Legal Current Affairs for 23 March 2026

About: The Model Code of Conduct is a comprehensive set of guidelines issued by the ECI to regulate the behavior of political parties, candidates, and the government during the election period.
Objective: To maintain the purity of the electoral process, ensure peace and order during campaigning, and prevent the ruling party from gaining an unfair advantage through state resources.
Statutory Backing and Enforceability:
No Direct Statutory Backing: The MCC itself is not a legally enforceable statute. It is a moral code built on political consensus.
Constitutional Authority: The ECI enforces the MCC under Article 324 of the Constitution, which mandates the superintendence, direction, and control of elections.
Indirect Legal Enforcement: While the MCC is not a law, many of its provisions are enforceable through corresponding sections in existing statutes. For example, bribery, intimidation, and impersonation are punishable under the Indian Penal Code (IPC), 1860 (now Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023), and the Representation of the People Act (RPA), 1951 (e.g., Section 123 deals with “corrupt practices”).

About: Launched in September 2018 as a flagship component of the Ayushman Bharat initiative. PMJAY is the world’s largest government-funded health assurance scheme.
PMJAY aims to achieve Universal Health Coverage (UHC) and mitigate catastrophic healthcare expenditure that pushes millions into poverty annually.
The National Health Authority (NHA) under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare implements AB-PMJAY at the national level, while State Health Agencies (SHAs) are responsible for its implementation at the state level.
Coverage and Financial Architecture
Insurance Cover: Provides a health cover of Rs. 5 lakhs per family per year.
Scope of Care: Strictly covers secondary and tertiary care hospitalization (not primary outpatient care).
Pre and Post-Hospitalization: Covers up to 3 days of pre-hospitalization (diagnostics, consultation) and 15 days of post-hospitalization expenses (medicines, follow-up).
Pre-existing Diseases: All pre-existing conditions are covered from Day 1 of the policy.

Background: In 1923, social reformer S.K. Bole passed a resolution in the Bombay Legislative Council mandating that public water sources, wells, and dharamshalas be opened to the Depressed Classes.
The Mahad Municipal Council adopted this resolution in 1924, but severe resistance from dominant-caste Hindus prevented the Depressed Classes from actually accessing the town’s Chavdar Tale (Chowder Tank).
In response, the Mahad Satyagraha was launched under Dr. B.R. Ambedkar to assert the legal and moral right of Dalits to access the Chavdar Tank.

The phrase “Before salt, there was water” draws a powerful, necessary parallel between two of India’s greatest non-violent movements: Ambedkar’s Mahad Satyagraha (1927) and Gandhi’s Dandi March (1930).
Nature of the Oppressor: While Gandhi used salt to mobilize the masses against an external colonizer (British Imperialism), Ambedkar used water to fight an internal colonizer (Social Imperialism and the caste system).
Symbolism of Resources: Both leaders utilized the most basic elements of human survival.
Gandhi demonstrated that taxing salt was a denial of a natural right.
Ambedkar demonstrated that denying water was a denial of humanity itself.
The Concept of Swaraj: For Ambedkar, the water march proved that political freedom (Swaraj) from the British was meaningless if it was not preceded by social freedom and equality for India’s most marginalized citizens.
Depth of Reform: Mahad demanded a fundamental change in social attitudes and the caste system, while the Salt Satyagraha focused on challenging specific colonial laws like the salt tax.
Legacy: Mahad laid the foundation for constitutional values of equality and human rights, whereas the Salt Satyagraha strengthened the broader freedom movement against British rule.