NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF

ADVANCED LEGAL STUDIES

KOCHI

2021-22
LLM

GOVERNMENT LIABILITY AND DISCRETIONARY

POWERS

SUBMITTED BY: SUBMITTED TO:

SAKSHI SHARMA PROF. DR MINI S.
(LLM Sem 2 - 10367)

CONTENTS

1. Introduction …......................................................................................................... 3
2. Origin and Historical

1
 …………………………………………………………………….......... 4
3. Characteristics of good governance
……………………………………………………………………...... 6
3.1 Participation …………………………………………………………......…… 6
3.2 Rule of law …………………………………………………………………….
………. 7
3.3 Transparency ………………………………………………………………..… 7
3.4 Responsiveness
……………………………………………………………………………………
………. 8
3.5 Consensus oriented
……………………………………………………………………………………
…. 8
3.6 Equity and inclusiveness
………………………………………………………………………………. 8
3.7 Effectiveness and efficiency
…………………………………………………………………………. 8
3.8 Accountability
……………………………………………………………………………………
…………. 8
3.9 Predictability
……………………………………………………………………………………
……………. 9
4. Good governance in Indian context
……………………………………………………………………………. 9
4.1. Major initiatives
…………………………………………………………………….. 10
4.1.1 Right to information …………………………………………….. 10
4.1.2 E-governance ………………………………………………....…. 11
5. Challenges to good governance in India
…………………………………………………………………….......... 11
5.1 Women empowerment …………………………………………….......... 11
5.2 Growing incidence of violence
………………………………………………………………….......... 11
5.3 Corruption ………………………………………………………………... 12
5.4 Delay in justice ………………………………………………………........ 12
5.5 Empowerment of socially and economically backward people
……………………….. 13
5.6 Environmental security and sustainable development
……………………………………… 13
6. Judicial Interpretation ...................................................................................... 14- 16
7.Conclusion ……………………………………………………………………. 16- 17
8.References ……………………………………………………………………. 18

GOOD GOVERNANCE : CONCEPT AND SCOPE

2
1. INTRODUCTION
There is no accepted definition of governance. There is divergence of opinion about the
meaning of governance between the conservatives and the liberals, between socialists and the
communists. The World Bank, for example, has sought to take a middle position by defining
governance particularly as the traditions and the institutions by which authority in a country
is exercised. This includes (i) the process by which governments are selected, monitored and
replaced; (ii) the capacity of the government to effectively formulate and implement sound
policies; and (iii) the respect of citizens and the state for the institutions that govern economic
and social communications among them.1
Governance refers to the exercise of political and administrative authority at all levels to
manage a country’s affairs. It comprises the mechanisms, processes and institutions, through
which citizens and groups articulate their interests, exercise their legal rights, meet their
obligations and mediate their differences.2
With the expansion of the scope of functions performed by the government, the concept of
governance began to be revisited by many theorists, scholars and political leaders. Soon
discussions were held as to what is the ideal type of governance which is needed to deal with
the challenges faced in the development path. This is when the idea of good governance
gained prominence.
Good governance is a concept used not only by lawyers but also by political leaders and more
generally the public at large. Contemporary use of the term 'good governance' began with the
World Bank’s report on Sub-Saharan Africa, in 1989, where it advanced the argument that
economic and social development hinges on the quality of governance. Today, major
international financial institutions, and development agencies in and outside United Nations
are emphasizing the role of governance in development. Parallel with this, the period from
the end of the 1980's onwards has also democracy being widely represented as the ideal form
of governance, universally. As a result, the question of what 'good governance' consists of is
of great contemporary relevance. Moreover, given that the system of governance of any
country is its Constitution, it is the constitutional perspective on good governance that is
paramount.3
1
Daniel Kaufman, Aart Kraay, Pablo Zoido-Lobaton, ‘Governance Matters’ The World Bank, 1818 H Street
NW, Washington DC, 1999, pg.1.
2
Committee of Experts on Public Administration, Definition of basic concepts and terminologies in governance
and public administration (E/C.16/2006/4) (New York, 2006)
3
Aditya Sudarshan, Constitutional Perspectives on Good Governance, student bar review, Vol. 17 (2005), pp.
15-37

