Integration and expansion of Human rights under the constitution of India during the journey of 75 years

Journal of Research and Development A Multidisciplinary International Level Referred and Double Blind Peer Reviewed, Open Access ISSN : 2230-9578 | Website: https://jrdrvb.org Volume-17, Issue-9(V)| September 2025 110 Integration and expansion of Human rights under the constitution of India during the journey of 75 years Tejaswini Vivek Sabale1, Arjun Sachin Bhattad 2 1Assistant Professor, Bharati Vidyapeeth’s Yashwantrao Chavan Law College, Karad 2StudentLL.M. II, Bharati Vidyapeeth’s Yashwantrao Chavan Law College, Karad Manuscript ID: JRD -2025-170927 ISSN: 2230-9578 Volume 17 Issue 9 (V) Pp. 110-113 Sept. 2025 Submitted:15 Aug. 2025 Revised: 25 Aug. 2025 Accepted: 10 Sept. 2025 Published: 30 Sept. 2025 Abstract The Indian Constitution represents a significantblend of ideals of justice, liberty, equality, and fraternity. At its heart lies the protection and promotion of human rights, which are universally recognized as inherent, inalienable, and indispensable for a dignified existence of every human being. The Constitution, through Fundamental Rights, integrates these human rights into the legal and political fabric of the nation. However, these rights have not remained static but flexible and expandable one. Over the last seventy-five years, Indian courts, particularly the Supreme Court, have expanded the ambit of these rights through progressive interpretation, judicial activism, and purposive construction, ensuring that the Constitution remains a living document.This article traces the integration of human rights in the Constitution, their expansion through judicial interpretation, the impact of international instruments like the UN Charter and UDHR, and the role of constitutional amendments in strengthening human rights. The paper also analyses landmark judgments such as Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India and Justice K.S. Puttaswamy v. Union of India, which have revolutionized the understanding of Article 21, making it the cornerstone of human rights jurisprudence in India. By revisiting the Constituent Assembly debates and significant historical milestones, this article seeks to illustrate the journey of human rights in India over the past seventy-five years. Keywords: Indian Constitution, Human Rights, Fundamental Rights, Directive Principles, Judicial Activism, Article 21, Public Interest Litigation (PIL), Constitutional Amendments, Basic Structure Doctrine Introduction: Human rights are the quintessence of democratic governance and the foundation of constitutionalism. They are the basic freedoms and entitlements inherent in every individual by virtue of being human. The significance of human rights lies in their universality and inalienability. In India, the concept of human rights found expression during the freedom struggle, where demands for civil liberties and fundamental freedoms were central to nationalist aspirations. The framers of the Constitution, inspired by global developments and the moral imperatives of independence, sought to enshrine these rights in the constitutional text. As Dr. B.R. Ambedkar observed during the Constituent Assembly Debates: "The purpose of the Constitution is not merely to create the organs of the State, but also to limit their authority and to protect the liberty of citizens." When the Constitution came into force on 26 January 1950, it gave India one of the most comprehensive schemes of Fundamental Rights under Part III. This framework aimed to secure individual liberty, social justice, and equality before law. However, over the decades, the interpretation of these provisions has evolved significantly, expanding their ambit to include socio-economic and environmental rights. The Supreme Court has played a pivotal role in this journey, adopting a dynamic and purposive approach to constitutional interpretation. Quick Response Code: Website: https://jrdrvb.org/ DOI: Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0) This is an open access journal, and articles are distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International Public License, which allows others to remix, tweak, and build upon the work noncommercially, as long as appropriate credit is given and the new creations ae licensed under the idential terms. Address for correspondence: Tejaswini Vivek Sabale, Assistant Professor, Bharati Vidyapeeth’s Yashwantrao Chavan Law College, Karad How to cite this article: T. V. Sabale, A. S. Bhattad. (2025).Integration and expansion of Human rights under the constitution of India during the journey of 75 years. Journal of Research & Development, 17(9), 110-113 Original Article Journal of Research and Development A Multidisciplinary International Level Referred and Double Blind Peer Reviewed, Open Access ISSN : 2230-9578 | Website: https://jrdrvb.org Volume-17, Issue-9(V)| September 2025 111 Beginning with a rigid textualist view in A.K. Gopalan v. State of Madras, the Court moved towards an expansive reading in Maneka Gandhi v.Union of India, incorporating principles of fairness, reasonableness, and due process. Today, Article 21 encompasses several human rights such as right to privacy, right to clean environment, right to education, and right to health. This evolution reflects the adaptability of the Indian Constitution to changing societal needs and global human rights standards. Objectives of the Paper: - The present article aims to achieve certain objectives. They are as under, To trace the historical development and expansion of human rights To analyze the foundational integration of human rights within the Constitution of India To study the