Definition
Kesavananda principle.
Parliament cannot amend basic features of Constitution.
Etymology & Origin
A judicial invention by the Supreme Court of India in 1973 to prevent Parliament from using its amending power to destroy the foundational identity of the Constitution.
Full Legal Analysis
The Basic Structure Doctrine is arguably the most significant judicial principle in Indian constitutional law. It holds that while Parliament has wide powers to amend the Constitution under Article 368, it does not have the power to alter, destroy, or abrogate the 'basic structure' or fundamental framework of the Constitution.
The Constitution does not define what constitutes the 'basic structure'. It is decided by the Supreme Court on a case-by-case basis. Features identified as basic structure include the supremacy of the Constitution, sovereign democratic republican nature of the polity, secularism, separation of powers, judicial review, and the rule of law.
If Parliament passes a constitutional amendment that damages any of these basic features, the Supreme Court will strike down that amendment as unconstitutional.
The monumental 13-judge bench decision that birthed the doctrine. By a 7-6 majority, the Court held that Article 368 does not enable Parliament to alter the basic structure or framework of the Constitution.
The Supreme Court struck down the 99th Constitutional Amendment (which created the National Judicial Appointments Commission), ruling that it violated the independence of the judiciary, which is a part of the basic structure.
Advocates challenging the validity of constitutional amendments rely exclusively on this doctrine, arguing that the amendment damages the core identity of the Indian democratic state.
