SYNOPSIS

AWARENESS AMONG YOUTH REGARDING FUNDAMENTAL

RIGHTS

SEMINAR-1 ASSIGNMENT
(LAW AND SOCIAL CHANGE)

Submitted By: Anshuman Srivastava

Exam Roll No: 17BLW013
Class: BA.LLB. (Hons) (Regular)
Semester: 9th

Submitted to: Mr. Parag Chahal

(Date of Submission: 11th October, 2021)

1
INTRODUCTION

John Austin defined law as “A rule laid down for the guidance of an intelligent being by an
intelligent being having power over him."

From the very beginning of human history, man has been struggling for his existence against
nature and his fellowmen, though there was no marked awareness of any need for human rights
at the beginning. The concept of "the survival of the fittest" caused conflicts among human beings
that paved the way for the framing of rules and regulations for the safeguard of the weaker
sections. The formation of states and empires was not always based on the principles of
establishing human rights. Through different practices, men enjoyed their human rights in
different ways because without these rights men could not live in the society

Laws are made for the benefit of the people and are powerful, only if used correctly. Every nation
is governed by a system of laws for the growth and overall development of the society. It is a
system of rules and regulations which are found in judicial interpretations, constitutional and
legislative enactments, made by the competent authority so as to govern society and to influence
behaviour of the individuals therein in the righteous manner. It is a powerful concept and also a
mechanism of social control, law and order in the society.

Fundamental right means a claim or power to do something or to have or own something that is
considered to be necessary for an individual to live with dignity. Fundamental Rights are essential
rights which are the proud possession of every individual without exception against the state by
virtue of Human relations. These rights are inherent, inalienable and equal for all Humans.

During our freedom struggle, the leaders of the freedom movement had realised the importance
of fundamental rights and demanded that the British rulers should respect rights of the people. 8
Even though the Fundamental Rights are protected and governed by various covenants; its
enforceability still has a doubt. When we speak of violation of Fundamental Rights, we presume
the existence of Fundamental Rights. We further presume the need to respect them and expect
enforcement of these rights. But the question of violation arises only when we understand or know
that right exist. No person can ever exercise a right until and unless he is aware of it.

Fundamental Rights are a set of rights contained in Part III of the Indian Constitution. It
guarantees rights, such that all citizens can live their lives in peace and harmony. Such rights are
a symbol of democratic government, these include Right to Equality and Freedom of Speech and
Expression, and Right to assemble peacefully, follow and practice any religion, etc.
2
However these rights can be of little help to an individual who is not aware of their existence.
Knowledge of law is power and helps self-realization. India has an emergent need for generating
awareness of fundamental rights as knowledge so that people live in consonance with the true
dictates of democracy and rule of law.

Lack of knowledge about the basic legal and civil liberties, human rights, constitutional directives
and principles and other guidelines that protect the people's dignity, liberty and freedom manifests
itself in the society in the form of problems such as child labour, human trafficking, domestic
violence, child marriage, dowry etc. that threatens the safety of all.

GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

Goals of the legal literacy programs can be broadly divided in two types, namely education and
competency. In Reading the Legal World, author Laird Hunter expects legal literacy to achieve:
“People using the legal system must be able to guide themselves through a process that they
understand [...] and, at appropriate places along the way”

• recognize when a problem or conflict is a legal conflict and when a legal solution is
available;
• know how to take the necessary action to avoid problems and where this is not possible,
how to help themselves appropriately;
• know how and where to find information on the law, and be able to find information that
is accessible to them,
• know when and how to obtain suitable legal assistance;
• have confidence that the legal system will provide a remedy, and
• understand the process clearly enough to perceive that justice has been done.

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

BHARATIYA V.P., (1999)

It has been reported that the protection of Fundamental Rights depends upon the people of that
country. It is quite interesting to read the author’s opinion about the Indian Constitution, the
Fundamental Rights and its implementation. With the help of various case studies the
implementation of the Fundamental Rights has been explained by the author. The Constitution of
3
any country depends upon the basic concept that the people are required to consider that all
Human beings are the creation of god so all are equal. The miseries of an individual can come
to an end if people start regarding the Fundamental Rights of each other. But the problem is people
are not even aware of their Fundamental Rights, the question of implementation of Fundamental
Rights does not arise. The concerns are people are ignoring the Fundamental Rights of each other.
Now it the time to think and to decide how long this is going to be continued. People need to
awake themselves towards their ignorance. If people are woken, spontaneously the Fundamental
Rights shall be respected and observed. Youth the power of the nation can play an important role
in these regard. And so it is the time to awaken the people and specially the youth.

DICEY A.V.

