Q 1
You
read that one of the main functions of the judiciary is ‘upholding the law and
Enforcing Fundamental Rights’. Why do you think an independent judiciary is
necessary to carry out this important function?
Ans. An independent judiciary is necessary to
carry the function of upholding the law and Enforcing Fundamental Rights’ so
that every citizen of India can approach the Supreme Court if they believe that
their Fundamental Rights have been violated.
Q 2
Re-read
the list of Fundamental Rights provided in Chapter 1. How do you think the
Right to Constitutional Remedies connects to the idea of judicial review?
Ans. Right to Constitutional Remedies declares that
citizens can go to court for justice if they believe that any of their
Fundamental Rights have been violated by the State. Hence the independence of
the judiciary is necessary to uphold the rights of the citizens.
Q 3
In
the following illustration, fill in each tier with the judgments given by the
various courts in the Sudha Goel case. Check responses with others in the
class.
Ans.
·
Lower
Court: Laxman Kumar,
Shakuntala, and Subhash were sentenced to death.
·
High
Court: All the three
were acquitted.
·
Supreme
Court: Sentenced Laxman
and Shakuntala but acquitted Subhash due to lack of evidence.
Q 4
Keeping
the Sudha Goel case in mind, tick the sentences that are true and correct the
ones that are False.
(a) The accused took the case to the High Court
because they were unhappy with the decision of the Trial Court.
Ans. True. They went to the Supreme Court after the
High Court had given its decision.
(b) They went to the High
Court after the Supreme Court had given its decision, (c) If they do not like
the Supreme Court verdict, the accused can go back again to the Trial Court.
Ans. False. They can’t go to High Court after the
Supreme Court’s decision as the Supreme Court is the highest level Court of the
country.
(c) If they do not like
the Supreme Court verdict the accused cannot go back again to the Trial Court.
Ans. False. If they do not like the Supreme Court
verdict the accused cannot go back again to the Trial Court.
Q 5
Why
do you think the introduction of Public Interest Litigation (PIL) in the 1980s
is a significant step in ensuring access to justice for all?
Ans. The introduction of Public Interest
Litigation in the 1980s is a significant step in ensuring access to
justice for all because it allowed any individual or organization to file a PIL
in the High Court or the Supreme Court on behalf of those whose rights were
being violated. The legal process was greatly simplified and even a letter or
telegram addressed to the Supreme Court or the High Court could be treated as a
PIL.
Q 6
Re-read
excerpts from the judgment on the Olga Tellis vs Bombay Municipal Corporation
case. Now write in your own words what the judges meant when they said that the
Right to Livelihood was a part of the Right to Life.
Ans. In the Olga Tellis vs Bombay Municipal
Corporation case, the judges meant that the Right to Life had a wider meaning.
It included the Right to Livelihood. Without means of livelihood, none can
exist. By Livelihood one earns money to buy food, clothing, and shelter. Hence,
none can be denied of his livelihood.
Q 7
Write
a story around the theme, ‘Justice delayed is justice denied’.
Ans. Mr. Shankar was a government employee. After
retirement, he came back to his forefather’s house. He requested the tenant to
vacate the house. But the tenant did not vacate the house. Tenant challenged
that if Mr. Shankar wanted to have his house vacated, he should move to court
for justice. He was compelled to live in a rented house.
The owner lodged
litigation against the tenant. After fighting the case for five years, the
owner won the case. The decision was made in his favour by the trial court. But
the tenant appealed against the lower court decision and date after date
lingers on the decision and it took another ten years for justice. Mr. Shankar
felt the justice unjustified as it was abnormally delayed.
Q 8
Make
sentences with each of the glossary words given?
·
Acquit: After a trial of 10 years in the Supreme
Court, Mohan was acquitted of the charge of murdering his friend.
·
To
Appeal: I shall appeal
in the higher court against the judgment of the lower court which is against me
and from which I am not satisfied
·
Compensation: 5 lakh was paid to Ruchi as compensation
for her husband’s accidental death.
·
Eviction: Eviction proceedings are pending in the
court of the Rent Commissioner.
·
Violation: Violation of the untouchability act is
punishable under the Constitution.
Q 9
The
following is a poster made by the Right to Food campaign.
·
Read this poster and
list the duties of the government to uphold the Right to Food.
·
How does the phrase
“Hungry stomachs, overflowing godowns! We will not accept it!!” used in the
poster relate to the photo essay on the Right to Food
Ans.
Duties of the
Government
• That all persons get food;
• That no one goes to sleep hungry;
• That persons who are most vulnerable to
hunger like the elderly, the disabled, widows, etc. get special attention;
• That there is no death because of
malnutrition or hunger.
“Hungry stomachs,
overflowing godowns! We will not accept it !!”
Ø do relate to the photo essay on the Right to
Food on page 61 of the Textbook.
v We can see that due to drought in Rajasthan
and Orissa, millions faced an acute shortage of food. Meanwhile, the government
godowns were full of grain.
