Article 31 of XYZ country states "No person shall be deprived of life or liberty, except according to procedure established by law." Article ABC of Indian Constitution States "No person shall be deprived of his life or personnal liberty except according to a procedure established by law." Identify XYZ & ABC from the following:

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Accepted Answer

The correct option is 3:

Students, this question tests your foundational knowledge of comparative constitutional law and the philosophical origins of fundamental rights in the Indian Constitution. The concept mentioned, "procedure established by law," is a critical phrase that governs the protection of life and personal liberty in India, enshrined in Article 21.

Article ABC of the Indian Constitution is **Article 21**. This article states: "No person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty except according to a procedure established by law." The inclusion of the phrase "procedure established by law" (as opposed to "due process of law," which is used in the US Constitution) was heavily influenced by the Constitution of **Japan**.

Article 31 of the **Japanese Constitution** (1946) is worded almost identically in spirit, stating: "No person shall be deprived of life or liberty, nor shall any other criminal penalty be imposed, except according to procedure established by law." This Japanese provision provided the direct inspiration for the wording adopted by the Constituent Assembly for Article 21. The Indian framers chose this specific phrase because, initially, they aimed for a system where legislative supremacy was emphasized; meaning, the law passed by the legislature would be sufficient, provided the procedure was formally established, limiting the judiciary's ability to question the substantive fairness of the law itself (a power inherent in "due process"). Although the landmark *Maneka Gandhi* case (1978) later expanded the interpretation of "procedure established by law" to include elements of "due process," the constitutional source and the literal wording remain tied to Article 31 of the Japanese Constitution and Article 21 of the Indian Constitution. Therefore, XYZ is Japan, and ABC is 21.

The incorrect option is 1: (United States of America, 22)

This option is incorrect primarily because of the chosen Article number for India and the phrase associated with the USA. The relevant article protecting life and personal liberty in the Indian Constitution is Article 21, not Article 22. Article 22 deals with the protection against arrest and detention in certain cases. Furthermore, while the concept of fundamental rights in India draws heavily from the US Bill of Rights, the US Constitution uses the phrase "due process of law" (found in the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments), not "procedure established by law." This difference in wording is crucial and deliberate, marking a distinction between the two constitutional traditions.

The incorrect option is 2: (United States of America, 21)

Although this option correctly identifies the Indian Article as 21, it incorrectly identifies the source country as the United States of America. As mentioned above, the US Constitution utilizes the term "due process of law" regarding the deprivation of life, liberty, or property. While this US concept influenced the judicial interpretation of Article 21 over time, the actual text used by the Constituent Assembly—"procedure established by law"—was borrowed from the Japanese Constitution. Hence, linking the *wording* of Article 21 directly to the US Constitution is factually inaccurate.

The incorrect option is 4: (Japan, 22)

This option correctly identifies the source country as Japan (XYZ), but incorrectly identifies the Indian Article number as 22. Article 22 addresses protection against arbitrary arrest and detention, including rights like being informed of the grounds for arrest and the right to legal counsel, and does not contain the clause "No person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty except according to a procedure established by law." That specific protection is exclusively contained within Article 21 of the Indian Constitution, making the linkage with Article 22 wrong.