SUPREME COURT PUBLIC INTEREST LITIGATION

PUBLIC INTEREST LITIGATION (PIL)

Introduced by the then Chief Justice of India, P.N. Bhagwati, J. in 1986, Public Interest Litigation (PIL) is a legal action taken to protect the people who are ‘deprived’ of their fundamental rights. It is a writ filed by a person in the interest of the public at large.

WHY DID IT COME IN EXISTENCE?

It came into existence to face the abomination of society. It is mentioned under article 32 of the Constitution of India, which states the remedies for enforcement of rights conferred by Part III, is guaranteed. It has been used as a policy in implementing equality amongst the various sections in the society.

WHO CAN FILE A PIL?

To protect human rights, the judiciary through PIL permits the altruistic persons to file a writ petition on behalf of the underprivileged. Any Indian citizen can file a PIL but, unlike the usual litigation, PILs are filed by persons who do not have a private interest in the matter.

FILING A PIL IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA

To file a PIL in the Supreme Court of India, the petitioner must submit five copies of the petition in the court. The respondent then gets served the copy of the PIL only when the court has issued the notice for the same.

IMPORTANCE OF PIL

PIL raises issues of broad public concern, which means issues related to political, social, or any other concern to the community.

It is a conventional step towards the well-being of the deprived section of our society.

It is important as it creates a dominion of human rights by amplifying the meaning of Article 21 of the Constitution of India. It talks about the right to life and personal liberty, which further includes the right to live with human dignity(Constitutional Law of India), the right against sexual harassment at the workplace(Unite for Repro Rights), right to livelihood(Constitutional Law of India), right to health and medical assistance(Constitutional Law of India), etc.

It is an important tool for the implementation of the Judicial Review.

PIL acts as an instrument of social change, i.e. the changes in human interaction that further reconstructs social and cultural institutions.

PIL allows the vulnerable section to challenge the injustice done against them.

Therefore, public interest litigation is the tool for the protection of human rights of the vulnerable and deprived sections of the community, which is guaranteed by our constitution and our judiciary has undertaken the responsibility to provide the same.