T2-NCERT-VIII-Social and political life

Chapter 1

A country is usually made up of different communities of people who share certain beliefs but may not necessarily agree on all issues. A Constitution helps serve as a set of rules and principles that all persons in a country can agree upon as the basis of the way in which they want the country to be governed. This includes not only the type of government but also an agreement on certain ideals that they all believe the country should uphold. 

1. Federalism: This refers to the existence of more than one level of government in the country. In India, we have governments at the state level and at the centre. Panchayati Raj is the third tier of government 

Under federalism, the states are not merely agents of the federal government but draw their authority from the Constitution as well. 

Fundamental Rights, therefore, protect citizens against the arbitrary and absolute exercise of power by the State. The Constitution, thus, guarantees the rights of individuals against the State as well as against other individuals. 

As Dr Ambedkar has said about these Fundamental Rights, their object is two-fold. The first objective is that every citizen must be in a position to claim those rights. And secondly, these rights must be binding upon every authority that has got the power to make laws. 

Chapter 2

Indian Constitution contains Fundamental Rights that protect us against State power as well as against the tyranny of the majority. The Indian Constitution allows individuals the freedom to live by their religious beliefs and practices as they interpret these. In keeping with this idea of religious freedom for all, India also adopted a strategy of separating the power of religion and the power of the State. Secularism refers to this separation of religion from the State. 

Why is it Important to Separate Religion from the State? 

the most important aspect of secularism is its separation of religion from State power. This is important for a country to function democratically. Almost all countries of the world will have more than one religious group living in them. Within these religious groups, there will most likely be one group that is in a majority. If this majority religious group has access to State power, then it could quite easily use this power and financial resources to discriminate against and persecute persons of other religions. This tyranny of the majority could result in the discrimination, coercion and at times even the killing of religious minorities. 

The majority could quite easily prevent minorities from practising their religions. Any form of domination based on religion is in violation of the rights that a democratic society guarantees to each and every citizen irrespective of their religion. Therefore, the tyranny of the majority and the violation of Fundamental Rights that can result is one reason why it is important to separate the State and religion in democratic societies. 

According to the Constitution, only a secular State can realise its objectives to ensure the following: 

1. that one religious community does not dominate another;
   
2. that some members do not dominate other members of the same religious community;
   
3. that the State does not enforce any particular religion nor take away the religious freedom of individuals.
   

The Indian State works in various ways to prevent the above domination. First, it uses a strategy of distancing itself from religion. The Indian State is not ruled by a religious group and nor does it support any one religion. In India, government spaces like law courts, police stations, government schools and offices are not supposed to display or promote any one religion. 

Government schools cannot promote any one religion either in their morning prayers or through religious celebrations. This rule does not apply to private schools. 

The second way in which Indian secularism works to prevent the above domination is through a strategy of non- interference. 

The third way in which Indian secularism works to prevent the domination listed earlier is through a strategy of intervention. You read earlier in this chapter about untouchability. 

Similarly, to ensure that laws relating to equal inheritance rights are respected, the State may have to intervene in the religion-based ‘personal laws’ of communities. 

The intervention of the State can also be in the form of support. The Indian Constitution grants the right to religious communities to set up their own schools and colleges. It also gives them financial aid on a non- preferential basis. 

In what way is Indian secularism different from that of other democratic countries? 

Some of the above objectives are similar to those that have been included in the Constitutions of secular democratic countries in other parts of the world. For example, the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution prohibits the legislature from making laws “respecting an establishment of religion” or that “prohibit the free exercise of religion”. What is meant by the word ‘establishment’ is that the legislature cannot declare any religion as the official religion. Nor can they give preference to one religion. In the U.S.A. the separation between State and religion means that neither the State nor religion can interfere in the affairs of one another. 

There is one significant way in which Indian secularism differs from the dominant understanding of secularism as practised in the United States of America. This is because unlike the strict separation between religion and the State in American secularism, in Indian secularism the State can intervene in religious affairs. 

In Indian secularism, though the State is not strictly separate from religion it does maintain a principled distance vis-à-vis religion. This means that any interference in religion by the State has to be based on the ideals laid out in the Constitution. These ideals serve as the standard through which we can judge whether the State is or is not behaving according to secular principles. 

Chapter 3

Why Do We Need a Parliament? 

We in India pride ourselves on being a democracy. Here we will try and understand the relation between the ideas of participation in decision-making and the need for all democratic governments to have the consent of their citizens. 

It is these elements that together make us a democracy and this is best expressed in the institution of the Parliament. 

the experience of colonial rule as well as the participation of different people in the struggle for freedom left little doubt in the minds of the nationalists that all persons in independent India would be able to participate in making decisions. 

With the coming of independence, we were going to be citizens of a free country. This did not mean that the government could do what it felt like, it meant that the government had to be sensitive to people’s needs and demands. The dreams and aspirations of the freedom struggle were made concrete in the Constitution of independent India that laid down the principle of universal adult franchise, i.e. that all adult citizens of the country have the right to vote. 

EVMs were used throughout the country for the first time in the 2004 general elections 

People and their Representatives 

The take-off point for a democracy is the idea of consent, i.e. the desire, approval and participation of people. It is the decision of people that creates a democratic government and decides about its functioning. The basic idea in this kind of democracy is that the individual or the citizen is the most important person and that in principle the government as well as other public institutions need to have the trust of these citizens. 

How does the individual give approval to the government? One way of doing so, as you read, is through elections. 

Rajya Sabha (Council of States), with a total strength of 245 members, is chaired by the Vice-President of India.
Lok Sabha (House of the People), with a total membership of 545, is presided over by the Speaker. 

The Parliament in our system has immense powers because it is the representative of the people. 

The Parliament in India consists of the President, the Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha. 

Since there are 543 elected (plus 2 nominated) members in Lok Sabha, to have a majority a party should have at least half the number i.e. 272 members or more. The Opposition in Parliament is formed by all the political parties that oppose the majority party/coalition formed. The largest amongst these parties is called the Opposition party. 

One of the most important functions of the Lok Sabha is to select the executive. The executive, as you read in Chapter 1, is a group of persons who work together to implement the laws made by the Parliament. This executive is often what we have in mind when we use the term government. 

Often times in the recent past it has been difficult for a single political party to get the majority that is required to form the government. They then join together with different political parties who are interested in similar concerns to form what is known as a coalition government. 

