Public Interest Litigation

Question 1

Intro - PIL

Answer 1

1. The expression “public interest litigation” means a legal action initiated in a Court for enforcement of a public interest.
2. PIL is often used to address issues related to environmental protection, pollution control, conservation of natural resources, and sustainable development

Question 2

VALIDITY OF PIL

Answer 2

1. The Supreme Court firmly established the validity of public interest litigation in S.P. Gupta v. Union of India, popularly known as the “Judges Transfer Case.” A large number of public interest litigation petitions have been filed since then.
2. It should be noted promptly that PIL, at least as it has adapted in India, is not the same as a lawsuit or group litigation. Unlike the latter, which is motivated primarily by efficiency concerns, the PIL is concerned with ensuring equal access to justice for all societal constituents.
3. In India, public interest litigation (PIL) has been a part of constitutional litigation rather than civil litigation

Question 3

Rules of Locus Standi

Answer 3

1. The concept of “Locus Standi” has been relaxed in the case of PILs so as to enable the Court to look into grievances that are filed on behalf of those who are poor, illiterate, deprived and are unable to approach the courts themselves
2. In Maharaj Singh v. State of Uttar Pradesh, it was observed that “Locus standi’ has a larger ambit in current legal semantics than the accepted, individualistic jurisprudence of old.”
3. This observation referring to the legal standing of public body is now true of a private body as well
4. The Supreme Court has observed in M/s. J. Mohapatra & Co. v. Orissa, that to-day “the law with respect to locus standi has considerably advanced” and “in the case of public interest litigation it is not necessary that a petitioner should himself have a personal interest in the matter. The petitioner should not, however, come to the Court for personal gain, private profit, political motive or any oblique consideration.
5. Nevertheless, even though the scope of locus standi has been widened by the Supreme Court in the field of PIL, yet a mere busy body having no interest in the subject-matter cannot invoke the jurisdiction of the courts.
6. Where third party interest has been created on account of delay, PIL is liable to be dismissed.
7. Lately, the courts have shown a good deal of flexibility in the matter of legal standing.

Question 4

Suo moto cognizance may also be taken by the Court.

Answer 4

1. even a simple letter or a postcard addressed to the Chief Justice of India or the Chief Justice of a High Court may suffice.
2. The court may then choose to take cognisance of the letter and convert it into a PIL as in the case of Rural Litigation & Entitlement Kendra, Dehradun vs. State of Uttar Pradesh, where the Hon’ble Court converted a letter raising the issue of unauthorised and illegal mining in Mussoorie Hills into a writ petition under Public Interest Litigation.
3. The Supreme Court has ruled that to exercise its jurisdiction under Art. 32, it is not necessary that the affected person should personally approach the Court. The Court can itself take congnizance of the matter and proceed suo motu or on a petition of any public spirited individual or body.
4. At times, a High Court may even take up a matter under Art. 226 suo motu. According to a news item, the Bombay High Court invited voluntary organisations and the Government authorities to find a judicial solution to the problem of roofless and rootless children who are brought to Bombay for labour but later take to crime.
5. And, a private interest case can also be treated as public interest case. The writ petitioner before the High Court was a firm of a Chartered Accountant. As an expert in accountancy and auditing, it must have come across several cases where its client had to pay a higher amount of interest to the banks pursuant to the impugned action of the banks. By reason of such actions of the banks as also RBI, the citizens of India had to pay a higher amount of tax as also a higher amount of interest for no fault on their part. Contrary to law. The Court directed the Comptroller and Auditor General to effect recoveries of all the excess amount realised by the Union of India by way of interest tax and interest by the banks and other financial institution

Question 5

Emphasising the need for PIL in India, Bhagwati, J., observed:

Answer 5

“If public duties are to be enforced and social collective “diffused”, rights and interests are to be protected, we have to utilize the initiative and zeal of public minded persons and organizations by allowing them to move the Court and act for a general or group interest, even though, they may not be directly injured in their own rights”.

