Fundamental Rights — Set 5

Correct Answer: C. No one can be a witness against himself

• **Article 20(3)** = protection against Self-Incrimination — 'no person accused of any offence shall be compelled to be a witness against himself'. • **Scope** — applies only to ACCUSED persons (not witnesses); protects against compelled testimony; does NOT protect against physical evidence (blood samples, fingerprints); voluntary confessions are allowed. • 💡 Option A (No one can be arrested without warrant) is wrong because that is partially under Art.22 protection against arrest — Art.20(3) is specifically about testimony and self-incrimination; Option B (No one can be punished twice) is wrong because that is Art.20(2) — Double Jeopardy protection, a different clause of Art.20; Option D (No one can be denied bail) is wrong because bail rights are under CrPC and Art.22 — not Art.20(3).

Correct Answer: D. The State

• **The State** = the primary entity against which Fundamental Rights are available; 'State' is defined broadly in Article 12 to include the government, Parliament, state legislatures, and local/other authorities. • **Exception** — Arts.17 (untouchability), 23 (trafficking/forced labour), and 24 (child labour) also apply against PRIVATE individuals, not just the State. • 💡 Option A (Only the Police) is wrong because FRs apply against the entire 'State' as defined in Art.12 — not just police; police are a part of State; Option B (Only the Judiciary) is wrong because the judiciary too is bound by FRs but the primary concern is protection against executive action; Option C (Only Private Individuals) is wrong because FRs are primarily against the State — some FRs also apply to private individuals but the primary target is State action.

Correct Answer: D. Article 22

• **Article 22** = also covers preventive detention — detention without trial to PREVENT a future crime; provides safeguards like communication of grounds of detention and Advisory Board review. • **3-Month Limit** — under preventive detention, a person cannot be detained beyond 3 months without the Advisory Board's approval; Parliament can extend this period by law. • 💡 Option A (Article 23) is wrong because Art.23 prohibits trafficking and forced labour — not preventive detention; Option B (Article 21) is wrong because Art.21 is the broad right to life and liberty — Art.22 is the specific provision for arrest/detention procedures; Option C (Article 20) is wrong because Art.20 protects against ex-post facto laws, double jeopardy, and self-incrimination — not preventive detention.

Correct Answer: A. Article 19

• **Article 19(1)(a)** = the Right to Information (RTI) is implied/inferred from this article as part of freedom of speech and expression; to speak meaningfully, one must be able to access information. • **RTI Act, 2005** — enacted to operationalise the implied right under Art.19(1)(a); the Supreme Court in Raj Narain case (1975) and S.P. Gupta case (1981) recognised RTI as a fundamental right. • 💡 Option B (Article 14) is wrong because Art.14 guarantees equality before law — it is not the basis for the right to access information; Option C (Article 21) is wrong because while Art.21 is broadly interpreted, the specific link for RTI is Art.19(1)(a) not Art.21; Option D (Article 32) is wrong because Art.32 is the remedy provision (right to approach Supreme Court) — not the source of the right to information.

Correct Answer: B. 103rd Amendment

• **103rd Amendment** = introduced EWS (Economically Weaker Sections) reservation of up to 10% in educational institutions and government employment; came into effect in January 2019. • **Articles 15 and 16** — added new clauses Art.15(6) and Art.16(6) enabling 10% reservation for EWS; separate from existing SC/ST (22.5%) and OBC (27%) reservations; upheld by Supreme Court in 5-judge bench in 2022. • 💡 Option A (102nd Amendment) is wrong because the 102nd Amendment 2018 gave constitutional status to the National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC) — not EWS reservation; Option C (100th Amendment) is wrong because the 100th Amendment 2015 dealt with the land boundary agreement with Bangladesh; Option D (101st Amendment) is wrong because the 101st Amendment 2016 introduced GST (Goods and Services Tax) — not EWS reservation.

