op-ed snap | Polity | Mains Paper 2: Indian Constitution - historical underpinnings, evolution, features, amendments, significant provisions and basic structure,Representation Of People's Act
Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: CAA
Mains level: Indian origin tamils, Debate over granting citizenship
Context
The Supreme Court of India has now posted the 232 petitions challenging the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) to be heard on December 6, 2022. However, there is another issue linked to the subject, i.e., the unresolved status of Indian origin Tamils who repatriated from Sri Lanka.
Present status of Sri Lankan refugees in India
For over four decades, Indian origin Tamils have been classified as stateless persons, based on technicalities. Nations High Commission for Refugees, “Comprehensive Solutions Strategy for Sri Lankan Refugees”, there are around 29,500 Indian origin Tamils currently living in India.
As Indentured plantation workers: Indian origin Tamils were brought in as indentured labourers to work in plantations. They remained mostly legally undocumented and socially isolated from the native Sri Lankan Tamil and Sinhalese communities due to the policies of the British.
Denied citizenship led to stateless population: After 1947, Sri Lanka witnessed rising Sinhalese nationalism, leaving no room for their political and civil participation. They were denied citizenship rights and existed as a ‘stateless’ population, numbering close to 10 lakhs by 1960.
Bilateral pacts granted citizenship: As an ethnolinguistic minority without voting rights, this resulted in a double disadvantage till the two national governments addressed this issue. Subsequently, under the bilateral Sirimavo-Shastri Pact (1964) and the Sirimavo-Gandhi Pact (1974), six lakh people along with their natural increase would be granted Indian citizenship upon their repatriation.
Civil wars forcing to seek asylum in India: The Sri Lankan civil war resulted in a spike in Sri Lankan Tamils and Indian origin Tamils together seeking asylum in India. This resulted in a Union Ministry of Home Affairs directive to stop the grant of citizenship to those who arrived in India after July 1983.
Focus on Refugee welfare and rehabilitation: The focus of the Indian and Tamil Nadu governments shifted to refugee welfare and rehabilitation. The legal destiny of Indian origin Tamils has been largely intertwined with that of Sri Lankan Tamil refugees, and both cohorts have been relegated to ‘refugee’ status.
Classified as Illegal migrants as per the CAA 2003: Indian origin Tamils who arrived after 1983 came through unauthorized channels or without proper documentation and came to be classified as ‘illegal migrants’ as per the CAA 2003. This classification has resulted in their statelessness and blocking of potential legal pathways to citizenship.
How to overcome the problem of statelessness?
While constitutional courts have not had an occasion to deal with the question of statelessness, there have been two recent judgments (Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court, Justice G.R. Swaminathan), taking these issues head on.
Judgment on P. Ulaganathan vs Government of India (2019): The status of citizenship of Indian origin Tamils at the Kottapattu and Mandapam camps came up for consideration. The court recognized the distinction between Indian origin Tamils and Sri Lankan Tamils and held that a continuous period of statelessness of Indian origin Tamils offends their fundamental right under Article 21 of the Constitution of India. The court further held that the Union Government has implied powers to grant relaxation in conferring citizenship and prescribed that a humanitarian approach, shorn of the rigors of law, should be adopted.
Abirami S. vs The Union of India 2022: Statelessness is something to be avoided. The court further held that the principles of the CAA, 2019, which relaxes the conditions for citizenship for Hindus from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh, would also apply to Sri Lankan Tamil refugees. As such, these judgments have provided categorial judicial guidance to the Union of India on how to utilize an expanded and liberal interpretation of the CAA, 2019 to overcome statelessness.
Supreme Court (Committee for C.R. of C.A.P. and Ors. vs State of Arunachal Pradesh 2015): An undertaking made by the Government of India with respect to grant of citizenship inheres a right in the stateless or refugee population. As such, India has made repeated undertakings, through the 1964 and 1974 pacts, which have created a legitimate expectation among the Indian origin Tamils and would entitle them to be granted citizenship.
