Article 14, Article 15, Article 16, Article 17, Article 18

Right to Equality under Constitution of India

Article 14, Article 15, Article 16, Article 17, Article 18

 

Brief

 

Article	Brief description
Article 14	The State shall not deny to any person equality before the law or the equal protection of the laws within the territory of India, on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth
Article 15	The State shall not discriminate against any citizen on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth or any of them.
Article 16	There shall be equality of opportunity for all citizens in matters relating to employment or appointment to any office under the State.
Article 17	Abolition of untouchability
Article 18	Abolition of all titles except military and academic

 

Original:

 

14. Equality before law: The State shall not deny to any person equality before the law or the equal protection of the laws within the territory of India Prohibition of discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth

 

15. Prohibition of discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth

(1) The State shall not discriminate against any citizen on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth or any of them

(2) No citizen shall, on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth or any of them, be subject to any disability, liability, restriction or condition with regard to

(a) access to shops, public restaurants, hotels and palaces of public entertainment; or

(b) the use of wells, tanks, bathing ghats, roads and places of public resort maintained wholly or partly out of State funds or dedicated to the use of the general public

(3) Nothing in this article shall prevent the State from making any special provision for women and children

(4) Nothing in this article or in clause ( 2 ) of Article 29 shall prevent the State from making any special provision for the advancement of any socially and educationally backward classes of citizens or for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes

 

16. Equality of opportunity in matters of public employment

 

17. Abolition of Untouchability: Untouchability is abolished and its practice in any form is forbidden The enforcement of any disability arising out of Untouchability shall be an offence punishable in accordance with law

 

18. Abolition of titles: No title, not being a military or academic distinction, shall be conferred by the State. No citizen of India shall accept any title from any foreign State. No person who is not a citizen of India shall, while he holds any office of profit or trust under the State, accept without the consent of the President any title from any foreign State. No person holding any office of profit or trust under the State shall, without the consent of the President, accept any present, emolument, or office of any kind from or under any foreign State Right to Freedom.

 

Describe :

 

Equality before the law (Article 14)

Article 14 treats all people the same in the eyes of the law.

• This provision states that all citizens will be treated equally before the law. 
• The law of the country protects everybody equally.
• Under the same circumstances, the law will treat people in the same manner.

 

Prohibition of discrimination (Article 15)

This article prohibits discrimination in any manner.

• No citizen shall, on grounds only of race, religion, caste, place of birth, sex or any of them, be subject to any liability, disability, restriction or condition with respect to:

• Access to public places
• Use of tanks, wells, ghats, etc. that are maintained by the State or that are meant for the general public
• The article also mentions that special provision can be made for women, children and the backward classes notwithstanding this article.

 

Equality of opportunity in matters of public employment (Article 16)

Article 16 provides equal employment opportunities in State service for all citizens.

• No citizen shall be discriminated against in matters of public employment or appointment on the grounds of race, religion, caste, sex, place of birth, descent or residence.
• Exceptions to this can be made for providing special provisions for the backward classes.

 

Abolition of untouchability (Article 17)

Article 17 prohibits the practice of untouchability.

• Untouchability is abolished in all forms.
• Any disability arising out of untouchability is made an offence.

 

Abolition of titles (Article 18)

Article 18 abolishes titles.

• The State shall not confer any titles except those which are academic or military titles.
• The article also prohibits citizens of India from accepting any titles from a foreign State.
• The article abolishes the titles that were awarded by the British Empire such as Rai Bahadur, Khan Bahadur, etc.
• Awards like Padma Shri, Padma Bhushan, Padma Vibhushan, Bharat Ratna and military honours like Ashok Chakra, Param Vir Chakra do not belong to this category.