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Rawls’s Concept Of Social Justice – Philosophy Notes – For W.B.C.S. Examination.
Social justice refers to justice in terms distribution of resources, opportunities and privileges within the society.Continue Reading Rawls’s Concept Of Social Justice – Philosophy Notes – For W.B.C.S. Examination.
John Rawl’s concept of social justice is explained as follows: When a person is asked to frame rules for his society, he will choose rules that suit his interests more often than choosing rules based on morality.
However, if the person who is asked to frame the rules is unaware of his position in the society(veil of ignorance), he will frame rules such that worse off as well as privileged sections of the society will get justice, because he might belong to any section. John Rawl felt that in this way, social justice will be ensured by rational thinking rather than by ambiguous notions of morality.
It can be applied in the indian context in the form of reservations in public jobs for dalits, disabled etc. Because of their worse-off position in the society, they need to be provided with reservations to ensure justice in opportunities. However, the amount of reservation must not be too high so that the privileged sections are excluded from opportunities. Hence, john Rawls concept of social justice has helped in ensuring social justice.
John Rawl’s concept of social justice means to take decision through veil of ignorance. Veil of ignorance means to imagine ourselves in a condition where we don’t know our position in terms of caste, religion, gender etc and then take decision. The concept here is that when we don’t know our position then it is more likely that we take rational decision for collective benefit of society.
This concept in India context finds following application:
1)Reservation Issue: That whether demand of some high caste to get reservation is valid or not. We can also look any amendment in present reservation policy according to it.
2)Environment: To maintain balance between biodiversity and development. eg: Increase in length of Eco-sensitive zones.
3)Economy: Like increase in FDI, monetary policy or even present demonetization issue.
4)Traditions: We can also check the various traditions and custom like jalikattu, entry of women in certain temples or religious places etc.
5)Others : Similarly whereas other issues like defence expenditure, progressive taxation, foreign policy with different nations, censorship etc
Overall, John Rawl through his veil of ignorance provides us an opportunity to solve various matters in impartial and rational way. It has the potential to increase the transparency in system through proper effort. Time is right that we take aid of his theory and come at suitable solution in different ongoing issue.
Social justice is a fair and just relation between individual and society.John Rawls was famous political philospher has shaped the concept of social justice to constitute a society based on social contract under which people freely enter into an agreement to have certain sets of rules & regulation which allow equal access of everyone to all resource & rights in order to have betterment of every member of society, without, thinking about the implication of such rules & regulation on their own selfish interest & privileges.This is also as veil of ignorance.It forms basis of egalitarian society & distributive justice where interest of least vulnerable section is secured
Indian society is highly stratified in nature with high socio-economic inequalities like class/caste conflict, gender biases,etc.Thus, John Rawls’s concept of social justice can help to bring socio-economic balance society based on fairness, equality & overlapping of interests but at the sametime its impartial & donot offer privilege to any caste religion gender ,thus, protects the rights & dignity of weaker section of the society.For instance government has recently presented an IT amendment under which if person voluntary disclose his blackmoney, more than half of its income will be send into pradhan matri garib kalyan vikas yojna which will used forpoor & rural development programmes.
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