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In Francis Coralie Mullin v. Administrator, Union Territory of Delhi (1981), the Supreme Court held that right to life under Article 21 means right to live with human dignity, including adequate nutrition, clothing, shelter, and facilities for reading, writing, and expressing oneself.
- True
- False
Answer: True
Francis Coralie (1981) right to life and human dignity: (a) Context: Petition regarding conditions of preventive detainees in Tihar Jail; issue of minimum standards for humane treatment under Article 21, (b) Supreme Court holding: (i) Right to life under Article 21 means right to live with human dignity, not mere animal existence, (ii) Includes bare necessities: Adequate nutrition, clothing, shelter, (iii) Includes facilities for development: Reading, writing, expressing oneself, social interaction, (iv) Procedural safeguards: Protection from torture, access to legal aid, family visits, medical care, (c) Applications: (i) Prison conditions: Directions for humane treatment, rehabilitation programs, vocational training, (ii) Detention facilities: Standards for preventive detention, undertrial detention to ensure dignity, rights protection, (iii) Social welfare: Basis for recognizing right to food, shelter, healthcare as part of Article 21, (d) Subsequent developments: (i) Rights expansion: Francis Coralie foundation for expanding Article 21 to include privacy, health, environment, livelihood, education, (ii) Socio-economic rights: Judicial recognition of right to food (PUCL case), shelter (Olga Tellis), healthcare (Paschim Banga) as part of Article 21, (e) Rationale: (i) Dignity: Human worth essential to constitutional identity; Article 21 interpreted to protect dignity in all state-citizen interactions, (ii) Holistic rights: Right to life encompasses physical, mental, social, spiritual dimensions of human existence, (iii) Positive obligation: State must take affirmative steps to realize dignity, not just refrain from violation, (f) Illustrates transformative constitutionalism: Article 21 interpreted to impose positive obligations on State for human dignity; judicial enforcement enables realization of socio-economic rights through State action, institutional mechanisms.