Topic - Liberty Political Science
Topic - Liberty Political Science
Topic - Liberty Political Science
POLITICAL SCIENCE
SHARMA
BA LLB (HONS)
1
TABLE OF CONTENTS
TOPIC...………………………………………………….PAGE NO.
1. Table of content……………………………………………2
2. Declaration…………………………………………………3
3. Acknowledgement…………………………………………4
4. Introduction……...…………………………………….…...5
5. Meaning of Liberty………………………..…………………6
6. Classification of Liberty……...………………………...........7
• Negative Liberty………………………………………7
• Positive Liberty………………………………………..8
7. J S Mill’s Theory of Liberty…………...…………………..…9
8. Characteristics………..……………………………………….10
9. Liberty and Some Other Concepts……………………………11
• Liberty and License ……………………………………12
• Liberty and Authority…………………………………..12
10.Kinds of Liberty………………………….…………………….13-14
11.Some Essential Safeguards of Liberty..…..……………………14-15
12.Liberty as a Concept in India………………………………….16
13.Conclusion……………………………………………………17
14.Bibliography………………………………………………….18
15.Plagiarism Report…………………………………………….19
2
DECLARATION
ASSIGNMENT NO. 05
3
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
Every student’s project owns debt to their teachers, friends, and their parents. I gratefully
acknowledge my deep indebtedness to all of these.The present work is an effort to throw some
light on “ Liberty ”. The work would not have been possible to come to the present shape without
the able guidance,supervision, and help to me by a number of people. I take this opportunity to
thank the Himachal Pradesh National Law University for giving me a chance to do this project.
With deep sense of gratitude, I acknowledge this golden opportunity provided to me by Prof.
Dr.Nishtha Jaswal, Vice Chancellor, HPNLU. I also convey my heartfelt thanks to Dr. Ved
Parkash Sharma, who helped and supported me during this assignment for the completion of my
thesis. I am also thankful to all of my fellow batchmates and family who provided me with help,
directly or indirectly.
4
Topic - Liberty
Introduction
The layman interpretation of the term “Liberty” is the ability of an individual to do whatever he
intends to do with no restrictions. However, several political scientist over the course of history
after careful research have come to understand that the concept of liberty is way more
complicated and complex than that.There are three common ways of referring to liberty – a)the
idea of choice, b)removal of limitations and c)presence of conditions that allow you to go ahead
with your choices. One only has to flip through pages of a history book to find out that liberty is
a word so powerful that it has made people all around the world raise their voices and fight
against an oppressor, no matter how strong. Hence, liberty can also be called a reason or a
working force that causes or brings about a change in society .It has proven to be tool to
challenge status quo .Liberty is the quality of man. It is man, as distinguished from other living
beings, who demands freedom and evolves institutions to secure it. Animals, birds and insects
are governed by the rule of the 'struggle for existence' and 'survival of the fittest'—the fittest is
the one physically strongest and cleverest. They have no 'aim of life' beyond mere existence.1
1
O.P. GAUBA, AN INTRODUCTION TO POLITICAL THEORY 348 (5h ed. 2009).
5
Meaning of Liberty
Before going any deeper into the topic it is very important to understand the true meaning of
Liberty . The term“liberty” originates from the Latin word liber meaning “free”. It is often hard
to understand the meaning of liberty because of its association with words like freedom,
toleration and liberation. Liberty and Freedom are considered to be synonymous .‘Toleration’,
however, is different from freedom but there is a sense in which it can also be thought of as a
manifestation of freedom. As the willingness to put upwith actions or opinions with which we
may disagree, toleration affords individuals a broader opportunity to act as they please or choose.
In the eyes of many, toleration is an essential precondition for harmony and social stability,
guaranteeing that we can live together without encroaching upon one another’s rights and
liberties.2 But it is important to remember not to encourage toleration of something that could
bring harm to an individual and society at large.Similarly liberation is also a related but different
term from liberty. Liberty refers to being free or freedom itself whereas liberation means to set
something or someone free. Liberation is used in context of political and social revolutions.
