Citizenship not just about rights but duties towards society too: CJI Bobde

NAGPUR: Amid the ongoing protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act in several parts of the country, Chief Justice of India (CJI) Sharad Bobde on Saturday said that citizenship was not just about people’s rights, but also about their duties towards the society.

“You all have a responsibility to be an active citizen too and citizenship is not just about rights but it is equally about your duties towards society,” said Bobde at the 107th convocation of the Rashtrasant Tukadoji Maharaj Nagpur University (RTMNU).

Emphasising on the value of justice, he said, “I have always believed that donating justice is a sacred duty. It is a natural right for every person in the country to get justice. Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar reiterated this fact not only from the Constitution but also from the 1956 revolution. The imagination of justice varies from person to person, time, and situation. It cannot be tied in any one frame.”

“What is justified today may not be justified tomorrow. But it is okay to expect justice and use appropriate tools for it. Along with the imagination of justice, rights and duties are equally important. Some people think that they only have rights and no duties. According to me, along with rights, duty is equally important,” he said.

The CJI added that “if we do not follow our duties then there will be an imbalance in the society.”

Protests broke out in different parts of the country against and in support of CAA which grants citizenship to Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Parsis, Buddhists and Christians fleeing religious persecution from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh and who came to India on or before December 31, 2014.