The Rajya Sabha functions primarily as the representative of the states of India in the Parliament. The Rajya Sabha can also initiate legislation and a bill is required to pass through the Rajya Sabha in order to become a law. It, therefore, has an important role of reviewing and altering (if alterations are needed) the laws initiated by the Lok Sabha. The members of the Rajya Sabha are elected by the elected members of the Legislative Assemblies of various states. There are 233 elected members plus 12 members nominated by the President. 

To Control, Guide and Inform the Government 

The Parliament, while in session, begins with a question hour. The question hour is an important mechanism through which MPs can elicit information about the working of the government. This is a very important way through which the Parliament controls the executive. 

By asking questions the government is alerted to its shortcomings, and also comes to know the opinion of the people through their representatives in the Parliament, i.e. the MPs. Asking questions of the government is a crucial task for every MP. The Opposition parties play a critical role in the healthy functioning of a democracy. They highlight drawbacks in various policies and programmes of the government and mobilise popular support for their own policies. 

In addition, in all matters dealing with finances, the Parliament’s approval is crucial for the government. This is one of the several ways in which the Parliament controls, guides and informs the government. 

Law-making is a significant function of the Parliament. 

It has been observed that representative democracy cannot produce a perfect reflection of society. There is a realisation that when interests and experiences separate us it is important to ensure that communities that have been historically marginalised are given adequate representation. With this in mind, some seats are reserved in the Parliament for SCs and STs. This has been done so that the MPs elected from these constituencies will be familiar with and can represent Dalit and Adivasi interests in Parliament. 

Similarly, it has more recently been suggested that there should be reservation of seats for women. This issue is still being debated. Sixty years ago, only four per cent of MPs were women and today it is just above nine per cent. This is a small share when you consider the fact that half the population are women. 

It is issues of this kind that force the country to ask certain difficult and often unresolved questions about whether our democratic system is representative enough. The fact that we can ask these questions and are working towards answers is a reflection of the strength and the faith that people in India have in a democratic form of government. 

Chapter 4

members of the Constituent Assembly were agreed there should be no arbitrary exercise of power in independent India. They, therefore, instituted several provisions in the Constitution that would establish the rule of law. The most important of these was that all persons in independent India are equal before the law. 

It is often believed that it was the British colonialists who introduced the rule of law in India. Historians have disputed this claim on several grounds, two of which include: first that colonial law was arbitrary, and second that the Indian nationalists played a prominent role in the development of the legal sphere in British India. One example of the arbitrariness that continued to exist as part of British law is the Sedition Act of 1870. The idea of sedition was very broadly understood within this Act. Any person protesting or criticising the British government could be arrested without due trial. 

Another example of British arbitrariness was the Rowlatt Act which allowed the British government to imprison people without due trial. 

By the end of the nineteenth century, the Indian legal profession also began emerging and demanded respect in colonial courts. They began to use law to defend the legal rights of Indians. Indian judges also began to play a greater role in making decisions. Therefore, there were several ways in which Indians played a major role in the evolution of the rule of law during the colonial period. 

Hindu Succession Amendment Act 2005. According to this new law, sons, daughters and their mothers can get an equal share of family property. Similarly, new laws have been enacted to control pollution and provide employment. How do people come to think and propose that a new law is necessary? 

An important role of Parliament is to be sensitive to the problems faced by people. 

Sometimes a law can be constitutionally valid and hence legal, but it can continue to be unpopular and unacceptable to people because they feel that the intention behind it is unfair and harmful. Hence, people might criticise this law, hold public meetings, write about it in newspapers, report to TV news channels etc. In a democracy like ours, citizens can express their unwillingness to accept repressive laws framed by the Parliament. When a large number of people begin to feel that a wrong law has been passed, then there is pressure on the Parliament to change this. 

For example, various municipal laws on the use of space within municipal limits often make hawking and street vending illegal. No one will dispute the necessity for some rules to keep the public space open so that people can walk on the pavements easily. However, one also cannot deny that hawkers and vendors provide essential services cheaply and efficiently to the millions living in a large city. This is their means of livelihood. Hence, if the law favours one group and disregards the other it will be controversial and lead to conflict. People who think that the law is not fair can approach the court to decide on the issue. The court has the power to modify or cancel laws if it finds that they don’t adhere to the Constitution. 

how Rosa Parks, an African-American woman, refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white man on 1 December 1955. She was protesting the law on segregation that divided up all public spaces, including the streets, between the whites and the African-Americans. Her refusal was a key event that marked the start of the Civil Rights Movement, which led to the Civil Rights Act in 1964, which prohibited discrimination on the basis of race, religion or national origin in the U.S.A. 

We need to remember that our role as citizens does not end with electing our representatives. Rather, it is then that we begin to use newspapers and the media to carefully chart the work that is being done by our MPs and criticise their actions when we feel it is required. Thus, what we should bear in mind is that it is the extent, involvement and enthusiasm of the people that helps Parliament perform its representative functions properly. 

• Sedition: This applies to anything that the government might consider as stirring up resistance or rebellion against it. In such cases, the government does not need absolute evidence in order to arrest persons. Under the Sedition Act of 1870, the British had a very broad interpretation of what constituted sedition, and what this meant was that they could arrest and detain any person they wanted under this Act. The nationalists considered this law arbitrary because persons were arrested for a variety of reasons that were seldom clarified beforehand as well as because those arrested were often kept in jail without a trial.
  

Chapter 4

Judiciary

But can you think of why we need these courts? 

In India we have the rule of law. What this means is that laws apply equally to all persons and that a certain set of fixed procedures need to be followed when a law is violated. To enforce this rule of law, we have a judicial system that consists of the mechanism of courts that a citizen can approach when a law is violated. 

As an organ of the State, the judiciary plays a crucial role in the functioning of India’s democracy. It can play this role only because it is independent. 

What is the Role of the Judiciary? 

Courts take decisions on a very large number of issues. 

Broadly speaking, the work that the judiciary does can be divided into the following: 

Dispute Resolution: The judicial system provides a mechanism for resolving disputes between citizens, between citizens and the government, between two state governments and between the centre and state governments. 

Judicial Review: As the final interpreter of the Constitution, the judiciary also has the power to strike down particular laws passed by the Parliament if it believes that these are a violation of the basic structure of the Constitution. This is called judicial review. 