Obligatory International customary law: The situation of statelessness of Indian origin Tamils is ‘de jure’, created from the failure in implementing the 1964 and 1974 pacts. De jure statelessness is recognized in international customary law. Therefore, India has an obligation to remedy the situation.
How other nations deals with statelessness situation?
United States: Remedying statelessness is not a novel process in law. While dealing with a similar situation, in 1994, the United States enacted the Immigration and the Nationality Technical Corrections Act to retroactively grant citizenship to all children born to an alien father and citizen mother.
Brazil: Through the Constitutional Amendment No. 54 of 2007 retroactively, Brazil granted citizenship to children under jus sanguinis, which was earlier stripped by an earlier amendment, i.e., Constitutional Amendment No. 3 of 1994.
What India can do?
Any corrective legislative action by the Government of India to eliminate statelessness should necessarily include retroactive citizenship for Indian origin Tamils.
Conclusion
India has provided the one of largest refuge to people in the world including Tibetan, Sri Lankan, Pakistani, and Bangladeshi. Despite not being a signatory to UN refugee convention. any decision of granting citizenship has to be based on national interest rather than emotional connect.
Mains Question
Q. What are rules for granting the citizenship to foreigner in India? What are the hurdles in Tamil Sri Lankan getting their citizenship? How can Sri Lankan Tamil get citizenship by applying the rule of intelligible differentia under article 14?
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: NA
Mains level: freedom of speech and Issues associated with regulating social media platforms
Context
The Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY) has notified amendments to the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 (IT Rules, 2021) on October 28. In June 2022, MeitY had put out a draft of the amendments and solicited feedback from the relevant stakeholders. The draft generated considerable discussion and comment on the regulation of social media in India.
Regulating SMI’s: World over, governments are grappling with the issue of regulating social media intermediaries (SMIs).
Addressing the issues of SMI controlling the free speech: Given the multitudinous nature of the problem the centrality of SMIs in shaping public discourse, the impact of their governance on the right to freedom of speech and expression, the magnitude of information they host and the constant technological innovations that impact their governance it is important for governments to update their regulatory framework to face emergent challenges.
Placing obligations on SMI: In a bid to keep up with these issues, India in 2021, replaced its decade old regulations on SMIs with the IT Rules, 2021 that were primarily aimed at placing obligations on SMIs to ensure an open, safe and trusted internet.
What are the proposed amendments?
Draft amendments in June 2022, the stated objectives of the amendments were threefold.
Protecting the constitutional rights: there was a need to ensure that the interests and constitutional rights of netizens are not being contravened by big tech platforms,
Grievance redressal: to strengthen the grievance redressal framework in the Rules,
To avoid the dominance: that compliance with these should not impact early-stage Indian start-ups.
This translated into a set of proposed amendments that can be broadly classified into two categories.
Additional obligation on SMI: The first category involved placing additional obligations on the SMIs to ensure better protection of user interests.
Appellate mechanism: The second category involved the institution of an appellate mechanism for grievance redressal.
What are the additional obligations placed on social media intermediaries?
Users need to comply with rules of platforms(intermediaries): The original IT Rules, 2021 obligated the SMIs to merely inform its users of the “rules and regulations, privacy policy and user agreement” that governed its platforms along with the categories of content that users are prohibited from hosting, displaying, sharing etc. on the platform. This obligation on the SMIs has now been extended to ensuring that its users are in compliance with the relevant rules of the platform.
Prevent the prohibited content: Further, SMIs are required to “make reasonable” efforts to prevent prohibited content being hosted on its platform by the users.
SMIs have to respects rights under constitution: Second, a similar concern arises with the other newly introduced obligation on SMIs to “respect all the rights accorded to the citizens under the Constitution, including in the articles 14, 19 and 21”. Given the importance of SMIs in public discourse and the implications of their actions on the fundamental rights of citizens, the horizontal application of fundamental rights is laudable.
