Public Interest Litigation and the Transformation of the Supreme Court of India

Abstract

This article analyzes the expansion of the power of the Supreme Court in India, by tracing the development of Public Interest Litigation (PIL). It examines how the Indian Supreme Court, through PIL, was able to dramatically expand its role in the governance of the polity, by intervening and challenging key governance failures by the other branches of Indian government. The article then seeks to provide an explanatory account of how the Indian Court was able to expand its power through greater activism and assertiveness in governance decisions.

Keywords: Comparative Constitutional Law, Constitutional Law, Public Law