Article 21 and Police Use of Force

Article 21 guarantees every person the right to life and personal liberty, except according to procedure established by law. It protects not merely survival but also dignity and bodily integrity; therefore, police force that is arbitrary, excessive, or unsupported by law can violate this guarantee.

Constitutional standard

In Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India (1978), the Supreme Court held that a procedure restricting life or liberty must be just, fair, and reasonable, not arbitrary or oppressive. Police action must consequently satisfy legality, necessity, fairness, and proportionality.

• Force must have statutory authority and pursue a legitimate law-enforcement purpose.
• The degree of force must not exceed what is reasonably necessary to meet the actual threat.
• Police powers remain subject to Article 14 against arbitrariness and, during assemblies, Article 19(1)(b) protecting peaceful assembly.

Application to crowd control and police action

Article 21 does not prohibit all police force. It requires the police to distinguish peaceful conduct from violence, assess the immediacy and seriousness of danger, and use the least harmful effective response reasonably available.

• Warnings, an opportunity to disperse, calibrated escalation, and prompt medical assistance strengthen procedural fairness where circumstances permit.
• Indiscriminate or punitive force, including force continued after the threat has ended, is incompatible with necessity and proportionality.
• Potentially lethal force requires the strongest justification because the State cannot deprive life except through constitutionally valid procedure.

Accountability and remedies

In D.K. Basu v. State of West Bengal (1997), the Supreme Court prescribed safeguards against custodial abuse. Nilabati Behera v. State of Orissa (1993) recognised public-law compensation for violation of Article 21, while PUCL v. State of Maharashtra (2014) laid down safeguards for investigating police encounter deaths.

• The Supreme Court and High Courts may grant constitutional remedies under Articles 32 and 226, including compensation in appropriate cases.
• Investigation, judicial scrutiny, criminal liability, and disciplinary proceedings may follow depending on the facts and applicable law.

How UPSC asks this