The Fundamental Rights under Article 18 of the Constitution of India provides for the Abolition of titles such as hereditary titles conferred by the colonial states such as Maharaja, Raja, Bhasha, Bahadur, and so on in order to provide Equal status among the citizens. The elimination of the title serves to maintain social equality, and equality serves to avoid harmful generalizations.

Article 18 states that,

Constitutional Provisions - Abolition of Titles

Article 18(1) - It forbids the government from bestowing any title on any citizen or foreigner (except military or academic distinction).

Article 18(2) - It makes it illegal for an Indian citizen to accept any title from a foreign state.

Article 18(3) - Without the permission of the President of India, a foreigner holding a profit or trust office under the state cannot accept any title from a foreign state.

Article 18(4) - Without the president's permission, no citizen or foreigner holding a profit or trust office in India may accept any present, emolument, or office from or under any foreign State.

Abolition of Titles – Purpose

Within the Constituent Assembly, Ambedkar explained that Article 18 did not constitute a justiciable right:

“ Non-acceptance of titles may be a condition of continuing citizenship; it is not a privilege; rather, it is a demand put on the individual who, if he wants to remain a citizen of this country, must comply with specific requirements."

"One of the requirements is that he must not accept a title; if he does, Parliament may be able to decide by legislation what should be done to those who breach the text's restrictions." One of the consequences could be that he loses his right to citizenship."

As per Article 18(1) of the Indian Constitution, awardees cannot use 'Bharat Ratna' as a prefix or suffix to their name. However, should an award winner considering it necessary, he/she may use the following expression in their biodata/letterhead/visiting card etc. to indicate that he/she is a recipient of the award:

‘Awarded Bharat Ratna by the President’

or

‘Recipient of Bharat Ratna Award'

Abolition of Titles - Significance

The abolition of titles is under article 18 that prohibits the usage of different titles in India.

Titles such as "Raja" and "Maharaja" are not permitted in India, and Indian individuals are not permitted to assume any other title from a foreign country.

Aside from that, the "Padma Bhusan" and other honours are granted to Indian people in fields like art, science, literature, and others.

The elimination of the title serves to maintain social equality, and equality serves to avoid damaging assumptions.

If people are given titles, there will be insecurity among the general public, and it will not contribute to the development of solid interpersonal relationships.

Even though it is listed in Part 3 of the Indian constitution as an extension of the right to equality, it does not safeguard any basic rights. The conferring of titles violates the equality principle required by article 14.

In medieval and British India, titles like Rai Bahadur, Sawai, Rai Sahab, Zamindar, Taluqdar, and others were common.

Article 18 of the constitution removed all of these titles (Only natural titles of nobility are prohibited under Article 18).

Titles and titular glories should not be created by democracy. There is no room for a few persons to possess titles, thereby creating artificial disparities among members of an analogous community, in the creation of a society that aims to achieve political, social, and economic equality and hence aspires to become really democratic.

Difference Between Awards and Titles

The titles were offered to those who impressed Britishers with their administrative skills during British rule. People receive awards for their contributions to the progress of art, literature, and science, as well as for outstanding public service.

While awards are granted on the basis of the job done by the person without discrimination based on religion, caste, sex, or race, Britishers bestowed these titles to particular specific communities before independence in order to sow discord and disintegration among the people.

Although the prizes are not forbidden, they cannot be used as a prefix or suffix. All honours given for outstanding achievements in the sphere of academia are not included in the titles. Validity of awards under the law

The Government of India instituted four awards in 1954: the Bharat Ratna, Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan, and Padma Shri for outstanding service in any discipline, including public service.

The awarding of such a decoration was vigorously opposed by Acharya Kriplani, and it was removed by the Janta government in 1977, only to be reinstated by the Congress government in 1980.

Landmark Cases

Indira Jaising v. Supreme court of India

A petition was filed in this case to restrict the use of the label senior advocate before the name of an advocate.

The Supreme Court ruled that it is only a distinction, not a title, and hence does not violate Article 18 of the Indian constitution.

The groundwork for such a differentiation is laid down in Section 16 of the Advocate Act of 1961.

According to Section 16(2) of the Advocate Act of 1961, an advocate can be appointed as a senior advocate if the supreme court or high court feels he has the necessary skill, experience, and knowledge of the law.

All of these issues were directed by the court, which also established a permanent committee called the "committee for nomination of senior advocates."

Balaji Raghavan v. Union of India (1996)

The issue of whether awards such as Bharat Ratna, Padma Vibhushan, Padma Bhushan, and Padma Shri constitute "Titles" under Article 18(1) of the Indian Constitution was questioned.

Balaji Raghavan filed a writ of mandamus in the High Court of Madras under Article 226 of the Constitution to prohibit the Union of India from bestowing any of the National Awards.

Judgement: The National Awards do not violate the equality ideals enshrined in Article 14 as provided by the provisions of the Constitution.

The equality thesis does not state that merit should not be recognised or that citizens who have done great service to the country should not be honoured.

The National Awards are not "titles" in the sense of Article 18(1) and therefore not be used as suffixes or prefixes. No award should be given unless the National Committee recommends it and the Prime Minister and President of India give their assent.

Conclusion

The abolition of titles is reflected in article 18, which is intended to assist reduce social inequalities in India. The "abolition of the title" is accomplished by following particular regulations, such as no Indian citizen may get any form of title from any foreign state. The awarding of prizes creates bias not just between winners and average people, but also amongst awardees themselves, yet it is critical to recognise citizens for their efforts to their empowerment. Clause 1 of Article 18 was created to ban the corrosive, corrupting practice of persons currying favour with authorities in order to acquire special privileges.