Kesavananda Bharti Case: Determining Its Precedential Value
- IJLLR Journal
- Jan 18
- 1 min read
Chinmay Tripathi, Gujarat National Law University, Gandhinagar (GNLU)
ABSTRACT
The objective behind writing this article is to recognize the impact and implications of the Kesavananda Bharti judgement, famously known as the Fundamental Rights case.1 It went on to become the longest heard case, spanning over 68 days, encompassing an unprecedented breadth of case laws and legal literature. The Kesavananda case itself was a unique judicial exercise the likes of which has not been seen or will be seen in the Supreme Court.2 For the first time in the history of the Supreme Court, a thirteen-judge bench was constituted to determine: Whether Parliament had unlimited powers to amend the Constitution or not? A question which arose multiple times and was hugely discussed in the Golaknath,3 Bank Nationalization4 and Privy Purses Case5 all of which were decided by the Constitution benches against the State, The Union of India. These answers would shape India’s democratic ethos and the rule of law in the years to come.
Keywords: Fundamental Rights, Constitution, Kesavananda Bharti, Parliament