3
Good governance can be defined in terms of its features. It is among other things,
participatory, transparent and accountable. It is also effective, equitable and promotes the rule
of law. Good governance ensures that political, social and economic priorities are based on
broad consensus in society and that the voices of the poorest and the most vulnerable are
heard in decision-making over the allocation of development resources.
As stated by Mr. Kofi Annan, Ex-Secretary-General of the United Nations “Good governance
is perhaps the single most important factor in eradicating poverty and promoting
development.” On similar lines, the Economic Survey 2016-17, brought out by the
Government of India, at many instances, identified that good governance is a critical factor
for achieving equality, convergence, productive use of resources, efficient public service
delivery, etc. 4
Governance has three legs: economic, political and administrative. Economic governance
includes decision-making processes that affect a country's economic activities and its
relationships with other economies. It clearly has major implications for equity, poverty and
quality of life. Political governance is the process of decision-making to formulate policy.
Administrative governance is the system of policy implementation. Encompassing all three,
good governance defines the processes and structures that guide political and socio-economic
relationships.
Good governance is associated with efficient and effective administration in a democratic
framework. It is equivalent to purposive and development-oriented administration which is
committed to improvement in quality of life of the people. It implies high level of
organisational effectiveness. It also relates to the capacity of the centre of power of political
and administrative system to cope up with the emerging challenges of the society. It refers to
adoption of new values of governance to establish greater efficiency, legitimacy and
credibility of the system. Good governance is, thus, a function of installation of positive
virtues of administration and elimination of vices of dysfunctionalities. In short, it must have
the attributes of an effective, credible and legitimate administrative system- citizen-friendly,
value-caring and people-sharing.

Much discussion about the definition of good governance has centred on what makes
institutions and rules more effective and efficient, in order to achieve equity, transparency,
participation, responsiveness, accountability, and the rule of law. These aspects are crucial for

4
Good Governance Index Assessment of State of Governance, Submitted by: Centre for Good Governance
(CGG) : Also see, https://darpg.gov.in/sites/default/files/draft_GGI_Report.pdf

4
human development and the eradication of poverty since ineffective institutions usually result
in the greatest harm to those who are poor and vulnerable.

2. ORIGIN AND HISTORICAL ROOTS

The idea of Good Governance is as old as Indian civilization. The rulers in that era were
bound by dharma, popularly called ‘Raj Dharma’, which precisely meant for ensuring good
governance to the people. Even though monarchy prevailed, there was no place for any
theory of the divine rights of the kings or of arbitrary rule. Raj Dharma was the code of
conduct or the rule of law that was superior to the will of the ruler and governed all his
actions.
This description of Good Governance found in ancient Indian scriptures, can be the Jataka
tales, Shukracharyas’s Nitisar, Aitreya Brahmana, Valmiki’s Ramayana and especially in
Kautilya’s Arthashastra. Arthashastra while highlighting the principle of good governance
declares, “In the happiness of his people lies king’s happiness, in their welfare his welfare,
whatever pleases himself he shall not consider as good, but whatever pleases his people he
shall consider as good.”5 Shanti Parva of Mahabharat has devoted considerable space to Raj
Dharma which aims to establish Good Governance in the society. It stressed that, it is the
duty of the king to seek and promote the welfare of its subject.6

Brihadaranya Upanishad while recognizing the importance of good governance stressed that,
it is the responsibility of the king to protect Dharma, the public good, so that all citizens get
equal opportunity and that the weak are not exploited and harassed by the strong. So in Indian
scriptures Good Governance is called Raj Dharma, i.e., righteous duty of the king. It means
those who are involved in governance must adhere to righteousness and do justice to the
public.
In 1989 World Bank study “Sub-Saharan Africa-from Crisis to Sustainable Growth”, the term
‘Governance’ was first used to describe the need for institutional reform and a better and
more efficient public sector in Sub-Saharan countries. It defined governance as “the exercise
of political power to manage a nation’s affairs.”7

