Copyright is mainly an economic right you can sell — but two rights stay with the author even after the sale: the right to be credited, and the right to stop your work being mutilated. Those are moral rights.
What moral rights are
Moral rights are codified in Section 57 of the Copyright Act, 1957, mirroring Article 6bis of the Berne Convention. Though the provision was initially read narrowly, a 1987 judgment expanded its scope across “literary, artistic, musical, dramatic and cinematograph” works. They persist even after the author assigns the economic copyright.
The two special rights
- Right of paternity — the author’s right to claim authorship and have the work attributed to them.
- Right of integrity — the author may restrain, or claim damages for, any distortion, mutilation or modification of the work that would harm their honour or reputation (before the copyright expires).
An explanatory limit: failure to display a work, or to display it to the author’s satisfaction, is not an infringement. And for software, authors cannot stop a lawful possessor from making back-ups or adapting the program for its intended use.
They cannot be waived or assigned
Under Indian law, moral rights cannot be transferred or waived. The statute is silent on relinquishment, making that debatable — but a clause purporting to waive moral rights runs into Indian Contract Act limits and is on shaky ground.
The landmark case
The touchstone is Amar Nath Sehgal v. Union of India — a sculptor sued the Government after his mural was removed from its heritage display and consigned to storage. The Delhi High Court upheld his moral rights, ordered the work returned to him, and awarded compensation — a strong affirmation that integrity protects the work itself, not just its economics.
What India has not adopted
Indian law has not taken on some rights found elsewhere — notably publicity rights and false-attribution safeguards as framed in the UK — a point of difference for cross-border works.
Practical guidance
- Authors: insist on credit and guard against distortion — these rights survive assignment and cannot be signed away.
- Assignees/publishers: a broad assignment does not buy the right to mutilate or misattribute — respect paternity and integrity.
- Contracts: do not rely on moral-rights waivers; they may not hold.
Frequently asked questions
What are moral rights in copyright? The author’s non-economic rights — to be credited as author (paternity) and to object to distortion or mutilation of the work (integrity) — under Section 57.
Do moral rights survive assignment of copyright? Yes. They stay with the author even after the economic copyright is assigned.
Can moral rights be waived in India? They cannot be transferred, and purported waivers are legally doubtful — the statute does not provide for waiver, and such clauses face Contract Act limits.
What is the key Indian moral-rights case? Amar Nath Sehgal v. Union of India, where a sculptor’s integrity right led to the return of his mural and compensation.
Useful official resources
- The Copyright Act, 1957
- WIPO — Berne Convention