The reason for this development is that it has been realised that if this is not permitted, rights of the poor will ever remain unredressed as such persons are least equipped to themselves bring their grievances before the courts and such a situation is destructive of Rule of Law.

Question 6

Misuse of PILS

Answer 6

1. Courts are extremely cautious to ensure that PILs are not misused as the misuse of PILs would defeat the very purpose for which it was conceived i.e. to come to the rescue of the poor and the downtrodden.
2. However, courts have held that even if the petitioner had approached the court for his own private interest due to his personal grievances, the court may treat it necessary to inquire into the subject of the litigation and its state of affairs in furtherance of public interest.

Question 7

Nature of Proceedings

Answer 7

1. Public Interest Litigation relates to the nature of the proceedings and has no inbuilt implications as to the forum competent to deal with such litigation. In practice, however, PIL is, almost invariably, filed in the High Court under Article 226 or the Supreme Court under Article 32.
2. When the complainant invokes the jurisdiction of the High Court or the Supreme Court under Articles 226 and 32 respectively, many of the principles applied by the Courts while reviewing under Article 226 or Article 32 are applied
3. PIL has not been defined in any Indian statute. However, Courts have interpreted and defined PIL.
4. The Court has again explained the nature of public interest litigation in Sheela Barse v. Union of India :”The technique of public interest litigation serves to provide an effective remedy to enforce group rights and interests.”
   In Sheela Barse v. State of Maharashtra, Sheela Barse, a journalist, complained of custodial violence against women prisoners in Bombay. Her letter was treated as a writ petition and the directions were given by the court
5. The Preamble of our Indian constitution envisages ‘Justice for all’ amongst other tenets.

Question 8

Lakshmi Kant Pandey v. Union of India

Answer 8

Lakshmi Kant Pandey v. Union of India, was initiated on the basis of a letter by an advocate complaining of malpractices indulged in by social organisations in the matter of offering Indian children in adoption to foreign parents. He based his letter on press reports on this issue. The Court formulated a series of guidelines to be applied in such matters.

Question 9

(D.S. Nakara v. Union of India)

Answer 9

A non-political, non-profit and voluntary organisation consisting of public spirited citizens interested in taking up the causes of ventilating legitimate public problems filed a writ petition to espouse the cause of old pensioners who were individually unable to seek redress through the labyrinth of legal and judicial process which is costly and protracted. The Supreme Court ruled that the body concerned undoubtedly had locus standi to raise the matter before the Court.

Question 10

(Allahabad Ladies’ Club v. Jitendra Nath Singh, (2007))

Answer 10

Merely because it is a public interest litigation, its width cannot be unlimited

Question 11

BALCO Employees’ Union (Regd.) v. Union of India

Answer 11

It may however be emphasized that a PIL writ petition can be filed in the Supreme Court under Art. 32 only if a question concerning the enforcement of a Fundamental Right is involved. Under Art. 226, a writ petition can be filed in a High Court whether or not a Fundamental Right is involved

But relying on BALCO Employees’ Union (Regd.) v. Union of India, the Court has again reminded that the only ground on which a person can maintain a PIL is where there has been an element of violation of Article 21 on human rights or where the litigation has been initiated for the benefit of the poor and the underprivileged who are unable to come to the court due to some disadvantage.

Question 12

Hussainara Khatoon Cases

Answer 12

The Hussainara Khatoon cases to vindicate the right of personal liberty under Art. 21 of the Bihar undertrials started with an article written by K.F. Rustamji in the Indian Express where he pointed out how undertrial prisoners were languishing in jails in Bihar for years without trial. An advocate, Kapila Hingorani , then filed a petition under Art. 32 in the Supreme Court to protect the personal liberty of the undertrials.

