Tracing The Role Of The Indian Judiciary In Environment Protection

Shashank Kumar, Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, Delhi

Sunidhi Singh, Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, Delhi.

ABSTRACT

When the constituent assembly adopted the preamble, there’s no doubt that they put justice in the highest place. The word "justice—social, economic, and political” is mentioned in our preamble, which shows the objective of our nation. Social justice can be interpreted or extended through various aspects, and one of the key aspects is environmental justice too. The judiciary plays an important role in providing justice and the Indian legal system, particularly in environmental-related aspects. We observed a sea change in the behavior of the Indian judiciary during the 1980s–1990s era. Whether it is in the form of accepting relaxing locus standi in PILs, developing the Polluter Pays Principle, the evolving nature of public trust doctrine, or the recognition of environmental rights as fundamental rights, the judiciary has also not taken a back step when it comes to suggestions for curbing environmental pollution and has taken a balanced approach between protecting the environment and nation-building. In recent years, the judiciary has played a focused role in curbing environmental pollution and has also acted as a custodian and guardian in protecting our fundamental rights.

Therefore, the main aim of this research paper is to discuss and observe how the judiciary has played an important role in protecting the environment and how it has helped in the development of environmental- related rules, regulations, and principles in our country.