CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF THE PRISONERS’ RIGHTS VIZ A VIZ ARTICLE 21
Authors: Shejal Harichandan, Student of School of Law, Christ University
Best Citation – Shejal Harichandan, CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF THE PRISONERS’ RIGHTS VIZ A VIZ ARTICLE 21, Indian Journal of Legal Review (IJLR), 3 (1) of 2023, Pg. 163-168, ISSN – 2583-2344.
ABSTRACT
The world’s justice system revolves around punishing the individual who has acted or omitted in a way that has resulted in the loss of our self-evident rights. The laws relating to the rights of prisoners are very dynamic. The rights now granted to prisoners may not have been available to them during the period of independence or British rule. The pre-Independence period was a dark period for the Indian Criminal Justice System in terms of treatment of prisoners, when the British used incarceration and even minor offenses could result in the individual’s execution. The purpose of this study is to probe into the treatment of the prisoners in the prison with respect to whether a violation of Article 21[1], which talks about the life and personal liberties’ rights that are vested with us, is occurring or not. As we know, our Indian society is based on the principles of respect for each other, non-violence, and the dignity of the human being, so if a person acted or omitted something resulting in him committing a crime, it does not mean that he will or should be considered a human being again. And if there is any violation of Article 21, this leads to a violation of Article 14[2]. Here, Article 14 talks about the “A.V. Dicey’s Rule of Law” where equality before the law and equal protection of the laws are emphasized. So, everybody is equal in the eyes of law, so violating it would mean that they are not being treated as human beings by giving them their unalienable rights.
Keywords: Indian Criminal Justice System, Article 21, Article 14, Unalienable rights
[1] The Constitution of India, 1950