Making duties work: laws, courts and the enforceability debate

Detail

The starting problem: the Constitution says nothing on enforcement

• Fundamental Duties are the civic obligations of every citizen. They are listed in Part IVA, Article 51A.
• Ten duties were added in 1976 by the 42nd Amendment, on the advice of the Swaran Singh Committee [5].

• The 86th Amendment (2002) added an eleventh duty, 51A(k): parents or guardians must give their child aged 6–14 a chance to get an education.

• Like the Directive Principles (Part IV), duties are non-justiciable. This means no court can directly order a citizen to perform one.

• Class 11 NCERT makes two points:
• The Constitution is silent on how duties are to be enforced.

• Rights are not conditional on duties. A citizen does not lose a fundamental right by failing a duty.

• So duties work in three indirect ways:

• ordinary laws passed by Parliament
• court interpretation
• education and awareness

Verma Committee (1999): duties already backed by law

• The Verma Committee on Fundamental Duties (1999) was chaired by Justice J.S. Verma. Its job was to suggest how duties could be put into practice.
• Main finding: many duties already have legal backing through existing laws.
• Laws it listed:

Law	Duty it supports	What it does
Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act 1971	51A(a): respect the Flag, Anthem and Constitution	Punishes insults to the National Flag, the Constitution and the National Anthem
Protection of Civil Rights Act 1955	51A(e): harmony; giving up practices that insult women	Punishes the practice of "untouchability"
IPC ss.153A, 153B (now BNS ss.196–197, Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023)	51A(c), (e): unity, harmony	153A punishes promoting enmity between groups. 153B punishes claims and statements that harm national integration
UAPA 1967 (Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act)	51A(c): sovereignty, unity, integrity	Lets the government declare communal and separatist organisations unlawful associations
Representation of the People Act 1951	51A(c), (e)	Treats seeking votes by promoting enmity as a corrupt practice. A conviction for such offences leads to disqualification from contesting elections
Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972, Forest (Conservation) Act 1980	51A(g): protect forests, lakes, rivers and wildlife	Protect species; restrict diverting forest land to non-forest use

• What it recommended beyond laws:
• teach duties in schools

• run public awareness campaigns

• What the government did later:

• a Citizen's Duties Awareness Programme (2020)
• duties added to school courses
• outreach through Constitution Day events and the media [5]
• official advice to display the list of duties in educational institutions, offices and public places, and to reach young people through campaigns [5]

The Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act 1971: what it punishes

• Section 2: a person may burn, deface, trample or otherwise show disrespect to the National Flag or the Constitution, by words or by acts. If this happens in a public place or in public view, the punishment is up to 3 years in prison, a fine, or both [4].
• Section 3: a person may intentionally prevent the singing of the National Anthem or disturb a gathering singing it. The punishment is up to 3 years, a fine, or both [4].
• Section 3A: a repeat offender gets at least 1 year in prison for the second and every later offence [4].
• The Act is still being revised. PIB has issued a factsheet on the Prevention of Insults to National Honour (Amendment) Bill, 2026 [10].
• Exam point: the Act protects only the Flag, Constitution and Anthem. The National Song and the State Emblem fall under other rules.

Flag rules: the Flag Code and the right to fly the flag

• The Flag Code of India 2002 is a set of executive instructions from the Ministry of Home Affairs. It is not a statute (a law passed by Parliament).
• Two changes made the rules easier:
• 30 December 2021: flags may be machine-made and of polyester, as well as hand-spun and hand-woven cotton, wool, silk or khadi bunting [2][3].

• 20 July 2022: para 2.2(xi) of Part II was replaced. A flag shown in the open or on a citizen's house may be flown day and night [2]. (NCERT: both changes described as 2022.)

• 2004 flag case: in Union of India v. Naveen Jindal (2004), the Supreme Court held that flying the flag with respect is part of freedom of speech and expression under Article 19(1)(a) (Class 7 NCERT).

• That freedom is subject to reasonable restrictions, meaning limits the law may impose on grounds listed in Article 19(2).

• Here, the limits come from the 1971 Act and the Flag Code.

• Class 7 NCERT ("Before we move on") says citizens are expected to follow their duties, even though no court enforces them.

Courts: duties help interpret the law; they are not stand-alone commands

• The core rule: courts use Article 51A in two ways:
• to read laws in the right light

• to judge whether a limit on a right is reasonable

• Courts do not punish a citizen just for failing a duty.

Case	Year	What it held
M.C. Mehta v. Union of India	1991	Ordered environmental education: messages in cinemas and on radio, and a compulsory subject in schools and colleges. Based on Article 51A(g)
AIIMS Students' Union v. AIIMS	2001	Said duties are as important as fundamental rights and must guide how the state acts [6]
Ranganath Mishra v. Union of India	2003	Directed the Union to take steps to spread awareness of duties, along the lines of the Verma Committee
State of Gujarat v. Mirzapur Moti Kureshi Kassab Jamat ("Kureshi")	2005	Seven-judge bench. Upheld Gujarat's ban on slaughtering cows and their progeny (including bulls and bullocks). Read 51A(g) (compassion for living creatures) with Article 48 (a DPSP on protecting cattle) to find the ban reasonable under Article 19(6)

National anthem in cinemas: duty vs. freedom of conscience

• Shyam Narayan Chouksey v. Union of India:
• November 2016 (interim order): the anthem had to be played before every film in cinema halls, and everyone present had to stand. The Court relied on 51A(a).

