The Right to Property in India: A Historical Perspective

• The right to property was originally guaranteed as a Fundamental Right under Articles 19(1)(f) and 31 respectively.
• Article 31C was added through the 25th amendment in 1971, providing an exception that laws made to fulfil the principles under Articles 39(b) and (c) shall not be void on the ground that it violates Fundamental Rights including right to property.
• In 1978, the right to property was omitted from Fundamental Rights and made a constitutional right under Article 300A.
• Justice V.R. Krishna Iyer’s interpretation of the phrase’material resource of the community’ contained in Article 39(b) was struck down.
• The current majority opinion (for seven judges including the CJI) held that not every privately-owned property can be considered a’material resource of the community’ to be used by the government to serve the ‘common good’.
• The current ruling was referred to a nine-judge Bench in Property owners’ association versus State of Maharashtra, where the majority opinion held that to qualify as a’material resource of the community,’ a resource must be’material’ and ‘of the community.’
• The term ‘distribute’ in Article 39(b) also carries a wide meaning that can include both government acquisition and redistribution to private players, as long as it serves the common good.
• The judgment should protect the small farm and forest lands of marginalised sections from forceful acquisitions by the government and ensure the sustainable exploitation and distribution of material public resources within the government’s domain.