Upholding the Law and Enforcing Fundamental Rights: Every citizen of India can approach the Supreme Court or the High Court if they believe that their Fundamental Rights have been violated. 

Hakim Sheikh, an agricultural labourer who fell from a running train and injured himself and whose condition got worse because several hospitals refused to admit him. On hearing his case, the Supreme Court ruled that Article 21 which provides every citizen the Fundamental Right to Life also includes the Right to Health. It, therefore, directed the West Bengal government to pay him compensation for the loss suffered as well as to come up with a blueprint for primary health care with particular reference to treatment of patients during an emergency [Paschim Banga Khet Majoor Samity vs State of West Bengal (1996)]. 

The Supreme Court was established on
26 January 1950, the day India became a Republic. 

What is an Independent Judiciary? 

The control that the politician holds over the judge does not allow for the judge to take an independent decision. This lack of independence would force the judge to make all judgments in favour of the politician. Although we often hear of rich and powerful people in India trying to influence the judicial process, the Indian Constitution protects against this kind of situation by providing for the independence of the judiciary. 

One aspect of this independence is the ‘separation of powers’. This  is a key feature of the Constitution. What this means here is that other branches of the State-like the legislature and the executive - cannot interfere in the work of the judiciary. The courts are not under the government and do not act on their behalf. 

For the above separation to work well, it is also crucial that all judges in the High Court as well as the Supreme Court are appointed with very little interference from these other branches of government. Once appointed to this office, it is also very difficult to remove a judge. 

It is the independence of the judiciary that allows the courts to play a central role in ensuring that there is no misuse of power by the legislature and the executive. 

What is the Structure of Courts in India? 

There are three different levels of courts in our country. There are several courts at the lower level while there is only one at the apex level. The courts that most people interact with are what are called subordinate or district courts. These are usually at the district or Tehsil level or in towns and they hear many kinds of cases. Each state is divided into districts that are presided over by a District Judge. Each state has a High Court which is the highest court of that state. At the top is the Supreme Court that is located in New Delhi and is presided over by the Chief Justice of India. The decisions made by the Supreme Court are binding on all other courts in India. 

Punjab and Haryana share a common High Court at Chandigarh, and the seven northeast states have a common High Court at Guwahati. 

In India, we have an integrated judicial system, meaning that the decisions made by higher courts are binding on the lower courts. Another way to understand this integration is through the appellate system that exists in India. This means that a person can appeal to a higher court if they believe that the judgment passed by the lower court is not just. 

The subordinate court is more commonly known by many different names. These include the Trial Court or the Court of the District Judge, the Additional Sessions Judge, Chief Judicial Magistrate, Metropolitan Magistrate, Civil Judge. 

What are the Different Branches of the Legal System? 

dowry death falls within what is considered a ‘crime against society’ and is a violation of criminal law. In addition to criminal law, the legal system also deals with civil law cases 

Does Everyone Have Access to the Courts? 

In principle, all citizens of India can access the courts in
this country. This implies that every citizen has a right to justice through the courts.

While the courts are available for all, in reality access 

to courts has always been difficult for a vast majority of the poor in India. Legal procedures involve a lot of money and paperwork as well as take up a lot of time. For a poor person who cannot read and whose family depends on a daily wage, the idea of going to court to get justice often seems remote. 

In response to this, the Supreme Court in the early 1980s devised a mechanism of Public Interest Litigation or PIL to increase access to justice. It allowed any individual or organisation to file a PIL in the High Court or the Supreme Court on behalf of those whose rights were being violated. The legal process was greatly simplified and even a letter or telegram addressed to the Supreme Court or the High Court could be treated as a PIL. In the early years, PIL was used to secure justice on a large number of issues such as rescuing bonded labourers from inhuman work conditions; and securing the release of prisoners in Bihar who had been kept in jail even after their punishment term was complete. 

Did you know that the mid-day meal that children now receive in government and government-aided schools is because of a PIL? 

In 2001, the drought in Rajasthan and Orissa meant that millions faced an acute shortage of food. Meanwhile the government godowns were full of grain. Often this was being eaten away by rats. 

In this situation of ‘hunger amidst plenty’ an organisation called the People’s Union of Civil Liberties or PUCL filed a PIL in the Supreme Court. It stated that the fundamental Right to Life guaranteed in Article 21 of the Constitution included the Right to Food. The state’s excuse that it did not have adequate funds was shown to be wrong because the godowns were overflowing with grains. The Supreme Court ruled that the State had a duty to provide food to all.
It, therefore, directed the government to provide more employment, to provide food at cheaper prices through the government ration shops, and to provide mid-day meals to children. It also appointed two Food Commissioners to report on the implementation of government schemes. 

However, there are also court judgments that people believe work against the best interests of the common person. 

While recent judgments tend to view the slum dweller as an encroacher in the city, earlier judgments (like the 1985 Olga Tellis vs Bombay Municipal Corporation) had tried to protect the livelihoods of slum dwellers. 

The judgment of the Olga Tellis vs Bombay Municipal Corporation established the Right to Livelihood as part of the Right to Life. 

The sweep of the Right to Life, conferred by Article 21 is wide and far reaching. ‘Life’ means something more than mere animal existence. 

Another issue that affects the common person’s access to justice is the inordinately long number of years that courts take to hear a case. The phrase ‘justice delayed is justice denied’ is often used to characterise this extended time period that courts take. 

However, inspite of this there is no denying that the judiciary has played a crucial role in democratic India, serving as a check on the powers of the executive and the legislature as well as in protecting the Fundamental Rights of citizens. The members of the Constituent Assembly had quite correctly envisioned a system of courts with an independent judiciary as a key feature of our democracy. 

Chapter 6

Understanding Our Criminal Justice System 

After a person is arrested, it is a court of law that decides whether the accused person is guilty or not. According to the Constitution, every individual charged of a crime has to be given a fair trial. 

Do you know what it means to get a fair trial? Have you heard of an FIR? Or, do you know who a public prosecutor is? 

I plead not guilty. And I claim trial. 

The police files a chargesheet in the Magistrate’s Court. The court gives a copy of the chargesheet including statements of witnesses to Shanti. Shanti tells the court that she has no lawyer to defend her against this false case of theft. 

The Magistrate appoints Advocate Kamla Roy as Shanti’s defence lawyer at the government’s expense. 

