Article 18 of the Indian Constitution deals with the abolition of titles. This article of the Constitution 1950 is about the titles. The titles are used to differentiate the rank of an individual by pinning inferiority complexes upon other people. Because of this, the constitutional assembly agreed to eliminate such drafted Article inequality. Check out this entire blog and learn everything about one of the most important articles of the Constitution of India.
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Article 18 Of The Indian Constitution
(1) No title, not being a military or academic distinction, shall be conferred by the State.
(2) No citizen of India shall accept any title from any foreign State.
(3) No person who is not a citizen of India shall, while he holds any office of profit or trust under the State, accept without the consent of the President any title from any foreign state.
(4) No person holding any office of profit or trust under the State shall, without the consent of the President, accept any present, emolument, or office of any kind from or under any foreign state.
Also read: What Is Article 20 Of The Indian Constitution?
What Does Article 18 Of The Indian Constitution Provide
Article 18 of the Indian Constitution provides for the prohibition of title recognition and conferment in India. This article does not safeguard any fundamental rights but rather limits executive and legislative jurisdiction.
However, this article does not provide any penalty for the violation of the provisions that are contained therein. This article does not prohibit the State from conferring military or academic distinctions on any individual.
As per the source, clauses 3 and 4 have been officially added in Article 18 of the Constitution of India with a point of view that a person not being a citizen of India should just remain loyal to the state and that person should not commit the breach of trust reposed in him.
Famous Case Law of Article 18 of The Indian Constitution
Balaji Raghavan v. Union Of India (1996)
In this case, the Supreme Court held that the National Awards do not amount to titles in the meaning of Article 18 (1) of the Consitution of India. They should not be used as prefixes and suffixes.
A committee was officially set up by the Indian government in which it claimed that awards should be given based on the recommendations of names that are given by several state governments. These recommendations should be reviewed by the central government.