Definition of Liberty
• According to Mckchnie, “Freedom is not the absence of all restraints but rather the
substitutions of rational ones for irrational.”3
Therefore, liberty can be defined as the ability to act and behave the way one wants for the
growth and better development of oneself while keeping in mind a few restrictions such as not
harming or infringing upon the rights of someone else.
2
ANDREW HEYWOOD, POLITICAL THEORY AN INTRODUCTION 252(3d ed. 2004).
3
N.D. ARORA & S.S. AWASTHTY, POLITICAL THEORY 221 ( Har-Anand Publications 2007).
6
Classification of Liberty
• Negative Liberty
• Positive Liberty
Negative Liberty
Negative liberty deals with absolute freedom of a person from any form of restriction ,coercion
or limitation. It talks about allowing one to be completely free to do whatever one wants. It
delimits the functions of state to the least amount of governance that is possible. The negative
aspect of liberty criticizes interference of the state in the life of an individual and his self-
appointed goals. Open competition is considered as an important element for growth and
protection provided by the government is regarded unnecessary. The state is required to only
protect the life and property of a person and other than that leave him to his own devices. John
Locke, Adam Smith, Herbert Spencer are some of the main supporters of this viewpoint. Even
though mans freedom is important , allowing him to go on without any rules or guidelines is not
possible in a civil society. There will be mayhem , chaos and anarchy if no boundaries existed
for one to act within in order to not cause harm to others as well as oneself. Many supporters of
negative aspect of liberty consider law to be opposite of freedom . They fail to understand that
without laws it becomes very easy for the “big dogs” to prey on and exploit the weaker sections
of the society. The rich get richer and the poor get poorer. All of the aforementioned has already
happened before. The concept of negative liberty played an important historical role. It proved
instrumental in the establishment of capitalist system in Europe.It released the forces of
production which were blocked by the feudal system inherited from the Middle Ages. But by the
middle of the nineteenth century it became evident that the capitalist system supported by
negative liberty had brought about miserable conditions for workers and consumers. The
appalling disparities of wealth and power—mounting oppression, exploitation and injustice in
society—amply demonstrated contradictions in this concept of liberty.4 Huge criticism of this
viewpoint led to the emergence of its rival, positive liberty.
4
O.P. GAUBA, AN INTRODUCTION TO POLITICAL THEORY 357 (5h ed. 2009).
7
Positive Liberty
5
ANDREW HEYWOOD, POLITICAL THEORY AN INTRODUCTION 262(3d ed. 2004).
8
J S Mill’s Theory of liberty
John Stuart Mill (1806-73) was a British philosopher ,economist and politician. He served as a
member of parliament and a civil servant. Mill’s work made huge contribution to the
development of liberalism . From a very young age Mill received extremely advanced education
all thanks to his strict disciplinarian of a father. Mill spent a lot of time with his father which
naturally led to him having a great influence on Mill’s opinions and beliefs . Mill’s father wanted
him to be a utilitarian just like himself. However , the importance of weighing all the knowledge
and formulating his own ideas was greatly impressed upon him at every point of his childhood
life.
Mill initially defended laissez-faire individualism.However, after understanding its negative side
with regards to the new socio-economic conditions, he went on to modify it.Mill was one of the
first people to talk about how the working class was being exploited in a capitalistic economy.He
then tried to establish where the intervention of state could be justified.
Mill explores the positive functions or welfare functions of a state in economic and social field.
• State can interfere in private property for the greater good of society.
• Removal of poverty.
• Prevention of monopoly in the market to protect the weaker sections of the society from
economic exploitation.
• Providing education, healthcare and social security to its citizens.
In his argument he states that everyone should be given the opportunity to raise their voice and
bring forth their opinion regardless of whether it is right or not. If the statement or opinion is
correct it brings out the truth for everyone to hear , if it is partially correct it could help them
analyse their own mistake and if it is completely incorrect it will start a dialogue or a debate that
will eventually lead us to the truth .In one of his most famous works On Liberty originally
published in 1859, Stuart draws a clear distinction between “self-regarding “ and “other -
regarding “ actions. Stuart believed in allowing individuals to enjoy as much liberty as possible
the only restriction being not causing any harm to others. According to him, man should be the
sole master of his own personal freedom. This brings us to the conclusion that Mill would not
have criticized issues such as drug abuse or any other form of self-harm as long as it did not hurt
someone else. Hence , his argument has received a fair amount of criticism.
