Human rights were highly ignored during this pandemic Here are the rights which were grossly ignored during this lockdown :
1. Freedom to movement – Article 19(1)(d) states that to
move freely throughout the territory of India. This right was brought to a
complete shutdown as migrants were not allowed to go back to their native
places or tourists who were stuck and could not go back. This contradicts the
fundamental right to move freely throughout the country
2. Freedom of speech – This right was twisted by the
Maharashtra government and claimed that criticizing the government for its
ineffective response to the pandemic is a crime. Mumbai police had released a
circular stating that you are not allowed to question or criticize he
government’s way of tackling covid-19 which will increase distrust among masses
indicating that they cannot handle criticism.
3. Freedom of equality - Between January 31 and March 22,
Air India operated five special flights to evacuate over 1,000 Indian
passengers from China, Japan and Italy. It also flew Indians, who had returned
from Iran, to the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) quarantine facilities in
Jodhpur and Jaisalmer from Delhi. The fare of certain flights were billed to the Ministry of External Affairs. However, the migrant workers were
charged extra the normal amount even though they had no income or even a roof
to stay. They were made to wait in big queues without food and water and risking thier health in the middle of this pandemic. This shows how equality works differently for the rich and the poor.
4. Right to
exploitation - This act was violated both in informal as well as informal
sector. Migrant laborers in Chennai were not paid for months and was only
getting fake promises by the officials while IT employee unions alleged that
Cognizant has laid off 18,000 employees which is a crime and a gross violation
of the act
5. Right to Education - The Constitution (Eighty-sixth
Amendment) Act, 2002 inserted Article 21-A in the Constitution of India to
provide free and compulsory education of all children in the age group of six
to fourteen years as a Fundamental Right in such a manner as the State may, by
law, determine. But because of the ongoing crisis and the starting of online classes,
it has created a digital divide as poor are unable to join online classes.
Students in Howrah and Kerala committed suicide because they were unable to
join online classes.