Maarg Manthan · Topic 8.1

Origin of Fundamental Duties (42nd Amendment Act, 1976; Swaran Singh Committee)

Indian Polity › Fundamental Duties · Topic 8.1

Fundamental Duties were added to the Constitution by the 42nd Amendment Act, 1976, as Part IVA with Article 51A, following the Swaran Singh Committee. The idea is inspired by the Constitution of the erstwhile USSR.

5 min read · UPSC Prelims · Polity · Fundamental Duties

At a Glance

What it is The story of how citizens’ duties came into the Constitution in 1976
Amendment 42nd Constitutional Amendment Act, 1976, adding Part IVA
Article Article 51A, the only Article in Part IVA
Inspired by The Constitution of the erstwhile USSR
Exam link UPSC Prelims, Polity: Fundamental Duties

Where Does It Fit?

This is the first topic of the category on Fundamental Duties. The original Constitution had Fundamental Rights and Directive Principles, which are duties of the State, but no list of duties of the citizen. This topic explains why and how that changed.

Why Did the Original Constitution Have No Duties?

Though the rights and duties of citizens are correlative and inseparable, the original Constitution contained only the Fundamental Rights and not the Fundamental Duties. The framers did not feel it necessary to include the duties of citizens. They did, however, incorporate the duties of the State in the form of the Directive Principles of State Policy. In 1976 the Fundamental Duties of citizens were added, and in 2002 one more was added.

The Fundamental Duties are inspired by the Constitution of the erstwhile USSR. None of the Constitutions of major democratic countries like the USA, Canada, France, Germany or Australia specifically contains a list of citizens’ duties. The Japanese Constitution is perhaps the only democratic Constitution that does. The socialist countries gave equal importance to the rights and duties of their citizens, so the Constitution of the USSR declared that the exercise of rights and freedoms was inseparable from the performance of duties and obligations.

The Swaran Singh Committee

The Congress Party set up the Sardar Swaran Singh Committee to make recommendations about Fundamental Duties. The need was felt during the operation of the internal emergency (1975 to 1977). The committee recommended the inclusion of a separate chapter on Fundamental Duties and stressed that citizens should become conscious that, in addition to the enjoyment of rights, they have certain duties to perform. The Congress government at the Centre accepted the recommendations and enacted the 42nd Constitutional Amendment Act in 1976.

This amendment added a new part, Part IVA, consisting of only one Article, Article 51A. For the first time it specified a code of ten Fundamental Duties of citizens. The ruling party declared the non-inclusion of duties a historical mistake and claimed that what the framers failed to do was now being done. The committee had suggested eight duties but the Amendment included ten.

Recommendation of the committee	Accepted?
A separate chapter on Fundamental Duties	Yes: Part IVA
Parliament may provide penalty or punishment for non-compliance with any duty	No
No law imposing such penalty shall be questioned in court on grounds of infringement of Fundamental Rights	No
Duty to pay taxes as a Fundamental Duty	No

Reasons Given and the Reaction

H.R. Gokhale, the then Law Minister, said that in post-independent India, on the eve of the emergency in June 1975, a section of the people showed no anxiety to fulfil their fundamental obligations of respecting the established legal order, and that the chapter would have a sobering effect on restless spirits who had agitated against the established order. Prime Minister Indira Gandhi argued that their moral value would be not to smother rights but to establish a democratic balance by making people as conscious of their duties as of their rights.

The Opposition strongly opposed the inclusion. However, the Janata Government under Morarji Desai, which sought to undo many changes of the 42nd Amendment through the 43rd (1977) and 44th (1978) Amendments, did not annul the Fundamental Duties. This is seen as an eventual consensus on their necessity, which is clearer with the addition of one more duty in 2002 by the 86th Amendment.

Why Is This Topic Important?

Origin questions The year, the Amendment and the committee are asked together
Comparative angle The USSR source and the Japanese example appear in Prelims
Link to emergency The background of 1975-77 matters in Mains answers

What Came Next?

The next topic gives the list of the eleven Fundamental Duties under Article 51A.

Key People and Terms

Part IVA The part of the Constitution containing Article 51A
Swaran Singh Committee The Congress Party committee that recommended duties
42nd Amendment Act, 1976 Added Part IVA with ten duties
Correlative Rights and duties that go together
Janata Government The post-emergency government that did not annul the duties

Exam Corner

Points to Remember

Part IVA, Article 51A, added by the 42nd Amendment, 1976.
Committee suggested eight duties; Amendment included ten; now eleven.
Inspired by the USSR Constitution.
Penalty and the duty to pay taxes were not accepted.

Do Not Confuse With

Directive Principles and Fundamental Duties The first are duties of the State; the second are duties of citizens
Eight and ten duties The committee suggested eight; the Amendment had ten; 2002 added the eleventh
Part IV and Part IVA Part IV is Directive Principles; Part IVA is Fundamental Duties

Memory Hook

Born in the emergency, borrowed from the USSR, one Article in Part IVA: the duties of 1976.

Mains Angle

Questions on this topic usually ask why duties were added. Use these points to add depth.

Missing in 1950 The framers placed duties on the State only
Emergency context The committee was set up as the internal emergency was in force
Selective acceptance Penalty and tax duty were not accepted
Consensus The Janata Government did not remove the duties

A Question You May Face

An original practice question, not a past paper question.

“Why were Fundamental Duties added to the Constitution in 1976, and which recommendations were not accepted?”

How to Answer

Introduction Absence of duties in 1950.
Committee Recommendations and the 42nd Amendment.
Not accepted Penalty, protection from review, tax duty.
Conclusion Eventual consensus.

GS Relevance

Prelims: Indian Polity, Fundamental Duties. GS Paper 2: Constitutional amendments and citizen duties.

Frequently Asked Questions

When were Fundamental Duties added to the Constitution?

The Fundamental Duties were added by the 42nd Constitutional Amendment Act in 1976. It inserted a new Part IVA with one Article, Article 51A, which specified ten duties. One more duty was added in 2002 by the 86th Amendment.

Which Constitution inspired the Fundamental Duties?

The Fundamental Duties are inspired by the Constitution of the erstwhile USSR. Major democracies like the USA, Canada, France, Germany and Australia do not list citizens’ duties; the Japanese Constitution is perhaps the only democratic one that does.

What was the Swaran Singh Committee?

It was a committee set up by the Congress Party to make recommendations about Fundamental Duties, after the need was felt during the internal emergency. It recommended a separate chapter on duties, and suggested eight, while the Amendment included ten.

Which recommendations of the committee were not accepted?

Parliament providing penalty or punishment for non-compliance, protection of such a law from challenge under the Fundamental Rights, and the duty to pay taxes were not accepted by the Congress Party and so were not incorporated in the Constitution.

Did the Janata Government remove the Fundamental Duties?

No. The Janata Government sought to undo many changes of the 42nd Amendment through the 43rd and 44th Amendments, but it did not annul the Fundamental Duties, which is seen as showing a consensus on their necessity, and one more duty was added in 2002.

PYQ Practice — Statement Analysis

1 Part IVA of the Constitution contains the Fundamental Duties.

True

It consists of only Article 51A.

2 The original Constitution of 1950 contained a list of Fundamental Duties.

False

They were added in 1976.

3 The Fundamental Duties were inspired by the Constitution of the USA.