Democracy Now: Fundamental Duties of a Citizen - Part 1

A democratic society cannot function without guaranteeing fundamental rights of its citizens and its citizens cannot function democratically without discharging their fundamental duties in society. The American nationhood has been built upon the democratic temper. The US Constitution and the accompanying Bill of Rights have withstood the test of time; both serve as role models to the world.

Somehow we place disproportionate emphasis on our rights against our duties as citizens. For it is, rights and duties are the two sides of the same coin. Our inalienable rights are inherent and fundamental; the constitution simply safeguards and guarantees them. As rights are inalienable so are duties, for every right there is a reciprocal duty. The duty of a person is an inalienable part of his/her right.

A right emanates from a duty discharged well. The duty of one person is the right of another person, as is respect for a person's liberty and not to impose constraints upon it. Government safeguarding of rights become a nonentity; if everyone performs his/her duty, everyone's rights would be automatically safeguarded.

Mahatma Gandhi stated eloquently the responsibilities of all citizens:

"The true source of right is duty. If we all discharge our duties, rights will not be far to seek. If leaving duties unperformed we run after rights, they will escape us like will-o-the-wist, the more we pursue them, the farther they will fly."

"I learned from my illiterate but wise mother that all rights to be deserved and preserved come from my duty well done. Thus the very right to live accrues to us when we do the duty of citizenship of the world. From this one fundamental statement, perhaps it is easy enough to define duties of man and women and correlate every right to some corresponding duty to be first performed. Every other right can be shown to be a usurpation hardly worth fighting for."

So far, in my readings I have yet to come across so comprehensive yet so concise an elocution of duty of a citizen than Article 51A of the Constitution of India.

"It shall be the duty of every citizen of India -