11th Dr LM Singhvi Memorial Lecture: Human dignity is soul of Constitution, says CJI BR Gavai

Describing human dignity as the soul of the Constitution, Chief Justice of India BR Gavai on Wednesday said it’s a pervasive principle that underlined the very spirit and philosophy of the Constitution, shaping the core values of liberty, equality, fraternity and justice articulated in the Preamble.

Delivering the 11th Dr LM Singhvi Memorial Lecture on ‘Human Dignity as the Soul of the Constitution: Judicial Reflections in the 21st Century’ here, the CJI said, “Dignity serves as a guiding principle that connects rights, allowing the judiciary to develop a coherent and holistic framework for constitutional adjudication.”

He said, “By anchoring constitutional interpretation in dignity, the Supreme Court has ensured that the Constitution remains a living instrument, capable of responding to evolving societal challenges while remaining faithful to its foundational values.”

Quoting from the Supreme Court’s historic verdict on right to privacy in KS Puttaswamy versus Union of India (2017), CJI Gavai said, “To live is to live with dignity...Dignity is the core which unites the fundamental rights because the fundamental rights seek to achieve for each individual the dignity of existence.”

Describing Dr LM Singhvi as a multi-faceted personality, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla heaped praise on him for his immense contributions in the fields of law, politics, literature, diplomacy and environment.

Justice Gavai talked about several judgments of the Supreme Court on various aspects of human dignity that has shaped Indian jurisprudence in the last 75 years.

In this context, CJI Gavai mentioned Vishakha versus State of Rajasthan (1997) in which the Supreme Court laid down a set of guidelines to prevent sexual harassment against women at the workplace. He said in that judgment, “It was held that gender equality includes protection from sexual harassment and right to work with dignity, which is a universally recognised basic human right.”

The CJI passionately spoke about a recent verdict in which the top court banned the ‘inhuman’ practice of hand-pulled rickshaws in Matheran, Maharashtra. "Permitting such a practice, which is against the basic concept of human dignity in a country like India... belittles the constitutional promises of social and economic justice,” a Bench led by CJI Gavai had said last month.

He also talked about guidelines issued by a Bench led by him in 2024 on demolition of alleged illegal structures. “Having a house or a roof over one’s head gives satisfaction to any person…It gives a sense of dignity and a sense of belonging,” the CJI said, quoting from his verdict.

Justice Gavai also quoted from the top court’s verdict in Suchita Srivastava versus Chandigarh Administration (2009) in which the top court declared that woman’s right to make reproductive choices was an essential facet of ‘personal liberty’ under Article 21 of the Constitution and emphasised that “reproductive autonomy encompasses both the decision to procreate and the choice to refrain from procreation, and that the fundamental considerations are the protection of a woman’s privacy, dignity, and bodily integrity.”

Dr LM Singhvi’s son and senior advocate AM Singhvi and OP Jindal Global University Vice Chancellor Prof C Raj Kumar also hailed his contributions, including the coining of words such as ‘Lokpal’ and ‘Lokayukta’ in the 1960s – much before the Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act was enacted in 2013.

The function was attended by a large number of judges, lawyers, politicians, diplomats and law students.