Welcome to Drishti Judiciary - Powered by Drishti IAS
         









Home / Constitution of India

Constitutional Law

Judiciary

    «    »
 25-Sep-2023

Introduction

  • Indian Judiciary is an independent body separate from Executive and Legislature.
  • Among the three organs of the democracy the judiciary is responsible for interpreting the law made by the legislature and executed by the executive branch.
  • Dispute resolution following the licit manner is the cardinal principle of judiciary.
  • It is deciphered in several case laws that the judiciary is a guardian of Constitution of India, 1950 (COI).
  • The system is borrowed or inherited from colonial system during British era in India.
  • The primary function of the judiciary is to deliver justice.

Historical Overview

  • The legal system in India was dealt by Dharmashashtra, Shruti and Smriti including Manusmriti.
  • The Regulating Act of 1773 is marked as the steppingstone towards constructing the Supreme Court at Calcutta.
  • The Supreme Court was later declared as the Court of Record by the Letters Patent Act, 1774.
  • The Supreme Courts were later established in Madras and Bombay during the 18th century.
  • The High Courts were established by the Indian High Courts Act, 1861 that subsequently abolished the Sadar Adalats in Presidency Towns and Supreme Courts (SC) established at Calcutta, Madras and Bombay.
  • Later, SC was established, and it marked its first sitting on 28th of January 1950.

Characteristics of Judiciary

1. One of the Oldest Judicial System in the World

  • India’s judicial system is one of the most prominent and oldest judicial systems in the world.
  • The judicial structure of the country is used to interpret and apply the laws of the land. It does not make statutory laws for the country.

2. Single and Integrated Judicial System

  • In India, there is an integrated and unique judicial system.
  • The Supreme Court is on the top of the integrated hierarchy.
  • After the Supreme Court, there are the High Courts at the State Level.
  • Under the High Courts, there is a well-organized hierarchy consisting of district courts and lower courts.

3. Independence of Judiciary

  • In England the constitutional system is based on the concept of Parliamentary sovereignty and separation of powers is ruled out.
  • This is also partly the case in India, for in India the doctrines of Parliamentary and constitutional sovereignty are blended.
  • The meaning of independence of the judiciary is the independence of the exercise of the functions by the judges in an unbiased manner i.e., free from any external force.

4. Judicial Activism

  • The term Judicial Activism was originated in the United States.
  • The concept of judicial activism grew rapidly over the years and attained a huge legitimacy among the Indian people in the context of unrestrained behaviors of legislative and executive organs of the government.

5. Judicial Review

  • In India, the power of Constitutional Review has been within the Supreme Court and High Court through the Constitution itself.
  • Also, the Supreme Court of India has declared the Judicial Review power as a basic structure of the Constitution which cannot be taken away even by way of Constitutional Amendment.
  • If during the Judicial Review, any legislative enactment or executive order of either State Government or Central Government is found to be in violation of the Constitution it will be declared as invalid.
  • In A.K. Gopalan v. State of Madras (1950), it was held that it is the Constitution that is supreme and that a statute law to be valid, must be in conformity with the constitutional requirements and it is for the judiciary to decide whether any enactment is constitutional or not.

6. Interpreter of the Constitution

  • The COI is the largest written constitution in the world.
  • Supreme Court acts as an interpreter of the COI.
  • It is the highest authority to interpret the Constitution.
  • Supreme Court’s decision will be binding on all lower courts.

7. Guardian of the Fundamental Rights

  • Fundamental rights are guaranteed in Part III of the COI.
  • There are six fundamental rights recognised by the COI.
  • They are Right to Equality, Right to Freedom, right against Exploitation, Right to Freedom of Religion, Cultural and Educational Rights and Right to Constitutional Remedies.
  • Indian Judiciary acts as a guardian of the rights and freedoms of the people.

8. Public Interest Litigation System

  • The concept of Public Interest Litigation was introduced in India in 1860 by P.N Bhagwati and Krishna Iyer.
  • PIL is an extra-judicial remedy which helps people in enforcing their rights.
  • PIL is a part of judicial activism which makes the judicial process more democratic.