According to Article 22 of the Constitution, every person has a Fundamental Right to be defended by a lawyer. Article 39A of the Constitution places a duty upon the State to provide a lawyer to any citizen who is unable to engage one due to poverty or other disability. 

the four key players in the criminal justice system are the police, the Public Prosecutor, the defence lawyer and the judge. 

What is the Role of the Police in Investigating a Crime? 

One important function of the police is to investigate any complaint about the commission of a crime. An investigation includes recording statements of witnesses and collecting different kinds of evidence. On the basis of the investigation, the police are required to form an opinion. If the police think that the evidence points to the guilt of the accused person, then they file a chargesheet in the court. 

rule of law, which means that everyone is subject to the law of the land. This includes the police. Therefore, police investigations always have to be conducted in accordance with law and with full respect for human rights. The Supreme Court has laid down guidelines that the police must follow at the time of arrest, detention and interrogation. The police are not allowed to torture or beat or shoot anyone during investigation. They cannot inflict any form of punishment on a person even for petty offences. 

Article 22 of the Constitution and criminal law guarantee to every arrested person the following Fundamental Rights: 

• The Right to be informed at the time of arrest of the offence for which the person is being arrested. 

•The Right to be presented before a magistrate within 24 hours of arrest. 

•The Right not to be ill treated or tortured during arrest or in custody. 

•Confessions made in police custody cannot be used as evidence against the accused. 

• A boy under 15 years of age and women cannot be called to the police station only for questioning. 

The Supreme Court of India has laid down specific requirements and procedures that the police and other agencies have to follow for the arrest, detention and interrogation of any person. These are known as the D.K. Basu Guidelines and some of these include: 

• The police officials who carry out the arrest or interrogation should wear clear, accurate and visible identification and name tags with their designations;
  A memo of arrest should be prepared at the time of arrest and should include the time and date of arrest. It should also be attested by at least one witness who could include a family member of the person arrested. The arrest memo should be counter-signed by the person arrested.
  The person arrested, detained or being interrogated has a right to inform a relative, friend or well- wisher.
  When a friend or relative lives outside the district, the time, place of arrest and venue of custody must be notified by police within 8 to 12 hours after arrest.
  

First Information Report (FIR): 

It is with the registration of an FIR that the police can begin their investigations into a crime. The law states that it is compulsory for an officer in charge of a police station to register an FIR whenever a person gives information about a cognizable offence. This information can be given to the police either orally or in writing. The FIR usually mentions the date, time and place of the offence, details the basic facts of the offence, including a description of the events. If known, the identity of the accused persons and witnesses is also mentioned. The FIR also states the name and address of the complainant. There is a prescribed form in which the police registers an FIR and it is signed by the complainant. The complainant also has a legal right to get a free copy of the FIR from the police. 

What is the Role of the Public Prosecutor? 

A criminal offence is regarded as a public wrong. What is meant by this is that it is considered to have been committed not only against the affected victims but against society as a whole. 

The case against the accused Laxman and his family was presented by the State. That is why the case was called State (Delhi Administration) vs Laxman Kumar and Others. Similarly the above case can be called ‘State vs Shanti Hembram’ and not Mrs Shinde vs Shanti Hembram. 

In court, it is the Public Prosecutor who represents the interests of the State. The role of the Prosecutor begins once the police has conducted the investigation and filed the chargesheet in the court. He/she has no role to play in the investigation. The Prosecutor must conduct the prosecution on behalf of the State. As an officer of the court, it is his/ her duty to act impartially and present the full and material facts, witnesses and evidence before the court to enable the court to decide the case. 

What is the Role of the Judge? 

The judge is like an umpire in a game and conducts the trial impartially and in an open court. The judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the prosecution and the defence. The judge decides whether the accused person is guilty or innocent on the basis of the evidence presented and in accordance with the law. If the accused is convicted, then the judge pronounces the sentence. He may send the person to jail or impose a fine or both, depending on what the law prescribes. 

What is a Fair Trial? 

This is because for a trial to be fair, several different procedures have to be observed. Article 21 of the Constitution that guarantees the Right to Life states that a person’s life or liberty can be taken away only by following a reasonable and just legal procedure. A fair trial ensures that Article 21 of the Constitution is upheld. 

Let us now return to Shanti’s case as described in the storyboard and identify the essential elements of a fair trial: 

Firstly, Shanti was given a copy of the chargesheet and all other evidence that the prosecution presented against her. Shanti was charged with the offence of theft that was defined as a crime in the law. The trial was held in an open court, in public view. Her brother, Sushil could attend the court hearings. The trial was held in the presence of the accused. Shanti was defended by a lawyer. Shanti’s lawyer, Advocate Roy was given an opportunity to cross-examine all the prosecution witnesses. Advocate Roy was given an opportunity to present witnesses in Shanti’s defence. 

Although the police filed a case of theft against Shanti, the judge assumed her to be innocent. It was the responsibility of the prosecution to prove beyond reasonable doubt that Shanti was guilty. In this case the prosecution failed to do so. 

It is significant that the judge decided the matter only on the basis of the evidence before the court. The judge did not jump to the conclusion that Shanti was the thief just because she was a poor maidservant. Instead, the judge remained impartial and since the evidence showed that some young men and not Shanti was the thief, he set Shanti free. In Shanti’s case, justice was finally done to her because she was given a fair trial. 

Accused: In the context of this chapter this refers to the person who is tried by a court for a crime. 

Cognizable: In the context of this chapter this refers to an offence for which the police may arrest a person without the permission of the court. 

Cross-examine: In the context of this chapter this refers to the questioning of a witness who has already been examined by the opposing side in order to determine the veracity of his/her testimony. 

Chapter 7

Understanding Marginalisation 

What Does it Mean to be Socially Marginalised? 

To be marginalised is to be forced to occupy the sides or fringes and thus not be at the centre of things. 

Their marginalisation can be because they speak a different language, follow different customs or belong to a different religious group from the majority community. They may also feel marginalised because they are poor, considered to be of ‘low’ social status and viewed as being less human than others. Sometimes, marginalised groups are viewed with hostility and fear. This sense of difference and exclusion leads to communities not having access to resources and opportunities and in their inability to assert their rights. They experience a sense of disadvantage and powerlessness vis-a-vis more powerful and dominant sections of society who own land, are wealthy, better educated and politically powerful. Thus, marginalisation is seldom experienced in one sphere. Economic, social, cultural and political factors work together to make certain groups in society feel marginalised. 

