DPSP: Basic Features
The Compass of the Welfare State (Articles 36–51)
PART I — NATURE & ORIGIN
ORIGIN
Instrument of Instructions
- Borrowed from Irish Constitution (Spanish origin)
- Resembles 'Instrument of Instructions' of 1935 Act
- Guidelines for the State to frame laws/policies
- Ambedkar: "Novel features" of the Constitution
PHILOSOPHY
The Welfare State
- Aims to establish Social & Economic Democracy
- Replaces colonial 'Police State' with 'Welfare State'
- Seeks justice: social, economic, and political
- Emphasizes equitable distribution of resources
PART II — ENFORCEMENT & SANCTION
ARTICLE 37
Non-Justiciable Nature
- Cannot be enforced by courts of law
- State cannot be compelled to implement them
- Courts cannot declare a law void *just* for violating DPSP
- But courts use them to interpret constitutional validity
THE REAL DRIVER
Political Sanction
- "Fundamental in the governance of the country"
- Sanction behind them is political, not legal
- Enforced by public opinion and elections
- Govts ignoring DPSP will answer to voters
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