Remove the content within 72 hours: SMIs are now obligated to remove information or a communication link in relation to the six prohibited categories of content as and when a complaint arises. They have to remove such information within 72 hours of the complaint being made. Given the virality with which content spreads, this is an important step to contain the spread of the content.
Ensuring the accessibility of services: SMIs have been obligated to “take all reasonable measures to ensure accessibility of its services to users along with reasonable expectation of due diligence, privacy and transparency”.
Provide content in all scheduled language: In this context, the amendments also mandate that “rules and regulations, privacy policy and user agreement” of the platform should be made available in all languages listed in the eighth schedule of the Constitution.
What is the grievance appellate committee (GAC)?
Composition of GAC: The government has instituted Grievance Appellate Committees (GAC). The committee is styled as a three-member council out of which one member will be a government officer (holding the post ex officio) while the other two members will be independent representatives.
Complaint within 30 days: Users can file a complaint against the order of the grievance officer within 30 days.
Online dispute resolution: The GAC is required to adopt an online dispute resolution mechanism which will make it more accessible to the users.
What are the concerns associated with GAC?
Confusion over GAC and High courts: It is unclear whether this is a compulsory tier of appeal or not, that is will the user have to approach the grievance appellate committee before approaching the court. The confusion arises from the fact that the press notes expressly stated that the institution of the GAC would not bar the user from approaching the court directly against the order of the grievance officer. However, the final amendments provide no such indication.
Apprehensions about appointment by central government: While this makes the inhouse grievance redressal more accountable and appellate mechanism more accessible to users, appointments being made by the central government could lead to apprehensions of bias in content moderation.
GAC doesn’t have enforcement power: Further, the IT Rules, 2021 do not provide any explicit power to the GAC to enforce its orders.
Overlapping jurisdiction of courts and appellate: if users can approach both the courts and the GAC parallelly, it could lead to conflicting decisions often undermining the impartiality and merit of one institution or the other.
Conclusion
Across the world, social media regulation is need of an hour. Fake news, protests, riots are fuelled by social media outrage on petty things. However, government should not usurp the unaccountable power of in the name social regulation. Power of government should also be scrutinized by parliamentary committee.
Mains Question
Q. How social media can disrupt the law-and-order situation? Social media intermediaries have become the master regulators of free speech. Explain. critically analyze the new draft recommendations of IT rules 2021.
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: GM Mustard
Mains level: GM crops, advantages and risks associated with it
Context
The recent clearance by the government for the release of GM Mustard Hybrid DMH 11 based on the recommendations of GEAC under the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change is a bold decision in the best interest of our farmers and the nation.
What are Genetically modified organisms (GMO)
Changes in genetic material: GMOs can be defined as organisms (i.e., plants, animals or microorganisms) in which the genetic material (DNA) has been altered in a way that does not occur naturally by mating and/or natural recombination
Transfers of genes: It allows selected individual genes to be transferred from one organism into another, also between nonrelated species.
GM foods: Foods produced from or using GM organisms are often referred to as GM foods
GM Mustard: GM mustard crop was introduced, which was later withdrawn. There is a raging debate going on advantages and disadvantages of GMOs. For a long time, further study was requested by farmers, environmentalist on GMO crops.
Benefits to producers and consumers: GM foods are developed and marketed because there is some perceived advantage either to the producer or consumer of these foods. This is meant to translate into a product with a lower price, greater benefit (in terms of durability or nutritional value) or both. Initially GM seed developers wanted their products to be accepted by producers and have concentrated on innovations that bring direct benefit to farmers (and food industry generally)
Improves crop protection: One of the objectives for developing plants based on GM organisms is to improve crop protection.
