Hello, this post explains about what is Public Interest Litigation, Reasons for Public Interest Litigation and how it developed in India etc., which is very important for law students and general public, please read it.
What is Public Interest Litigation –
It is such a petition or suit, through which the aggrieved party himself or any other person or organization can present an application before the court on his behalf. But such matters must be of public interest at large.
This system of Public Interest Litigation replaced the earlier prevalent Locus standi (jurisdiction). Now, action is taken by the court through suo motu cognizance also (on the basis of media reports, social sites etc.). Former Justice of India P.N. Bhagwati is considered as the ‘Father of Public Interest Litigation‘.
Water of Ganga, beauty of Taj Mahal, transfer of judges, sexual exploitation and harassment of women, atrocities on Dalit class, police torture, plight of Nari Niketan etc. are many such cases in which due to widespread public interest, they are considered as public interest litigation has gone.
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Justice Krishna Iyer has also said that – “The narrow belief that only the victim and aggrieved person can go to the court has now ended. Its place has now been taken by class action, public interest litigation, representative litigation etc.
Now any person can knock in the court for the protection of his and others’ interests in matters related to public interest.” Not only this, judicial proceedings were also started on the basis of letters, postcards and newspaper clippings over time is being done.
Evolution of Public Interest Litigation in India
Our country has been just and liberal since the beginning. Justice, policy and religion have been its ideals and have tried to protect the rights of the individual.
In the beginning, when there were no courts like the present, then the king used to act as the judge and he was considered as the fountain of justice. Justice of Vikramaditya and Jahangir are good examples of this.
Gradually, the judiciary developed in the form of justice according to the circumstances and the aggrieved and aggrieved parties started coming to the court for justice. But still the aggrieved and aggrieved party remained away from justice due to many reasons –
- To get justice, the victim or the aggrieved party had to appear in the court himself.
- Due to the high cost of the judicial system, the aggrieved and aggrieved parties are unable to submit applications in the court. Due to which poverty has been considered as a big obstacle in the path of justice and
- The aggrieved or aggrieved party started getting deprived of justice due to the long delay in getting justice. Because of which this saying is characteristic that – “The plaintiff dies, but the suit remains immortal.”
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Due to all the above reasons, when the aggrieved or the aggrieved party or the common man started moving away from the judicial system, Then the lawmakers, jurists and social activists introduced the system of ‘Lok Adalat’ to remove these defects and avoid excessive delay and expenditure. Under this, work was done to settle the matters through mutual agreements and agreements and –
By adding a new Article 39A in the Constitution, the ‘Free Legal Aid‘ scheme was started, in this provision was made that the state would ensure such a system that no person is deprived of justice just because of poverty. .
In this way, the concept of ‘public interest litigation’ was developed for those people who are unable to go to the court due to poverty or any other reason.
Evolution of Public Interest Litigation in India
(1) Constitution of India –
Most of the credit for the origin and development of public interest litigation goes to the Constitution of India. Many such arrangements have been made in our constitution, due to which the concept of public interest litigation has originated and developed; As –
- Social, economic and political justice in the Preamble of the Constitution it self; Freedom of thought, expression, belief, religion and worship and equality of status and opportunity have been realized.
- In Article 38 of the Constitution, it is the duty of the state to ensure social, economic and political justice to every citizen.
- Article 39 of the constitution provides for distributive justice so that every citizen can lead a dignified life with their natural rights.
- Free Legal Aid Scheme was started in Article 39A of the Constitution. Under this, it was said that the state should ensure such a system that no person is deprived of justice just because of poverty. This arrangement has paved the way for the development of the concept of public interest litigation.
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(2) Liberal theory of jurisdiction –
The credit for the origin and development of public interest litigation also goes to the liberal interpretation of ‘locus standi’. Only the aggrieved and aggrieved party can go to the court for the enforcement of their rights, this authority gradually started to end, in its place it was implemented that the matters related to the wider public interest should be taken to the court by any person, association or organization. can be visited and proceedings can be initiated.
(3) Where there is right there is remedy –
The origin and development of public interest litigation also goes to the formula “Where there is right there is remedy” (Ubi jus ibi remedium). It means that if there is a right then there is a remedy for it. No right is without remedy and cannot be, because without remedy the right is meaningless and meaningless.
If a person’s rights are violated and such violation is not remedied, then that right itself becomes meaningless. But this sutra remained confined only to rich persons or classes.
That means only rich people should keep taking advantage of this formula. The poor and weak sections remained deprived of the benefits of this formula. But at present the concept of public interest litigation has been implemented to implement and make this formula meaningful.
(4) Judicial activism –
Judicial activism has also contributed in the development of the concept of public interest litigation. The speedy disposal of public interest cases by apex-courts also gives rise to the concept of public interest litigation.
Such as environmental protection, water of Ganga, beauty of Taj Mahal, women-harassment, child-abuse, police atrocities, medical negligence etc. Apart from this, the courts have speeded up the administration of justice by considering clippings of letters, postcards and newspapers as writs. Because of which the contribution of judicial activism in the development of public interest litigation has been invaluable.
In the case of M.C. Mehta vs. Union of India, the Supreme Court introduced judicial activism by considering a letter as a writ, which has given a lot of strength to the concept of public interest litigation. (AIR 1987 SC 1086)
(5) Liberal approach of judges –
The liberal approach of judges has also been important in the origin and development of public interest litigation. Former Supreme Court Justice PN Bhagwati, Justice Krishna Iyer and former Rajasthan High Court Justice Gumanmal Lodha, Justice Dinkarlal Mehta etc. have actively contributed in this direction.
Justice P.N. According to Bhagwati – “Justice is no longer the preserve of only the rich. The temples of justice are now open to the common man.”
According to Justice Krishna Iyer – “The narrow perception that only the aggrieved and aggrieved person can go to the court is over. Its place has now been taken by class action, public interest litigation and representative litigation etc.”
Need for Public Interest Litigation
- PIL were considered by the judges of the Supreme Court as a powerful tool to preserve the rule of law and ensure accountability and transparency within the structures of governance.
- Public Interest Litigation (PIL) is available to the citizens of the country as a cheap legal remedy, at a nominal court fee.
- Litigations filed through Public Interest Litigation (PIL) also focus on outcomes relating to larger public issues.
- The importance of PIL is self-evident, especially in the field of human rights, consumer welfare and environment.
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