Equality

                              Equality

Equality means that all men are equal and all should be entitled to identity of treatment and income."Men are born, and always continues,free and equal in respect of their rights ".We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal ".But in practical life no men are equal in physical constitutions,capacity and temperament.
Professor Laski says,"Equality does not mean the identity of treatment or the sameness of reward. If a bricklayer gets the same reward as a mathematician or a scientist, the purpose of society will be defeated. Equality means first of all the absence of social privilege. In the second place it means that adequate opportunities are laid open to all."
Equality is a levelling process-Professor Laski also defined,"It means that no man shall be placed in society that he can overreach his neighbors to the extent which constitutes a denial of the latter's citizenship."
Braker explains,"It is derived from the supreme values of the development of the personality in each like and equally,but each along its own different line and of its own separate motion."

Kinds of Equality

1-Social Equality
2-Civil Equality
3-Political Equality
4-Economic Equality
5-Equality of Opportunity and Education

1-Social Equality-Social Equality means all the citizens are entitled to enjoy equal status in society and no one is entitled to special privileges. There should not be any distinction of caste and creed,colour and race,groups and classes,clans and tribes. All citizens in India enjoy social equality. Untouchability has been abolished and its practices has been forbidden. The policy of racial discrimination is still followed by South Africa. Social inequality still prevails over there. On 10th December,1948,the U.N.O declared the charter of human rights which laid stress on social equality. But these rights have been violated by a number of countries in the past according to the report of Amnesty International.

2-Civil Equality-Civil Equality consists in the enjoyment of similar liberties and rights by all citizens. There should not be any discrimination of superior and inferior,the rich and the poor,caste and creed,colour and race,clans and tribes,groups and classes.

3-Political Equality-Political Equality means equal access of everyone to the avenues of political authority. Political equality guarantees the enjoyment of similar political rights to all citizens. Universal adult franchise is a means to this end and suffrage has been introduced in India. The same provisions has been made in England, U.S.S.R. USA,France and many other countries. Switzerland had not conferred on women the right to vote but in February 1971 conferred the right of votes to woman. In Asia and Africa there are many countries where Political Equality has not been established.

4-Economic Equality-Economic is closely related to political equality. Professor Laski explains,"Political equality is,therefore,never real unless it is accompanied with virtual economic liberty,political power otherwise is bound to be the hand-maid of economic power."
According to Lord Bryce,Economic Equality "is the attempt to expunge all differences in wealth,allotting to every man and woman an equal share in wordly goods."But this concept never be materialised in political politics. By economic equality capitalism should be replaced by socialism.

5-Equality of Opportunity and Education-We mean that all the citizens should be given equal and similar opportunities by the State. All the individuals should have similar chances to receive education and opportunities. Racial or any types of discrimination should not be observed. There should not be any distinction of caste and creed,colour and race,rich and poor. In India,all are provided with equal opportunities and all have equal rights to education.