5
Subhash C Kashyap, Concept of Good Governance and Kautilya’s Arthashastra, in Good Governance:
Stimuliand Strategies, Aalekh Publishers, (2010), p. 31
6
Ibid

7
Daniel Kaufmann Aart Kraay, Governance Indicators: Where Are We, Where Should We Be Going?,
contemporary economic policy, Vol 38 (oct 01, 2007)

5
However, it did not explicitly refer to the connotation ‘good’. It was only in the foreword,
that former World Bank President Barber Conable (1986-1991) used the term ‘good
governance’, referring to it as a “public service that is efficient, a judicial system that is
reliable and an administration that is accountable to its public.” The concept of governance
was further developed in the Bank’s 1992 publication ‘Governance and Development’. In this
publication, governance was defined as “the manner in which power is exercised in the
management of a country’s economic and social resources for development.”8

Subsequently in 1998 World Bank’s annual report Governance in Asia: From crisis to
Opportunity, presented a more cogent concept of good governance. The report elaborates four
key components of good governance: accountability, transparency, predictability and
participation.9

The United Nations Development Programme, defines governance as “the exercise of

political, economic and administrative authority in the management of a country’s affairs at
all levels. Governance comprises the mechanisms, processes and institutions through which
citizens and groups articulate their interests, exercise their political rights, meet their
obligations and mediate their differences.10

Good Governance signifies a participative manner of governing that functions in a

responsible, accountable, and transparent manner based on the principles of efficiency,
legitimacy, and consensus for the purpose of promoting the rights of individual citizens and
the public interest, thus indicating the existence of political will for ensuring the material
welfare of society and sustainable development with social justice.

3. CHARACTERISTICS OF GOOD GOVERNANCE

Good governance has 8 major characteristics. It is participatory, consensus oriented,
accountable, transparent, responsive, effective and efficient, equitable and inclusive and
8
Ibid

9
World Bank, “Governance in Asia: From Crisis to Opportunity,” Annual Report 1998
10
Dr. Rahul Tripathi, Good governance: origin, importance and development in India, IJDR, Vol 07(2017)

6
follows the rule of law. It assures that corruption is minimized, the views of minorities are
taken into account and that the voices of the most vulnerable in society are heard in decision-
making. It is also responsive to the present and future needs of society.

3.1 Participation
Participation by both men and women is a key cornerstone of good governance. Participation
could be either direct or through legitimate intermediate institutions or representatives. It is
important to point out that representative democracy does not necessarily mean that the
concerns of the most vulnerable in society would be taken into consideration in decision
making. Participation needs to be informed and organized. This means freedom of association
and expression on the one hand and an organized civil society on the other hand.
The principle of participation derives from an acceptance that people are at the heart of
development. They are not only the ultimate beneficiaries of development, but are also the
agents of development. In the latter capacity, they act through groups or associations (e.g.,
trade unions, chambers of commerce, nongovernmental organizations [NGOs], political
parties) and as individuals (e.g., through letters to newspaper editors, participating in radio
and television talk shows, voting). Since development is both for and by people, they need to
have access to the institutions that promote it (e.g., representative bureaucracies).
Participation is often related to accountability, but not necessarily so. In representative
democracies, where citizens participate in government through the electoral process, public
officials are, indeed, accountable ultimately to the electorate. This may not be the case,
however, in other political systems (although accountability is still important). For all
economies, though, the benefits of participatory approaches can be considerable. These
include improved performance and sustainability of policies, programs, and projects, as well
as enhanced capacity and skills of stakeholders.

