First part of unamended Article 31C remains in force, rules SC

NEW DELHI — The Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled that Article 31C of the Constitution, to the extent it was upheld in the landmark Keshavanada Bharati case, remains in force.

A seven-judge Constitution Bench, after perusal of several judgments delivered in the past, held that first part of the unamended Article 31C was constitutional and continued to remain in force.

The Constitution Bench, also comprising Justices Hrishikesh Roy, BV Nagarathna, Sudhanshu Dhulia, JB Pardiwala, Manoj Misra, Rajesh Bindal, SC Sharma and AG Masih, was dealing with questions as to whether the term “material resources of the community” in Article 39(b) include privately owned property and whether laws intended to achieve this provision’s objective of redistributing material resources for the “common good” be exempted from legal challenges based on violations of fundamental rights.

The majority held that not every resource owned by an individual can be considered a “material resource of the community” and the enquiry about the resource in question must be contest specific.

While Justice Nagarathna authored a separate but partially concurring opinion, Justice Dhulia penned down a dissenting judgment.

Article 39(b)of the Indian Constitution, falling under the Directive Principles of State Policy (DPSP), mandates that the administration will direct its policy towards ensuring that the material resources of the community are distributed equitably.

“The state shall, in particular, direct its policy towards securing that the ownership and control of the material resources of the community are so distributed as best to subserve the common good,” reads Article 39(b).

The key question arose before the Supreme Court as to whether private property can be considered part of the “material resources of the community” in the context of this provision.

The principle behind insertion of Article 39(b) was to ensure that the resources necessary for economic growth and social justice serve the collective welfare or “common good”, rather than being concentrated in the hands of a few.