Who are Adivasis? 

Adivasis – the term literally means ‘original inhabitants’ – are communities who lived, and often continue to live, in close association with forests. 

Around 8 per cent of India’s population is Adivasi and many of India’s most important mining and industrial centres are located in Adivasi areas – Jamshedpur, Rourkela, Bokaro and Bhilai among others. Adivasis are not a homogeneous population: there are over 500 different Adivasi groups in India. Adivasis are particularly numerous in states like Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal and in the north-eastern states of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura. A state like Orissa is home to more than 60 different tribal groups. Adivasi societies are also most distinctive because there is often very little hierarchy among them. This makes them radically different from communities organised around principles of jati-varna (caste) or those that were ruled by kings. 

You may have heard the term Scheduled Tribes. Scheduled Tribes is the term used for Adivasis used by the Indian government in various official documents. There is an official list of tribes. Scheduled Tribes are often grouped together with Scheduled Castes in the category Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. 

Adivasis practise a range of tribal religions that are different from Islam, Hinduism and Christianity. These often involve the worship of ancestors, village and nature spirits, the last associated with and residing in various sites in the landscape – ‘mountain-spirits’, ‘river-spirits’, ‘animal-spirits’, etc. The village spirits are often worshipped at specific sacred groves within the village boundary while the ancestral ones are usually worshipped at home. Additionally, Adivasis have always been influenced by different surrounding religions like Shakta, Buddhist, Vaishnav, Bhakti and Christianity. Simultaneously, Adivasi religions themselves have influenced dominant religions of the empires around them, 

for example, the Jagannath cult of Orissa and Shakti and Tantric traditions in Bengal and Assam. During the nineteenth century, substantial numbers of Adivasis converted to Christianity, which has emerged as a very important religion in modern Adivasi history. 

Adivasis have their own languages (most of them radically different from and possibly as old as Sanskrit), which have often deeply influenced the formation of ‘mainstream’ Indian languages, like Bengali. Santhali has the largest number of speakers and has a significant body of publications including magazines on the internet or in e-zines. 

Adivasis and Stereotyping 

Adivasis are invariably portrayed in very stereotypical ways – in colourful costumes, headgear and through their dancing. 

This often wrongly leads to people believing that they are exotic, primitive and backward. Often Adivasis are blamed for their lack of advancement as they are believed to be resistant to change or new ideas 

Adivasis and Development 

they were not ruled by large states and empires. Instead, often empires heavily depended on Adivasis for the crucial access to forest resources. 

This is radically contrary to our image of Adivasis today as somewhat marginal and powerless communities. In the pre- colonial world, they were traditionally ranged hunter- gatherers and nomads and lived by shifting agriculture and also cultivating in one place. Although these remain, for the past 200 years Adivasis have been increasingly forced – through economic changes, forest policies and political force applied by the State and private industry – to migrate to lives as workers in plantations, at construction sites, in industries and as domestic workers. 

From the 1830s onwards, Adivasis from Jharkhand and adjoining areas moved in very large numbers to various plantations in India and the world - Mauritius, the Caribbean and even Australia. India’s tea industry became possible with their labour in Assam. Today, there are 70 lakh Adivasis in Assam alone. The story of this migration is full of extreme hardship, torture, heartbreak and death. For example, in the nineteenth century alone five lakh Adivasis had perished in these migrations. 

Niyamgiri Hill located in Kalahandi district of Orissa. This area is inhabited by Dongarria Konds, an Adivasi community. Niyamgiri is the sacred mountain of this community. A major aluminium company is planning to set up a mine and a refinery here which will displace this Adivasi community. They have strongly resisted this proposed development and have been joined by environmentalists as well. A case against the company is also pending in the Supreme Court. 

According to official figures, more than 50 per cent of persons displaced due to mines and mining projects are tribals. Another recent survey report by organisations working among Adivasis shows that 79 per cent of the persons displaced from the states of Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Orissa and Jharkhand are tribals. Huge tracts of their lands have also gone under the waters of hundreds of dams that have been built in independent India. In the North east, their lands remain highly militarised and war-torn. As of July 2015, there were 103 national parks and 514 wildlife sanctuaries. These are areas where tribals originally lived but were evicted from. When they continue to stay in these forests, they are termed encroachers. 

a cycle of poverty and deprivation. 45 per cent of tribal groups in rural areas and 35 per cent in urban areas live below the poverty line. This leads to deprivation in other areas. Many tribal children are malnourished. Literacy rates among tribals are also very low. 

When Adivasis are displaced from their lands, they lose much more than a source of income. They lose their traditions and customs – a way of living and being. 

The Constitution provides these safeguards because it is committed to protecting India’s cultural diversity and promoting equality as well as justice. 

The Muslim population in India is likely to exceed 18% (310 million) while Hindus will comprise of 77% of the country's population. In 2010, the percentage of Hindus in the country was about 80%, which is likely to come down to 77%.

Recognising that Muslims in India were lagging behind in terms of various development indicators, the government set up a high-level committee in 2005. Chaired by Justice Rajindar Sachar, the committee examined the social, economic and educational status of the Muslim community in India. The report discusses in detail the marginalisation of this community. It suggests that on a range of social, economic and educational indicators the situation of the Muslim community is comparable to that of other marginalised communities like Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. 

This social marginalisation of Muslims in some instances has led to them migrating from places where they have lived, often leading to the ghettoisation of the community. Sometimes, this prejudice leads to hatred and violence. 

We have also seen that marginalisation is linked to experiencing disadvantage, prejudice and powerlessness. In India there are several more marginalised communities, like Dalits, of whom you will read more in the next chapter. Marginalisation results in having a low social status and not having equal access to education and other resources. 

The Sachar Committee Report also debunked other prevalent myths about Muslims. It is commonly believed that the Muslims prefer to send their children to Madarsas. The figures show that only
4 per cent of Muslim children are in Madarsas, where as 66 per cent attend government schools and 30 per cent private schools. 

Chapter 8

Confronting Marginalisation 

Though powerless, such groups have fought, protested and struggled against being excluded or dominated by others. They have attempted to overcome their situation by adopting a range of strategies in their long history. 

Religious solace, armed struggle, self improvement and education, economic uplift – there appears to be no one way of doing things. In all cases, the choice of struggle has depended on the circumstances that the marginalised find themselves in. 

