Doctrine of Prospective Overruling- - Indian Laws - General

Doctrine of Prospective Overruling- The Chief Justice held that the power of this Court to apply the Doctrine of Prospective Overruling could be traced to Article 142 and formulated the following propositions about the applicability of the doctrine: a. It can be invoked only in matters arising under the Constitution; b. It can be applied only by this Court as it has the constitutional jurisdiction to declare law binding on all the courts in India; and c. The scope of the retroactive operation of the law is left to the discretion of this Court to be moulded in accordance with the justice of the cause or matter before it. The doctrine of prospective overruling is applied when a constitutional court overrules a well-established precedent by declaring a new rule but limits its application to future situations. The underlying objective is to avert injustice or hardships. [Great Northern Railway Co. v. Sunburst Oil and Refining Co., 287 U S 358 (1932)]. The doctrine was applied by the courts in the US on the basis that the US Constitution neither prohibits nor requires retroactive effect. [ Linkletter v. Walker, 381 US 618 (1965)]. The US Supreme Court has considered the existence of a statute or judicial decision as an operative fact having consequences which cannot justly be ignored or erased by a new judicial declaration. [Chicot County Drainage Dist. v. Baxter State Bank, 308 US 371 (1940)] Therefore, it was held that the effect of a subsequent ruling as to invalidity may have to be considered in light of various aspects. [Chicot County Drainage Dist (supra)]( Mineral area development authority anr. vs m/s. steel authority of india anr etc.- 2024 (8) TMI 956 - SUPREME COURT (LB )