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Class-VIII Topic-Judiciary Civics

Judiciary - The part of a country's government that is responsible for its legal system and which consists of
all the judges in the country's courts of law is called judiciary.

• In India we have the rule of law.

• Laws are applied equally to all persons and that certain set of fixed procedures need to be followed
when a law is violated.

• To enforce this rule of law, we have a judicial system that consists of the mechanism of courts that a
citizen can approach when a law is violated.

• As an organ of the State, the judiciary plays a crucial role in the functioning of India’s democracy.

• It can play this role only because it is independent.

Role of the Judiciary

Courts take decisions on a very large number of issues. Broadly speaking, the work that the judiciary does
can be divided into the following:

a. 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.

b. 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.

c. 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.

Independent Judiciary

• The control that the politician holds over the judge does not allow for the judge to take an
independent decision.

• This lack of independence would force the judge to make all judgments in favour of the politician.

• Although we often hear of rich and powerful people in India trying to influence the judicial process,
the Indian Constitution protects against this kind of situation by providing for the independence of
the judiciary.

• One aspect of this independence is the ‘separation of powers’.

• This is a key feature of the Constitution.

• What this means here is that other branches of the State - like the legislature and the executive –
cannot interfere in the work of the judiciary.
 • The courts are not under the government and do not act on their behalf.

• For the above separation to work well, it is also crucial that all judges in the High Court as well as
the Supreme Court are appointed with very little interference from these other branches of
government.

• Once appointed to this office, it is also very difficult to remove a judge.

• It is the independence of the judiciary that allows the courts to play a central role in ensuring that
there is no misuse of power by the legislature and the executive.

• It also plays a crucial role in protecting the Fundamental Rights of citizens because anyone can
approach the courts if they believe that their rights have been violated.

Structure of Courts in India

• 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.

• 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.

• Each state has a High Court which is the highest court of that state.

• 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.

• 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.

Different Branches of the Legal System

In addition to criminal law, the legal system also deals with civil law cases. Following table signifies the
differences between criminal and civil law.

Criminal Law Civil Law

Deals with conduct or acts that the law defines as Deals with any harm or injury to rights of individuals.
offences. For example; theft, harassing a woman For example; disputes relating to sale of land purchase
to bring more dowry, murder. of goods, rent matters, divorce cases.

It usually begins with the lodging of a First

A petition has to be filed before the relevant court by
Information Report (FIR) with the police who
the affected party only. In a rent matter, either the
investigate the crime after which a case if filed in
landlord or tenant can file a case.
the court.

The court gives the specific relief asked for. For instance,
If found guilty, the accused can be sent to jail and
in a case between a landlord and a tenant, the court can
also fined.
order the flat to be vacated and pending rent to be paid.

Access to the Courts

• In principle, all citizens of India can access the courts in this country.

• This implies that every citizen has a right to justice through the courts.

• The courts play a very significant role in protecting our Fundamental Rights.

• If any citizen believes that their rights are being violated, then they can approach the court for
justice to be done.

• While the courts are available for all, in reality access to courts has always been difficult for a vast
majority of the poor in India.

• Legal procedures involve a lot of money and paperwork as well as take up a lot of time.

• For a poor person who cannot read and whose family depends on a daily wage, the idea of going to
court to get justice often seems remote.

• For the common person, access to courts is access to justice.

• The courts exercise a crucial role in interpreting the Fundamental Rights of citizens.

• However, there are also court judgments that people believe work against the best interests of the
common person.

• For example, activists who work on issues concerning the right to shelter and housing for the poor
believe that the recent judgments on evictions are a far cry from earlier judgments.

• While recent judgments tend to view the slum dweller as an encroacher in the city, earlier
judgments (like the 1985 Olga Tellis vs. Bombay Municipal Corporation) had tried to protect the
livelihoods of slum dwellers.