Insect Resistance: Some GMO foods have been modified to make them more resistant to insects and other pests. This means the amount of pesticide chemicals used on the plants are reduced, so their exposure to dangerous pesticides is also reduced
Develops stronger Crop: Another benefit that GM technology is believed to bring about is that crops can be engineered to withstand weather extremes and fluctuations, this means that there will be good quality and sufficient yields even under a poor or severe weather condition
Provides Environment Protection: GM crops often requires less time, tools and chemicals, and may help with reducing greenhouse gas emissions, soil erosion and environmental pollution
More Nutritious Foods: According to the UN Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), some GM foods have been engineered to become more nutritious in terms of vitamin or mineral content.
More economic benefits: Larger production leading to increased farm income, reduced poverty, low food prices and thus reduced hunger and malnutrition. Besides new food products are also included, diversifying food varieties
What is the risk associated with GMO?
Contamination of genes: GMOs contaminate forever. GMOs cross pollinate and their seeds can travel far and wide.
Irreversible changes in gene pool: It is impossible to fully clean up our contaminated gene pool.
More herbicides in our food: Genetic engineering allows plants to survive high doses of weed killers, resulting in higher herbicide residues in our food.
Super weeds and super bugs: GMO crops are creating ‘super weeds’ and ‘super bugs,’ which can only be killed with more toxic poisons.
Why there was necessity to grant approval for GM Mustard?
To meet our current challenges: Over-exploitation of natural resources (soil, water, biodiversity), declining factor productivity, urgency to achieve sustainable development goals, especially ending poverty and hunger, and addressing timely the adverse effects of climate change the best option is scientific innovations and their scaling.
The adoption of GM food crops is in our broader national interest: Genetically modified maize, soybean, cotton, tomato and canola are grown across the world and the area currently under GM crops is about 200 m ha. Besides India, these have been grown for many years in the US, Brazil, Argentina, Canada, Australia, Philippines, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and China.
To meet the existing deficit in edible oils: India is currently importing around 13 million tonnes at a cost of Rs 1.17 lakh crore to the exchequer. Interestingly, of this, 2.0-2.5 mt soybean oil and 1.0-1.5 mt canola oil is already GM. Hence, we are consuming GM oil already, besides, the 1.5 mt of GM cotton oil produced domestically.
Associated health benefits: It is scientifically proven that the consumption of refined oil does not allow any protein to enter the human system. Thus, the consumption of GM oil is completely safe from a health point of view.
High yields to farmers: A major concern of our farmers is that yields of mustard are low and have stagnated for a long time at around 1,260 kg/ha, much lower than the global average of 2,000 kg/ha. Yields of canola in Canada, China and Australia are almost three times higher than in India since they use GM hybrid technology. Mustard is a very important oilseed crop, grown in 6.0 -7.0 million hectares, mostly in Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab and Madhya Pradesh. Thus, the government’s decision to allow the production of GM Mustard hybrids will go a long way in increasing our yields, while reducing the use of pesticides.
What else needs to be done?
Providing enabling environment: The Department of Agriculture (DoA) and ICAR need to move forward fast and provide an enabling environment to test the available seed of Hybrid DMH 11 in the current rabi season.
Encourage public-private partnership: This needs to happen on several farmers’ fields in the mustard belt. It must also encourage public-private partnerships to produce quality seeds to cover more area next year.
Encouraging further innovation: Also, scientists at ICAR institutes must be encouraged to develop new GM Mustard hybrids on a mission mode. Allowing the production of GM Soybean and GM Maize going forward will also be a positive step, increasing both the productivity and profitability of these crops and doubling farmers’ income.
Conclusion
The decision to remove the unscientific ban on GM crops reflects the determination of the government to move towards Atmanirbhar Bharat. It also meets the aspirations of our scientific community and farmers can derive the benefits of innovative technology.
Mains Question
Q. How GM mustard crop are different from conventional crops? What are the benefits and risks of adopting the GM mustard crop?
| Polity | Mains Paper 2: Indian Constitution - historical underpinnings, evolution, features, amendments, significant provisions and basic structure
Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: 1st Constitutional Amendment
Mains level: Sedition law and Free speech
The Supreme Court has agreed to examine a PIL challenging changes made to the right to freedom of speech and expression by the first amendment to the Constitution in 1951.
