"Liberty, therefore, is never real unless the Government can be called to account when it invades rights." Which one of the following is the best justification of the above statement ?

(a) In the realisation that the government can be brought to book in a court of law
(b) In identifying a man as a political unit in a way which distinguishes him from other citizens
(c) In a decentralized society wherein the basic needs of men can find satisfaction
(d) In the understanding that liberty and restraints are complementary ✓ UPSC's answer

Why the answer is (d)

• The statement asserts that liberty is conditional upon the government being accountable for rights violations, implying a necessary relationship between freedom and legal limits.

• Option (d) correctly identifies this relationship by stating that liberty and restraints are complementary, meaning true liberty exists only within a framework of accountability and law.

• The quote emphasizes that without the restraint of accountability (being 'called to account'), liberty is not 'real,' thus validating the complementarity of the two concepts.

• This aligns with the constitutional principle that fundamental rights are protected by legal restraints on state power, ensuring that liberty is substantive rather than theoretical.

• Therefore, the best justification is the understanding that liberty and restraints are complementary, as the key option (d) reflects this structural dependency.

Why the other options are wrong

(a) In the realisation that the government can be brought to book in a court of law: While courts are a mechanism for accountability, the statement focuses on the conceptual link between liberty and accountability, not the specific judicial procedure of bringing the government to book.
(b) In identifying a man as a political unit in a way which distinguishes him from other…: Identifying a man as a political unit distinguishes individual status but does not explain the conditional nature of liberty based on government accountability for rights.
(c) In a decentralized society wherein the basic needs of men can find satisfaction: A decentralized society may facilitate satisfaction of basic needs, but it does not directly justify the specific claim that liberty is unreal without government accountability for rights invasions.

Asked in the CSAT Paper II of the UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Examination 2014, held on 24 August 2014. Question and answer key: Union Public Service Commission. Explanation: UPSC Answer Check.