How expansive is the ‘Right to life and personal liberty’ under Article 21 of the Indian Constitution?

The right to live a free, full and dignified life is one of the most basic principles of human existence. Every person is entitled to live their life on their own terms, with no unfair interference from others. A successful democracy can only be one that guarantees its citizens the right to protect their own life and liberty.

Article 21 of the Indian Constitution states that “No person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty except according to the procedure established by law”. This right is available not only to citizens bur foreigners as well. The terms ‘life’ and ‘personal liberty’ encompass a wide variety of rights of the people, which are a result of the evolution in the interpretation of Article 21 by the courts over the years.  

Narrow interpretation of Article 21 

The Supreme Court, in A.K. Gopalan vs State of Madras (1950) took a narrow interpretation of the term ‘personal liberty’. The court said that ‘personal liberty’ is limited to liberty of ‘physical body’, thus it limited its scope. 

Expansive vision of Article 21 

In subsequent judgments the Court has expanded the scope of application of Article 21. 

• In Kharak Singh vs State of Uttar Pradesh (1964), Supreme court held that “By the term ‘life’ as here used, something more is meant than mere animal existence”. Thus expanding the scope of Article 21. 
• However, the most important case in the evolution of Article 21 is Maneka Gandhi vs Union of India case (1978).  The Supreme Court states that “personal liberty” given in Article 21 had the widest amplitude and covered a variety of rights related to the personal liberty of a person. The Court also held that the right to live is not merely a physical right but includes within its ambit the right to live with human dignity.  
• In subsequent cases, the Supreme Court has included various rights pertaining to personal liberty under the ambit of Article 21. 
• In 2017, another important expansion happened to the scope of the concept of ‘personal liberty’ under Article 21. Supreme Court, in Justice K S Puttaswamy vs Union of India (2017), declared Right to Privacy as Fundamental Right under Article 21. Inclusion of Right to Privacy has expanded the scope enormously. It has turned a new chapter of civil liberties, like right to sexual orientation, right to gender identity, in the Indian legal system. 

Scope of Article 21: 

Supreme Court has declared various rights as part of Article 21. Some of the important rights are: 

1. Right to live with Human Dignity 
2. Right to decent environment 
3. Right to privacy 
4. Right to marry person of one’s choice 
5. Right to Health and so on. 

Therefore, Right to life and Personal Liberty has the widest amplitude and lies at the centre of our democracy.