Article 17 of the Constitution states that untouchability has been abolished – what this means is that no one can henceforth prevent Dalits from educating themselves, entering temples, using public facilities etc. It also means that it is wrong to practise untouchability and that this practice will not be tolerated by a democratic government. In fact, untouchability is a punishable crime now. 

There are other sections in the Constitution that help to strengthen the argument against untouchability – for example, Article 15 of the Constitution notes that no citizen of India shall be discriminated against on the basis of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth (you learnt a lot about this in your Class VII textbook in the chapter on Equality). This has been used by Dalits to seek equality where it has been denied to them. 

The term Dalit, which means ‘broken’ is used deliberately and actively by groups to highlight the centuries of discrimination they have experienced within the caste system. 

In the case of cultural and educational rights, distinct cultural and religious groups like the Muslims and Parsis have the right to be the guardians of the content of their culture, as well as the right to make decisions on how best this content is to be preserved. 

Laws for the Marginalised 

As you have read, the government makes laws to protect its citizens. 

There are specific laws and policies for the marginalised in our country. There are policies or schemes that emerge through other means like setting up a committee or by undertaking a survey etc. The government then makes an effort to promote such policies in order to give opportunities to specific groups. 

Promoting Social Justice 

As part of their effort to implement the Constitution, both state and central governments create specific schemes for implementation in tribal areas or in areas that have a high Dalit population. For example, the government provides for free or subsidised hostels for students of Dalit and Adivasi communities so that they can avail of education facilities that may not be available in their localities. 

In addition to providing certain facilities, the government also operates through laws to ensure that concrete steps are taken to end inequity in the system. One such law/policy is the reservation policy that today is both significant and highly contentious. The laws which reserve seats in education and government employment for Dalits and Adivasis are based on an important argument- that in a society like ours, where for centuries sections of the population have been denied opportunities to learn and to work in order to develop new skills or vocations, a democratic government needs to step in and assist these sections. 

How does the reservation policy work? Governments across India have their own list of Scheduled Castes (or Dalits), Scheduled Tribes and backward and most backward castes. The central government too has its list. Students applying to educational institutions and those applying for posts in government are expected to furnish proof of their caste or tribe status, in the form of caste and tribe certificates. (Many government and educational institutions also ask for candidates to mention their caste/tribe status.) If a particular Dalit caste or a certain tribe is on the government list, then a candidate from that caste or tribe can avail of the benefit of reservation. 

For admission to colleges, especially to institutes of professional education, such as medical colleges, governments define a set of ‘cut-off’ marks. This means that not all Dalit and tribal candidates can qualify for admission, but only those who have done reasonably well and secured marks above the cut-off point. Governments also offer special scholarships for these students. 

Kabir was a fifteenth century poet and weaver who also belonged to the Bhakti tradition. 

Protecting the Rights of Dalits and Adivasis 

In addition to policies our country also has specific laws that guard against the discrimination and explitation of marginalised communities. 

Rathnam, then went to file a case in the local police station under the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989. 

The Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 

This Act was framed in 1989 in response to demands made by Dalits and others that the government must take seriously the ill treatment and humiliation Dalits and tribal groups face in an everyday sense. While such treatment had persisted for a long time, it had acquired a violent character in the late 1970s and 1980s. During this period, in parts of southern India, a number of assertive Dalit groups came into being and asserted their rights – they refused to perform their so-called caste duties and insisted on being treated equally; like Rathnam they refused to follow practices located in the humiliation and exploitation of Dalits. This resulted in the more powerful castes unleashing violence against them. In order to indicate to the government that untouchability was still being practised and in the most hideous manner, Dalit groups demanded new laws that would list the various sorts of violence against dalits and prescribe stringent punishment for those who indulge in them 

This is why this Act contains a very long list of crimes, some of which are too horrible even to contemplate. The Act does not only describe terrible crimes, but also lets people know what dreadful deeds human beings are capable of. In this sense, laws such as these seek to both punish as well as influence the way we think and act. 

The Scourge of Manual Scavenging 

Manual scavenging refers to the practice of removing human and animal waste/excreta using brooms, tin plates and baskets from dry latrines and carrying it on the head to disposal grounds some distance away. A manual scavenger is the person who does the job of carrying this filth. This job is mainly done by Dalit women and young girls. According to the Andhra Pradesh-based Safai Karamchari Andolan, an organisation working with manual scavengers, there are 13 lakh persons from Dalit communities who continue to be employed in this job in this country and who work in the 96 lakh private and community dry latrines managed by municipalities. 

Manual scavengers are exposed to subhuman conditions of work and face serious health hazards. They are constantly exposed to infections that affect their eyes, skin, respiratory and gastro-intestinal systems. They get very low wages for the work they perform. Those working in urban municipalities 

earn Rs 30-40 per day and those working privately are paid much less. 

However, manual scavengers in different parts of the country, the Bhangis in Gujarat, Pakhis in Andhra Pradesh and the Sikkaliars in Tamil Nadu, continue to be considered untouchable. They often live in separate settlements on the outskirts of the village and are denied access to the temple, public water facilities etc. 

In 1993, the government passed the Employment of Manual Scavengers and Construction of Dry Latrines (Prohibition) Act. This law prohibits the employment of manual scavengers as well as the construction of dry latrines. In 2003, the Safai Karamchari Andolan and 13 other organisations and
individuals, including seven scavengers, filed a PIL in the Supreme Court. The petitioners complained that manual scavenging still existed and it continued in government undertakings like the railways. The petitioners sought enforcement of their Fundamental Rights. The court observed that the number of manual scavengers in India had increased since the 1993 law. It directed every department/ministry of the union government and state governments to verify the facts within six months. If manual scavenging was found to exist, then the government department has to actively take up a time-bound programme for their liberation and rehabilitation. 

The central government passed the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006. The introduction to the final Act states that this Act is meant to undo the historical injustices meted out to forest dwelling populations in not recognising their rights to land and resources. This Act recognises their right to homestead, cultivable and grazing land and to non-timber forest produce. The Act also points out that the rights of forest dwellers includes conservation of forests and bio-diversity. 

Adivasi Demands and the 1989 Act 

The 1989 Act is important for another reason – Adivasi activists refer to it to defend their right to occupy land that was traditionally theirs. 