At the grass roots level, participation implies that government structures are flexible enough
to offer beneficiaries, and others affected, the opportunity to improve the design and
implementation of public programs and projects. This increases “ownership” and enhances
results. At a different level, the effectiveness of policies and institutions impinging on the
economy as a whole may require the broad support and cooperation of major economic actors
concerned. To the extent that the interface between public agencies and the private sector is
conducive to the latter’s participation in the economy, national economic performance
(comprising the combined contributions of the public and private sectors) will be enhanced.

7
Participation in economic life by agents other than the state would cover not only the role of
the private sector, but also the activities (growing in recent times) of NGOs. These elements
of civil society offer an alternative means channeling of the energies of private citizens. They
can be helpful in identifying people’s interests, mobilizing public opinion in support of these
interests, and organizing action accordingly. Being close to their constituents, NGOs can
provide governments with a useful ally in enhancing participation at the community level and
fostering a “bottom-up” approach to economic and social development.

3.2 Rule of law

Good governance requires fair legal frameworks that are enforced impartially. It also requires
full protection of human rights, particularly those of minorities. Impartial enforcement of
laws requires an independent judiciary and an impartial and incorruptible police force. The
rule of law encompasses both well-defined rights and duties, as well as mechanisms for
enforcing them, and settling disputes in an impartial manner. It requires the state and its
subsidiary agencies to be as much bound by, and answerable to, the legal system as are
private individuals and enterprises.

3.3 Transparency
Transparency means that decisions taken and their enforcement are done in a manner that
follows rules and regulations. It also means that information is freely available and directly
accessible to those who will be affected by such decisions and their enforcement. It means
that enough information is provided and that it is provided in easily understandable forms and
media. Transparency access to accurate and timely information about the economy and
government policies can be vital for economic decision making by the private sector. On
grounds of efficiency alone, such data should be freely and readily available to economic
agents. While this is true across all areas of the economy, it is especially relevant in the case
of those sectors that are intrinsically information intensive, such as the financial sector in
general and capital markets in particular.
Transparency in government decision making and public policy implementation reduces
uncertainty and can help inhibit corruption among public officials. To this end, rules and
procedures that are simple, straightforward, and easy to apply are preferable to those that
provide discretionary powers to government officials or that are susceptible to different

8
interpretations. However well-intentioned the latter type of rule might be in theory, its
purpose can be vitiated in practice through error or otherwise.
Transparency refers to the availability of information to the general public and clarity about
government rules, regulations, and decisions. Thus, it both complements and reinforces
predictability. The difficulty with ensuring transparency is that only the generator of
information may know about it, and may limit access to it. Hence, it may be useful to
strengthen the citizens’ right to information with a degree of legal enforceability. For similar
reasons, broadly restrictive laws that permit public officials to deny information to citizens
(e.g., an Official Secrets Act) need to provide for independent review of claims that such
denial is justified in the greater public interest.

3.4 Responsiveness
Good governance requires that institutions and processes try to serve all stakeholders within a
reasonable timeframe. The delay in providing public services or information of public interest
can prove to be a challenge to efficient system of governance. The inability to respond on
time the public at large has resulted in failure of administrative mechanism in India. An
efficient government is the one that is accountable as well as responsive.

3.5 Consensus oriented

There are several actors and as many view points in a given society. Good governance
requires mediation of the different interests in society to reach a broad consensus on what is
in the best interest of the whole community and how this can be achieved. It also requires a
broad and long-term perspective on what is needed for sustainable human development and
how to achieve the goals of such development. This can only result from an understanding of
the historical, cultural and social contexts of a given society or community.

3.6 Equity and inclusiveness

A society’s well being depends on ensuring that all its members feel that they have a stake in
it and do not feel excluded from the mainstream of society. This requires all groups, but
particularly the most vulnerable, have opportunities to improve or maintain their well being.

3.7 Effectiveness and efficiency

Good governance means that processes and institutions produce results that meet the needs of
society while making the best use of resources at their disposal. The concept of efficiency in

9
the context of good governance also covers the sustainable use of natural resources and the
protection of the environment.

