Which provision of the Constitution of India directs the State to secure that the operation of the legal system promotes justice on a basis of equal opportunity and to provide free legal aid so that opportunities for securing justice are not denied to any citizen by reason of economic or other disabilities?

Article 39A, inserted by the Forty-second Amendment Act, 1976, is a Directive Principle of State Policy which mandates the State to secure that the operation of the legal system promotes justice on a basis of equal opportunity and, in particular, to provide free legal aid, by suitable legislation or schemes, so that opportunities for securing justice are not denied to any citizen by reason of economic or other disabilities. Article 44, by contrast, concerns a uniform civil code; Article 41 deals with the right to work, education and public assistance; Article 21 protects life and personal liberty; and Article 14 guarantees equality before the law and equal protection of the laws. The principle finds legislative implementation through the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987.