They have also pointed to the fact that this Act merely confirms what has already been promised to tribal people in the Constitution – that land belonging to tribal people cannot be sold to or bought by non-tribal people. In cases where this has happened, the Constitution guarantees the right of tribal people to re-possess their land. 

She has also noted that in cases where tribals have already been evicted and cannot go back to their lands, they must be compensated. That is, the government must draw up plans and policies for them to live and work elsewhere. After all, governments spend large sums of money on building industrial or other projects on lands taken from tribals – so why should they be reluctant to spend even very modest amounts on rehabilitating the displaced? 

Conclusion 

As we can see, the existence of a right or a law or even a policy on paper does not mean that it exists in reality. People have had to constantly work on or make efforts to translate these into principles that guide the actions of their fellow citizens or even their leaders. The desire for equality, dignity and respect is not new. It has existed in different forms throughout our history as you have seen in this chapter. Similarly, even in a democratic society, similar processes of struggle, writing, negotiation and organising need to continue. 

Morally reprehensible: This refers to an act that violates all norms of decency and dignity that a society believes in. It usually refers to a hideous and repugnant act that goes against all the values that a society has accepted.
Policy: A stated course of action that provides direction for the future, sets goals to be achieved or lays out principles or guidelines to be followed and acted upon. In this chapter, we have referred to government policies. But other institutions like schools, companies, etc. also have policies.
Assertive: An assertive person or group is one that can express themselves and their views strongly.

Chapter 9

Public Facilities 

Water as Part of the Fundamental Right to Life 

Water is essential for life and for good health. Not only is it necessary for us to be able to meet our daily needs but safe drinking water can prevent many water-related diseases. India has one of the largest number of cases of diseases such as diarrhoea, dysentery, cholera. Over 1,600 Indians, most of them children below the age of five, reportedly die everyday because of water-related diseases. These deaths can be prevented if people have access to safe drinking water. 

The Constitution of India recognises the right to water as being a part of the Right to Life under Article 21. 

“... right to water entitles everyone to sufficient, safe, acceptable, physically accessible and affordable water for personal and domestic use” 

United Nations (2002) 

Public Facilities 

Like water, there are other essential facilities that need to be provided for everyone. Last year you read about two other such facilities: healthcare and sanitation. Similarly, there are things like electricity, public transport, schools and colleges that are also necessary. These are known as public facilities 

The important characteristic of a public facility is that once it is provided, its benefits can be shared by many people. For instance, a school in the village will enable many children to get educated. Similarly, the supply of electricity to an area can be useful for many people: farmers can run pumpsets to irrigate their fields, people can open small workshops that run on electricity, students will find it easier to study and most people in the village will benefit in some way or the other. 

The Government’s Role 

Given that public facilities are so important, someone must carry the responsibility of providing these to the people. This ‘someone’ is the government. One of the most important functions of the government is to ensure that these public facilities are made available to everyone. Let us try and understand why the government (and only the government) must bear this responsibility. 

We have seen that private companies operate for profit in the market. 

In most of the public facilities, there is no profit to be had. For example, what profit can accrue to a company for keeping the drains clean or running an anti-malaria campaign? A private company will probably not be interested in undertaking such work. 

But, for other public facilities such as schools and hospitals, private companies may well be interested. We have many of these, particularly in large cities. Similarly, if you are living in a city, you will have seen private companies supplying water through tankers or supplying drinking water in sealed bottles. In such cases, private companies provide public facilities but at a price that only some people can afford. Hence, this facility is not available to all at an affordable rate. If we go by the rule that people will get as much as they can pay for then many people who cannot afford to pay for such facilities will be deprived of the opportunity to live a decent life. 

Clearly, this is not a desirable option. Public facilities relate to people’s basic needs. Any modern society requires that these facilities are provided so that people’s basic needs are met. The Right to Life that the Constitution guarantees is for all persons living in this country. The responsibility to provide public facilities, therefore, must be that of the government. 

Every year you must have heard the government budget being presented in the Parliament. This is an account of the expenses the government has made on its programmes in the past year and how much it plans to spend in the coming year. 

Our Constitution recognises many of the public facilities as being a part of the Right to Life. The government must see that these rights are protected so that everyone can lead a decent life. 

Rs 11,000 crore was spent from the government budget for the construction of the first segment of the metro-rail in Delhi using the latest technology. 

People have pointed out that this massive expenditure could have been avoided if only a fraction of this amount was spent on upgrading the public bus system. 

Taking water from farmers 

The shortage of water has opened up opportunities for private companies in a big way. Many private companies are providing water to cities by buying it from places around the city. In Chennai, water is taken from nearby towns like Mamandur, Palur, Karungizhi and from villages to the north of the city using a fleet of over 13,000 water tankers. Every month the water dealers pay farmers an advance for the rights to exploit water sources on their land. This is water taken away not just from agriculture but also from the drinking water supplies of the villagers. Ground water levels have dropped drastically in all these towns and villages as a result. 

The supply of water per person in an urban area in India should be about 135 litres per day (about seven buckets) – a standard set by the Urban Water Commission. Whereas people in slums have to make do with less than 20 litres a day per person (one bucket), people living in luxury hotels may consume as much as 1,600 litres (80 buckets) of water per day. 

In Search of Alternatives 

A shortage of municipal water is often taken as a sign of failure of the government. Some people argue that since the government is unable to supply the amount of water that is needed and many of the municipal water departments are running at a loss, we should allow private companies to take over the task of water supply. According to them, private companies can perform better. 

Consider the following facts: 

1. Throughout the world, water supply is a function of the government. There are very few instances of private water supply. 
2. There are areas in the world where public water supply has achieved universal access. 
3. In a few cases, where the responsibility for water supply was handed over to private companies, there was a steep rise in the price of water, making it unaffordable for many. Cities saw huge protests, with riots breaking out in places like Bolivia, forcing the government to take back the service from private hands. 
4. Within India, there are cases of success in government water departments, though these are few in number and limited to certain areas of their work. The water supply department in Mumbai raises enough money through water charges to cover its expenses on supplying water. In Hyderabad, a recent report shows that the department has increased coverage and improved performance in revenue collection. In Chennai, the department has taken several initiatives for harvesting rain water to increase the level of groundwater. It has also used the services of private companies for transporting and distributing water but the government water supply department decides the rate for water tankers and gives them permission to operate. Hence they are called ‘on contract’.
   