9
Characteristics of Liberty
• State is essential to enjoy Liberty – Liberty can only be truly enjoyed in a peaceful
environment. State ensures law ,order ,and peace in a society making it possible for an
individual to have access to freedom in it’s true sense.
• Liberty is not absence of restraints –Few people as discussed before are ardent supporters
of giving complete freedom to individuals without any constraints. This may lead to
chaos and anarchy in the society .Therefore certain rules and regulations must be
established to maintain harmony among humans.
• Liberty is an Environment – Liberty is an atmosphere where one can work towards
transforming into the best possible version of themselves. It is not a thing that can be
bought or sold.
• Liberty is Universal – A certain individual or a group of powerful individuals not have
autonomy over liberty . It is the right of every individual who lives in a state.
• Law and Liberty are not contradictory to one another – Liberty has to be enjoyed within
the boundaries of law. People tend to think that law and liberty are opposite which is
wrong as laws or rather justified laws act as safeguards of liberty.
• Liberty cannot be Absolute – Restrictions are essential to a certain degree to check if
every individual has equal access to liberty in a society . It is important to remember not
to harm others while exercising our own freedom.
• Removal of special privileges – When people in a society are given special privileges
with respect to their caste ,colour, gender or social status , freedom ceases to exist.
• Rights are necessary for liberty to exist – Rights are tools given by the state to its citizens
so that they can enjoy liberty in every possible way.
10
Liberty and Some Other Concepts
(Liberty demands due restraint on Authority. Undue expansion of Liberty turns it into
License.)6
6
O.P. GAUBA, AN INTRODUCTION TO POLITICAL THEORY 350 (5h ed. 2009).
11
• Liberty and License
License is essentially going overboard with the provided liberty and abusing freedom
which eventually lands someone ,more often than not, along with others in serious
trouble. Liberty is desirable ,worth fighting for, joyful ,uplifting, therapeutic and morally
and ethically correct. Whereas license is the point where liberty becomes oppressive ,
dangerous, immoral unethical and questionable.Though it is important to draw a
distinction between the two terms ,doing it can be a highly controversial task. Even the
most headstrong supporters of no constraint freedom may agree that killing a man is
wrong . But the same people might consider suicide as a person’s right over their own
body and life.
Freedom and right are closely associated concepts .One feasible way of differentiating
between liberty and license could be through right based theory of freedom. Liberty
means acting according to or within one’s rights, whereas license means to act beyond
one’s rights or, more particularly, to abuse the rights of others. For example, employers
are exercising liberty when they are acting on the basis of their rights, derived perhaps
from the ownership of property or from a contract of employment, but are straying into
the realm of license when they start to infringe upon the rights of their employees.7
7
ANDREW HEYWOOD, POLITICAL THEORY AN INTRODUCTION 255(3d ed. 2004).
12
KINDS OF LIBERTY
• Natural liberty – Natural liberty means giving unregulated and unrestraint freedom to an
individual to run wild in the society. Professor R.N. Gilchrist calls it unscientific use of
liberty. Supporters of this theory believe in the existence of state of nature before the
origin of state. According to Rousseau,” Man is born free but everywhere he is in
chains”. Natural liberty coincides more with the idea of license than liberty. It is based
purely on force and builds an environment for uplifting the already uplifted. This kind of
liberty has no place in todays civil society for only the powerful ones will be able to
survive in it and the rest shall perish. It basically deals with the theory of ,”survival of the
fittest”.
• Civil Liberty –This kind of liberty deals with freedom without unreasonable and
illegitimate limitations. It can be enjoyed only within a state. State provides it’s people
with certain liberties and rights that are enshrined in the law of the state. These rights are
recognized , protected and substantiated by the state so one can move the court to enforce
these liberties. The only time these liberties can be infringed upon is when there is a need
to maintain public security ,law and order. Some liberties that come under it are freedom
of speech and expression ,freedom of movement, personal freedom , religious freedom
,equality before law etc. However, not all states provide all of these liberties .For example
– In a dictatorial state freedom of speech and expression of the citizens is often curtailed
but doing the same is not so easy in a democratic state.
