LHC must not stop young doctors from exercising their fundamental rights
YDA HERO Dr Naeem assaulted by Punjab Police Source : YDA FB page
Related : Doctors’ Strike and Moral Justification – by Awais Aftab
Its a fundamental right of all employees to demand service structure , career protection and decent wages. Unfortunately , LHC accepted a petition seeking revoking license of all protesting young doctor .
Unlike Pakistan , Recently Supreme court of India refused to order doctors to stop a strike. Court should also not drag its feet in debate of morality of young doctors protest instead they should learn from Judges in India .
The Delhi High Court in its landmark order while decriminalizing homosexuality gave ruling a person cannot be deprived of his fundamental rights because of public disapproval of his acts on moral grounds and constitutional morality must dominate over public morality.
Judgement :
“Moral indignation, howsoever, strong, is not a valid basis for overriding individual’s fundamental rights and privacy. In our scheme of things, constitutional morality must outweigh the argument of public morality, even if it be the majoritarian view,” a two-judge Bench headed by Chief Justice A P Shah said.
The court passed the order while decriminalising gay sex among consenting adults which was earlier a criminal offence punishable with even life imprisonment.
The Bench, also comprising Justice S Muralidhar, rejected government’s stand which justified penal provision against homosexuality on the ground that it is against public morality and its legalisation would lead to moral degradation in society.
“We are unable to accept the stand of the Union of India that there is a need for retention of Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code to cover consensual sexual acts between adults in private on the ground of public morality,” the court said in its 105-page judgement.
“Popular morality or public disapproval of certain acts is not a valid justification for restriction of the fundamental rights under Article 21,” the court said, adding that “those perceived by the majority as deviants or different are not on that score excluded or ostracised.”
The controversial law on homosexuality was codified 149 years ago when Lord Macaulay introduced the section in the IPC, making carnal intercourse punishable.
Interpreting Section 377 in light of basic tenets of “inclusiveness” of the Constitution, the court said, “A provision of law branding one section of people as criminal based wholly on states’ moral disapproval of that class goes counter to equality guaranteed in the Constitution.”
“The provision of section 377 runs counter to the Constitutional values and the notion of human dignity which is considered to be cornerstone of our Constitution.
“If there is any type of morality that can pass the test of compelling state interest, it must be constitutional morality and not public morality,” the court said.
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Instead of judging morality of young doctors protest , court must ensure implementation of Supreme court Feburary , 2012 order regarding ‘improved service structure of doctors’ , just like NRO implementation case !!!
Well that was a great skill of advocacy for Indian Supreme Court but let me tell you, you are bound by the decisions of your SC not Indian. And talking of fundamental rights, did you know that every fundamental right has some condition attached to it and if you violate that condition then you are not entitled to that fundamental right. Stop thinking about the doctors or the govt for one second and just think of the patients. 200 died last year because of these protests and almost 50 have died this year
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