Author: Soutric Mallick, University of Calcutta

Dissent is a fundamental pillar of any democracy. Citizens often adopt protest as a method of expressing their dissent, dissatisfaction and defiance against those in power. It represents a collective effort to demand that authorities address specific grievances. Generally, protesters are the individuals who bear the brunt injustice, policy failure, and neglect.

By participating in a protest, a person exercises a variety of universally recognized human rights. Since the state is the guarantor of these fundamental rights, it is, by extension, the guarantor of the right to protest. Ultimately, when exercised effectively, protests serve as a powerful catalyst for positive social change.

It is often said that the roots of the present lie embodied in the past. The historical experiences of Indian people are laden with repressive and discriminatory policies imposed on them by earlier rulers. From the 19^th century socio-religious revivalist movements, the launching of the liberation movement against colonial rule and the famous Chipko movement in the 20^th century, to the farmers' protest and the Shaheen bag protest, dissent has remained constant. This has not only influenced the social and political outlook of the people but also added new dimensions to the form and pattern of protest and dissent. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, father of the Indian nation, taught Indian citizens how to protest peacefully. Whether it was the Swadeshi Movement of 1905 or the Satyagraha of 1930, these movements have shaped the history of the nation through peaceful protests against colonialism. 

Since the British withdrawal a panoply of democratic procedures for influencing government has been introduced. However, issues like inequality within the populace continue to go unaddressed. Until representation of people across caste and class is ensured, governments will continue to struggle to connect with the masses. A section of society will continue to feel underrepresented and neglected, even if the separation is based upon indigenous social division rather than upon foreign conquest and race. Consequently, in the psyche of the common man, a basic suspicion persists that the government is alien and elite. If the government fails to implement appropriate policies to address the issues plaguing the country and the society at large, its incompetence is bound to trigger anger among the citizens, this anger and helplessness manifest itself in form large protests. That is exactly why, there are still instances of massive protests taking place in various parts of the country like the Shaheen bag protests, farmers protest and the recent protests demanding a better AQI in the national capital. 

Article 19(1)(a) of the Indian Constitution provides the right to freedom of speech and expression, under Article 19(b), the right to assemble peacefully without arms and under 19(1)(c) right to form associations or unions are provided to the Indian Citizens. These three rights are inextricably linked, more so in context of protest, although the word protest is not explicitly mentioned in the fundamental rights of the constitution, it is impliedly derived by interpreting Article 19. However, unlike the United States, the right to freedom of speech and expression in India is not absolute. It is subject to reasonable restrictions mentioned in Article 19(1)(a), which can be in the interests of public order, defamation or incitement to violence, security of the State, sovereignty and integrity of India, decency or morality or in relation to contempt of court, friendly relations with foreign States. The freedom to demonstrate and express dissent is protected by the Constitution, but it is accompanied by Fundamental Duties such as Article 51A, which state that every citizen has a fundamental responsibility to defend public property and to abjure violence. The extent of this freedom depends on the legal contestation of what constitutes reasonable restrictions on Article 19(1)(a), historically a lot of political expression and dissent have been suppressed under the guise of public order. In the Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan (MKSS) vs. Union of India (2018), the Supreme Court discussed the conflict between the right to protest, and the right of the common man to enjoy a life without interference by protests. The Court elaborated that the right to protest must be balanced with every person’s right to life, guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution. The Court emphasised on how during demonstrations, the principle of balancing the interests of residents in an area as opposed to the interests of protesters must be done.

Protests are a sign of a healthy democracy. It helps to bring in positive social change; In India, protests have ushered in many important changes some recent examples include:

Chipko movement:  It was a peaceful protest against the cutting of trees in the valley, which began in the 1970s in Uttarakhand and spread to parts of Uttar Pradesh. Women participated in huge numbers and successfully influenced national policy, culminating in Prime Minister Indira Gandhi issuing a 15-year ban on green felling in the Himalayan forests of Uttar Pradesh in 1980.