3.8 Accountability
Accountability is a key requirement of good governance. Not only governmental institutions
but also the private sector and civil society organizations must be accountable to the public
and to their institutional stakeholders. Who is accountable to whom varies depending on
whether decisions or actions taken are internal or external to an organization or institution. In
general, an organization or an institution is accountable to those who will be affected by its
decisions or actions. Accountability cannot be enforced without transparency and the rule of
law. Accountability is imperative to make public officials answerable for government
behaviour and responsive to the entity from which they derive their authority. This may be
achieved differently in different countries or political structures, depending on the history,
cultural milieu, and value systems involved. The mechanisms employed may vary from audit
covenants, at one level, to broadly elected legislatures or more narrowly conceived
consultative committees, at another. Accountability also means establishing criteria to
measure the performance of public officials, as well as oversight mechanisms to ensure that
the standards are met. The litmus test is whether private actors in the economy have
procedurally simple and swift recourse for redress of unfair actions or incompetence of the
executive authority. Lack of accountability tends in time to reduce the state’s credibility as an
economic partner. It undermines the capacity of governments to sustain the long-term
business confidence essential for growth-enhancing private sector investment. Looked at
from this angle, accountability can help reduce sovereign risk. The accountability of public
sector institutions is facilitated by evaluation of their economic and financial performance.
Economic accountability relates to the effectiveness of policy formulation and
implementation, and efficiency in resource use. Financial accountability covers accounting
systems for expenditure control, and internal and external audits.

3.9 Predictability
Predictability refers to (i) the existence of laws, regulations, and policies to regulate society;
and (ii) their fair and consistent application. The importance of predictability cannot be
overstated since, without it, the orderly existence of citizens and institutions would be
impossible.

10
Besides legal and regulatory frameworks, consistency of public policy is also important.
Government policies affect the investment climate directly, and economic actors require
reasonable assurance about the future behaviour of key variables such as prices, the exchange
rate, and employment levels. However, consistency does not mean rigidity. Governments do
need to respond flexibly to changing circumstances and to make midcourse corrections, as
necessary. Also, when governments change, the successor administration will,
understandably, want public policy to reflect its priorities, rather than those of its predecessor.
Barring such situations, though, consistency in the broad directions of government policy is
valuable (with modifications being limited, as far as possible, to fine-tuning).

4. GOOD GOVERNANCE IN INDIAN CONTEXT

What is good governance in the Indian context? The central challenge before good
governance relates to social development. In his famous “tryst with destiny” speech on 14
August 1947, Jawaharlal Nehru articulated this challenge as “the ending of poverty and
ignorance and disease and inequality of opportunities”.11 The principle of good governance is
not new to the Indian society. While throwing attention over the state of affairs in ancient
India, it is noticed that the king or the ruler was bounded by the dharma which precisely
meant to ensure good governance to the people.12 Mahatma Gandhi advocated the concept
„Ram Rajya‟ for India basing upon the principles of good governance which necessarily
meant for dreaming India as a welfare state where the necessities of the down-trodden, the
welfare of the commoner and their progress through indigenous industries would become the
hallmark. After independence, the Indian Constitution has also been framed for securing
justice, liberty, equality and empowering weaker sections including women, youth and poor,
scheduled castes and scheduled tribes through making special provisions in the Indian
Constitution. India’s experiences during the past six decades have clearly established that
good governance in India aims at expansion of social and economic opportunities, removal of
poverty and efficient delivery of services at the grassroots. For effective functioning of good
governance, every citizen must be empowered and has right to be informed, express their
views which must be heard and considered, participate in various decision-making processes
of governance and contribute in meaningful ways. On 25th December 2021, central
government issued “good governance index 2020-21” and therefore it is celebrated as the
good governance day.
11
An excerpt from Jawaharlal Nehru's Tryst of Destiny speech, August 15, 1947
12
Chinmayee Satpathy, Initiatives and Challenges of Good Governance in India, ICSSR, January 2013, pg 51

11
Recently two major initiatives have been taken up in India for empowering common man and
effective functioning of governance which include Right to Information and E-Governance.13

4.1 Major initiatives

Recently two major initiatives have been taken up in India for empowering common man and
effective functioning of governance which include Right to Information and E-Governance.