• Political Liberty – Political liberty is also known as constitutional liberty . It
Is synonymous with democracy and can only be provided in a democratic state . In civil
liberty the rights were personal in nature whereas in political liberty rights are directed
towards a responsible citizen of the state. Political liberty refers to the right of an
individual to take part in the political activities of the state such as choosing their
representatives to the decision making state bodies and exercising control over them by
freely expressing their criticism of public policies. It includes rights such as – (a) Right to
vote, (b) Right to be a candidate in an election, (c) Right to be elected to be elected and
holding public offices, (d) Right to form public parties and organizations, (e) Right to
criticize the government ,(f) Right to send petitions ,(g) Right to information.
In today’s time several people with money and connections try to swing the elections in
their own favor and take control over the media to influence the mass population for their
own selfish purpose. Thus, the mere existence of political liberty is not enough but great
vigilance is required on the part of the state authorities as well as the citizens to ensure
the implementation of such liberty. Political awareness in people is necessary for them to
enjoy such liberty.
• Economic Liberty – Economic liberty deals with a mans right to work and right to
livelihood . It refers to right to fair and equal pay for equal work done regardless of the
caste , religion or gender of the person doing the work. In the absence of economic liberty
13
, political liberty and civil liberty become redundant. No sane man is going to worry
about who he should vote for to be the next head of the state if he has no idea where his
next meal of the day is going to come from or whether he will have a job tomorrow or not
. Such a man has neither the will nor the strength to be a good and responsible citizen .
Rights that come under this liberty are – (a) Right to work, (b) Right to property ,(c)
Right to equal economic opportunities, (d) Right against economic exploitation ,(e) Right
to old age pension and financial help in illness etc.
• National Liberty – Till now we have been studying about the freedom of an individual
in the context of both as a person and as a citizen. But national liberty talks about
freedom of a state or a nation or a country in it’s entirety. It means a nation is
independent and free from any form of internal or external control. National liberty can
also be called as national sovereignty . A nation cannot progress and it’s people cannot
enjoy the comforts of life , when under subjugation. Before 15 august 1947 , India did not
possess national liberty . The freedom fighters of this great nation went through a long
and hard struggle to attain liberty, therefore it should never be taken for granted. Only if a
state enjoys national liberty ,it can provide political , civil and economic liberty to it’s
citizens.
• Religious Liberty –Religious Liberty refers to the freedom to practice ,preach ,propagate
and adopt any religion without any unreasonable interference from the state. It also
includes the right not to practice any religion . In terms of religious freedom states can ne
classified into two types – (a ) Secular State and (b) Theocratic State.
In a secular state , the followers of all religions are provided with equal rights ,
opportunities and privileges. Every individual has the right to practice the religion of their
own choice . State has no religion of it’s own.
For example – India , USA , France , Japan etc.
In a theocratic state , the state has a religion of it’s own that is the only one it recognizes
. The followers of this religion get to have some special privileges .
For example – Saudi Arabia , Iran, Vatican etc.
• Love for Liberty – People need to be in love with their liberty to achieve and preserve it.
Passion for liberty and freedom was the main driving force behind every revolution of
independence and fight against colonizers .
• Eternal or Constant Vigilance – Awareness ,alertness and commitment of the people is
of the utmost importance in order to defend any encroachment of their liberty. Citizens
need to be vocal about their complaints to the state .Thomas Jefferson once said
”Which country can preserve its liberties, if its rulers are not warned from time to time
that the people preserve the spirit of resistance”.
14
• Granting Equal Rights to All - Providing equal rights and establishing rule of law is
pertinent for liberty to exist in society . Giving special privileges to a certain class of
people and depriving the weaker sections of their basic rights, both are grave threats to
liberty. Similarly every man should be punished equally for the same crime. In a state “
The Law “ should be the supreme power not the man or the ruler.
