The Hindu Business Line : `Judicial interpretations enlarged scope of personal liberty'

JUDICIAL reviews and interpretation of the Constitution over the years by the Supreme Court has enabled deducing certain Fundamental Rights that were not expressly guaranteed under the Constitution, legal expert and former Attorney-General of India, Mr Soli J. Sorabjee, has said.

The cases in point are the `freedom of the press' and the right to `information' which have emanated from the fundamental `rights of speech and expression', though the former are not expressly spelt in the Constitution, he said.

The `meaningfully' liberalised fundamental rights of the `right to live' into the `right to live with human dignity' was brought about by the extensive judicial interpretations by the Court. So were the issues in the public domain such as `child labour', environmental protection and custodial violence, which attracted liberalised approach from the Court on the rule of `locus standi'.

Mr Sorabjee, who was delivering an endowment lecture on `Indian judicial system and Constitution' organised by the city-based South India Cotton Association (SICA) here yesterday, however held the view that the `Constitution' was not to be blamed for the miscarriage of law as only those who wielded power of the day let down the Constitution.

In this regard, he cited the instances of `blatant misuse' of Article 356 to unseat the elected State Governments that were not to the likings of the rulers at the Centre. He said courts viewed seriously of basic human rights and they were no more preoccupied on `property rights' as they used to be in the earlier days when the issues of personal liberty took a back seat.

The regret-points in the present day judicial system, according to Mr Sorabjee were the rising legal costs due to `the personal interest litigation/publicity interest litigations' in the name of `public interest litigation' and the appointment of judges where merit `does not play a role'.

Among those in the chair at the lecture were the former president of the SICA, Mr G.K. Sundaram, on whose name the endowment lecture has been instituted and the former Chairman of the Indian Cotton Mills Federation, Mr B.K. Krishnaraj Vanavarayar.

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