Olga Tellis v. Bombay Municipal Corporation
(1985) 3 SCC 545 · 5-judge bench
Pavement and slum dwellers in Bombay, facing eviction by the Municipal Corporation, argued that evicting them from where they lived and worked would effectively deprive them of their livelihood.
The Court held that the right to livelihood is an integral part of the right to life under Article 21 — depriving someone of their livelihood can, in effect, deprive them of life itself — though it still allowed eviction to proceed if carried out through a fair procedure.
One of the earliest and most important cases expanding Article 21 beyond mere physical survival — the legal foundation for arguing that livelihood, not just biological life, is constitutionally protected.
Related law
The right to life this case read livelihood into
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