Principle of harmonious construction - Indian Laws - General

Principle of harmonious construction- The principle of harmonious construction requires courts to bring about a reconciliation between seemingly conflicting provisions to give effect to both. An interpretation which reduces one of the provisions to a dead letter is not a harmonious construction. The principle of harmonious construction also applies to reconcile two seemingly conflicting provisions of different statutes. [(Para.39) UOI Ors. vs Rajeev Bansal- 2024 (10) TMI 264 - SUPREME COURT (LB)] In Sultana Begum v. Prem Chand Jain, 1996 (12) TMI 388 - SUPREME COURT, this Court analysed the relevant decisions of this Court and laid down the following principles pertaining to the harmonious construction of statutes: a. It is the duty of the courts to avoid a head-on clash between two sections of the Act and to construe the provisions which appear to be in conflict with each other in such a manner as to harmonise them; b. The provisions of one section of a statute cannot be used to defeat the other provisions unless the court, in spite of its efforts, finds it impossible to effect reconciliation between them; c. When there are two conflicting provisions in an Act, which cannot be reconciled with each other, they should be so interpreted that, if possible, effect should be given to both. This is the essence of the rule of harmonious construction; d. The courts have also to keep in mind that an interpretation which reduces one of the provisions to a dead letter or useless lumber is not harmonious construction; and e. To harmonize is not to destroy any statutory provision or to render it otiose.