President to inaugurate the event on 25th November

 The National Law Day-2017 will be celebrated jointly by the Law Commission of India and NITI Aayog on 25^th-26^th November at Vigyan Bhawan in the capital. President Shri Ram Nath Kovind will inaugurate the event on 25th November while the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modiwill deliver the Valedictory Address on 26th November. The significance of the event lies in the fact that the Constitution of India was adopted by the Constituent Assembly on 26^th November, 1949.

A large number of dignitaries from the three wings of the government- executive, legislature and judiciary along with the academicians, students, scribes would be taking part in the deliberations. The Event will have four technical / academic sessions on the following-

1. Judicial Review and Parliamentary Democracy – Balancing the Separation of Powers.
2. Appointments to Higher Judiciary – Constraints of Collegium System and Reforms Ahead.
3. Structural Reforms for Overcoming Delays in Justice Delivery.
4. Scope of Judicial Powers: Judicial Activism.

Please click here for the Schedule of the Event

BACKGROUND:

The Constitution of India envisages and mandates India to be a country governed by the rule of law. It provides that the Constitution shall be the supreme law of the land and all the three wings of the government, i.e., the legislative, the executive and the judiciary must derive their authority only from the Constitution. The founding fathers of India accomplished what seems to be impossible to rest of the world -to establish a country - that too with vast diversity-  following letter  and spirit of the law and implement the Rule of Law. In all intricate matters such as the protection of human rights, equal treatment before the law, protection against excessive arbitrariness etc, the Constitution of India has provided sufficient procedural safeguards to ensure that the Rule of Law has to be prevailed.

Any law that is made by the legislative has to be strictly in conformity with the Constitution failing which it will be declared invalid as provided under Article 13 (1). Article 21 provides a further check against arbitrary executive action by stating that no person shall be deprived of his life or liberty except in accordance with the procedure established by law. Article 14 ensures that all citizens are equal and that no person shall be discriminated on the basis of sex, religion, race or place of birth, finally it ensures that there is separation of power between the three wings of the government and the executive and the legislature have no influence on the judiciary and vice versa. By these methods, the Constitution fulfils all the requirements of Dicey’s theory to be recognized as a country following the Rule of Law.

It is expected that the two day long deliberations at the would provide a platform to the leading lights of our country to reflect upon the guiding principles enshrined in the constitution of India and the commitment of India’s democracy to the rule of law.