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#1
Article 13(2) declares that any law violating or abridging Fundamental Rights guaranteed under Part III is void to the extent of inconsistency.
#2
The Supreme Court under Article 32 and High Courts under Article 226 exercise judicial review through prerogative writs like habeas corpus and mandamus.
#3
In Shankari Prasad v. Union of India (1951), the Supreme Court held that constitutional amendments under Article 368 are not 'laws' under Article 13.
#4
In Sajjan Singh v. State of Rajasthan (1965), the Supreme Court reiterated parliamentary authority to amend any part of the Indian Constitution.
#5
In I.C. Golak Nath v. State of Punjab (1967), an 11-judge bench held that Parliament cannot amend Part III to curtail Fundamental Rights.
#6
The 24th Constitutional Amendment Act 1971 amended Article 13 and Article 368 to assert unrestricted parliamentary amending power.
#7
In Kesavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala (1973), a 13-judge bench established the Basic Structure Doctrine by a majority verdict of 7 to 6.
#8
The Kesavananda Bharati ruling was delivered on April 24, 1973, establishing that constitutional amendments cannot damage basic constitutional features.
#9
In Indira Nehru Gandhi v. Raj Narain (1975), the Supreme Court struck down Article 329A(4), holding free and fair elections part of basic structure.
#10
In Minerva Mills v. Union of India (1980), the Supreme Court invalidated Section 55 of the 42nd Amendment that excluded judicial review of amendments.
#11
The Supreme Court in Minerva Mills affirmed that the harmonious balance between Fundamental Rights and Directive Principles is a basic feature.
#12
In Waman Rao v. Union of India (1981), the Supreme Court established the April 24, 1973 cut-off line for applying basic structure to Ninth Schedule laws.
#13
In S.R. Bommai v. Union of India (1994), secularism and federalism were formally declared fundamental components of the Basic Structure.
#14
In I.R. Coelho v. State of Tamil Nadu (2007), a 9-judge bench ruled that Ninth Schedule laws post April 24, 1973 undergo fundamental rights judicial review.
#15
In Supreme Court Advocates-on-Record Association (2015), the National Judicial Appointments Commission (99th Amendment) was voided under basic structure.
Subject Specialist Commentary
Analytical perspective & practical exam advice from the Master10 academic board
Judicial review empowers Indian courts under Articles 32 and 226 to strike down legislative statutes or executive orders that violate the Constitution. The relationship between parliamentary sovereignty and judicial oversight reached a boiling point during early land reform disputes over fundamental property rights. This constitutional struggle culminated in the landmark Kesavananda Bharati ruling on April 24, 1973. A thirteen-judge Supreme Court bench established that while Parliament has wide power to amend the Constitution, it cannot alter or damage its basic structure.
Chronology questions on this doctrine appear repeatedly in UPSC Prelims and State PSC exams. Memorize the case sequence: Shankari Prasad (1951), Golak Nath (1967), Kesavananda Bharati (1973), and Minerva Mills (1980). A frequent exam trap concerns the Ninth Schedule: the I.R. Coelho ruling clarified that laws placed in the Ninth Schedule after April 24, 1973 enjoy no blanket immunity and face judicial review if they violate fundamental rights forming part of the basic structure.
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