SC: Centre can't choose not to back House amendments

A government cannot choose not to stand by a parliamentary enactment, a seven-judge bench of the Supreme Court said on Wednesday, debating a point of order with the government's law officer in a case concerning the minority status of Aligarh Muslim University (AMU).

- Utkarsh Anand

Questioning the Centre for its disagreement with the parliamentary amendments in 1981 that sought to grant minority status to the Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), the Constitution bench pointed out that the government and its law officers should support the amendments until Parliament's exercises its "supreme power" to make subsequent changes. It highlighted that, till then, such decisions have to be defended before a court of law by the government irrespective of the dispensation in power.

"Parliament is an eternal, indestructible body under the Indian Union. Irrespective of which government represents the cause of the Union of India, Parliament's cause is eternal, indivisible and indestructible. We cannot hear the government of India to say that an amendment which Parliament made is something they don't stand by," observed a bench led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud.

Adding it will be "radical" for the government's law officer to oppose parliamentary legislations, the bench said: "Can we hear any organ of the Union government to say that 'not with-standing a parliamentary amendment, I don't accept this amendment'? Parliament is an eternal, indivisible and indestructible entity under the democracy".

While it is always open to Parliament to further modify its amendments, the bench said, adding the government ought to defend all legislative acts.