Explain the reasons for the growth of public interest litigation in India. As a result of it, has the…

Question

Explain the reasons for the growth of public interest litigation in India. As a result of it, has the Indian Supreme Court emerged as the world's most powerful judiciary?

Ghissu Editorial · Accepted Answer

PIL grew from relaxed locus standi after the Emergency, an expanding Article 21 and executive failure, giving the Supreme Court unusual reach over amendments, appointments and governance. It is arguably the world's most expansive apex court, yet weak compliance, as with Prakash Singh (2006), limits its effective power.

**Introduction**

PIL took shape after the Emergency, when S.P. Gupta (1981) let any public-spirited person approach the court for those who could not, making the Supreme Court a direct actor in governance.

**Reasons for the Growth of PIL**

1. **Post-Emergency legitimacy**: After ADM Jabalpur (1976), the Court opened Article 32 to the poor and voiceless.
2. **Relaxed procedure**: Liberal standing and letter petitions (Sunil Batra, 1980) made litigation cheap.
3. **Expanding Article 21**: Livelihood (Olga Tellis, 1985), environment (M.C. Mehta) and food (PUCL, 2001) became justiciable.
4. **Governance failure**: Executive inaction on bonded labour (Bandhua Mukti Morcha, 1984) and pollution pushed NGOs, activists and the press to treat courts as the forum of last resort.

**Has the Supreme Court Become the World's Most Powerful?**

SKETCH: comparison | Reach of Two Apex Courts
a: Indian Supreme Court
b: US Supreme Court
- Reviews amendments :: Does not review amendments
- Article 142 complete justice :: No such power
- Picks its own judges :: President and Senate
- Liberal PIL standing :: Strict case or controversy
- Continuing mandamus :: Rarely supervises

1. **Unusual reach**: It reviews constitutional amendments (Kesavananda, 1973), struck down the NJAC (2015), ran Delhi's CNG shift (1998) and cancelled 122 2G licences (2012).
2. **Real limits**: Weak compliance, as with Prakash Singh's police reforms (2006), legislative override after Anoop Baranwal (2023) and 5.29 crore pending cases (Law Ministry, July 2025) restrain its effective power.

**Way Forward**

1. **Filter and restrain**: Apply the Balwant Singh Chaufal (2010) PIL filters, impose costs on motivated petitions and defer on pure policy.
2. **Statutory handover**: Pass supervision to bodies like the Commission for Air Quality Management.

**Conclusion**

PIL has made India's Supreme Court perhaps the most expansive apex court in the world, but its power depends on trust and compliance, so restraint is the condition of its legitimacy.

Explain the reasons for the growth of public interest litigation in India. As a result of it, has the Indian Supreme Court emerged as the world's most powerful judiciary?

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