Former union minister Meenakshi Lekhi on Wednesday said fundamental duties are playing an important role in shaping the character of the nation.
Speaking at a workshop organised by the Institute of Constitutional and Parliamentary Studies (ICPS), New Delhi and South Asian University (SAU) on the topic ‘Empowering Youth with Constitutional Values and Fundamental Duties’ here, Lekhi said the purpose of Constitutional values is to balance individual interests and collective aspirations.
The former Union Minister of State for External Affairs said to empower the youth with Constitutional values and fundamental duties, it is necessary to make the teachings and principles of the Constitution universal.
Lekhi said Constitutional values and fundamental duties make the citizens of India responsible for democratic conduct and parliamentary behaviour.
Addressing the workshop, Director of the ICPS Seema Kaul Singh said, “Fundamental duties have been prescribed to promote positive citizenship and maintain the values of the Constitution, along with increasing the spirit of patriotism, national unity and brotherhood among the citizens of the country.”
During the workshop, SAU Assistant Professor Balram Prasad Raut said, “If the values, rights and duties of any country are put into practice by the citizens and institutions there, then it will help in maintaining that country as a secular, democratic republic. This is the reason why the citizens of a huge nation like India consider the Constitution as the soul of the country and Parliament as the temple of democracy.”
Former Joint Secretary of Lok Sabha Secretariat Ravindra Garimella said that fundamental duties reflect the commitment of citizens to strengthen the nation.