Whether “State” includes Judiciary

  • The question of whether the State includes the judiciary is one of the boiling questions of all time.
  • Courts from time to time have provided various interpretations of whether the judiciary should come within the ambit of state or not.
  • In some cases, the judiciary has been considered as a state, in some cases, it has not been considered as a state. The picture of whether judiciary forms a part of the state or not is deluded.
  • In the case of Ratilal v. State of Bombay (1954), the court held that in the definition of State under Article 12 the word ‘judiciary’ is not specifically mentioned. So, judiciary is not a State. Therefore, the judgement of the courts cannot be challenged for violation of fundamental rights.
  • In the case of A.R. Antulay v. R.S. Nayak (1988), a constitutional bench of 7 judges of the Supreme Court held that the court could not give such orders and directions which violates the fundamental rights of the citizens i.e., the court may also be included in the state word under Article 12 of the Indian Constitution.

Structure of the Judiciary

  1. Supreme Court
  2. High Courts
  3. District Courts
  4. Other Subordinate Courts

Supreme Court

  • It is known as the successor of Federal Court in India established under Government of Indian Act, 1935.
  • British Privy Council was replaced by Supreme Court of India.
  • It marked its first sitting on 28th of January 1950. The Union Judiciary has a constitutional status under Articles 124 – 147.
  • The location of Supreme Court of India is in New Delhi. It is apex court in India and the final authority to decide a case.
  • The Supreme Court is constituted with 33 Judges and 1 Chief Justice of India.

Jurisdictions

  1. Original Jurisdiction under Article 131
  2. Appellate Jurisdiction under Article 132 and 133
  3. Advisory Jurisdiction under Article 143
  4. Inherent Jurisdiction under Article 136
  5. Review Jurisdiction under Article 137
  6. Extraordinary Jurisdiction in the form of Public Interest Litigation
  7. Writ Jurisdiction under Article 32

Powers

  • Can hear the constitutional matters
  • Guardian of the fundamental rights
  • Advising the President
  • Overseer of the Constitution
  • Punish for its contempt – Court of Record
  • Establish precedents
  • Can craft rules and regulations for bar and bench
  • Judicial review and judicial activism
  • Resolution of dispute regarding the election of President and Vice-President
  • Transfer of cases from other courts to itself and from one High Court to another

High Courts

  • It is the apex court of a state.
  • There can be one high court for two states.
  • It is subordinate to the Supreme Court of India.
  • The Indian High Courts Act in 1861 was passed after the recommendation of the Law Commission tabled in the year 1858.
  • Initially, the High Courts were established in Calcutta, Bombay, and Madras in 1866. under Article 217(1) of the COI.
  • The state judiciary is covered under the Constitution of India from Articles 214 to 231.

Jurisdictions

  1. Original Jurisdiction under Article 225
  2. Appellate Jurisdiction
  3. Supervisory Jurisdiction under Article 227
  4. Writ Jurisdiction under Article 226

Powers

  • Can punish for its own contempt – Court of Record
  • Can hear an appeal in case any question of law is in the issue under Article 228
  • It has a consultative behavior
  • Can entertain writ beyond violation of fundamental rights
  • It was stated in the case of Harbanslal Sahnia v. Indian Oil Corp. Ltd (2003) that HC can invoke a writ for violation of fundamental rights or natural justice even if any alternate remedy is available.

Subordinate Courts

  • The subordinate courts function as inferior courts to High Courts in the state.
  • It marks its presence as the district courts and other lower courts.
  • These courts have a constitutional presence under Articles 233-237.
  • The governor of the state appoints the District Judge after consultation with the High Court.
  • Other judges can be appointed by the governor in consultation with the State Public Service Commission.

Classification of Subordinate Courts

Civil Courts

  • District Judge
  • Senior Civil Judge
  • Principal Junior Civil Judge
  • Munsif’s Court

Criminal Courts

  • Session Judge
  • Chief Judicial Magistrate
  • Judicial Magistrate First Class
  • Judicial Magistrate Second Class