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Article 39A, inserted by the 42nd Amendment (1976), directs the State to secure equal justice and provide free legal aid to ensure that opportunities for securing justice are not denied to any citizen by reason of economic or other disabilities.
- True
- False
Answer: True
Article 39A equal justice and legal aid: (a) Text: State shall secure equal justice and provide free legal aid to ensure opportunities for securing justice not denied to any citizen by reason of economic or other disabilities, (b) 42nd Amendment context: Added during Emergency period; reflected commitment to access to justice for marginalized groups, (c) Operationalization: (i) Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987: Established NALSA, State/District Legal Services Authorities to provide free legal aid, (ii) Lok Adalats: Alternative dispute resolution mechanism for speedy, affordable justice, (iii) PIL: Relaxed locus standi enables public-spirited persons to file cases for marginalized groups unable to approach courts, (d) Applications: (i) Hussainara Khatoon (1979): Recognized right to speedy trial, free legal aid for poor accused as part of Article 21, (ii) Undertrial release: Legal aid enabled release of thousands of undertrials detained longer than maximum sentence, (iii) Awareness: Legal literacy programs empower citizens to claim rights, access justice, (e) Illustrates transformative justice: Article 39A operationalizes substantive equality in access to justice; balance between legal framework, institutional capacity, public awareness essential for realizing constitutional vision of equal justice for all.