Navigating The Rule Of Law: Assessing Its Current Status In The Independent Indian Judiciary
- IJLLR Journal
- 43 minutes ago
- 2 min read
Garima Sharma, Lovely Professional University
ABSTRACT
The Indian judicial system is the foundation of the biggest democracy in the world and it is the court system that makes a significant contribution to the rule of law. One of the main principles that have a democratic society as their main focus is rule of law. The same is applied in the Constitution of India that ensures a powerful justice system. The rule of law is interpreted by the judiciary as the watchdog of the Constitution, which ensures that the rule of law is applied to ensure the government does not act in a whimsical manner. The Indian judiciary does not rely on the executive and legislative branches of the government. This independence is entrenched in the Constitution of India that has granted the judiciary the mandate of checking the judiciary. Using the judicial review, the judiciary is able to strike down the laws or the executions of the government which violate the provisions of the constitution. The Indian courts are firm believers of the rule of law and this is shown by its activism in the field of public interest litigation (PIL). The cases that the Court has addressed by means of PIL have covered not only the environmental protection but also LGBTQ communities and other vulnerable members of the society, which illustrates that the Court is actually a fighter of justice and equality. The judiciary has led in making historic judgments in recent times such as decriminalization of homosexuality and gender equality. The Indian courts have however not been spared in their share of adversities like the huge number of cases pending, and the justice lag.
This paper will concentrate on the way the rule of law has developed and become a part of judiciary and constitution. The objective of the research is to establish how legal education and training can be improved to provide the suitable skills and knowledge required by judges and other legal practitioners to promote the rule of law. The paper also covers the strategies that can be used to facilitate the smooth operations in the court and to reduce the number of cases that are pending in the court thus making justice accessible in a timely and efficient manner.
Keywords: Indian judiciary, rule of law, Constitution, Supreme Court, judicial review, public interest litigation, legal precedent, judicial reform, judicial efficiency, democracy, independence, activism, landmark decisions.
