Now Reading: No fundamental right to gun license: Gauhati High Court
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No fundamental right to gun license: Gauhati High Court
The Gauhati High Court has ruled that there is no fundamental right to obtain or renew a gun license. Justice Sanjay Kumar Medhi held that a license under the Arms Act, 1959…
The Story in Brief
The Gauhati High Court has ruled that there is no fundamental right to obtain or renew a gun license. Justice Sanjay Kumar Medhi held that a license under the Arms Act, 1959 is only a statutory privilege, not a constitutional right. The court dismissed a plea from three persons who argued that the expiry of their gun licenses had left them jobless, as their work required the licenses.
The single-judge bench emphasised that the need for employment does not entitle a person to automatic renewal. The ruling clarifies that licenses under the Arms Act are discretionary and subject to the conditions set by the law. The decision reinforces that public safety considerations override individual convenience or professional necessity.
The Indian Opinion
The court's ruling is a needed brake on the idea that any need, even a livelihood, creates a right to carry firearms. Some gun owners' lobbies argue that employment hinging on a license makes renewal automatic. That confuses a statutory privilege with a fundamental right. The Arms Act exists for public safety, not private convenience. The real test will be whether states now uniformly apply this logic to new applications and not just renewals, or let discretion create a backdoor.
Source: livelaw.in
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