4.1.1 Right to information :

Under the Right to Information act, the citizens are the center of democratic governance.
Every citizen has right to participate in public life, governance and society. Right to
Information is derived from the fundamental right of freedom of speech and expression under
Article 19 of the Indian Constitution which says that “All the citizens shall have the right to
freedom of speech and expression14. As a party to the International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights (ICCPR), India is under an international obligation to effectively guarantee to
citizens the Right to Information as per Article 19 of the ICCPR. The Right to Information
Act has been enacted on 12th October, 2005 which marked a significant shift in the Indian
democracy and ushered a new era of empowerment of common man in India. Through this
act one can examine, audit, review and assess the government works and decisions to ensure
that these are consistent with the principles of public interest, integrity and justice. The
greater the access of the citizen to the information, the greater would be the responsiveness of
the government to community needs. Right to information therefore promotes openness,
transparency and accountability in administration by making the government more open to
public scrutiny. Without information, the common man cannot adequately exercise his rights
and responsibilities or make informed choices. So Right to Information is the most effective
instrument to check corruption where the citizen has the right to take the initiatives to seek
information from the state and thereby enforce transparency and accountability.

4.1.2 E-Governance :
E-Governance effectively delivers better programming and services in the era of newly
emerging information and communication technologies (ICTs), which herald new
opportunities for rapid social and economic transformation worldwide. The governments at
the national and state level seek to harness their potential and create new dimension of
13
Ibid; pg 52
14
Indira Gandhi vs. Raj Narain AIR 1975 SC 2299

12
economic and social progress through bringing change in traditional governance structure to
e-governance system. E -Governance has direct impact on its citizens who derive benefits
through direct transactions with the services offered by the government. It explores new facet
of leadership approach, skill and mindset of the citizens of the country. However, the process
of e-governance requires sustained commitment, political will; adequate resources which can
develop a system of e-governance in order to make the current policies and practices of
government more efficient and effective. E Governance can renovate the relationship
between public, private sector and government and enables better policy outcomes, high
quality services and greater engagements with the citizens the country.15

5. CHALLENGES TO GOOD GOVERNANCE IN INDIA

5.1 Women empowerment:
According to Swami Vivekananda “it is impossible to think about the welfare of the world
unless the condition of women is improved. It is impossible for a bird to fly on only one
wing.” One way to assess the state of nation is to study the status of its women. As women
comprise almost 50% of the population it is unfair that they are not adequately represented in
government institutions, and other allied sectors. So in order to ensure good governance it is
essential to ensure empowerment of women.

5.2 Growing incidence of violence:

Resort to illegal force is considered to be a law and order problem. But when one looks at it
from the point of view of the principles of Good governance, it becomes clear that peace and
order is the first step to development. Strikes, riots, terror attacks are onerant of this harmful
culture of violence. But when the government uses force to contain these situations, at times
human rights of common citizens are violated by the state police. It requires a clear vision,
courage and understanding to deal with this menace through dialogue.

5.3 Corruption: -
The high level of corruption in India has been widely perceived as a major obstacle in
improving the quality of governance. Bureaucracy is called the engine of good governance.
The government implemented different welfare policies like PDS, NRHM, MGNREGA,
Prime Minister‟s Jan Dhan Yojna, etc. which are very influential for good governance. But
15
Barthwal, C. P., E-governance for good governance, IJPS, vol. 64, pp. 285–308 (2003)

13
because of corruption practise among our bureaucrats our Government cannot achieve
success in implementation of these programmes. Corruption is among the greatest obstacles
to economic and social development. Corruption also represents a significant additional cost
of doing business in many developing countries. It undermines development by distorting the
rule of law and weakening the institutional foundation upon which economic growth
depends. Corruption damages policies and programs that aim to reduce poverty.

