Basic Structure Doctrine

The Basic Structure Doctrine holds that while Parliament has wide powers to amend the Constitution under Article 368, it cannot alter or destroy the 'basic structure' or essential features of the Constitution. The doctrine was established by a 13-judge bench of the Supreme Court in Kesavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala (1973), overruling the earlier Golak Nath judgment. The court held, by a 7:6 majority, that constituent power does not include the power to abrogate the Constitution itself.

• 1 Established in Kesavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala (1973) — 13-judge bench, largest in Supreme Court history
• 2 Features held to be part of Basic Structure include — Supremacy of the Constitution, Republican and Democratic form of government, Secular character, Separation of powers, Federal character, Judicial review, Free and fair elections
• 3 Reaffirmed and expanded in Indira Gandhi v. Raj Narain (1975) — added free and fair elections as basic feature
• 4 Minerva Mills (1980) — added judicial review and limited amending power as basic structure features
• 5 Used in 2015 to strike down the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) Act — held that judicial independence is part of basic structure
• 6 No exhaustive list exists — courts determine on a case-by-case basis
• 7 India is one of the few democracies with this doctrine; the UK follows parliamentary supremacy instead

The 99th Constitutional Amendment creating the NJAC was struck down (2015) because replacing the collegium system violated judicial independence — a basic structure feature. The Supreme Court held that the executive cannot have a decisive say in judicial appointments.