Understanding Right To Constitutional Remedies

Part III of the Constitution of India guarantees Fundamental Rights in India to the citizens. Right to Constitutional Remedies is one such fundamental right. Dr B.R Ambedkar, the father of the Indian Constitution, considered that the right to constitutional remedies, which come under Article-32 of the Supreme Court, is the heart and soul of the Indian Constitution. These fundamental rights were set out in the Constitution to provide the people with justice, equality and protection. We need a robust enforcement mechanism to back these rights to be adequately followed. The right to constitutional remedies come under article 32 of the Supreme Court and article 226 of the high court. 

The right to constitutional remedies– Article 32, which is the right to approach the Supreme court, is a fundamental right in itself. It provides the citizen with a quick and guaranteed remedy for the enforcement of fundamental rights. The person has the right to go straight to the Supreme Court, exempting the approach to any of the lower courts. 

Let’s talk about Article 32 in detail:

The Indian Constitution grants six fundamental rights to the citizens of India. What was observed initially was that simply stating these rights in the Constitution would not ensure their practical execution. Hence, the right to constitutional remedies was issued to ensure that these fundamental rights are not merely paper-based. Furthermore, article 32 states that the supreme court has the power to issue direction or writs appropriate for the enforcement of any right conferred by the party. 

What are writs?

Writs are nothing but written orders issued by the supreme court of India to provide constitutional remedies if citizens’ fundamental rights are violated. Thus, the Indian Constitution has empowered high courts and supreme courts to issue writs. The five types of writs followed in India are Habeas Corpus, Mandamus, Certiorari, Prohibition and Quo Warranto. 

Specific provisions need to be met to lodge a writ appeal on Article 32 to the Supreme Court. The first one is, there must be a violation of human rights. Secondly, it should be clear of all other remedy options. 

Now, one needs to understand that Article 32, which deals with the right of constitutional remedies, can be used to get remedies related to fundamental rights. Still, it cannot be invoked for any constitutional or legal right as there are different laws for the same. Thus, article 32 makes the Supreme Court the underwriter and safeguards all the principal fundamental rights. The Supreme Court has the authority to enforce the Fundamental Rights against private entities and, in the event of a violation, to give compensation to the individual who has been harmed.

As described earlier, the right to constitutional remedies is one of the most important rights granted to the citizens of India as it gives the necessary provisions to the citizens of India to move to the Supreme Court if any of their fundamental rights are violated. It has also been decided that, unless the Constitution states explicitly otherwise, only the Supreme Court of India has the authority to suspend this right until a national emergency is declared.

Thus, under article 32, an aggrieved person can appeal to the high court or Supreme Court as remedies if citizens’ fundamental rights are violated. When it comes to violating fundamental rights, a person can approach the high court under article 226, which is not a fundamental right, unlike Article 32, which is the right to constitutional remedies.

To defend any attack on the basic fundamental right guaranteed to the citizens of India by the Indian Constitution, we had to make a way to practice and realise these rights, rather than just mentioning it on paper. And that is when the Right to Constitutional Remedies, which is Article 32- a fundamental right guaranteed by the Supreme court, and Article 226, for high court comes into the limelight. Thus, these high authorities can then issue directives for the government regarding the proper enforcement of the stated rights.