Jan Lokpal movement: It was a non-violent anti- corruption movement which started off at the Jantar Mantar, New Delhi where Anna Hazare, an activist, went on a hunger strike on 5^th April 2011. The demand was the implementation of the Jan Lokpal bill, an anti-corruption bill proposed by the protesters. The core objectives of the bill included, tackling corruption, establishing an independent ombudsman institution, Lokpal and lokyuktas at the central and state levels respectively, it also aimed to expedite the process of corruption investigation by assigning a standard time limit. It garnered massive public support and despite various disruptions it led to the passage of the Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act in 2013.

Shaheen bag protest: it was a peaceful protest led by majority Muslim women against the CAA (citizenship amendment act) and the NRC (national register of citizens). It began on 15^th December 2019 in New Delhi and spanned till 101 days. It drew large crowds, with some days seeing over 150,000 attendees, and inspired similar protests across India in cities like Kolkata, Mumbai, and Bengaluru. The protest was a response to the perceived anti-muslim policies by the government which went against the secular spirit of the Indian Constitution. The aim of the protest was the revocation of CAA however the covid 19 restrictions by the government made the Protestors abandon their quest for the sake of public safety and to minimise the spread of the pandemic. The protest did not achieve its goal, however the coming together of people for a single cause sent a clear message about the collective identity and secular spirit of Indians.

The straightforward answer to the question of whether the Constitution allows citizens to protest is yes. However, while the right to protest is a fundamental right derived from the Constitution, it is subject to 'reasonable restrictions.' The Constitution does not explicitly list 'protest' as a standalone right; rather, it implies it through the freedoms of speech and assembly.

Unfortunately, this right is frequently misunderstood as a license to inconvenience the general public. Protesters who claim to espouse the public cause often forget that their right to protest ends where another person's right to free movement and right 'not to listen' begins. As noted in various judgements, the Constitution’s 'reasonable restrictions' and fundamental duties ensure that one citizen's dissent does not transgress the rights of others, thereby preserving public order. There is a fine line between protecting basic human rights and ensuring public safety. The government and the courts must walk a tightrope, defining the contours of human rights without endangering public order. Fundamentally, protesting is an act of defiance involving strong emotions; therefore, situations can easily turn volatile. Hence, during a protest, if ever faced with the question 'to be or not to be violent,' one must choose to be non-violent.

1. Indian constitution article 19, 51A

2. Liang, L. (2017) ‘Free speech and expression’, The Oxford Handbook of the Indian Constitution, pp. 814–833. doi:10.1093/law/9780198704898.003.0045.

3. Sahin (no date) Right to protest in India: Legal service india - law articles - legal resources, Legal Service India - Law, Lawyers and Legal Resources. Available at: https://www.legalserviceindia.com/legal/article-7887-right-to-protest-in-india.html (Accessed: 15 December 2025). 

4. Bayley, D.H. (1962) ‘The Pedagogy of Democracy: Coercive Public Protest in India’, American Political Science Review, 56(3), pp. 663–672. doi:10.2307/1952498.

5. Everything you need to know about your right to protest (2022) Nyaaya. Available at: https://nyaaya.org/nyaaya-weekly/everything-you-need-to-know-about-your-right-to-protest/ (Accessed: 15 December 2025).

6. Khurana, A. (2022) Three years after Shaheen Bagh: Why the anti-CAA protests were an inflection point in Indian feminism, The Indian Express. Available at: https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/years-shaheen-bagh-anti-caa-protests-indian-feminism-8332876/ (Accessed: 19 December 2025).

7. (2018) Mazdoor Kisan shakti sanghatan vs Union of India on 23 July, 2018. Available at: https://indiankanoon.org/doc/80616728/ (Accessed: 15 December 2025). 

8. (2018b) The government of Tamil nadu vs p.ayyakannu. Available at: https://indiankanoon.org/doc/183428196/ (Accessed: 15 December 2025).