Why in news?
The fresh petition argues that the 1st Constitutional Amendment damages the basic structure doctrine.
What was the first amendment?
The Constitution (First Amendment) Act, 1951 made several changes to the Fundamental Rights provisions of the Indian constitution.
It provided means to:
Restrict freedom of speech and expression,
Validation of zamindari abolition laws, and
Clarified that the right to equality does not bar the enactment of laws which provide “special consideration” for weaker sections of society
This Amendment set the precedent of amending the Constitution to overcome judicial judgements impeding fulfilment of the government’s perceived responsibilities.
Why in news now?
In his plea, the petitioner said Section 3(1) of the 1951 Amending Act substituted original Clause (2) of Article 19.
This clause 19(2) deals with reasonable restrictions on the freedom of speech and expression guaranteed under Article 19(1)(a).
(a) Objectionable insertions
It which contained two objectionable insertions allowing restrictions also:
In the interest of public order and
In relation to incitement to an offence
(b) Crucial omissions
The new Clause (2) also omitted the expression “tends to overthrow the State” as appearing in the original Clause (2).
Section 3 (2) of the amending Act effected validation of certain laws even if they took away or abridged the right to freedom of speech and expression, the petitioner said.
Issues created by Clause (2) of Article 19
Ans. It protects certain arbitrary sections of IPC from constitutionality check
The petition contended that these two insertions protect certain IPC sections such as from the vice of unconstitutionality –
Sections 124A: Sedition
Section 153A: Promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc. prejudicial to maintenance of harmony
Section 295A: Deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs and
Section 505: Statements conducing to public mischief
The questionable expressions inserted unduly abridge the fundamental right under Article 19 (1)(a) { freedom of speech and expression}.
How it sought to trivialize national security?
The amendment also neglects national security by dropping the expression ‘tends to overthrow the State’.
The omission of this expression raises grave concern in the context of the dangers posed to the concept of secular democratic republic by radicalism, terrorism and religious fundamentalism.
This could either be radicalism or right-wing extremism.
| Governance | Mains Paper 2: Laws, Institutions & Bodies Constituted For The Vulnerable Sections
Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: NA
Mains level: Regressive laws for rape victims
The Supreme Court has declared that any person conducting the invasive ‘two-finger’ or ‘three-finger’ vaginal test on rape or sexual assault survivors will be found guilty of misconduct.
What is the two-finger test?
The test is conducted to check whether the victim has had recent sexual intercourse.
It includes an inspection of the hymen.
The hymen is inspected as it can be torn only if the woman has had any sexual intercourse.
This test was performed on rape or sexual assault survivors.
What did the Verma Committee say on the two-finger test?
The committee under former Chief Justice JS Verma, formed soon after the 2012 Nirbhaya Gangrape case had recommended tougher laws for such cases and ban of the two-finger test.
This test has no bearing on a case of sexual assault.
On the basis of this test observations/ conclusions such as ‘habituated to sexual intercourse’ should not be made and this is forbidden by law.
Yet, the test continues to be conducted in India and other countries despite rape test kits are being provided by the government to all medical institutions after the committee recommendations.
Is the two-finger test scientifically accepted?
Of course NOT.
According to medical experts, science has proved that the hymen is not a reliable source of proving vaginal penetration.
The hymen, which is a thin membrane in the vagina, can rupture not just during sexual activity but also during day-to-day work or any physical activity, including playing sports.
What has the Supreme Court said previously?
Violation of privacy: In May 2013, the Supreme Court banned the two-finger test on rape victims on the grounds that it violated their right to privacy.
Alternative procedures: The court asked the government to provide better medical procedures in order to confirm sexual assault.
Painful for women: The test is medically unnecessary, often times painful, humiliating and a traumatic practice that must end.
Way ahead
Workshops should be held for health providers to prevent the test from being conducted on rape survivors.
