What was Kesavananda Bharati Case?
The Kesavananda Bharati case, whose formal name is Kesavanada Bharti Sripadagalvaru and Ors. v. State of Kerala and Anr., is a leading case in India by the Supreme Court. This case lasted for 68 days from October 31, of the year to March23 in theyear. This judgment held on the 24 th of April, 1973 had wide ramifications for Indian constitutional law.
The central issue of the Kesavananda Bharati case was an attack on constitutional validity to 24th Amendment Act, 1971 and also 25 th amendment act. These amendments were passed by the Parliament to plug on the powers of both courts especially in regards to parliamentary authority under article 368.
The main issue in the case was whether Parliament had limitless powers to amend Article 368 of the Constitution or if there existed embedded limitations on that power. The petitioner supported his argument by saying that there was a ‘basic structure’ of the constitution, which could not be amended and any amendment violating this basic principle would amount to unconstitutionality.
Kesavananda Bharati Case vs State of Kerala 1973
Kesavananda Bharati Case: The Kesavananda Bharati Case is an important development in India’s constitutional history and also influenced how the Indian Consitution was shaped and interpreted, as well as used. This case which is now known as Kesavananda Bharati Sripadagalvaru and Others vs State of Kerala & Another was decided by the Supreme Court in 1973. The case largely revolved around a basic question of how much Parliament could amend the Constitution, especially as regards its ‘basic structure’.
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