Article 32 Right to life and personal liberty
Protection of right to life and personal liberty
It is the central protection against unlawful killing, disappearance and detention. It also supports claims for a clean environment and humane conditions.
Article 32 guarantees that no person, citizen or not, can be deprived of life or personal liberty except in accordance with law. It is the core shield against unlawful action by the State. It is often called the most fundamental right of all.
Police arrest someone, or a court sentences an accused person. Each step that affects life or liberty must rest on a valid law and follow a fair procedure, otherwise it breaches Article 32. Detention without legal authority is unlawful from the very start.
A family files a writ petition or habeas corpus application. The High Court Division asks whether the deprivation had a lawful basis and whether the procedure was fair, not arbitrary or oppressive. The court can ask the authorities to produce the detained person.
In 2015 the Appellate Division struck down mandatory death sentences because they removed the court's discretion. Unlawful detentions can be ended by a habeas corpus order, and the State can be held responsible. Courts may also award compensation for serious violations by State agents.
In plain English
How Article 32 works
Article 32 is short but powerful: no person may be deprived of life or personal liberty except in accordance with law. It protects everyone, not only citizens. The courts have read "life" broadly, to mean a life with dignity, which includes a healthy environment and basic conditions for living. Personal liberty means freedom from unlawful detention or restraint. The phrase "in accordance with law" means the State can only take life or liberty through a valid law and a fair procedure, for example a lawful arrest followed by a fair trial. Killings or detentions without legal authority, such as extrajudicial killings or enforced disappearances, violate this article.
In practice
Courts have given Article 32 a wide meaning. In Dr Mohiuddin Farooque v Bangladesh (1996) the Appellate Division held that the right to life includes protection of the environment. In BLAST v Bangladesh (2015) it declared mandatory death sentences in the women and children repression laws void, insisting on judicial discretion in sentencing. Article 32 is the basis for habeas corpus petitions and claims over custodial deaths. Allegations of extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances have been prominent, and the Constitution Reform Commission recommended in February 2025 adding express protection against them. That remains a proposal only.
The text
What Article 32 says
32. No person shall be deprived of life or personal liberty save in accordance with law.
English text as published on the official Laws of Bangladesh website. The Bangla text is authoritative (Article 153). Where a court has changed the position, the status note above explains it.
Landmark cases
How the courts have read it
Appellate Division · 1996
Dr Mohiuddin Farooque v Bangladesh (FAP 20 case)
49 DLR (AD) 1; 17 BLD (AD) 1
Gave a liberal reading of "person aggrieved" for public interest standing and held that Articles 31 and 32 include protection of the environment and freedom from pollution, without which life can hardly be enjoyed.
Appellate Division · 2015
BLAST v Bangladesh (mandatory death penalty case)
1 SCOB [2015] AD 1
Declared the mandatory death sentences in section 6(2) and (4) of the 1995 Ain and section 34(2) and (3) of the Nari-o-Shishu Nirjatan Daman Ain 2000 void as ultra vires the Constitution, because they removed judicial discretion in sentencing.
Case summaries are short descriptions for orientation, not a substitute for the judgment.
Connected provisions
Related articles
Questions
Article 32: frequently asked questions
What is Article 32 of the Constitution of Bangladesh?
Article 32 provides that no person shall be deprived of life or personal liberty save in accordance with law. It protects everyone in Bangladesh against unlawful killing or detention and has been read broadly to include a dignified life and a healthy environment.
Is the death penalty allowed under Article 32?
The death penalty is allowed if imposed in accordance with law after a fair trial. In 2015 the Appellate Division held that mandatory death sentences, which leave the judge no discretion, are unconstitutional, so courts must be free to impose a lesser sentence.
Does the right to life include a healthy environment?
Yes. In Dr Mohiuddin Farooque v Bangladesh (1996) the Appellate Division held that Articles 31 and 32 include protection of the environment, ecological balance and freedom from pollution of air and water.
Sources
- Laws of Bangladesh: The Constitution, Article 32
- Jona Razzaque, Public interest environmental litigation in Bangladesh (BILIA)
- Supreme Court of Bangladesh: BLAST v Bangladesh, 1 SCOB [2015] AD 1
- The Business Standard: What Constitution Reform Commission says on fundamental rights, freedom (February 2025)
- ELAW: Farooque v Government of Bangladesh, CA 24 of 1995 (25 July 1996) (Flood Action Plan case)
- Asian Development Bank, Law and Policy Reflections: M Farooque v Government of Bangladesh, 17 BLD (AD) 1 (1997)
This guide explains the Constitution for general understanding. It is not legal advice. Constitutional reform proposals under discussion in 2026 are described as proposals until enacted.
Constitutional and writ practice
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