Correct Answer: B. Civil and Political Rights

• **Civil and Political Rights** = classified as 'First Generation' human rights; they protect individual freedom from infringement by governments and private organizations. • **Three Generations** — 1st Generation: civil/political rights (freedom, equality, political participation); 2nd Generation: economic/social/cultural rights; 3rd Generation: solidarity rights (right to peace, clean environment, development). • 💡 Option A (Cultural Rights) is wrong because cultural rights are classified as 2nd or 3rd generation rights — not 1st generation; Option C (Environmental Rights) is wrong because environmental rights like right to clean environment are 3rd generation rights; Option D (Economic Rights) is wrong because economic rights (right to work, fair wages) are 2nd generation rights — not 1st generation.

Correct Answer: B. K.S. Puttaswamy Case

• **K.S. Puttaswamy Case, 2017** = landmark 9-judge Supreme Court bench that unanimously declared the Right to Privacy as a Fundamental Right under Article 21 of the Constitution. • **Significance** — overruled earlier cases (Kharak Singh 1962, M.P. Sharma 1954) that held privacy was not a FR; the judgment formed the basis for striking down Section 377 (Navtej Johar case 2018) and scrutiny of Aadhaar. • 💡 Option A (Navtej Johar Case) is wrong because Navtej Johar 2018 dealt with decriminalisation of Section 377 (homosexuality) — it relied on Puttaswamy but did not establish Right to Privacy itself; Option C (Naz Foundation Case) is wrong because Naz Foundation 2009 was a Delhi High Court judgment on Section 377 — not a Supreme Court judgment on Right to Privacy; Option D (Shah Bano Case) is wrong because Shah Bano 1985 dealt with Muslim women's right to maintenance under CrPC — completely unrelated to Right to Privacy.

Correct Answer: C. Article 29-30

• **Articles 29-30** = together constitute 'Cultural and Educational Rights' — the 6th category of Fundamental Rights in the Indian Constitution. • **Difference** — Art.29 protects culture/language/script of ANY section of citizens (including majority); Art.30 exclusively gives religious AND linguistic minorities the right to establish and administer their educational institutions. • 💡 Option A (Article 25-26) is wrong because Arts.25-26 are 'Right to Freedom of Religion' — they deal with religious practice, not cultural and educational rights of minorities; Option B (Article 27-28) is wrong because Arts.27-28 are also part of religious freedom — Art.27 on religious taxes, Art.28 on religious instruction in schools; Option D (Article 23-24) is wrong because Arts.23-24 constitute 'Right against Exploitation' dealing with trafficking and child labour — not minority cultural rights.

Correct Answer: D. 14, 19, 21

• **Articles 14, 19, 21** = the 'Golden Triangle' of Fundamental Rights; a law depriving personal liberty must pass the test of all three articles to be constitutionally valid. • **Maneka Gandhi Case, 1978** — the Supreme Court established this interrelationship; Art.14 = equality/reasonableness; Art.19 = freedom from unreasonable restrictions; Art.21 = procedure must be fair, just, and reasonable (not merely enacted). • 💡 Option A (14, 15, 16) is wrong because while 14-16 are all equality articles, the Golden Triangle in constitutional jurisprudence is specifically 14+19+21; Option B (32, 226, 13) is wrong because these are remedy and void-law provisions — not the Golden Triangle; Option C (25, 26, 27) is wrong because these are religious freedom articles — not the Golden Triangle which is about personal liberty and equality.

Correct Answer: B. Article 16

• **Article 16** = specifically prohibits discrimination in public employment on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex, descent, place of birth, or residence. • **Extra Grounds** — Art.16 adds 'descent' and 'residence' to the 5 grounds of Art.15; 'descent' means ancestral lineage; 'residence' means domicile — Parliament (not states) can specify residence requirements under Art.16(3). • 💡 Option A (Article 17) is wrong because Art.17 abolishes untouchability — it does not deal with public employment discrimination; Option C (Article 15) is wrong because Art.15 is the general anti-discrimination article for citizens — it does NOT include 'descent' and 'residence'; Option D (Article 18) is wrong because Art.18 abolishes titles — completely unrelated to equality in public employment.