Describing judicial review as cornerstone of India’s constitutional democracy, Chief Justice of India Surya Kant has said that it should not be viewed as judicial supremacy.
Speaking at the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (IDEA) conference in Stockholm on Monday, the CJI said, “It would be no exaggeration to claim that this expansive power of review is a cornerstone of India’s constitutional democracy, affirming that legality and constitutionality are fundamental preconditions to the exercise of governmental authority.”
Emphasising the centrality of the rule of law, judicial independence and constitutional democracy in safeguarding individual liberties, he asserted that judicial review was not merely a power but a constitutional duty entrusted to courts.
“The greatest safeguard lies in an independent judiciary, which must remain a vigilant guardian of constitutional supremacy,” he added.
Advocating judicial restraint, he said, “The rule of law is preserved only when the judiciary honours its own institutional boundaries while holding other branches to theirs.”
CJI Kant rejected the view that Rule of Law and judicial independence are Western, post-colonial concepts gifted to the Global South.
“In the Indian consciousness, the supremacy of Dharma over personal or dynastic power has been an enduring principle for thousands of years, predating the common law tradition,” he said while speaking on the theme “Safeguarding the Rule of Law — Experiences from India and Sweden".
“It is frequently presumed by many academics and legal scholars that the Rule of Law and Judicial Independence are purely Western, post-colonial imports gifted to the Global South. In the Indian consciousness, institutional integrity and the absolute supremacy of Dharma, which comprises the cosmic, ethical, and legal order, over personal or dynastic power, are ancient principles with roots stretching back thousands of years before the arrival of the common law," the CJI said.
The CJI said India’s constitutional experience demonstrated that constitutional values rooted in a diverse democracy had universal relevance.
