the minority educational institutions referred to in clause (1) of article 30.
Religious inclusion a priority
Article 26 of the Indian Constitution deals with the ‘Freedom to manage religious affairs’ and states that ‘Subject to public order, morality and health, every religious denomination or any section thereof shall have the right: to establish and maintain institutions for religious and charitable purposes; to manage its own affairs in matters of religion; to own and acquire movable and immovable property; and to administer such property in accordance with law.’
The next article, Article 27 deals with ‘freedom as to payment of taxes for promotion of any particular religion’ and reads that ‘No person shall be compelled to pay any taxes, the proceeds of which are specifically appropriated in payment of expenses for the promotion or maintenance of any particular religion or religious denomination.’
Article 28 ensures the ‘Freedom as to attendance at religious instruction or religious worship in certain educational institutions’ and states that ‘No religious instruction shall be provided in any educational institution wholly maintained out of State funds.
Article 25 ensures ‘Freedom of conscience and free profession, practice and propagation of religion’ and states that ‘Subject to public order, morality and health and to the other provisions of this Part, all persons are equally entitled to freedom of conscience and the right freely to profess, practice and propagate religion.’
Laws curbing hate speech, behaviour
The Constitution of India and its hate speech laws aim to prevent discord among its many ethnic and religious communities. The laws allow a citizen to seek the punishment of anyone who shows the citizen disrespect “on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, caste or community or any other ground whatsoever”.
The laws specifically forbid anyone from outraging someone’s “religious feelings”. The laws allow authorities to prohibit any means of expression which someone finds insulting.
Then there are laws that restrict the freedom of expression. India prohibits hate speech by several sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), the Code of Criminal Procedure and by other laws which put limitations on the freedom of expression.
Section 95 of the Code of Criminal Procedure gives the government the right to declare certain publications “forfeited” if the “publication … appears to the State Government to contain any matter the publication of which is punishable under Section 124A or Section 153A or Section 153B or Section 292 or Section 293 or Section 295A of the Indian Penal Code”.
Section 295(A) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) enacted in 1927 says: Whoever, with deliberate and malicious intention of outraging the religious feelings of any class of [citizens of India], [by words, either spoken or written, or by signs or by visible representations or otherwise], insults or attempts to insult the religion or the religious beliefs of that class, shall be punished with
imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to [three years], or with fine, or with both.
The stringent Atrocities Act or The Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 prevents atrocities and hate crimes against scheduled castes and scheduled tribes. The objectives of the Act remain to enable delivery of justice to the SC/ST communities through affirmative action in order to enable them to live in society with dignity and self-esteem and without fear, violence or suppression from the dominant castes.
Laws for gender inclusion
The Constitution of India has several provisions that prevent discrimination on the basis of gender. This includes Articles 14,15,16,39 and 42 of the Constitution. Article 14 provides for equality before the law, or for the equal protection of laws. It reads ‘The State shall not deny to any person equality before the law or the equal protection of the laws within the territory of India.’
Article15 (1) explicitly prohibits any discrimination on the basis of sex. Under Article 15(3), the state is provided with the power to make special provisions for women and children. Article 16 provides for equality of opportunity of all in matters relating to public employment or appointment to any office, it specifically forbids discrimination on the ground of sex. Article 39 provides for securing the right to an equal means of livelihood for both men and women and that both men and women have the right to equal pay.
The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019 is an act of the Parliament of India with the objective to provide for the protection of rights of transgender people, their welfare, and other related matters. Contrary to perception, Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code protects the LGBTQIA+ community.
India has always been an inclusive society. Time and again, new laws have been made and old ones amended to keep up with the requirements of the society at the time. Simultaneously, the judiciary passes orders to uphold the spirit of the law in cases when it’s threatened.