In such a situation,
an organization called the People’s Union of Civil Liberties filed a PIL
in the Supreme Court. It stated that the Fundamental Right to Life
guaranteed in Article 21 of the Constitution includes the Right to food.
The state’s excuse that they did not have adequate funds was shown to be wrong
because the godowns were overflowing with grains.
The Supreme Court
directed the government to provide food at cheaper prices through the
government ration shops and to provide mid-day meals to children.
Q 10
What
is the Role of the Judiciary?
Ans. Courts take decisions on a very large number
of issues. They can decide that no teacher can beat a student, or about the
sharing of river waters between states, or they can punish people for
particular crimes. Broadly speaking, the work that the judiciary does can be
divided into the following:
(i)
Dispute
Resolution: The judicial system provides a mechanism for
resolving disputes between citizens, between citizens and the government,
between two state governments and between the Centre and state governments.
(ii)
Judicial
Review: As the final interpreter of the Constitution,
the judiciary also has the power to strike down particular laws passed by the
Parliament if it believes that these are a violation of the basic structure of
the Constitution. This is called judicial review.
(iii)
Upholding the Law and Enforcing Fundamental Rights: Every
citizen of India can approach the Supreme Court or the High Court if they
believe that their Fundamental Rights have been violated. For example, in the
Class VII book, you read about Hakim Sheikh, an agricultural labourer who fell
from a running train and injured himself and whose condition got worse because
several hospitals refused to admit him. On hearing his case, the Supreme Court
ruled that Article 21 which provides every citizen the Fundamental Right to
Life also includes the Right to Health. It, therefore, directed the West Bengal
government to pay him compensation for the loss suffered as well as to come up
with a blueprint for primary health care with particular reference to treatment
of patients during an emergency [Phim Banga Khet Mazdoor Samity vs State of
West Bengal (1996)].
Q 11
What
is the Structure of Courts in India?
Ans. There are three different levels of courts in
our country. There are several courts at the lower level while there is only
one at the apex level.
(i)
The
courts that most people interact with are what are called subordinate or
district courts. These are usually at the district or Tehsil level or in
towns and they hear many kinds of cases. Each state is divided into districts
that are presided over by a District Judge.
(ii)
Each
state has a High Court which is the highest court of that state.
(iii)
At the top is the Supreme Court that is
located in New Delhi and is presided over by the Chief Justice of India.
The decisions made by the Supreme Court are binding on all other courts in
India. Uday Umesh Lalit is the 49th Chief Justice of India with effect from
27 August, 2022.
Note - The Supreme Court was established on 26
January 1950, the day India became a Republic. Like its predecessor, the Federal Court of
India (1937-1949), it was earlier located in the Chamber of Princes in the
Parliament House. It moved to its present building on Mathura Road in New Delhi
in 1958.
Q 12
How
many High Court in India currently? Explain the history of the High Courts of
India.
Ans. High Courts were first established in the
three Presidency cities of Calcutta, Bombay and Madras in 1862. The High Court
of Delhi came up in 1966. Currently there are 25 High Courts.
While many states have
their own High Courts, Punjab and Haryana share a common High Court at
Chandigarh, and four North Eastern states of Assam, Nagaland, Mizoram and
Arunachal Pradesh have a common High Court at Guwahati. Andhra Pradesh
(Amaravati) and Telangana (Hyderabad) have separate High Courts from 1 January
2019. Some High Courts have benches in other parts of the state for greater
accessibility.
Q 13
What
are the different branches of the Legal System? OR Differencate between
Criminal Law and Civil Law.
Ans.
Criminal Law:-
(i) Deals with conduct or acts that the law
defines as offences. For example, theft, harassing a woman to bring more dowry,
murder.
(ii) It usually begins with the lodging of a First
Information Report (FIR) with the police who investigate the crime after which
a case is filed in the court.
(iii) If found guilty, the accused can be sent to
jail and also fined.
Civil Law:-
(i) Deals with any harm or injury to rights of
individuals. For example, disputes relating to sale of land, purchase of goods,
rent matters, divorce cases.
(ii) A petition has to be filed before the relevant
court by the affected party only. In a rent matter, either the landlord or
tenant can file a case.
(iii)
The
court gives the specific relief asked for. For instance, in a case between a
landlord and a tenant, the court can order the flat to be vacated and pending
rent to be paid.
Q 14
What
are the numbers of Judges in India?
Ans.
|
Sr. No |
Name of the Court |
Sanctioned Strength |
Working Strength |
Vacancies |
|
A. |
Supreme Court |
34 |
34 |
0 |
|
B. |
High Courts |
1079 |
655 |
424 |
|
C. |
District and Subordinate Courts |
22644 |
17509 |
5135 |
Allahabad High Court
Bombay High Court
Calcutta High Court
District Court Sonipat – Haryana
https://districts.ecourts.gov.in/sonipat/