In which year it was inserted in the Constitution of India that the State shall secure free legal aid to any citizen by reason of economic or other disabilities ?

Correct — option (2), 1976.

The provision in the stem is Article 39A, "Equal justice and free legal aid", a Directive Principle in Part IV. It directs the State to provide free legal aid so that opportunities for securing justice "are not denied to any citizen by reason of economic or other disabilities".

Article 39A was not in the Constitution as adopted. It was inserted by section 8 of the Constitution (Forty-second Amendment) Act, 1976.

The same Act inserted Article 43A (workers' participation in management), Article 48A (protection of environment, forests and wild life) and Part IVA, the Fundamental Duties in Article 51A.

Keep the year of the Act apart from the date it took effect. The Forty-second Amendment Act is of 1976, which is the year RPSC's key accepts; the insertion of Article 39A came into force on 3 January 1977.

Why the others are wrong

• (1)
  1978 — 1978 is the year of the Constitution (Forty-fourth Amendment) Act, 1978, which undid several changes of the Emergency years.

  Among other things, it omitted the right to property from Part III — Article 31 and Article 19(1)(f) — and inserted Article 300A. It did not insert Article 39A, which the Forty-second Amendment had already added.

• (3)
  1975 — 1975 is the year the internal Emergency was proclaimed and the year of the Constitution (Thirty-ninth Amendment) Act, 1975.

  That Act inserted Article 329A, a special provision on disputes over the election of the Prime Minister and the Speaker, with effect from 10 August 1975. Article 39A came a year later, through the Forty-second Amendment Act.

• (4)
  1979 — 1979 is a commencement year, not the year of an Act that inserted Article 39A. Most of the Forty-fourth Amendment's changes took effect on 20 June 1979, including the omission of the right to property from Part III.

  The free legal aid provision had been in force since 3 January 1977, inserted by the Forty-second Amendment Act of 1976.

Article 39A belongs to the Directive Principles of State Policy in Part IV. Under Article 37 these are not enforceable by any court, but they are fundamental in the governance of the country and the State must apply them in making laws.

Article 39A asks the State to ensure that the legal system promotes justice on a basis of equal opportunity, and in particular to provide free legal aid by legislation, schemes or other means.

Parliament gave this effect through the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987, which came into force on 9 November 1995. The National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) is constituted under it; the Chief Justice of India is its Patron-in-Chief.

Key facts

• Article 39A, "Equal justice and free legal aid", was inserted by the Constitution (Forty-second Amendment) Act, 1976, with effect from 3 January 1977.
• The Forty-second Amendment Act also inserted Articles 43A and 48A and Part IVA (Fundamental Duties, Article 51A).
• The Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987 came into force on 9 November 1995.
• NALSA is constituted under the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987; the Chief Justice of India is its Patron-in-Chief.
• The Forty-fourth Amendment Act, 1978 omitted the right to property from Part III with effect from 20 June 1979.

Common traps

• The Act's year and its commencement date differ: Article 39A was inserted by an Act of 1976 but took effect on 3 January 1977.
• 1978 and 1979 both belong to the Forty-fourth Amendment — the year of the Act and the year most of it took effect — not to Article 39A.
• Free legal aid sits in Part IV (Directive Principles), not Part III. Article 22(1) gives the right to consult a lawyer, which is a different provision.

UnlockIAS will link similar questions from RAS Pre 2023, 2021 and 2016 here once those papers are published on this site.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  Which of the following was NOT inserted in the Constitution of India by the Constitution (Forty-second Amendment) Act, 1976?

  • (a)Article 39A
  • (b)Article 48A
  • (c)Article 51A
  • (d)Article 21A
  Answer(4) — Article 21A, the right to education, was inserted by the Constitution (Eighty-sixth Amendment) Act, 2002. Option (1), Article 39A (free legal aid), option (2), Article 48A (environment, forests and wild life), and option (3), Article 51A (Fundamental Duties), were all inserted by the Forty-second Amendment Act, 1976.
• practice — not a real PYQ

  Under which Article of the Constitution of India does the State have the directive to provide free legal aid?

  • (a)Article 39A
  • (b)Article 41
  • (c)Article 42
  • (d)Article 45
  Answer(1) — Article 39A is "Equal justice and free legal aid". Option (2), Article 41, covers the right to work, to education and to public assistance in certain cases. Option (3), Article 42, covers just and humane conditions of work and maternity relief. Option (4), Article 45, covers early childhood care and education for children below six.