Constitutional Institutions Important To Check Abuse Of Power & Safeguard Rights : CJI DY Chandrachud

Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, in a recent lecture delivered at the Cambridge Law University, highlighted the importance of Constitutional institutions, without which the constitutional rights and values cannot be safeguarded.He was delivering a lecture on the topic "The relationship between Constitutional Rights and Constitutional Structure" as part of the Cambridge Pro Bono Project Annual Lecture on May 30.In the lecture, the CJI focussed on four key aspects of the relationship between the citizen and state - Constitutional processes, institutional arrangements for governance, the scrutiny of actions as envisaged by and implicit in the Constitution, and the participation of citizenry in a democracy.To illustrate the importance of Constitutional structures in protection rights, the CJI referred to famous satirical novella of George Orwell "The Animal Farm". He pointed out that the governance in the "Animal Farm" fell apart because there "were no entrenched rules or institutions of governance, which led to an arbitrary exercise of power".Drawing an allegory from the novella, CJI said, "the rights regime in the constitution would only be a parchment guaranteed if the Constitution does not establish a structure that effectively checks the exercise and abuse of power".For the constitution to stand the test of time, alongside assigning the state the duty to protect the fundamental rights, it must also establish other institutions to create a system of governance, the CJI said. The system of governance envisaged under the constitution is as important as constitutionalism and the fundamental rights because it exercises a check on the powers of the state."The expansion of rights framework will be insignificant if the Constitution prescribes a weak form of governance, which does not ensure that the state exercises its power fairly or equitably, or the judiciary interprets the silences in the constitution and interpretative gaps in a manner that would weaken the system of governance", he said.Each institution meant as a check on the other institutionsElaborating on the doctrine of separation of powers as propounded by Montesquieu, the CJI said that "each institution is meant as a check on the exercise of power by the other institutions".He also highlighted that the Constitution envisages a decentralised model of governance, ranging from local self government institutions, states and the Union."In this way, the Constitution divides power and creates a system of accountability to minimize the misuse of powers", he said. Apart from the division of powers, the other Constitutional check against abuse of power is procedural guarantee. He explained that procedural guarantees prevent the seepage of bias. A fair procedure is not only a means to achieve a fair outcome but it is a goal in itself. Procedural fairness creates stumbling blocks on the free exercise of power. They are necessary because they suggest that power is not unrestrained.In this context, the CJI referred to the recent judgment in the Shiv Sena case, in which it was held that legislative procedure was not completely immune from judicial review.As examples of procedural safeguards, the CJI cited the amendment procedure (which requires a special majority and the approval of majority of state assemblies with respect to amendments to certain articles) and also the Ordinance making power (the restriction on the life of the Ordinance and the mandate to obtain the approval of the assembly within the specified period).Judicial reviewThe CJI highlighted that judicial review is a form of scrutiny envisaged by the Constitution as a check on abuse of powers by other institutions. There are different schools of thought regarding the method of interpretation of the Constitution - one view advocates originalism with a text-based approach, the other view advocates a transformative approach. The judges adopt a fusion of interpretative approaches."The text of a written Constitution may be inadequate. It cannot deal with the multitude of situations that may arise. So words like human dignity, freedom, liberty contain within themselves a range of meanings. The text can also be ambiguous and vague", he said.In the initial years, the Indian Courts viewed the written text as the ultimate basis of interpretation. Gradually, the Courts started moving away from the plaint text and rather than looking at a singular textual provision, Courts started looking at all parts of the Constitution to derive a deeper and more holistic meaning, which can further the Constitutional values.Constitutional silences regarding structural arrangements of power are to be understood based on the values of the constitution. The Courts will adopt an interpretation which will reflect and further the values of the Constitution. CJI also used the allegory of a rope in this context. A rope will be having different strands and will not remain the same even if one single strand is detached. Similar...

Constitutional Institutions Important To Check Abuse Of Power & Safeguard Rights : CJI DY Chandrachud

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