5.4 Delay in Justice:

A citizen has right to avail timely justice, but there are several factors, because of that a
common man doesn’t get timely justice, these factors are;

 Some citizens are not aware of their rights. Poor person cannot afford legal aid to
advocate on their behalf.
 Prosecution rate is very low even in some cases to the extent of only 5%, and most
of time it is poor, who are prosecuted, since rich manage to escape clutches of law
through loopholes in legal system.16
 Lack of personnel and logistic under disposal of court. Between 2010 and 2020,
pendency across all courts grew by 2.8% annually.  According to a new data
published on September 15, 2021, over 4.5 crore cases were pending across all
courts in India.  Of these, 87.6% cases were pending in subordinate courts and
12.3% in High Courts.17 
 This implies that, if no new cases were to be filed, the time taken by courts to
dispose of all the pending cases at the current disposal rate would be 1.3 years for
the Supreme Court and three years each for High Courts and subordinate courts.
 Between 2019 and 2020, pending cases increased by 20% in High Courts and 13%
in subordinate courts.  Note that in 2020, normal functioning of courts was
restricted due to the COVID-19 pandemic.  Therefore, while new cases in 2020
were much less than in preceding years, pendency increased because disposal rate
was even slower than the rate of new cases filed.

16
K.C. Tiwari, The Challenges of Good Governance in India, in the era of 21st Century, IOSR-JHSS, Volume
23 (February. 2018)
17
National Judicial Data Grid for High Courts and Subordinate Courts (last accessed on September 15,
2021) https://prsindia.org/policy/vital-stats/pendency-and-vacancies-in-the-judiciary

14
  There is a shortage of judges to decide cases.  As on September 1, 2021, the
Supreme Court had one vacancy out of the sanctioned strength of 34 judges.  In
the High Courts, 42% of the total sanctioned posts for judges were vacant (465 out
of 1,098).  Five High Courts (Telangana, Patna, Rajasthan, Odisha, and Delhi) had
more than 50% vacancies.  High Courts of Meghalaya and Manipur had no
vacancies.
 As on February 20, 2020, in subordinate courts, 21% posts out of the sanctioned
strength of judges were vacant (5,146 out of 24,018).  Amongst states having a
sanctioned strength of at least 100 judges, subordinate courts in Bihar had the
highest proportion of vacancies at 40% (776), followed by Haryana at 38% (297)
and Jharkhand at 32% (219).
 Tribunals and special courts (such as Fast Track Courts and Family Courts) which
were set up to ensure speedy disposal of cases also witness high pendency and
vacancies.  For instance, at the end of 2020, 21,259 cases were pending before the
National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT).  As of April 2021, the NCLT had 39
members out of a sanctioned strength of 63.

5.5 Empowerment of socially and economically backward people:

The socially and economically backward sections of the society have always been
marginalised in the process of development. Although there are constitutional provisions for
their upliftment but in practice they are lagging behind in so many areas like education,
economic wellbeing etc. despite legislative safeguards being in place to protect the rights of
backward classes and women yet Crimes against Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled
Tribes (STs) saw an increase of 9.4 per cent and 9.3 per cent respectively in 2020 compared
to the previous year, according to data released by the National Crime Records Bureau
(NCRB) on 15th September 2021.18 A total of 50, 291 cases were registered for crimes
against SCs last year. The number was 45,961 in 2019. A total of 3,71,503 cases of crime
against women were registered during 2020, a decline of 8.3 per cent compared to 2019
(4,05,326 cases), with West Bengal and Odisha registering the highest increase.19 Despite the
positive trend showing higher education and availability of more opportunities to women and

18
CRIMES IN INDIA 2020 published by National Crime Records Bureau, Pg 517, 9th September, 2021

19
Ibid, pg 200

15
people belonging to backward classes, yet there are far from achieving equality in status and
opportunities in the true sense.