The article is about the importance of the Constitution and the implementation of the Important
Rights. Essential Rights are mandatory to be protected and applied efficiently. An initiative has
to be taken for the effective implementation of Fundamental Rights by each and every citizen.
Youth the power of the nation must be diverted towards the constructive purposes. Author has
given a new concept of role of the people in the implementation of law. The implementation of
Fundamental Rights can take place provided people are vigilant towards their rights.

AIM OF THE STUDY

People although have some knowledge of existence of some basic rights but they are hardly aware
about what exactly are their fundamental rights how significant they are, how should they protect
their interest and what can they do in case of violation, thus awareness-raising is a fundamental
component of:

• changing attitudes, behaviours and beliefs of the people;

• preventing men and women from becoming victims; and
• Informing wider public and especially victims and perpetrators about the resources
available to tackle the problem.

Awareness raising should involve diverse actors, and can take many forms, be creative and use
new information and communication technologies, direct involvement of persons,
multidisciplinary co-operation, shared values between grassroots organisations and authorities,
financial and other support from the authorities to self-advocates and their representative
4
organisations and/or providers of services who instigated change, well- thought- out strategies
and carefully planned actions which make a difference, and above all, the will and enthusiasm to
make it happen.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

PRIMARY SOURCES --

STATUTES

• The Constitution of India, Bare Act, Publish by Government of India, 1950.

• The Right to Education Act 2009

• The Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, 1976

• The Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Act, 2016

• The Prisoner’s Act 1894

• The National Legal Services Authorities Act 1987

REPORTS & INDEX

• Report of the National Crimes Record Bureau

• ILO report on Global Slavery Index

• Central Statistics Office Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation

Government of India (Social Statistics Division)
• India Youth Development Index Published by Rajiv Gandhi National Institute of
Youth Development, 2011.

SECONDARY SOURCES --

BOOKS

5
 • B.L.Grover A New look an modern India History, 1983. S.Chand and Co Ltd, New
Delhi – 55.
• B.Shiva Rao The Framing of Indias constitution select documents, Volums,
Universal law publishing Co Pvt Ltd, Delhi-33
• Dr. Subash C.Kashyap Constitution of India‖: Review and Reassessment, Universal
law publishing Co, New Delhi
• Dr. Subhash C. Kashyap Framing of India‘s constitution A study, 2 nd Ed, 2004,
universal law publish Co Pvt Ltd. Delhi 33.
• Dr. Subhash C.Kashyap Constitution making Since 195: An over view (1950-2004)
2004, Universal law publishing Co Pvt Ltd, Delhi.
• Granville Austine The Indian Constitution: Cornerstone of A Nation Ed. 1979,
Oxford university press, Bombay 39.
• H.M.Seervai Constitutional law of India‖ 4th Ed., 3 volumes, universal law
publishing Co, New Delhi.
• Kestzer D.1 ARel.D Causes and Identity: The polities of Race, Ethnicity and
language in national cases, Cambridge University press.
• Majeed, Akhtar Nation & Minorities India‘s Plural Society and is Constituents‖,
2002, Kamishka Publishers, New Delhi
• P.M.Bakshi The Constitution of India 11th Edt. 2011, Universal law publishing Co,
New Delhi.
• Pandey, Rajendra Minorities in India: Protection and Welfare 1997 APH publishing
corporation, New Delhi.
• Seth D.L and Gupeet Mahajan ―Minorities Identities and Nation-State‖ 1999,
oxford university press, New Delhi.
• Aggarwal, R.C: Constitutional History of India and National Movements, S.Chand
& Co, New Delhi, 1969.
• Banerjee, A.C: Constitutional History of India, V.1, Mukherjee & Co. Calcutta,
1948.
• Jain, M.P: Indian Constitutional Law, Wadhwa & Co, Nagpur, 2005.

ARTICLE

6
• Von Mehren, Arthur Taylor. “Law and Legal Education in India: Some Observations.”
Harvard Law Review, vol. 78, no. 6, 1965, pp. 1180–1189.
• Ebb, Lawrence F., and A. T. Markose. “Conference of the Indian Law Institute.” The
American Journal of Comparative Law, vol. 7, no. 2, 1958, pp. 219–238.
• Ascluar Ali Engineer ―They too fought for freedom – Role of http://csss-isla.com.
Minorities in Freedom movement
• Das, Dr. Saumendra And Saibabu, N., Indian Constitution: An Analysis Of The
Fundamental Rights And The Directive Principles (2014). Ars - Journal Of Applied
Research And Social Sciences, Vol.1, Issue.17, December 2014, ISSN 2350-1472.

7
8