Third Pillar Of Democracy-Inclusivity Of Indian Judiciary

Lavanya Sahil Gupta, Sinhgad Law College, Pune

ABSTRACT:

The judiciary is an organ of government that interprets the laws which are made by the legislature and enforced by the executive. It is the third organ of the government. For democratic countries, the judiciary is very important because the judiciary is known as the Guardian of Fundamental Rights of the people of the country. It upholds the rights of various individuals in the country and protects the constitution. The main function of the judiciary is to render justice to the people and thereby protect the rights of the people. India has a single integrated judicial system. The structure of the judiciary in India is pyramidal with the Supreme Court at the top, High Courts below them, and district and subordinate courts at the lowest level. The lower courts function under the direct superintendence of the higher courts. The one big issue that arises when we talk about judiciary is how inclusive and diverse is Indian judiciary. Recently, the Supreme Court Collegium itself has been talking about enhancing the diversity profile of judges in higher judiciary so the Supreme Court Collegium the judges who select judges themselves are talking about improving upon the diversity profile and fact that they are talking about this important issue is in itself a welcome development that is a step in the right direction. As of now in India we have quotas to enhance representation from diverse communities only at the subordinate court level and only in very few states do we have these kinds of quotas. So only from a very few states representatives from disadvantaged castes and tribes can surely enter the judiciary. A few, like Andhra Pradesh and Bihar, have reservations about women entering the judiciary, and that too only at subordinate court levels. In totality, we have been using quotas or reservations to enhance the representation whether it is in Panchayat elections or urban local bodies or more. But we have failed to adapt such at the level of the Indian Judiciary.