Public Water Supply in Porto Alegre 

Porto Alegre is a city in Brazil. Though there are many poor people in this city, what is remarkable is that it has a far lower number of infant deaths as compared to most other cities of the world. The city’s water department has achieved universal access to safe water and this is the main reason behind the lower number of infant deaths. The average price of water is kept low, and the poor are charged half the basic rate. Whatever profit the department makes is used to improve the water supply. The working of the water department is transparent and people can have a direct say in deciding which projects the department should take up. Through a process of public meetings, people hear what the managers have to say and also vote on their priorities. 

Extending Sanitation Facilities 

“‘Latrines for us!’ they exclaimed in astonishment. ‘We go and perform our functions out in the open.’ Latrines are for you big people.” 

Mahatma Gandhi recounting untouchables’ grievances, Rajkot Sanitation Committee, 1896 

Besides safe drinking water, sanitation is a must in prevention of water-borne diseases. 

The Census of India, 2001 puts rural household electrification at 44 per cent, leaving around 78 million households still in the dark. 

Conclusion 

Public facilities relate to our basic needs and the Indian Constitution recognises the right to water, heath, education etc as being a part of the Right to Life. Thus one of the major roles of the government is to ensure adequate public facilities for everyone. 

But, progress on this front has been far from satisfactory. There is a shortage in supply and there are inequalities in distribution. Compared to the metros and large cities, towns and villages are under-provided. Compared to wealthy localities, the poorer localities are under-serviced. Handing over these facilities to private companies may not be the answer. Any solution needs to take account of the important fact that every citizen of the country has a right to these facilities which should be provided to her/him in an equitable manner. 

Chapter 10

Law and Social Justice 

In the drive for profits, they might deny workers their rights and not pay them wages, for example. In the eyes of the law it is illegal or wrong to deny workers their wages. Similarly to ensure that workers are not underpaid, or are paid fairly, there is a law on minimum wages. A worker has to be paid not less than the minimum wage by the employer. The minimum wages are revised upwards every few years. 

As with the law on minimum wages, which is meant to protect workers, there are also laws that protect the interests of producers and consumers in the market. These help ensure that the relations between these three parties – the worker, consumer and producer - are governed in a manner that is not exploitative. 

But merely making laws is not enough. The government has to ensure that these laws are implemented. This means that the law must be enforced. Enforcement becomes even more important when the law seeks to protect the weak from the strong. 

According to the 2001 census, over 12 million children in India aged between 5 and 14 work in various occupations including hazardous ones. In October 2006, the government amended the Child Labour Prevention Act, banning children under 14 years of age from working as domestic servants or as workers in dhabas, restaurants, tea shops etc. It made employing these children a punishable offence. Anyone found violating the ban must be penalised with a punishment ranging from a jail term of three months to two years and/or fine of Rs 10,000 to Rs 20,000. The central government had asked state governments to develop plans to rescue and rehabilitate children who are working as domestic servants. To date, only three state governments, namely Maharashtra, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu have published these plans. Even today more than a year after this law was passed 74 per cent of child domestic workers are under the age of 16. 

New Laws to Protect the Environment 

In 1984, there were very few laws protecting the environment in India, and the there was hardly any enforcement of these laws. 

The Bhopal disaster 1978 brought the issue of environment to the forefront. 

In response to this pressure from environmental activists and others, in the years following the Bhopal gas tragedy, the Indian government introduced new laws on the environment. Henceforth, the polluter was to be held accountable for the damage done to environment. The environment is something that people over generations will share, and it could not be destroyed merely for industrial development. 

The courts also gave a number of judgments upholding the right to a healthy environment as intrinsic to the Fundamental Right to Life. In Subhash Kumar vs. State of Bihar (1991), the Supreme Court held that the Right to Life is a Fundamental Right under Article 21 of the Constitution and it includes the right to the enjoyment of pollution-free water and air for full enjoyment of life. The government is responsible for setting up laws and procedures that can check pollution, clean rivers and introduce heavy fines for those who pollute. 

While this awareness 

of the need for a clean environment is increasing, there is little concern for the safety of the
workers themselves. 

The challenge is to look for solutions where everyone can benefit from a clean environment. One way this can be done is to gradually move to cleaner technologies and processes in factories. The government has to encourage and support factories to do this. It will need to fine those who pollute. This will ensure that the workers livelihoods are protected and both workers and communities living around the factories enjoy a safe environment. 

Emissions from vehicles are a major cause of environmental pollution. In a series of rulings (1998 onwards), the Supreme Court had ordered all public transport vehicles using diesel were to switch to Compressed Natural Gas (CNG). As a result of this move, air pollution in cities like Delhi came down considerably. But a recent report by the Center for Science and Environment, New Delhi, shows the presence of high levels of toxic substance in the air. This is due to emissions from cars run on diesel (rather than petrol) and a sharp increase in the number of cars on the road. 

Advanced countries are relocating the toxic and hazardous industries to developing countries to take advantage of the weaker laws in these countries and keep their own countries safe. South Asian countries – particularly India, Bangladesh and Pakistan – play hosts for industries producing pesticides, asbestos or processing zinc and lead. 

Ship-breaking is another hazardous industry that is growing rapidly in South Asia. Old ships no longer in use, are sent to ship-yards in Bangladesh and India for scrapping. These ships contain potentially dangerous and harmful substances. This photo shows workers breaking down a ship in Alang, Gujarat. 

Conclusion 

Laws are necessary in many situations, whether this be the market, office or factory so as to protect people from unfair practices. Private companies, contractors, business persons, in order to make higher profits, resort to unfair practices such as paying workers low wages, employing children for work, ignoring the conditions of work, ignoring the damage to the environment (and hence to the people in the neighbourhood) etc. 

A major role of the government, therefore, is to control the activities of private companies by making, enforcing and upholding laws so as to prevent unfair practices and ensure social justice. This means that the government has to make ‘appropriate laws’ and also has to enforce the laws. Laws that are weak and poorly enforced can cause serious harm, as the Bhopal gas tragedy showed. 

While the government has a leading role in this respect, people can exert pressure so that both private companies and the government act in the interests of society. 

So for example, you have read of how the case of the injured farmer Hakim Sheikh established the right to health as part of the Right to Life. Similarly, you read of how the case of the slum-dwellers being evicted from Mumbai established the right to livelihood as part of the Right to Life.