The Supreme Court gave a landmark decision in the Delhi water crisis case. The Author attempts to decode certain aspects of the judgement, focusing on its directive to release Yamuna river water amid acute scarcity in the capital. It examines the legal intricacies surrounding the Court's jurisdiction, the implications for water management, and the dynamics of inter-state water disputes. Central to the discussion is the debate over whether the Court's intervention signifies judicial activism or exceeds its constitutional mandate. By analyzing these complexities, the Article underscores the judiciary's role in ensuring equitable outcomes and protecting fundamental rights in critical public interest matters.
Constitutional Dialogue as a Solution to Excessive Judicial Intervention
The author in this article recognizes that quasi-legislative and quasi-executive functions of the Judiciary affect the separation of powers doctrine and therefore, proposes that Indian courts retrench their PIL jurisdiction by channeling public attention to the most outrageous failings of the executive and leaving the process of law-making to the legislature, drawing from the theories of constitutional dialogue.