The Constitution spells out the procedure for appointing judges as a consultative process between the government and the judiciary. In the early years of independence, conventions evolve to give the judiciary the upper hand, which the government accepts. But not all is well between the government and the courts. Right from the Nehru years, the government’s social reform agenda puts it on a collision course with the courts. Constitutional amendments are proving to be contentious. And one question dominates  the debate: Can Parliament amend the Constitution however it likes? The Supreme Court answers this question several times over before settling it once and for all in the Kesavananda Bharati case. The case goes on to form the bedrock of constitutional interpretation and later play a key role in the NJAC case. The outcome angers Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, who starts actively meddling in judicial appointments.

Reference

A list of archival resources used to research this episode can be found here. 

• News clip of Modi’s swearing in - https://youtu.be/ipL4jLrEKUE 

• News clip of parliament passing NJAC - https://youtu.be/7H3L0ZmhWjc 

• News clip of Indira Gandhi winning 1967 election - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKk4vKbf5Ak 

• News clip of Indira Gandhi on campaign trail- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YfK3Bun13r4 

• News clip of President announcing Emergency- https://youtu.be/QnxXBivNRIM 

• Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s victory rally speech- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nsJ_dRRvsBI 

Transcript: https://www.anildivanfoundation.org/episode6 

Credits:

Host:  Raghu Karnad

Guests: Abhinav Chandrachud, Alok Prasanna Kumar, Dushyant Dave

Research Manager:  Ramya Boddupalli

Legal Researcher: Vipinn Mittaal

Scriptwriter: Ramya Boddupalli 

Script editor: Bhavya Dore

Fact checker: Vipinn Mittaal

Advisors: Lawrence Liang, Ranvir Singh, Shyam Divan and Vivek Divan

Head of Production: Shaun Fanthome

Creative Director: Mae Mariyam Thomas 

Production Assistant: Sakshi Nair

Sound Design & Mix: Kartik Kulkarni

Sound Editor & Music Supervisor: Lakshman Parsuram 

Graphic Designer: Sephin Alexander