Assistant Professor, Department of Laws,
Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar
The Fundamental Duties as present in Part IV-A of the Indian Constitution are said to be ‘borrowed’ from the Citizen’s duties enumerated in constitution of the erstwhile Union of Soviet Socialist Republic (USSR). A comparative study of both constitutional provisions is sought to be done to see the extent, scope and nature of duties per se, as they stand in comparison, enshrined in their respective constitutional documents. Henry Sturt explains the origin of the sentiment of duty. To feel a duty implies at least three things: (i) that a service is claimed from us; (2) that we feel the force of the claim; (3) that a certain effort is necessary to perform the service. As early as 1795, new European republics issued declarations of duties to accompany their new declarations of rights. In 1948, The Universal Declaration of Human Rights also recognised “Everyone has duties to the community in which alone the free and full development of his personality is possible.” The research paper will put light on the concept of moral and legal duties and its enforceability under Indian Constitution with comparative analysis to various countries.
Keywords: Fundamental duty, Indian Constitution, USSR Constitution, Universal Declaration of Human Rights