The curriculum in medical schools should be revised.
The court ordered copies of the judgment to be handed over to the Health Ministry, which should be circulated to the health and home departments of the States.
The home departments should circulate the judgment to the Director Generals of Police in the States.
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: MGNREGS
Mains level: Read the attached story
An internal study commissioned by the Ministry of Rural Development has argued for decentralization of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), allowing for more “flexibility” at the ground level.
Key recommendations to revamp MGNREGS
Work diversification: There should be a greater diversification of permissible works instead of listing the types of permissible works.
Broad categories of works may be listed out.
Flexibility should be given at ground level to select the type of works as per broad categories.
What is MGNREGS?
The MGNREGA stands for Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act of 2005.
This is labour law and social security measure that aims to guarantee the ‘Right to Work’.
The act was first proposed in 1991byP.V. Narasimha Rao.
What is so unique about it?
MGNREGA is unique in not only ensuring at least 100 days of employment to the willing unskilled workers, but also in ensuring an enforceable commitment on the implementing machinery i.e., the State Governments, and providing a bargaining power to the labourers.
The failure of provision for employment within 15 days of the receipt of job application from a prospective household will result in the payment of unemployment allowance to the job seekers.
Any Indian citizen above the age of 18 years who resides in rural India can apply for the NREGA scheme. The applicant should have volunteered to do unskilled work.
Employment is to be provided within 5 km of an applicant’s residence, and minimum wages are to be paid.
Thus, employment under MGNREGA is a legal entitlement.
Why imbibe some changes?
(1) Empowering Gram Sabhas
The fund management has been centralised instead of paying the Gram Sabhas.
The Gram Sabhas could better decide the work they want to undertake.
The Sabhas can take into account the local conditions and the community’s requirement instead of chasing a target set for them.
(2) Prevent delays in fund disbursal
The internal study also flagged the frequent delay in fund disbursal, and to deal with it suggested a revolving fund that can be utilised whenever there is a delay in the Central funds.
The survey quoted various instances to underline this chronic problem.
(3) Prevent delay in wages
In Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat, the delay in wages was by three or four months and the material component by six months.
The study also noted that the MGNREGS wages were far below the market rate in many States, defeating the purpose of acting as a safety net.
Answer this PYQ in the comment box:
Q.Among the following who are eligible to benefit from the “Mahatma Gandhi national rural employment guarantee act”?
(a) Adult members of only the scheduled caste and scheduled tribe households.
(b) Adult members of below poverty line (BPL) households.
(c) Adult members of households of all backward communities.
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Amur Falcon
Mains level: NA
The Amur falcons have begun to arrive in Manipur after travelling over 20,000 km.
Amur Falcon
The Amur falcon (Falco amurensis) is a small raptor of the falcon family.
It breeds in south-eastern Siberia and Northern China before migrating in large flocks across India and over the Arabian Sea to winter in Southern and East Africa.
How it migrates?
Locally known as Akhuipuina, the bird arrives mainly in Manipur and Nagaland on its southbound migration from breeding grounds in North China, Eastern Mongolia and far-east Russia.
They travel to Manipur en-route to its wintering grounds in South Africa.
The one-way journey via India is about 20,000 km long and the birds do this twice a year.
They spend three-four weeks in many parts of Manipur to build fat reserves by preying on termites that emerge around this time.
Conservation status
It is protected under the Wildlife Protection Act 1972 and included under its Schedule IV.
It is listed in the IUCN Red list as Least Concern.
Hunting of the birds or possessing its meat is punishable with imprisonment up to three years or a fine up to Rs 5,000.
In 2018, the forest department started a conservation programme by radio-tagging the birds to study their migratory route.
Context
Historical background of citizenship to Indian origin Tamils
Context
What are the proposed amendments?
What is the grievance appellate committee (GAC)?
Context
Advantages of 
Why there was necessity to grant approval for GM Mustard?
What else needs to be done?
