Concept of Justice:

Justice is the most important and most discussed objective of the State, and Society. It is
the basis of orderly human living. Justice demands the regulation of selfish actions of people for
securing a fair distribution, equal treatment of equals, and proportionate and just rewards for all.
It stands for harmony between individual interests and the interests of society.
Justice is of central importance to political theory. In defending or opposing laws,
policies, decisions and actions of government, appeals are made in the name of justice. Persons
involved in every agitation for securing their interests always raise the slogan: “We want
Justice”. All civil rights movements are essentially movements for justice.
Justice stands for rule of law, absence of arbitrariness and a system of equal rights,
freedoms and opportunities for all in society. In fact, Justice stands recognized as the first virtue
or ideal or objective to be secured. In its Preamble, the Constitution of India gives first priority to
the securing of social, economic and political justice for all its people. In contemporary times
Justice stands conceptualized basically as Social Justice.
Justice: Meaning & Definition:
Justice is a complex concept and touches almost every aspect of human life. The word
Justice has been derived from the Latin word Jungere meaning ‘to bind or to tie together’. The
word ‘Jus’ also means ‘Tie’ or ‘Bond’. In this way Justice can be defined as a system in which
men are tied or joined in a close relationship. Justice seeks to harmonise different values and to
organise upon it all human relations. As such, Justice means bonding or joining or organising
people together into a right or fair order of relationships.
Some popular definitions of Justice:

“Justice means to distribute the due share to everybody.” -Salmond

“Justice protects the rights of the individual as well as the order of society.” -Dr. Raphael

“Justice consists in a system of understandings and a procedure through which each is accorded
what is agreed upon as fair.”-C.E. Merriam

In other words, Justice means securing and protecting of rights of all in a fair way. It stands for
harmony among all the people, orderly living and securing of rights of all in a just and fair way.
Key Features of Justice:
1. Justice is related to mutual relationships of persons living in society.

2. Justice is based on values and traditions of society.

3. Justice is related to all aspects of human behaviour in society. Laws are made and courts are
set up with this aim in view.

4. Aim of Justice is to provide equal rights, opportunities and facilities to all in a fair way.

5. The function of Justice is to harmonise individual interests with the interests of society.

6. Justices is a primary value and it is inseparably related to other values like Liberty, Equality
and Property.

7. Justice is the principle of balancing or reconciling human relations in society in such a way as
enables each one to get his due rights, towards and punishments.

8. Justice has several dimensions: Social Justice, Economic Justice, Political Justice and Legal
Justice.
Types of Justice:

ADVERTISEMENTS:

1. Social Justice:
In contemporary times a large number of scholars use prefer to describe the concept of Justice as
Social Justice. Social Justice is taken to mean that all the people in a society are to be equal and
there is be no discrimination on the basis of religion, caste, creed, colour, sex or status.

However, various scholars explain the concept of Social Justice in different ways. Some hold
that social justice is to allot to each individual his or her due share in the social sphere.
According to some others, distribution of social facilities and rights on the basis of law and
justice constitutes social justice.

What is Social Justice?

“Social justice is another name for equal social rights.” “Social Justice aims to provide equal
opportunities to every individual to develop his inherent qualities.”-Barker

“By social justice we mean ending all kinds of social inequalities and then to provide equal
opportunities to everyone.”-C.JP.B. Gajendragadkar

Social democrats and modern liberal thinkers define social justice as the attempt to reconstruct
the social order in accordance with moral principles. Attempts are to be continuously made to
rectify social injustice. It also stands for a morally just and defensible system of distribution of
reward and obligations in society without any discrimination or injustice against any person or
class of persons.

In the Indian Constitution several provisions have been provided with a view to secure social
economic and political justice. Untouchability has been constitutionally abolished. Every citizen
has been granted an equal right of access to any public place, place of worship and use of places
of entertainment.

The state cannot discriminate between citizens on the basis of birth, caste, colour, creed, sex,
faith or title or status or any of these. Untouchability and apartheid are against the spirit of social
justice. Absence of privileged classes in society is an essential attribute of social justice.

2. Economic Justice:
Economic Justice is indeed closely related to social justice because economic system is always
an integral part of the social system. Economic rights and opportunities available to an individual
are always a part of the entire social system.

Economic justice demands that all citizens should have adequate opportunities to earn their
livelihood and get fair wages as can enable they to satisfy their basic needs and help them to
develop further. The state should provide them economic security during illness, old age and in
the event of a disability.

No person or group or class should be in a position to exploit others, nor get exploited. There
should be fair and equitable distribution of wealth and resources among all the people. The gap
between the rich and the poor should not be glaring. The fruits of prosperity must reach all the
people.

There are present several different views regarding the meaning of economic justice. The liberals
consider open competition as just and they support private property. On the other hand, the
socialists seek to establish complete control of society upon the entire economic system.
They oppose private property. Whatever be the ideology or the system, one thing is clear and that
is that all citizens must be provided with basic necessities of life. All citizens must have their
basic needs of life fulfilled (Food, clothing, shelter, education, health and so on).
3. Political Justice:
Political justice means giving equal political rights and opportunities to all citizens to take part in
the administration of the country. Citizens should have the right to vote without any
discrimination on the basis of religion, colour, caste, creed, sex, birth or status. Every citizen
should have an equal right to vote and to contest elections.
Legal justice has two dimensions-the formulation of just laws and then to do justice according to
the laws. While making laws, the will of the rulers is not to be imposed upon the ruled. Laws
should be based on public opinion and public needs. Social values, morality, conventions, the
idea of just and unjust must be always kept in view.

When the laws do not meet the social values and rules of morality, citizens neither really accept
nor abide by laws. In this situation, the enforcement of laws becomes a problem. Laws are just
only when these are accepted not out of fear of external power but when inspired by internal
feeling for the laws being good, just and reasonable.
Legal Justice means rule of law and not rule of any person. It includes two things: that all men
are equal before law, and that law is equally applicable to all. It provides legal security to all.
Law does not discriminate between the rich and the poor. Objective and due dispensation of
justice by the courts of law is an essential ingredient of legal justice.

The legal procedure has to be simple, quick, fair, inexpensive and efficient. There should be
effective machinery for preventing unlawful actions. “The aim of law is the establishment of
what is legitimate; provide legal security, and prevention of unjust actions. -Salmond’.

Thus, Justice has four major dimensions: Social Justice, Economic Justice, Political Justice and
Legal Justice. All these forms are totally inter-related and interdependent. Justice is real only
when it exists in all these four dimensions. Without Social and Economic Justice there can be no
real Political and Legal Justice.

Presence of social and economic inequalities always leads to a denial of political and equal
justice. An oppressed and poor person is virtually unable to participate is the political process or
to seek the protection of law and law courts. Likewise, without political rights and equal
protection of law no person can really get his social and economic rights and freedoms protected.
Further, Justice needs the presence of rights, liberty and equality in society and only then can it
really characterise life in society.