Landmark Supreme Court cases

The words of the Constitution are fixed, but their meaning is worked out by the courts, case by case. A handful of judgments of the Supreme Court have changed how the whole document is understood. Here are ten that every student of the Constitution should know. The summaries are in our own words and give only the main point of each case.

1. A. K. Gopalan v. State of Madras (1950)

A detained communist leader challenged the preventive detention law. The Court took a narrow view of Article 21: if a person was deprived of liberty by a validly made law, the court would not ask whether that law was fair. Each Fundamental Right was treated as separate from the others. This view held for almost thirty years.

2. Shankari Prasad v. Union of India (1951)

The First Amendment, which protected land reform laws, was challenged. The Court held that Parliament's power to amend the Constitution included the power to amend Fundamental Rights.

3. Golaknath v. State of Punjab (1967)

The Court reversed its earlier view and held that Parliament could not amend the Constitution so as to take away or abridge Fundamental Rights. Parliament responded with the 24th Amendment.

4. Kesavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala (1973)

The most important constitutional case in India, decided by thirteen judges, the largest bench ever. By a narrow majority the Court held that Parliament can amend any part of the Constitution, including Fundamental Rights, but cannot destroy its basic structure. This doctrine still limits every amendment.

5. Indira Nehru Gandhi v. Raj Narain (1975)

An amendment that placed the Prime Minister's election beyond the reach of the courts was struck down. The Court applied the basic structure doctrine for the first time and held that free and fair elections and judicial review are part of it.

6. Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India (1978)

A journalist's passport was impounded without reasons. The Court overturned the narrow view of the Gopalan case. It held that a law depriving a person of life or liberty must be just, fair and reasonable, and that Articles 14, 19 and 21 must be read together. Article 21 has since grown to include many rights, from livelihood to a clean environment.

7. Minerva Mills v. Union of India (1980)

The Court struck down parts of the 42nd Amendment that tried to give Parliament unlimited power to amend the Constitution. It held that the limited nature of the amending power is itself part of the basic structure, and that the Constitution rests on a balance between Fundamental Rights and Directive Principles.

8. Indra Sawhney v. Union of India (1992)

Known as the Mandal case. The Court upheld 27 per cent reservation for other backward classes in central government jobs, said that the "creamy layer" among them should be excluded, and held that total reservation should not normally cross 50 per cent.

9. S. R. Bommai v. Union of India (1994)

The Court held that the President's power to dismiss a state government under Article 356 is subject to judicial review, that a government's majority must be tested on the floor of the house, and that secularism is part of the basic structure.

10. Justice K. S. Puttaswamy v. Union of India (2017)

A bench of nine judges held unanimously that the right to privacy is a Fundamental Right, protected as part of the right to life and personal liberty under Article 21.

Two more worth knowing

• Vishaka v. State of Rajasthan (1997): the Court laid down guidelines against sexual harassment of women at the workplace, which were later replaced by a law of Parliament in 2013.
• ADM Jabalpur v. Shivkant Shukla (1976): during the Emergency the Court held that a detained person could not approach a court for release. The judgment was widely criticised and was expressly overruled in the Puttaswamy case.

Case law develops all the time. For examinations, follow your current textbook; for any legal question, consult a lawyer.