{"id":54244,"date":"2019-12-24T15:47:00","date_gmt":"2019-12-24T10:17:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogadmin.forumias.com\/?p=54244"},"modified":"2020-02-26T15:49:04","modified_gmt":"2020-02-26T10:19:04","slug":"7-pm-safeguarding-constitutional-morality-24th-december-2019","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/7-pm-safeguarding-constitutional-morality-24th-december-2019\/","title":{"rendered":"7 PM | Safeguarding constitutional morality | 24th December 2019"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Context:\n<\/strong>Consitutional\nmorality and the debate around it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Constitutional\nmorality:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Constitutional morality means adherence\nto the core principles of the constitutional democracy.<\/li><li>In Dr. Ambedkar\u2019s perspective,&nbsp;Constitutional\nmorality would mean an effective coordination between conflicting interests of\ndifferent people&nbsp;and the administrative cooperation to resolve the\namicably without any confrontation amongst the various groups working for the\nrealization of their ends at any cost .&nbsp;<\/li><li>Thus the scope of the definition of\nConstitutional Morality is&nbsp;not limited only to following the\nconstitutional provisions literally but vast enough to ensure the ultimate aim\nof the Constitution,&nbsp;a socio-juridical scenario providing an opportunity\nto unfold the full personhood of every citizen, for whom and by whom the\nConstitution exists.<\/li><li>To be governed by a constitutional\nmorality is to be governed by the logical moral principles that are carried by\nany constitution. For instance, the principle of non-discrimination is often\ntaken to be an element of our modern constitutional morality. In this sense,\nconstitutional morality is the morality&nbsp;of&nbsp;a constitution. Some other\nsuch principles are jusctice, equality, liberty etc that enshrined in Indian\nconstitution.<\/li><li>In the view-point of Dr. Ambedkar, \u201cthe\ncentral elements of constitutional morality were freedom and self-restraint.\nSelf-restraint was a precondition for maintaining freedom under constitutionally\nformed government. The most political expression of a lack of self-restraint\nwas revolution. Indeed constitutional morality was successful only in so far as\nit warded off revolution. Ambedkar also takes on the explicitly anti-revolutionary\ntones of constitutionalism.\u201d<\/li><li>Ambedkar says that the maintenance of democracy\nrequires that we must \u201chold fast to constitutional methods of achieving our\nsocial and economic objectives. It must mean that we abandon the bloody methods\nof revolution. It means we must abandon the method of civil disobedience, non-cooperation\nand satyagraha.\u201d<\/li><li>Constitutional Morality is a sentiment\nto be cultivated in the minds of a responsible citizen but to be promoted by an\nindependent judiciary embodied with values and ethics. Where judicial diligence\nis absent and judicial integrity is questioned Constitutional Morality cannot\nbe upheld.&nbsp;The fruits of the morality of Constitution are enjoyed where\nthe people can come to the courts to redress their grievances,<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Sources\nof constitutional morality:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Concept of constitutional\nmorality remains understudied and that there has been no agreement over the\nexact locations but generally there are four sources of constitutional\nmorality:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Text of the Constitution<\/li><li>Constitutional Assembly debates<\/li><li>Events that took place during the\nframing of the Constitution<\/li><li>Case Law History.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Constitutional\nMorality in Indian Constitution:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Constitutional morality are committed to\ncertain features of it such as:<\/li><li>commitment\nto liberty<\/li><li>constitutional\nsupremacy<\/li><li>Parliamentary\nform of government and self restraint<\/li><li>rule\nof law<\/li><li>equality<\/li><li>intolerance\nfor corruption, etc.<\/li><li>The written Constitution does not make\nany reference to any standard of Constitutional Morality. It had a passing\nmention during the Constituent Assembly Debates with the meaning and scope\nattributed in line with its understanding in the English context.&nbsp;<\/li><li>From a quick assessment, it is found\nthat the phrase had been used in less than ten reported cases by the Supreme\nCourt till 2010 from the time the Constitution was adopted. <\/li><li>It was used by the Delhi High Court in\ntesting the Constitutional validity of Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code in\n2009 (Naz Foundation vs Govt. of NCT of Delhi).\nHowever, in the year 2018 alone, it has been used in more than 10 reported\ncases by the Supreme Court.