This Court has taken the view that, having regard to the peculiar socio-econo-mic conditions prevailing in the country where there is considerable poverty, illiteracy and ignorance obstructing and impeding accessibility to the judicial process, it would result in closing the doors of justice to the poor and deprived sections of the community if the traditional rule of standing….that only a person wronged can sue for judicial redress were to be blindly adhered to and followed and it is therefore necessary to evolve a new strategy by relaxing this traditional rule of standing in order that justice may become easily available to the lowly and the lost.”

Question 13

Bandhua Mukti morcha

Answer 13

1. In Bandhua Mukti Morcha v. Union of India, the Supreme Court entertained a matter concerning release of bonded labour raised by an organisation dedicated to the cause of release of bonded labour.
2. In such a case, a letter addressed by a member of public can legitimately be regarded as an “appropriate” proceeding.
3. The Court then went on to emphasize that “public interest litigation is not in the nature of adversary litigation but it is a challenge and an opportunity to the Government and its officers to make basic human rights meaningful to the deprived and vulnerable sections of the community and to assure them social and economic justice.

Question 14

PIL and Environment

Answer 14

1. in the case of Rural Litigation & Entitlement Kendra, Dehradun vs. State of Uttar Pradesh, the Hon’ble Court converted a letter raising the issue of unauthorised and illegal mining in Mussoorie Hills into a writ petition under Public Interest Litigation.
2. Commenting on the case, the Court observed: “….This is the first case of its kind in the country involving issues relating to environment and ecological balance…It brings into sharp focus the conflict between development and conservation and services to emphasize the need for reconciling the two in the larger interest of the country.”
3. PIL can be filed against both public and private entities who are violating environmental laws or causing harm to the environment.
4. PIL in environmental law has also helped to create awareness among citizens about environmental issues and their rights
5. The Supreme Court, in the case of Indian Council for Enviro-Legal Action vs. Union of India, issued a warning to industries that discharge dangerous substances like Oleum and H acid. The court stated that such pollution is a violation of the right to a safe and healthy environment and, ultimately, the right to life.
6. Similarly, in the case of M.C. Mehta vs. Union of India, the Supreme Court declared that vehicular emissions causing air pollution in Delhi constitute a violation of the right to life under Article 21 of the Constitution. The court directed all commercial vehicles operating in Delhi to switch to CNG fuel mode to safeguard the health of the public
7. Moreover, in Church of God (Full Gospel) in India vs. KKR Majestic Colony Welfare Association, the Supreme Court ruled that noise pollution amounts to a violation of Article 21 of the Constitution.
8. Another example of a PIL is the Oleum Gas Leak Case that established the concept of “absolute liability” in Indian law.
9. In the landmark case of Vellore Citizens’ Welfare Forum vs. Union of India, the Supreme Court allowed a public-spirited social organisation to represent the residents of Vellore to protect their health. In this case, the tanneries located around the Palar River in Vellore, Tamil Nadu, were found to be discharging toxic chemicals into the river, endangering the health of the residents. As a result, the Court ordered the tanneries to close their businesses.
10. A PIL would only be entertained if a segment of the public is interested, and the petitioner is not aggrieved in his individual capacity alone. And, it is not a charter for ignoring or supplanting an applicable statutory provisions.

Question 15

JUDICIAL ACTIVISM

Answer 15

1. The Supreme Court has cautioned that public interest litigation is a weapon which has to be used with great care and circumspection and that the judiciary has to be careful to see that under the guise of redressing a public grievance it does not encroach upon the sphere reserved by the Constitution to the executive and the legislature.
2. PIL is the result of judicial activism. The basic reason for the growth of PIL in India is bureaucratic unresponsiveness to public needs. No effective mechanism has been established as yet for the redressal of public grievances against the Administration.
3. The result is that any person having a grievance against the Administration has no alternative but to take recourse to the courts for the redressal of his grievance against the Administration.
4. The belief behind judicial activism is that judges serve as independent “trustees” or as independent policymakers. Judicial activism holds that judges, in addition to their traditional role as interpreters of the Constitution and laws, serve as independent policymakers or “trustees” on behalf of society.
5. the courts have played their role in a constructive manner with a view to promote the welfare of the people and strengthen the democratic fabric in the country
6. PIL should be regarded as a console through which the public participates in the judicial review of authoritative acts. Nonetheless, the court can take a PIL case on its own initiative and fulfil its obligations through judicial activism.
7. There is no doubt that today’s judicial activism is shaped as a path for the judiciary to maintain its capacity as a fortress of justice
8. Many cases of judicial activism have come to light in the last decade. Health, child labour, political corruption, environment, and education are some of the areas in which the judiciary has taken effective steps. Through various cases, including Bandhua Mukti Morcha, Bihar under trials, Punjab Police, Bombay Pavement Dwellers, and Bihar Care Home cases, the judiciary has demonstrated its total dedication to participatory justice, fair procedural standards, immediate access to justice, and the prevention of arbitrary state action.

