Question

Explain the term judicial review.

Answer 1

Hint: The Constitution itself confers the power of judicial review on the judiciary in India, involving both the Supreme Court as well as the high courts. Moreover, the Supreme Court has declared the power of judicial review as an element of the basic structure of the Constitution or a basic feature of the Constitution. This means that the power of judicial review cannot be curtailed even by a constitutional amendment.

Complete answer:
The power conferred on the judiciary to determine the constitutionality of executive orders and legislative enactments of both the Central and State governments is known as judicial review. If they are found to be violative of the Constitution (ultra vires) on examination, then they can be declared by the judiciary as unconstitutional, illegal, and invalid (null and void). As a result, they cannot be enforced by the government. Judicial review is important for many reasons to like to maintain federal equilibrium (balance between the Centre and the States), to uphold the supremacy of the Constitution, and to protect the Fundamental Rights of the citizens. Though the phrase “Judicial Review” has not been used in the Constitution, the provisions of several articles confer explicitly the power of judicial review on the Supreme Court and the high courts. The Supreme Court and the high courts are given the power of judicial review through Articles like 13, 32, 131, 132, 133, 134-A, 135, 136, 143, 225, 227, 245, 246, 251, 254, and 372.

Note: The doctrine of judicial review emerged and developed in the USA. It was for the first time propounded by the then chief justice of the American Supreme Court, John Marshall, in the famous case of Marbury V. Madison (1803).