Prologue

The advent of public interest litigations (PILs) in India dates back to the 1970s and the same can be credited to India’s profound legal luminaries, Justices P. N. Bhagwati and V. R. Krishna Iyer for their great contributions to the PILs we know today. It was from the famous case Hussainara Khatoon vs. State of Bihar (1979), which drastically highlighted the plight of under-trial prisoners in India, emphasizing the right to speedy justice in India. In an attempt to speed up the justice dispensation in India, any public-spirited person in the country obtained the leverage to initiate litigations in the interest of the general public for the violation of rights of certain individuals or groups of people or for the misappropriation of public resources and the natural environment. Other major public interest litigants in India include Adv. M.C. Mehta, who is well known for filing public interest litigations on matters concerning the natural environment, including forests and water resources across the country. It was basically from that profound landmark judgement that a concrete precedent was set in India’s judicial system that would last forever till date. The pivotal precedent established that anybody who recognizes the violation of rights of people or authorities trespassing their duties and responsibilities can file a case in any competent court and the same shall be treated as a valid case bound to be considered for hearing and adjudication. Therefore, in this article, we shall delve into understanding the legal and constitutional backings of public interest litigation, how it works, and the possible challenges it faces in the current legal system. Be sure to buckle up!

How Public Interest Litigation Works in India

The Indian Constitution provides two main provisions that cater to approaching the High Courts and the Supreme Court through public interest litigation. Articles 32 and 226 of the Indian Constitution enable individuals or organizations to seek judicial intervention for issues affecting public interest, such as matters involving environmental degradation. The implementation of this public interest litigation can be seen through the following mechanisms:

By means of relaxed rule of locus standi and Procedural Requirements Unlike traditional litigation, filing cases through public interest litigation allows individuals and organisations to knock the doors of courts without having the issues directly affecting their wellbeing. Courts in India can entertain public interest litigations through letters it receives or through newspaper reports and shall consider them for adjudication as though they are ordinary suits where verdicts are delivered and appropriate remedies are awarded.

By means of judicial activism, courts in India have severally accepted letters and complaints from concerned citizens and considered them as actual cases for adjudication. This is done for the purpose of catering for the needs of those who cannot access justice or those that are incapacitated at certain moments from having access to the courts in India.

By focusing on broader problems In an attempt to solve border problems in India, such as environmental protection challenges, human rights violations, and ensuring social justice, public interest litigation has seen an enormous impact today. Several landmark judgements in India today have been based on environmental concerns, including disputes over water resources and forest reserves.

 Advantages of Public Interest Litigation in India

PILs provide wider access to justice. This helps to cater for the interests of the marginalised and vulnerable groups of people in the communities. Public-spirited persons have filed cases,, for instance, in the interest of protecting children, women, and also the natural environment.

Relaxation of Locus Standi for filing cases: It is apparent in India today that the purposes of filing cases have been loosen and made easy for anyone in the society. This is to ensure that courts play very crucial roles in deciding the fate of grounds on which cases are being filed without ruling out cases dehors and giving it cognizance. This has been possible in the promotion of access to justice through public interest litigations too in India.

Public interest litigation also helps in correcting judicial oversight. Today, Indian courts have gained better merits in delivering justice than in the early years. Public interest litigation is being used as a tool to monitor compliance with court orders while ensuring that the rights and general wellbeing of the public are upheld and accordingly protected.

Ensures cost-effectiveness It is comparably cheaper to file public interest litigations than traditional litigations. This allows easy access to the Courts and justice by anyone interested, either on their own behalf or at the interests of the general public.

Focus on Social Issues: Public Interest Litigations have successfully brought attention to critical issues such as environmental degradation and human trafficking in India. These are challenges that otherwise would have been terribly tormenting the growth of our societies and threatening our wellbeing in the near future. The adoption of public interest litigation makes it easy and practicable to invite judicial intervention in these crucial matters in our societies.

 Challenges of Public Interests Litigations in India

Misuse and tendencies of frivolous cases: This is one of the greatest issues under the use of public interest litigations. Time and again, individuals and organisations have filed cases purporting to be public interest litigations out of their different motives and personal concerns against other parties.

Backlog in Courts: Today, over 5 crore civil and criminal cases are pending in different courts in India. This includes cases brought through public interest litigation. Therefore, the adoption of public interest litigation is a probable cause of high pendency of cases in courts because anyone is given the privileged to file any case to appropriate courts even if the subject matters do not directly impact their wellbeing.

Judicial Overreach: There have been concerns over the judiciary stepping into matters that are best suited for the legislatures and the executive. This tends to cause overlaps in the performance of duties of the different organs of the government.

Competing Rights in Issue: It is a common challenge that when courts make decisions upon certain things, it tends to infringe upon the rights of other persons too. This causes problems in filing cases by means of public interest litigation because it becomes rather difficult to differentiate between one’s rights and duties.

Conclusion

It is therefore pertinent to note that public interest litigation serves a great deal of importance in upholding India’s judicial system. It serves as a vital mechanism for promoting social justice and protecting the general public interest in the country. This is made possible due to the apparent legal provisions, such as the constitution of the country, which caters for such public interest litigations for the general good. However, it is equally important to maintain vigilance as to the misuse of this aspect of judicial mechanism so as to ensure that it remains a legal instrument for genuine litigation and serving the true interests of the general public and not otherwise for personal disputes with baseless claims. Therefore, by understanding both its merits and demerits, we can be in a position to work towards a more effective, inclusive, and equitable legal system as a whole without depriving any section of society of the legal benefits.

 

By Charles Anyama Kalisto