Govt. dusts off Emergency-era provision on Basic Duties

Syllabus subtopic: Indian Constitution- historical underpinnings, evolution, features, amendments, significant provisions and basic structure.

News: The NDA govt. is dusting off an Emergency-era provision introduced in the Constitution by Indira Gandhi via her controversial 42^nd Amendment- its’s invoking “Fundamental Duties” asking Ministries to spread awareness about them.

Prelims and Mains Focus: about Fundamental Duties and the implications of the govt.’s move

Context:

This emphasis on fundamental duties will play out as part of the year-long celebration of the 70^th anniversary of Constitution Day that falls on November 26.
On Constitution Day the Premble of the Constitution will be read out in various govt. offices.

About Fundamental Duties

The Fundamental Duties, inducted as Article 51A under Part-IV A of the Constitution, is inspired from the Constitution of Russia.

Note: Only one of the 11 fundamental duties mentioned under Article 51A was inducted during the Vajpayee govt. as the 86^th Constitution Amendment in 2002 about educational opportunities for children.

Under Article 51-A, the fundamental duties are statutory and not enforceable by law. The idea behind their incorporation was to emphasize the obligation of the citizens in exchange of the fundamental rights enjoyed by them.
Part IV of the Constitution deals with Directive Principles of State Policy (DPSPs) that includes among its many items, the state’s obligation to enforce a uniform civil code and prevent cow slaughter.

Source: Indian Express

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