1. Write in your own words what you understand by the term the 'rule of law'.
In your response include a fictitious or real example of a violation of the
rule of law.
Answer
Law is a system of rules, usually imposed through a Government or Institution
and is applied to govern a group people. It shapes politics,economics and
society in numerous ways.
The most common example of a violation of the rule of law can be seen on the
roads. Motorists and
pedestrians do not follow the traffic rules. Motorists do not adhere to speed
limits nor do they stop
behind the line at traffic signals. Pedestrians rarely use the zebra crossing
and cross the road at will
causing harm not only to themselves but also to other road users.
2. State two reasons why historians refute the claim that the British
introduced the rule of law in India.
Answer
The two reasons why historians refute the claim that the British introduced the
Rule of Law in India are
→ Colonial law was arbitrary, e.g. Sedition Act of 1870
→ Indian nationalists played a prominent role in the development of the legal
sphere in British India.
3. Re-read the storyboard on how a new law on domestic violence got passed.
Describe in your own
words the different ways in which women's groups worked to make this
happen.
Answer
Women's groups worked hard and untiringly towards the passing of the new law on
domestic violence in India. They used different forums like public protests,
hearings, meetings with other organizations, press conferences and petitions to
the government to introduce a new reformed bill on domestic violence to include
demands like monetary relief and protection against being evicted from the
shared household.
While earlier, domestic violence only entailed "injury or harm or threat of
injury or harm" by an adult
male against a woman. The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act 2005
extended to include physical, economic, sexual, verbal and emotional abuse.
4. Write in your own words what you understand by the following sentence on
page 44-45: They also began fighting for greater equality and wanted to change
the idea of law from a set of rules that they were forced to obey, to law as
including ideas of justice.
Answer
This line refers to the protests of Indian nationalists against the violation of
the rule of law by British
authorities. Indians were discriminated against in their own country by the
British colonists and the
Sedition Act of 1870 was the most prolific example of the breach of the rule of
law. This Act was
remonstrated against by Indian freedom fighters in favour of a more just set of
rules based on ideals of equality.
Many Indians began to practice the legal profession and used it to demand and
gain equal rights for all.
Thus, Indians played a major role in the evolution of the rule of law during
times of colonial rule.