Know your rights

in a civilised society men are ruled by law and not by caprice. rule of law becomes the imposing and effective inhibition upon arbitrary powers of the state, thereby ensuring the rights of the citizens. in the criminal justice system even the accused person has some basic rights to protect his interests. these rights in fact, serve as necessary safeguards, against injustice and obstacles to summary adjudication as well.following are the basic rights of an accused person: right against unreasonable searches: this right prevents people from being searched without reasonable and probable cause. in a criminal investigation, the police can neither search any one nor can go inside a house until and unless they can give a good reason, approved by a magistrate. in other words, the search to be conducted should be linked to a reasonable likelihood that the accused has something hidden in his house. right to be informed of constitutional rights: this protection is actually against ignorance of one's right. this right provides that before a person can be hauled up by the criminal justice system, he should be informed or advised that he does not have to say anything that can be used against him in a law court. right against self-incrimination: under our legal system, a person cannot be forced to be a witness against himself. this implies that he or she does not have to reveal any information to the police or to the prosecutor which will implicate him/her in a crime. right to a lawyer: every accused has a right to be defended by a lawyer during the criminal proceedings. if the accused is not in a position to hire an advocate due to economic constraints, he will be provided the same by the state. at the same time, the accused has a right to reasonable notice also. right to be heard: an accused, in all fairness, has the right to be heard by the criminal court. nobody should be condemned unheard is one of the basic principles of natural justice. the accused has the full right to tell his side of the story to the court and present reliable witnesses in support of his defence. this right prevents the development of one-sided story and promotes the adversary system of equal representation. when a person is charged with a punishable criminal offence, he has the right to be tried only on the basis of evidence collected and produced before the court. moreover, trial should be in a manner that ensures minimum prejudice against him. right to cross-examine the witnesses against him is also available to the accused. right to speedy and public trial: this right is very important especially for those who are in jail and awaiting trial. without this rule, a person accused of a crime could be incarcerated indefinitely before he is convicted by a court. trials must be public to avoid ''back trials'' in which the accused's rights may be violated by the officers of the court. right against double jeopardy: this right holds that once acquitted of a crime, a person cannot be tried for the same crime again. this is partially in keeping with the due process of law which also includes the principles of natural justice in its ambit. this right represents an ideal limitation on the power of the state. at last, in principle, the coercive power given to the agents of the state is exercised within reasonable legal limits because of this safeguards.