The Obvious Foundation Test

This essay deals with the ramifications of the judgment in the National Judicial Appointments Commission Case for the basic structure doctrine. The doctrine of basic structure places limits on the legislative power to amend the Constitution, and owes its origins to the judgment of the thirteen-judge bench of the Supreme Court in the Kesavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala ((1973) 4 SCC 225). According to the authors, the judges in the NJAC Case, by striking down the 99th Amendment to the Constitution of India for violating the basic structure, appear to have conceptually expanded the remit of the basic structure doctrine significantly. They conclude that the contents of what was held to be part of basic structure in the NJAC Case are largely incapable of being defended normatively. Against this background, they chart the significance of the judgment on constitutional law and separation of powers questions in the future.