constitutional provisions related to human rights To study the role of the Indian judiciary in the expansion and interpretation of human rights To study certain constitutional amendments that have not only integrated but expanded the human rights under the constitutional scheme Importance of Human Rights and their integration under the Constitution of India – historical overview The importance of human rights in a constitutional democracy like India cannot be overstated. These rights act as a bulwark against arbitrary power and ensure that every individual enjoys dignity, freedom, and equality. The integration of human rights into the Indian Constitution was a deliberate choice by the framers, driven by historical experience and the ideals of justice and fairness.The colonial period witnessed severe violations of civil liberties, with laws like the Rowlatt Act (1919) curtailing freedom of speech and assembly. The experience of repression during colonial rule underscored the necessity of constitutional safeguards. In 1928, the Nehru Report demanded a Bill of Rights for Indians, and later, the Sapru Committee (1945) recommended the inclusion of Fundamental Rights in the future Constitution. These developments culminated in the adoption of Part III of the Constitution.Thus, the integration of human rights into the Indian Constitution reflects a commitment to constitutional morality, democratic governance, and the rule of law, forming the bedrock of India’s legal and political order.Dr. B.R. Ambedkar stated during the debates that the Constitution must not only establish the machinery of government but also guarantee the rights of citizens against possible misuse of power. This shows that the intention was to create a system where the State would be limited by law in its dealings with individuals, thus protecting their freedoms.This integration of human rights within the constitutional framework ensures their legal sanctity and provides citizens with a mechanism for redressal.Moreover, the Constitution adopts a comprehensive approach, combining civil and political rights (Part III) with Directive Principles of State Policy (Part IV), which aim to secure socio-economic justice. While the Directive Principles are non-justiciable, they guide the State in promoting welfare policies and have been instrumental in the judicial expansion of rights under Article 21. Integration of Human Rights under the Constitution The Preamble of the Constitution, which guarantees Justice – social, economic, and political; Liberty – of thought, expression, belief, faith, and worship; Equality – of status and opportunity; and Fraternity – assuring the dignity of the individual, encapsulates the essence of human rights. The inclusion of these ideals in the Preamble underscores the framers’ vision of a just and humane society.Together, they reflect the philosophy of a welfare state committed to human dignity. Fundamental Rights, as contained in Articles 12 to 35, secure a range of human rights: 1. Right to Equality (Articles 14-18) 2. Right to Freedom (Articles 19-22) 3. Right against Exploitation (Articles 23-24) 4. Right to Freedom of Religion (Articles 25-28) 5. Cultural and Educational Rights (Articles 29-30) 6. Right to Constitutional Remedies (Article 32) 7. The framers ensured that these rights were comprehensive, covering civil liberties such as freedom of speech, personal liberty, and equality before the law, which are essential for a democratic society.This scheme was inspired by international instruments like the UDHR (1948) and the American Bill of Rights, ensuring that human rights enjoy constitutional protection in India. Part IV: Directive Principles of State Policy – The Social Dimension of Rights – The Indian Constitution integrates human rights primarily through Part III (Fundamental Rights) and Part IV (Directive Principles of State Policy). While Fundamental Rights ensure individual liberties, Directive Principles aim at achieving socio-economic justice. These principles are not legally enforceable, but they provide important guidance to the State in formulating policies. Journal of Research and Development A Multidisciplinary International Level Referred and Double Blind Peer Reviewed, Open Access ISSN : 2230-9578 | Website: https://jrdrvb.org Volume-17, Issue-9(V)| September 2025 112 Expansion of Human Rights during 75 Years – Judicial Developments The expansion of human rights in India over the past seventy-five years has been one of the most dynamic aspects of its constitutional jurisprudence. While the framers of the Constitution provided an elaborate framework of Fundamental Rights in Part III, they could not foresee every challenge that a modern society would encounter.It was, therefore, the judiciary that rose to the occasion by adopting an expansive interpretation of these rights, ensuring that the Constitution remains a living and adaptable document. This judicial creativity has led to the recognition of new rights under the broad language of existing constitutional provisions, particularly Articles 14, 19, and 21. Article 21 of the Constitution, which guarantees that “No person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty except according to procedure established by law,” has emerged as the most significant provision in the realm of human rights. Initially, the interpretation of this Article was narrow, as seen in A.K. Gopalan v. State of Madras (1950). This approach changed with the landmark judgment in Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India (1978), where the Court held that the procedure under Article 21 must be “just, fair, and reasonable” and not arbitrary or oppressive. Post-Maneka Gandhi, Article 