Question 51 from UPSC CSE 2018 - Polity

Question

Consider the following statements:
1. The Parliament of India can place a particular law in the Ninth Schedule of the Constitution of India.
2. The validity of a law placed in the Ninth Schedule cannot be examined by any court and no judgement can be made on it.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

IASCODEX · Accepted Answer

Correct Option: A. 1 only

Strategy: The approach involved two key steps:
*   **Evaluate Statement 1:** Confirm Parliament's power to include laws in the Ninth Schedule.
*   **Reject Statement 2:** Recall the Supreme Court's ruling that Ninth Schedule laws, particularly those added after 1973, are not immune from judicial review.

This led to the conclusion that only Statement 1 is correct.

Key Info: The Ninth Schedule was introduced by the Constitution (First Amendment) Act, 1951, alongside Article 31-B. Its primary purpose was to shield specific laws, mainly concerning land reform and agrarian legislation, from challenges in courts based on fundamental rights violations. Parliament has the authority to add laws to the Ninth Schedule through a constitutional amendment, as outlined in Article 368.

However, the Supreme Court, in the 2007 I.R. Coelho v. State of Tamil Nadu case, ruled that laws placed in the Ninth Schedule *after* April 24, 1973 (the date of the Kesavananda Bharati judgment, which established the 'basic structure doctrine') are subject to judicial review if they infringe upon the Constitution's basic structure. Consequently, the Ninth Schedule does not grant absolute immunity from judicial scrutiny for laws added post-1973, and courts retain the power to assess the validity of such legislation.

IASCODEX · Answer

Option B: 2 only

IASCODEX · Answer

Option C: Both 1 and 2

IASCODEX · Answer

Option D: Neither 1 nor 2