Question 16

Judicial activism 2

Answer 16

in various cases of public interest litigation, the Supreme Court issued a variety of guidelines. For e.g., in Vishaka v. State of Rajasthan, a social activist was brutally raped when she was in her office, and an NGO filed a PIL in the Supreme Court on her behalf to protect women’s workplace rights. The court accepted the petition and established the guidelines to be followed in order to protect the interests of women in the workplace. Later Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 was enacted on the guidelines served by the Court.

offers a mechanism for enforcing magnified rights for which identifying an aggrieved party is difficult or where aggrieved parties have no opportunity to approach the Court
PIL continues to flourish in India with a large number of cases being filed in Courts
The other merit of PIL is that it enables the party to speedy recovery as it can be directly filed in the High Courts or the Supreme Court of India.

Indian PIL experience demonstrates the importance of ensuring that PIL does not become a back door into the temple of justice in order to satisfy private interests, consolidate political scores, or obtain easy publicity

Courts should not use PIL to run the country on a constant basis or to intrude into the executive and legislative branches’ valid realms.

Question 17

Judicial progressivism

Answer 17

In a democracy, however, the desire to become people’s judges should not prevent admitting PIL cases that involve an important public interest but are potentially unpopular because the court is not elected by the people and is not accountable to them in the same way that the House of People is.

It is argued that courts should refrain from viewing themselves as crusaders constitutionally obligated to redress all democratic failures. They do not have this authority, nor are they capable of achieving this goal.

The overuse of PIL for every possible public interest sacrificed the original commitment to use this remedy only, which is to enforce the human rights of victims and disadvantaged groups.

In the case of Ashok Kumar Pandey v. State of West Bengal, writ petition (crl.) 199 of 2003, the court held that if it is found that the petition filed in the name of PIL is to foster personal disputes, then the court should dismiss the case.

Public Interest Litigation has proven to be a valuable and novel judicial remedy. It has made the rhetoric of fundamental rights a living reality for at least some of our exploited and oppressed humanity. Prisoners awaiting trial who have been imprisoned for inordinately long periods of time, inmates of asylums and care homes living in deplorable conditions, children working in hazardous occupations, and other disadvantaged groups

Many PIL activists in the country have recently discovered the PIL to be a useful tool of harassment because frivolous cases could be filed without the investment of large court fees required in private civil litigation, and deals could then be negotiated with the victims of stay orders obtained in the so-called PILs

Concerns have been raised in political circles about the judiciary’s attempt to enter the realm of policymaking and policy implementation through PILs.

The credibility of the PIL process has been affected by assertions that the judiciary is overstepping its jurisdiction and is unable to supervise the effective implementation of its orders

the activist relative proximity to PIL, the Supreme Court of India has taken a pace and modern approach in the interest of justice by simplifying the most complex and outmoded procedures. The Court has taken justice to the doorsteps of the poor, the unprivileged, and exploitative sections of society by expanding the reach of Article 32 and speeding up the process of socio-economic revolution, and thus has revolutionised constitutional jurisprudence in the 1980s

Maintaining constitutionalism requires striking a balance among the branches of government. this two-edged sword should be used with caution and discernment.