Public Interest Litigation

· Origin – USA

· In India, the Public Interest Litigation (PIL) is a product of the judicial activism role of the Supreme Court of India.

· It was introduced in the early 1980s. Justice V.R. Krishna Iyer and Justice P.N. Bhagwati were the pioneers of the concept of PIL.

· Also Known as Social Action Litigation (SAL), Social Interest Litigation (SIL) and Class Action Litigation (CAL).

· Article 32 of the Constitution contains provisions regarding the involvement of public in the judiciary.

 

What is Public Interest Litigation (PIL)?

· The Supreme Court has defined the PIL as –

“Public Interest Litigation (PIL), means a legal action initiated in a court of law for the enforcement of public interest in which the public or class of the community have some interest by which their legal rights or liabilities are affected.”

· Under the PIL, any public-spirited citizen or a social organisation can move the court for the enforcement of the rights of any person or group of persons who, because of their poverty or ignorance or socially or economically disadvantaged position, are themselves unable to approach the court for the remedies.

· A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) can be filed in any High Court or directly in the Supreme Court.

· The concept of PIL is in consonance with the principles enshrined in Article 39A of the Constitution to protect and deliver social justice with the help of law.

Need and Purpose of Public Interest Litigation

· The real purposes of Public Interest Litigation are –

o  Maintaining the rule of law and accelerating the balance between law and justice.

o  Facilitating effective access to justice to the socially and economically weaker sections of the society.

o  Expressive realisation of the fundamental rights.

o  Accelerating the pace of realisation of the constitutional objectives.

o  It is beneficial for the developing country like India.

o  To combat the atrocities prevailing in society.

Features of PIL

· Various features of Public Interest Litigation are –

a.    It is a strategic arm of legal aid for the poor masses to bring Justice to them.

b.  It is different from Ordinary litigation because in ordinary one the parties should have the adversary character essentially. In Public Interest Litigation, a citizen or organization can file a litigation for the betterment of the general Public or poor masses.

c.   It is intended to promote and justify Public Interest.

d.  PIL demands that violations of constitutional and legal rights of large numbers of people who are poor, ignorant or in a socially or economically disadvantaged position should not go unnoticed and unrectified.

e. PIL is undertaken for the purpose of redressing public injury, enforcing public duty, protecting social, collective, diffused rights and interests or justifying public interest.

f.   The role of Courts in case of PIL is more assertive and creative as it assumes more positive attitude in determining acts and laws.

g.  In a Public Interest Litigation, there is no determination on judgement of individual rights.

h. PIL is essentially a co-operative effort on the part of the petitioner, the Public Authority, and the Court to secure observance of the constitutional or legal rights and privileges conferred upon the vulnerable sections of the community and to reach social justice to them.

Subjects of Public Interest Litigation

· The following are the subjects which may be litigated under the head of Public Interest Litigation –

a.  Bonded labour matters

b.  Neglected children

c. Non-payment of minimum wages to workers and exploitation of casual workers and complaints of violation of Labour Laws (except in individual cases)

d. Petitions from jails complaining of harassment, for pre-mature release and seeking release after having completed 14 years in jail, death in jail, transfer, release on personal bond, speedy trial as a fundamental right

e. Petitions against police for refusing to register a case, harassment by police and death in police custody

f.   Petitions against atrocities on women, in particular harassment of bride, bride-burning, rape, murder, kidnapping, etc.

g. Petitions complaining of harassment or torture of villagers by co-villagers or by police from persons belonging to Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes and economically backward classes

h. Petitions pertaining to environmental pollution, disturbance of ecological balance, drugs, food adulteration, maintenance of heritage and culture, antiques, forest and wild life and other matters of public importance

i.     Petitions from riot-victims

j.     Family pension

· The cases falling under the following categories will not be entertained as PIL –

a.    land lord-tenant dispute

b.    service matters,

c.    admission to medical or engineering colleges,

d.    early hearing of matters pending in High Court and subordinate courts

Principles of Public Interest Litigation

· The Supreme Court evolved the following principles in regard to PIL –

a. The Court in exercise of powers under Articles 32 and 226 of the Constitution can entertain a petition filed by any interested person in the welfare of the people who are in a disadvantaged position and thus not in a position to knock the doors of the Court.

b. The common rule of locus standi is relaxed so as to enable the court to look into the grievances complained on behalf of the poor, deprived, illiterate and the disabled who cannot justify the legal wrong or legal injury caused to them for violation of any constitutional or legal right.

c.  When the Court is at first glance satisfied about violation of any constitutional right of a group of people belonging to the disadvantaged category, it may not allow the State or the Government from raising the question on the maintainability of the petition.

d.  The dispute between two warring groups purely in the realm of private law would not be allowed to be agitated as a Public Interest Litigation.

e. The Court in special situations may appoint Commission or other bodies for the purpose of investigating into the allegations and finding out facts.

f.   The Court will not ordinarily contravene into a policy. It shall also take utmost care not to contravene its jurisdiction while purporting to protect the rights of the people from being violated.

g.  The Court would ordinarily not step out of the known areas of judicial review.

h.  Ordinarily the High Court should not entertain a writ petition by way of PIL questioning constitutionality or validity of a statute or a statutory rule.

Landmark PIL Cases

Hussainara Khatoon v. State of Bihar

a.   Many have regarded this case as the first PIL in India.

b.  The Court focussed on the situation of under-trials in Bihar who had been in detention pending trial for periods far in excess of the maximum sentence for their offences.

Vishaka v. State of Rajasthan

a.   PIL was initiated in the Supreme Court to challenge sexual harassment in the workplace.

b.  The Vishaka judgment recognized sexual harassment as “a clear violation” of the fundamental rights of equality, non-discrimination, life, and liberty, as well as the right to carry out any occupation.

M.C. Mehta v. Union of India

a.  The judgement lashed out at civic authorities for allowing untreated sewage from Kanpur’s tanneries to make its way into the Ganges.

b.  The court passed three landmark judgments and a number of Orders against polluting industries in the Ganga basin.

Advantages of PIL

· PILs have helped millions of citizens to claim their rights against the government overreach, or private actions.

· Vigilant citizens can find an inexpensive remedy because there is only a nominal rate of court fees.

· Litigants can focus on larger public issues in the field of human rights, consumer welfare and the environment.

· Public participation in judicial review of administrative action is assured.

· It has the effect of making judicial process little more democratic.

Disadvantages of PIL

· Many people started handling PIL as a tool for harassment because frivolous cases can be filed without heavy court fee.

· The judiciary has been criticised due to the overstepping of its jurisdiction.

· PIL is sometimes misused by the public by seeking publicity rather than supporting the public cause.

· The abuse of Public Interest Litigation has become more rampant than the genuine causes either receded to the background or began to be viewed with the suspicion.

· Political pressure groups who could not achieve their aims through the administrative process may try to use the PIL to further their aims and interests.

Concerns / Challenges

· About the misuse of PILs.

· Overuse and abuse of PIL can only make it ineffective.

· Many times, a PIL becomes a ‘Personal Interest Litigation’.

· Politically sponsored cases are filed in the form of PIL.

· If such petitions are not disposed of in the petitioners’ favour, the date of such a judgment is dubbed as a ‘black day for the judiciary’.

 

 

So, this is all about the Public Interest Litigation (PIL) and its importance features, objective, Scope and merits and demerits.

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