Definition & Meaning of Human Rights — Human Rights Law Notes

Definition & Meaning of Human Rights

Ask five people to define human rights and you get five answers — which is exactly why Parliament, in the Protection of Human Rights Act 1993, wrote one binding definition into statute. When an exam wants a definition, that statutory line is the safest sentence you can put on the page.

Human rights are the rights inherent to all human beings simply because they are human — held without distinction of nationality, sex, race, religion or any other status. They are commonly described by four defining traits: universal (everyone holds them), inalienable (they cannot be surrendered or taken away), inherent (they belong by birth, not State grant), and indivisible (no right is dispensable). Alongside academic definitions, keep the Indian statutory definition ready — it is precise, citable, and marks-earning.

🧩 WORKED EXAMPLE — a 5-mark definition answer

Facts. A 5-mark short note: “Define human rights.”

Rule. Give one definition, then three or four characteristics — no more.

Apply. State the s.2(1)(d) PHRA definition, then add: inherent, universal, inalienable, indivisible, each in a phrase.

Conclusion. Definition plus four traits fills a 5-mark answer completely without padding.

Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993, s.2(1)(d): “‘human rights’ means the rights relating to life, liberty, equality and dignity of the individual guaranteed by the Constitution or embodied in the International Covenants and enforceable by courts in India.”

In Simple Terms: In Indian law a “human right” is any right to life, liberty, equality or dignity that either the Constitution guarantees or a covenant embodies, and that a court here can enforce. It ties the abstract idea to two concrete anchors and a remedy.

flowchart TD
    A["HUMAN RIGHTS<br/>rights held simply by being human"]:::root
    A --> B["Inherent<br/>by birth, not State grant"]:::leaf
    A --> C["Universal<br/>everyone, everywhere"]:::leaf
    A --> D["Inalienable<br/>cannot be surrendered"]:::leaf
    A --> E["Indivisible<br/>no right is dispensable"]:::leaf
    A --> F["Enforceable<br/>PHRA 1993 s.2(1)(d)"]:::leaf
    classDef root fill:#FFF8DC,stroke:#000,stroke-width:1px,color:#000;
    classDef leaf fill:#E6F3FF,stroke:#1E3A8A,color:#000;
    linkStyle default stroke:#888,stroke-width:1px;

Case Laws

• Chairman, Railway Board v Chandrima Das (2000) — human rights, being inherent, extend even to non-citizens on Indian soil.

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