In the 66 years since the Indian Constitution was adopted on this day in 1949, corruption and the lack of proper implementation of law and order has tarnished its very essence.
Given below are the basic laws and rights which every Indian must be made aware of:
Police harassment in cases of PDA is very common as the law states that obscenity in public places is punishable by a three-month jail time, even though what constitutes this 'obscenity' hasn't been clearly demarcated.
Possessing pornographic material or watching porn is not illegal in India. However, circulating it in any manner—selling, distributing, letting for hire, exhibiting publicly—is punishable.
Bribes are often cleverly disguised as 'gifts'. If discovered, both the giver and taker of the bribe could serve 6-7 years of jail time. Read about the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act, 2010 here.
The Criminal Law Act underwent significant changes in 2013 and each crime was defined under separate sections. Acid attack or its attempt, sexual harassment, voyeurism, intention to disrobe a woman, sexual harassment and stalking can all incur jail terms. Read here for details.
The Delhi police has issued guidelines which provide women the opportunity to lodge complaints via email or even post if they don't want to go to the police station.
According to the Limitation Act, If a person contracted to pay you hasn't done so, you need to file a report within 3 years, after which your claim will be dismissed.
If you have received payment via a cheque, which later bounces, you should immediately contact a lawyer and give a legal notice to the person who is supposed to pay you. If you do not receive payment within 15 days of the legal notice, you can file criminal charges against the person and he might go to jail for it.
The arbitration clause in any agreement provides the parties with the option of appointing an independent arbitrator to solve any disputes, without having to go to the court. However, this clause closes the court doors for good, and with it, also makes sure that you won't be able to avail the three-tier appeal process. Appeal can be made in arbitration in very few cases, and an arbitral decision is binding on the parties, just like a court decision.