1. Public interest petition seeking rehabilitation of destitute widows to ensure their right to live with dignity under Article 21 of the Constitution. (Para 1 , 2 )
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2017 Supreme(SC) 724
SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
Madan B. Lokur, Deepak Gupta, JJ.
Environment and Consumer Protection Foundation – Petitioner
Versus
Union of India & Ors. – Respondents
WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) NO. 659 of 2007 WITH WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) NO. 168 of 2012 AND WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) NO. 133 of 2012
Decided On : 11-08-2017
Important Points
IMPORTANT POINT
Committee constituted by Supreme Court to study the reports filed before it in connection with plight of widows. Committee also requested to deliberate on the issue of widow remarriage.
Committee constituted by Supreme Court to study the reports filed before it in connection with plight of widows. Committee also requested to deliberate on the issue of widow remarriage.
Subject
Public Interest Litigation - Social Justice
Act Referred
Headnote
(a) Social justice – Plight of widows living in aashrams – Committee constituted by Supreme Court to study the reports filed before it – Committee also requested to deliberate on the issue of widow remarriage. (Para 11, 12, 13)
(b) Constitution of India – Articles 32 and 226 r/w Article 21 – PIL – Need and Advantages – Empowering economically weaker sections of society – Also empowering those suffering from social disabilities that may not necessarily be of their making – PIL can also espouse cause of the socially underprivileged groups, widows being one of them. (Para 15, 16, 18)
(1982) 3 SCC 235; (2010) 3 SCC 402; (2011) 8 SCC 568 – Relied upon
Facts of the case:
These PILs espouse the cause of widows living in different Aashrams.
Finding of the Court:
Plight of the widows who are socially underprivileged must be addressed.
Result: Committee constituted to go into the various reports submitted before Supreme Court.
Legal Category Hierarchy
Table of Contents
2. Petitioner sought government rehabilitation for destitute widows; government proposed an action plan covering data collection, welfare schemes, and infrastructure improvements. (Para 2 , 5 , 10 )
3. Destitute widows constitute a socially disadvantaged class entitled to constitutional protection, and PILs serve as a vital tool for empowering the voiceless. (Para 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 )
4. Superior courts possess a constitutional duty to protect the fundamental rights and dignity of marginalized and socially underprivileged sections through genuine public interest litigation. (Para 14 , 17 )
5. Approval of an Agreed Action Plan for widow rehabilitation and constitution of a Committee to formulate a common working plan based on existing reports. (Para 10 , 11 )
6. What is the purpose and scope of Public Interest Litigation (PIL) according to the court?
PIL is intended to promote and vindicate public interest by ensuring that violations of constitutional or legal rights of poor, ignorant, or socially and economically disadvantaged persons do not go unredressed, thereby upholding the rule of law. (Para 14 )
7. What is the constitutional duty of superior courts regarding marginalized groups?
Superior courts have a constitutional duty to entertain petitions from genuine social groups and NGOs to protect the basic and fundamental rights of deprived sections of society, ensuring every individual is able to live with dignity. (Para 17 )
8. How does the court categorize destitute widows in the context of social justice?
The court identifies destitute widows as a socially disadvantaged class suffering from social disabilities and ostracization, making them eligible for empowerment and protection through judicial intervention to give voice to the hapless. (Para 15 , 18 )
JUDGMENT
Madan B. Lokur, J.
1. These petitions were filed and taken up in public interest are intended to bring back some sunshine in the lives of the widows in Vrindavan and in ashrams elsewhere in the country. It is a pity that these widows have been so unfortunately dealt with, as if they have ceased to be entitled to live a life of dignity and as if they are not entitled to the protection of Article 21 of the Constitution.
2. The petitioner, Environment and Consumer Protection Foundation is a registered charitable society and a non-political body. It filed a petition under Article 32 of the Constitution essentially for an appropriate writ requiring the Union of India and the State of Uttar Pradesh to take all steps to rehabilitate the widows of Vrindavan so as to bring them to a stage where they can live with dignity.
3. The petition was filed on the basis of an article ‘White Shadows of Vrindavan’ written by Atul Sethi and published in the New Delhi edition of the Times of India of 25th March, 2007. The apparent intention of the article was to report and bring to the notice of the public and the government agencies the pathetic and shocking conditions of the widows living in Vrindavan -begging in temples and then huddling together in hovels. Broadly speaking, the article described the city of Vrindavan in which abandoned widows live a hand to mouth existence like white shadows thus giving the city another name that is the City of Widows. According to the author no one knows since when these widows have been coming to Vrindavan but most of them are from West Bengal and their life stories oftenfollow a similar pattern which is the death of the husband, relatives leaving them in Vrindavan, days spent singing prayers and begging at temples where they live on a day to day basis. Most widows refuse to go back to their village or home, even if they are given a chance to do so, saying that now this is our home.
4. According to the author, the widows congregate in some ashrams or temples where they sing bhajans and are paid about Rs. 18 per day for about 7 to 8 hours of singing. The rest of their time is spent begging on the streets. Many of them are too old to look after themselves requiring others to pool in their resources to look after them. Overall, the article paints a rather tragic and dismal picture of the living conditions of the widows in Vrindavan.
5. On reading the article, the petitioner addressed a letter to the District Magistrate in Mathura and brought to his notice its contents and sought further information on what was stated therein. A reply was sent to the petitioner to the effect that necessary steps were being taken to improve the living condition of the widows. There was some correspondence in this regard for a couple of months but to no real effect. It is this sequence of events that persuaded the petitioner to file a petition in this Court with the prayer as aforesaid.
6. This Court took up the petition in public interest and passed certain significant directions. For example, on 14th November, 2008 the National Commission for Women was directed to prepare a comprehensive report on the problems faced by the widows. It was also directed that the report should contain the age groups of the widows, their family background and all other information relevant for the purposes of this case.
7. On 1st April, 2011 the Ministry of Women and Child Development in the Government of India was impleaded as one of the respondents and on 9th May, 2012 this Court directed that in order to mitigate the miseries of the widows, a Special Committee should be constituted to undertake an exercise of identification and enumeration of the destitute in Vrindavan -both those having shelter and those wandering in the streets without any shelter. The Committee was required to collect complete data of the widows including the reason for their shifting to Vrindavan and particulars about their family and their present source of income.
8. S