• Democratic System –A democratic system has to prevail in society to provide political,
economic and civil liberty .Hence establishment of democracy becomes an essential
safeguard of liberty.
• Protection of Fundamental Rights – Some basic yet highly important rights to lead a
comfortable life in the society need to be enshrined in the constitution . Appropriate
provisions need to be incorporated to protect these rights.
• Independence of Judiciary – It is the duty of the judiciary to protect the rights of the
people as well as punish the ones who encroach the rights of another . To fulfill this task
successfully and fairly judiciary must be made independent.
• Economic Equality – The disparity between haves and have nots needs to be removed
for liberty to exist in the society . Equal and fair distribution of wealth, income and
resources and equal economic opportunities are the means to do the same.
• Freedom of Press –It is the function of the press to surveil and check the workings of the
government . Press has to be free and honest to carry out its functions properly . Media
has the power to influence public opinion an bring out the truth of the matter ,hence it
must not be a puppet in the hands of the government or the corporate groups.
15
LIBERTY AS A CONCEPT IN INDIA
The modern day understanding of the word liberty was not very common in India before
the British Raj. Liberty was mainly used to refer to spiritual liberation or “mukti” which
has completely different meaning than what we have been talking about so far.
Understanding of liberty or freedom from external forces came to us throughfrom
western legal knowledge and western thinking . It is quite ironic how the people who
subjugated India also ended up giving her citizen the idea that led to her freedom from
colonization. Mahatma Gandhi used the word “Swaraj” meaning self-government to
describe freedom and liberty . Raja Ram Mohan Roy and Jyotiba Phule tried to bring
freedom in the country in social context by raising their voices against practices such as
sati and caste system.
In today’s time Liberty is incorporated in the constitution of India in Part III under
Fundamental Rights and also protected by the Directive Principles of State Policy in Part
IV .More specifically Article 21 of the constitution talks about “Protection of Life and
Personal Liberty”.Article 21—worded in the following manner: No person shall be
deprived of his life or personal liberty except according to procedure established by
law—is the only article in the entire gamut of Fundamental Rights that does not have
exceptions or qualifications to its application. In fact, one need not even be a citizen of
India to invoke Article 21. In not demanding the criterion of citizenship, the Indian
Constitution has elevated the right to life and personal liberty to the status of a human
right.8
8
RAJEEV BHARGAVA &ASHOK ACHARYA, POLITICAL THEORY :AN INTRODUCTION 55 ( Pearson Education 2008).
16
CONCLUSION
Liberty can be called the ability to do whatever one want wants within some social and
legal restraints .Liberty is synonymous to freedom and liberation is the act of freeing
someone or something. It can be classified into two – (a) negative liberty (b) positive
liberty. Negative liberty is boundless and limitless freedom. Positive liberty puts more
emphasis on enjoying personal liberty while not obstructing another’s liberty. We
studied J S Mill’s theory of Liberty and how he supported positive liberty. Further we
discussed the relation between liberty ,license and authority. The point beyond which
liberty becomes harmful and excessive it turns into license. If the state exercises too
much control over someone’ s liberty it results in unnecessary submission to authority.
There are different dimensions of liberty – Natural , Civil , Political ,Economic ,National
and Religious . To protect these liberties we have certain safeguards like love for liberty
,vigilance of people , rule of law , democracy ,fundamental rights ,independent judiciary
,separation and decentralization of powers , economic equality and freedom of
press.These safeguard make sure freedom of individuals in a society are protected and
infringement of such freedom is punished.Lastly, we discovered how the concept of
liberty in India.The way it has mentioned in ancient texts and how the idea was defined
and propagated by some eminent personalities.The concept of liberty is also protected
under Article 21 of the Indian constitution highlighting once again the how important the
idea is in human society.
17
BIBLIOGRAPHY
• https://www.britannica.com/topic/liberty-human-rights
• https://www.yourarticlelibrary.com/essay/liberty-definition-features-types-and-essential-
safeguards-of-liberty/40364
• https://www.britannica.com/biography/John-Stuart-Mill
• https://www.politicalsciencenotes.com/articles/top-six-kinds-on-liberty-explained/282
18
PLAGIARISM REPORT
19