<\/li><li>For the purpose of understanding the\nreliance by the Supreme Court on the phrase in the recent past, five cases may\nbe considered:<ul><li>Triple Talaq<\/li><\/ul><ul><li>sexual orientation<\/li><\/ul><ul><li>privacy<\/li><\/ul><ul><li>adultery<\/li><\/ul><ul><li>entry of women&nbsp;into a temple in\nKerala.&nbsp;<\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Recent\ncontraversial incidents that are being suggested as against the basic structure\nand principles of the Constitution:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Abrogation\nof article 370:<\/strong> The fact that Article 370 was a temporary provision\nhas been used to dilute it. Nevertheless, it was a provision made in the Constitution\nfor a specific purpose, which clearly required more detailed and careful\ntreatment before being abruptly invalidated.<\/li><li><strong>Federalism:\n<\/strong>While\nthe Indian Constitution provides for a federal system with a unitary bias, the\nCentral and State Governments both derive their authority from the\nConstitution. This implies that States are not exactly subordinate to the\nCentre. Splitting Jammu and Kashmir (J&amp;K) into two Union Territories,\nwithout due consultation with different segments and shades of opinion there,\nincluding its political leadership, ran contrary to this essential principle.\nIt violated the spirit, if not the letter, of the Constitution.<\/li><li><strong>Secularism:\n<\/strong>Secularism\nhas remained a part of Indian culture since ages. However, some biases are\nbeginning to emerge in many circles in India. In its seminal judgment in S.R.\nBommai case held that secularism is part of the basic structure of the\nConstitution (the doctrine of Basic structure upheld in Kesavananda Bharati v.\nState of Kerala&nbsp;case, 1973) and cannot be trifled with in the name of\nsecurity or other considerations.<\/li><li><strong>Citizenship\n(Amendment) Act (CAA): <\/strong>The CAA only makes it easier for\nrefugees from countries such as Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan to gain\nIndian citizenship. However it excludes certain categories, such as Muslims.\nThis denies people belonging to one particular religion recourse to the new\nlaw. The critics argue that this act\nviolates the Constitution\u2019s Article 14 and 15 which guarantees the fundamental\nright to equality to all persons.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Conclusion:\n<\/strong>The Constitution was made possible by a constitutional morality\nthat was liberal at its core and not just in the ideological sense. The deeper\nvirtues from which constitutional morality sprang can be listed as: an ability\nto combine individuality with mutual regard, intellectualism with a democratic\nsensibility, conviction with a sense of fallibility, deliberation with\ndecision, ambition with a commitment to institutions, and hope for a future\nwith due regard for the past and present. Thus, constitutional\nmorality is important for constitutional laws to be effective. Without\nconstitutional morality, the operation of a constitution tends to become\narbitrary, erratic, and capricious.&nbsp;<strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Source:\n<\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehindu.com\/opinion\/lead\/safeguarding-constitutional-morality\/article30383084.ece\">https:\/\/www.thehindu.com\/opinion\/lead\/safeguarding-constitutional-morality\/article30383084.ece<\/a><strong><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Context: Consitutional morality and the debate around it. Constitutional morality: Constitutional morality means adherence to the core principles of the constitutional democracy. In Dr. Ambedkar\u2019s perspective,&nbsp;Constitutional morality would mean an effective coordination between conflicting interests of different people&nbsp;and the administrative cooperation to resolve the amicably without any confrontation amongst the various groups working for the&hellip; <a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/7-pm-safeguarding-constitutional-morality-24th-december-2019\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">7 PM | Safeguarding constitutional morality | 24th December 2019<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":61,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[130,955,9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-54244","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-7-pm","category-7-pm-brief-infograph","category-public","entry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","views":{"total":144,"cached_at":""},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54244","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/61"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=54244"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54244\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=54244"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=54244"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=54244"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}