21 became a reservoir of numerous rights, including: 1. Right to live with human dignity (Francis Coralie Mullin v. Administrator, Union Territory of Delhi, 1981) 2. Right to livelihood (Olga Tellis v. Bombay Municipal Corporation, 1985) 3. Right to education (Mohini Jain v. State of Karnataka, 1992; Unnikrishnan v. State of Andhra Pradesh, 1993) 4. Right to privacy (Justice K.S. Puttaswamy v. Union of India, 2017) 5. Right to clean environment (Subhash Kumar v. State of Bihar, 1991) 6. Through these judgments, the judiciary has transformed Article 21 into the fountainhead of human rights, ensuring that the right to life encompasses all facets necessary for a dignified existence. Environmental Rights and the Right to a Healthy Environment The watershed case of M.C. Mehta v. Union of India (1986) laid the foundation for environmental jurisprudence in India. The Court, while dealing with the issue of industrial pollution, held that the right to life includes the right to a wholesome environment Digital Privacy and the Right to Informational Self-Determination The landmark judgment in Justice K.S. Puttaswamy v. Union of India (2017) marked a turning point in Indian constitutional law by declaring the right to privacy as a fundamental right under Article 21. Gender Justice and Protection of Women’s Rights One of the earliest landmark decisions was Vishaka v. State of Rajasthan (1997), where the Supreme Court laid down comprehensive guidelines to address sexual harassment at the workplace in the absence of legislative measures. These guidelines, popularly known as the Vishaka Guidelines, were later codified in the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013. LGBTQ+ Rights and the Recognition of Sexual Minorities The real breakthrough came in Navtej Singh Johar v. Union of India (2018), where a five-judge Bench of the Supreme Court unanimously struck down the colonial-era provision to the extent that it criminalized consensual sexual relations between adults of the same sex. The Court held that sexual orientation is an intrinsic part of personal identity and dignity, and its criminalization violates the fundamental rights to equality, non-discrimination, and privacy. Expansion through Constitutional Amendments – First Amendment (1951) – Reasonable Restrictions under Article 19 - This amendment was seen as a balancing mechanism between individual liberty and societal interests. While criticized for curbing free speech, it ensured that rights were not misused to destabilize democracy. Thus, it marked the first major step in reconciling freedom with constitutional order. Twenty-Fourth Amendment (1971) – Parliament’s Power to Amend Fundamental Rights – The 24th Amendment clarified that Parliament has the explicit power to amend any part of the Constitution, including Fundamental Rights. This was a response to the Supreme Court’s restrictive interpretation in Golaknath v. State of Punjab (1967), which held that Parliament could not amend Part III. Seventy-Third Amendment (1992) – Panchayati Raj and Grassroots Democracy – The 73rd Amendment introduced Part IX to the Constitution, giving constitutional status to Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs). This amendment ensured participatory democracy at the grassroots level, empowering citizens to directly influence governance and development. By institutionalizing local self-government, it promoted social justice, gender equality, and inclusiveness. Eighty-Sixth Amendment (2002) – Right to Education (Article 21A) – This amendment inserted Article 21A, making free and compulsory education a fundamental right for children aged 6 to 14 years. It transformed the Directive Principle under Article 45 into an enforceable right, recognizing education as the foundation for human development and social empowerment. Journal of Research and Development A Multidisciplinary International Level Referred and Double Blind Peer Reviewed, Open Access ISSN : 2230-9578 | Website: https://jrdrvb.org Volume-17, Issue-9(V)| September 2025 113 One Hundred and Second Amendment (2018) – OBC Commission Constitutional Status – The 102nd Amendment granted constitutional status to the National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC) by inserting Article 338B. It aimed to provide greater authority and independence to the Commission in safeguarding the rights of socially and educationally backward classes. This amendment also introduced Article 342A, giving the President the power to notify OBC lists for states and the union. Conclusion: The seventy-five-year journey of the Indian Constitution reflects an extraordinary transformation in the realm of human rights. From the initial framework of Fundamental Rights to the expansive jurisprudence of today, India has witnessed a continuous evolution driven by judicial creativity, legislative reforms, and international influence. The Constitution has proved to be a living document, adapting to societal changes while safeguarding the core values of liberty, equality, and dignity. As India enters the digital age, new challenges such as data privacy, AI ethics, and cyber security demand further expansion of human rights. The future of Indian democracy lies in ensuring that these rights remain meaningful, enforceable, and inclusive for every citizen. References 1. Austin, G. (1999). The Indian Constitution: Cornerstone of a Nation. Oxford University Press. 2. Basu, D. D. (2018). Introduction to the Constitution of India. LexisNexis. 3. Dhavan, R. (1978). The Supreme Court under Strain: The Challenge of Maneka Gandhi. Journal of the Indian Law Institute, 20(3), 443-460. 4. Dworkin, R. (1986). 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