• January 2018: the Court changed the order. Playing the anthem became optional and the government was left to make rules.

• Compare Bijoe Emmanuel v. State of Kerala (1986):

• Three Jehovah's Witness students stood respectfully but did not sing the anthem. They were expelled from school.
• The Court ordered them taken back. It held that no law forces anyone to sing.
• Standing in respectful silence is not an "insult" under the 1971 Act.

• The expulsion violated Article 19(1)(a), which also covers the right to remain silent, and Article 25 (freedom of conscience and religion).

• Lesson: a duty to "respect" the anthem cannot be stretched into a forced act of worship or speech.

The enforceability debate

For making duties enforceable

• It would balance a "rights culture" (claiming rights while ignoring responsibilities) with civic responsibility.
• The Swaran Singh Committee (1976) suggested that Parliament be able to impose penalties for not doing duties. Parliament did not adopt this.
• PILs (public interest litigation, meaning cases filed in the public interest) have asked for laws to enforce duties. In 2022 the Supreme Court issued notice to the Union on one such PIL (verify its current status).
• Many duties are already enforced through statutes, as the Verma Committee showed. So enforcement is not a new idea.

Against making duties enforceable

• Vague words. Phrases like "composite culture" (51A(f)) and "scientific temper" (51A(h)) have no clear legal meaning. A criminal law needs precise definitions.
• Duplication. Existing laws (the 1971 Act, BNS ss.196–197, wildlife and forest laws) already punish the serious breaches.
• Risk of coercion. Duties could become a tool to pressure dissenters. One example is calling a critic "anti-national" under 51A(c).
• Rights are unconditional (Class 11 NCERT). Linking rights to duties would weaken Part III.
• Missing duties. Some suggested duties are not in the list at all:
• voting
• paying taxes
• family planning
• It is hard to enforce a list that is itself incomplete.

Official framing: from "rights" to "duties" language

• Constitution Day (26 November) has been observed since 2015, on the Prime Minister's decision [9]. It is used for public outreach on duties [5].
• Kartavya Path: the Prime Minister inaugurated it on 8 September 2022 [7].
• The road was called Kingsway and became Rajpath in 1955 [8].

• The government said the new name moves the road from a symbol of power to one of public ownership and empowerment [8].

• Amrit Kaal (the 25 years from India@75 to India@100) has been officially described as "Kartavya Kaal" (an era of duty).

• GS-IV link:
• Duties are a form of civic virtue: good habits of a citizen, such as honesty and care for public property.
• They are also a form of constitutional morality: respect for the Constitution's values even where no law forces it.

Prelims Hooks

• Verma Committee (1999) on Fundamental Duties was chaired by Justice J.S. Verma. Don't confuse it with the Swaran Singh Committee (1976), whose advice led to Part IVA.
• Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act 1971 covers the Flag, Constitution and Anthem. Up to 3 years for an offence; at least 1 year for a repeat offence (s.3A).
• Flag Code 2002 changes: polyester and machine-made flags allowed on 30 Dec 2021; flying day and night allowed on 20 July 2022.
• Naveen Jindal (2004): flying the flag is part of Article 19(1)(a), subject to reasonable restrictions.
• Bijoe Emmanuel (1986): standing respectfully but not singing the anthem is not an offence. Protected by Articles 19(1)(a) and 25.
• Shyam Narayan Chouksey: anthem in cinemas mandatory (interim order, Nov 2016), then optional (Jan 2018).
• Kureshi (2005): 51A(g) + Article 48 used to uphold a slaughter ban as a reasonable restriction.
• M.C. Mehta (1991): environmental education. Ranganath Mishra (2003): awareness of duties on Verma lines. AIIMS Students' Union (2001): duties as important as rights.
• Trap: IPC ss.153A/153B are now BNS ss.196–197. Voting and paying taxes are not Fundamental Duties.
• Kartavya Path inaugurated on 8 Sept 2022. The road was Kingsway → Rajpath (1955) → Kartavya Path.

Mains Points

• Enforce through laws, not through Article 51A itself. The Verma Committee model works: specific laws for specific duties (flag, harmony, environment), plus education. A general penal law on duties would clash with Part III and with the principle that rights are unconditional.
• Courts as balancers. Duties guide judges in deciding what is reasonable (Kureshi, M.C. Mehta). But Bijoe Emmanuel and the 2018 change in Chouksey show that duties cannot override freedom of conscience or expression.
• Vague words are a real risk. Terms like "composite culture" and "scientific temper" fail the test of legal certainty. If enforced, they could be used against dissent. So awareness campaigns (Citizen's Duties Awareness Programme 2020, Constitution Day) are the safer path.
• Reform ideas:
• add missing duties (voting, paying taxes)
• put the Swaran Singh penalty idea into narrow, clearly defined laws
• tie duties to constitutional morality in civic education, as an ethics (GS-IV) theme