Supreme Court Judgements

Narrow interpretation of Article 21 — 'procedure established by law' means any law passed by the legislature

Fundamental Rights to be read independently, not as an integrated scheme

Personal liberty can be curtailed by any legislative procedure, however unjust

Freedom of speech and press is the foundation of all democratic organisations

Restrictions on free speech must fall within the specific grounds listed in Article 19(2)

A law restricting speech on grounds beyond Article 19(2) is unconstitutional

Parliament can amend any part of the Constitution including Fundamental Rights under Article 368

'Law' in Article 13 does not include a constitutional amendment

Constituent power of Parliament is distinct from ordinary legislative power

Preamble is not a part of the Constitution and cannot be used to interpret its provisions

Cession of territory requires constitutional amendment, not just executive action

Article 3 empowers Parliament to form new states but not to cede territory to a foreign country

Parliament cannot amend Fundamental Rights — they are sacrosanct

Article 368 does not give power to abridge or take away Fundamental Rights

Every constitutional amendment is a 'law' within Article 13(2) — overruled Shankari Prasad

Parliament can amend any part of the Constitution including Fundamental Rights

Basic Structure of the Constitution cannot be destroyed even by constitutional amendment

Basic structure includes supremacy of the Constitution, secular character, separation of powers, federalism, judicial review

Free and fair elections are part of the basic structure of the Constitution

Parliament cannot validate a void election by retrospective legislation

Rule of law and democracy are basic features that cannot be abrogated

During Emergency, no person can move any court for enforcement of fundamental rights (majority view — later criticised)

Justice Khanna's dissent: Article 21 cannot be suspended even during Emergency

Considered the darkest hour of Indian judiciary; Justice Khanna's dissent hailed as landmark

Overruled A.K. Gopalan — Fundamental Rights must be read together as an integrated code

'Procedure established by law' must be right, just and fair, not arbitrary or oppressive

Article 21 incorporates the American concept of 'due process of law'

Parliament's power to amend the Constitution under Article 368 is limited — cannot be unlimited

Balance between Fundamental Rights (Part III) and Directive Principles (Part IV) is part of basic structure

Clauses 4 and 5 of Article 368 inserted by 42nd Amendment struck down as they removed judicial review

Laws placed in the Ninth Schedule before April 24, 1973 (Kesavananda date) enjoy absolute immunity

Laws placed after that date can be challenged on the ground of violating basic structure

Ninth Schedule is not a blanket shield — post-Kesavananda insertions are judicially reviewable

Muslim divorced women are entitled to maintenance under Section 125 CrPC beyond iddat period

Uniform Civil Code under Article 44 is an unaddressed constitutional imperative

Personal law must conform to constitutional rights; religion cannot override statutory law on maintenance

Absolute liability principle: enterprises engaged in hazardous activity are absolutely liable for harm, with no exceptions

Expands and departs from the Rylands v. Fletcher rule of strict liability

Right to live in a pollution-free environment is part of Article 21

27% OBC reservation upheld; 50% cap on reservations affirmed as a constitutional limit

Creamy layer among OBCs must be excluded from reservation benefits

Reservations in promotions for SC/ST under Article 16(4A) require quantifiable data on inadequate representation

Federalism is a basic feature of the Constitution — President's Rule under Article 356 is justiciable

Floor of the legislature, not the Governor's subjective satisfaction, is the test for majority

Secularism is a basic structure; a state government that violates it can be dismissed

Judicial review by High Courts and Supreme Court is a basic feature of the Constitution

Clauses excluding HC/SC jurisdiction in service tribunals (Articles 323A & 323B) are unconstitutional

Tribunals can only be supplementary to, not replacements of, constitutional courts

Sexual harassment at the workplace violates Articles 14, 15, and 21

In absence of legislation, Supreme Court laid down binding Vishaka Guidelines for employers

International conventions (CEDAW) can be read into domestic fundamental rights

Transfer of tribal land to non-tribals in scheduled areas is unconstitutional

Fifth Schedule areas are protected — government cannot grant mining leases on tribal land to private companies

Tribals have a right to protect their livelihood against alienation of forest and mineral resources

Conversion to Islam solely for purpose of contracting a second marriage without dissolving the first is void

Such conversion amounts to fraud on the law — bigamy cannot be legalized through change of religion

Personal law cannot override the Penal Code provisions on bigamy

Laws inserted into Ninth Schedule after April 24, 1973 are open to judicial review

If they abrogate or abridge basic structure rights (Articles 14, 19, 21), they can be struck down

Confirmed and elaborated the Waman Rao principle — Ninth Schedule is not immune from basic structure review

Passive euthanasia (withdrawing life support) can be permitted with court approval

Active euthanasia remains illegal

Right to die with dignity is part of Article 21; High Courts to follow detailed guidelines before granting permission

Voters have a constitutional right to reject all candidates — NOTA option must be on EVMs

Right to vote includes the right not to vote for any candidate

Secrecy of the ballot is a fundamental aspect of free and fair elections

Transgender persons have a right to self-identify their gender — 'third gender' officially recognised

Articles 14, 15, 16, 19, and 21 apply to transgender persons

State must grant OBC reservations to transgender persons and provide social welfare measures

Right to Privacy is a fundamental right under Article 21 — nine-judge bench unanimous

Privacy includes bodily integrity, personal choices, informational privacy, and decisional autonomy

Overruled M.P. Sharma and Kharak Singh to the extent they held privacy is not a fundamental right

Instant triple talaq (talaq-e-biddat) is unconstitutional — violates Articles 14 and 21

3:2 majority: practice is manifestly arbitrary and void

Parliament subsequently enacted The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Act, 2019

Section 377 IPC criminalising consensual same-sex relations between adults is unconstitutional

Sexual orientation is an essential attribute of identity protected under Articles 14, 15, 19, and 21

Overruled Suresh Kumar Koushal (2013) — history owes an apology to the LGBT community (CJI Misra)