Chief Justice Chandrachud Responds To Former CJI Gogoi On Basic Structure Doctrine

The present Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud responded to former CJI Ranjan Gogoi's statement about the basic structure doctrine by stating on Tuesday that once judges retire, their statements are merely their opinions.

Referring to the significant Kesavananda Bharati case of 1973, the former CJI, now a nominated member of the Rajya Sabha, shared his perspective, asserting that the doctrine of the basic structure of the Indian Constitution 'rests on a potentially disputable jurisprudential foundation'. This occurred during a discussion on the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (Amendment) Bill, 2023, commonly known as the Delhi Services Bill, which was presented in the Upper House for consideration on Tuesday.

During the Supreme Court's deliberation on the Article 370 abrogation matter, senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing the petitioner, mentioned the former CJI's comment and quoted him as describing the basic structure theory as 'questionable'.