Short Answer Type Questions

1. What are the different branches of the legal system?
Or
Mention the branches of the legal system.
Answer: The legal system in India is divided into two branches: Criminal Law and Civil
Law.
2. What do you understand by law?
Answer: Law is a system of rules that are created and enforced through social or
governmental institutions to regulate behavior.
3. What does judiciary mean?
Answer: The judiciary is the branch of authority in a country which is concerned with
law and the legal system.
4. What is the appellate system?
Or
Write two sentences of what you understand about the appellate system.
Answer: This means that a person can appeal to a higher court if they believe that the
judgment passed by the lower court is not just.
5. How is the work of the judiciary categorized?
Answer: The work that the judiciary does can be divided into the following:
• Dispute Resolution
• Judicial Review
• Upholding the Law and Enforcing Fundamental Rights
6. In what ways is the Supreme Court, the guardian of Fundamental Rights?
Answer: Supreme Court acts as a guardian of fundamental rights as it ensures that
people are able to practice their rights in the required manner. Every citizen of India can
approach the Supreme Court or the High Court if they believe that their Fundamental
Rights have been violated.
7. How can we say that Indian Judiciary is independent?
Answer: Indian judiciary is considered an independent institution because:
• The other branches of government – the legislature and the executive – cannot
interfere in the work of the judiciary.
• The courts are not under the government and do not act on their behalf.
8. India has an integrated judicial system. Explain
Answer: In India, we have an integrated judicial system, meaning that the decisions
made by higher courts are binding on the lower courts. Another way to understand this
integration is through the appellate system that exists in India. This means that a person
can appeal to a higher court if they believe that the judgment passed by the lower
court is not just.
9. In the following illustration, fill in each tier with the judgments given by the
various courts in the Sudha Goel case. Check your responses with others in class.
Answer: Lower Court (Trial Court): Laxman, his mother Shakuntala and his brother-in-
law Subhash Chandra were sentenced to death
High Court: Laxman, Shakuntala and Subhash Chandra were acquitted.
Supreme Court: Laxman, Shakuntala were given life imprisonment while Subhash
Chandra was acquitted for lack of sufficient evidence.
10. What is Public Interest Litigation in India?
Or
What is PIL? State the objectives of introducing PIL.
Answer: The Supreme Court in the early 1980s devised a mechanism of Public Interest
Litigation or PIL to increase access to justice. It allowed any individual or organisation 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.
Long Answer Type Questions
1. List two reasons why you believe an independent judiciary is essential to
democracy.
Or
What is the need of an independent judiciary in a democracy?
Or
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?
Answer: Independent judiciary is essential to democracy because
• It allows the courts to work independently, without being under the influence
of the rich and powerful people or other branches of the state like – the
legislature and the executive.
• The court can play a crucial role in protecting the Fundamental Rights of
the citizens as well as enforce the rule of law.
2. Write a brief note on the independence of the judiciary.
Answer: One aspect of this independence is the ‘separation of powers’. This means
here is that other branches of government – the legislature and the executive – cannot
interfere in the work of the judiciary. The courts are not under the government and do
not act on their behalf. All judges in the High Court as well as the Supreme Court are
appointed with very little interference from these other branches of government. Once
appointed to this office, it is also very difficult to remove a judge.
3. What is the structure of the judicial system of India?
Or
What is the Structure of Courts in India?
Or
Explain the judiciary system existing in India.
Answer: 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. 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. Each state has a High
Court which is the highest court of that state. 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.
4. What is the Role of the Judiciary?
Answer: Broadly speaking, the work that the judiciary does can be divided into the
following:
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.
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.
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.
5. Differentiate between Criminal Law and Civil Law.
Answer: Difference between Criminal Law and Civil Law
Criminal Law Civil Law

1. Deals with conduct or acts that the law defines 1. Deals with any harm or injury to rights of individuals.
as offences. For example, theft, harassing a For example, disputes relating to sale of land, purchase
woman to bring more dowry, murder. of goods, rent matters, divorce cases.

2. It usually begins with the lodging of an First

2. A petition has to be filed before the relevant court by
Information Report (FIR) with the police who
the affected party only. In a rent matter, either the
investigate the crime after which a case is filed in
landlord or tenant can file a case.
the court.

3. The court gives the specific relief asked for. For

3. If found guilty, the accused can be sent to jail instance, in a case between a landlord and a tenant, the
and also fined. court can order the flat to be vacated and pending rent
to be paid.

6. 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?
Answer: The Right to Constitutional Remedies connects to the idea of judicial review in
its capacity of protecting the rights of an individual against the working of the State
legislature or executive. The Right to Constitutional Remedies allows citizens to move
the court if they think that any of their Fundamental Rights are being violated by the
State administration. Judicial review implies invalidation of legislative or executive
action if it is seen to violate Fundamental Rights. Hence, the Right to Constitutional
Remedies and judicial review are inter-connected because the latter is practiced when a
Fundamental Right is violated by the State. In this case, a higher court can repeal the
judgments of a lower court based on its own investigation.
7. 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 part of the Right to Life.
Answer: In Olga Tellis vs. Bombay Municipal Corporation case, the judges said that the
Right to Livelihood was part of the Right to Life. They stated that life does not merely
imply an animal existence; it cannot be lived without a means of living, that is, “the
means of livelihood”. The judges conferred that eviction from a pavement or slum is
deprivation of means of livelihood for the poor who cannot afford to live anywhere else.
They take up small jobs in surrounding areas and to lose their pavement or slum would
lead to loss of a job resulting in loss of a means of livelihood. Consequently, leading to
“deprivation of life”. This is how the judges connected Right to Livelihood to the Right
to Life.