5.6 Environmental security and sustainable development :

The concept of sustainable development was described by the 1987 Bruntland Commission
Report as “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability
of future generations to meet their own needs.”20 There are four dimensions to sustainable
development – society, environment, culture and economy – which are intertwined, not
separate. Sustainability is a paradigm for thinking about the future in which environmental,
societal and economic considerations are balanced in the pursuit of an improved quality of
life. The WHO predicts that an additional 250,000 climate-related deaths will occur
globally – per year – between 2030 and 2050. India is not performing well when it comes to
the environment protection. 21 of the world’s 30 most polluted cities are in India21 and a
Lancet study from 2018 estimates that air pollution in India killed 1.24 million people in
2017 (12.5 per cent of total deaths)22. Yale’s Environmental Performance Index ranked India
at 177 out of 180 countries, based on four performance indicators measured in 2018.23

6. JUDICIAL INTERPRETATION
The supreme court through various judicial pronouncements have elaborated the purview of
fundamental rights and upheld the constitutional spirit of Indian democracy. It has through interpreted
and enlarged the scope of the fundamental rights by including many rights especially those forming
the part of the directive principles of state policy in its ambit. The objective of the directive principles
of state policy as enshrined under the Part IV of the Indian constitution is to ensure that the
government drafts and implements policies and takes action in consonance with these principles.
These ideals as enumerated under this Part although non enforceable are considered necessary for
efficient and good governance. Right to livelihood, Right to education, Right to legal aid are some
examples of directive principles of state policy that were accorded the status of fundamental
freedoms.

20
Ekaterina Polyakova , Larisa Gorina, Environmental security and sustainable development of large urban
centres, E3S Web of Conferences 250, 01003 TRESP 2021
21
2020 World air quality report, pg 22, March 2021

22
The impact of air pollution on deaths, disease burden, and life expectancy across the states of India: the
Global Burden of Disease Study 2017, The Lancet Planetary Health, Dec 2018, Also see
https://doi.org/10.1016/S2542-5196(18)30261-4
23
Wendling, Z. A., Emerson, J. W., de Sherbinin, 2020 Environmental Performance Index, YALE L.J.

16
Article 38 of the Indian constitution imposes a duty on the state to ensure welfare of the
people. This provision reflects the increasingly important role played by the state in modern
welfare society. The major functions of the state includes promoting wellbeing of the citizens
and ensuring good governance. Many demands have been raised in the past to include good
governance as a right of the citizen against the state. In 2004, Two civil servantsthe former
Foreign Secretary Madhav Godbole, and his colleague E AS. Sarma, had filed
a public interest litigation (69 of 2004) in the Supreme Court on the state
of civil services in the country and the larger issues and concerns arising
there- from. 004. The court dismissed the writ as 'not necessary’. It was
also not in favour of declaring good governance as a funda- mental right as
this would mean the court looking into every aspect of governance. n. Its
decision is justifiable, given that no organ of the State can "usurp the
functions assigned to another.

The argument that Art. 21 guarantees a right to good governance is simple.

The right to life under Art. 21 includes all those rights which are
essential for the dignified enjoyment of life,43 and the concept of 'life'
in Art. 21 extends to "all that gives meaning to a man's life."44 In the
absence of good governance, it is impossible for citizens to lead a
dignified and civilized life. Therefore, Art. 21 must guarantee a right to
good governance.

It is evident from the language of Art. 21 that the right to life and
personal liberty can be restricted according to 'procedure established by
law' This expression has been interpreted as referring to a procedure that
is fair, just and reasonable.46 For this reason, it has been held that all
the rights contained in Art. 21, including the rights that have been
implied into it via interpretation, can be restricted, and none of them are
absolute.47
However, the right to good governance, if it existed, could not coherently
be said to be subject to restriction by a fair, just and reasonable
procedure, since such restriction would itself be an instance of 'good
governance’. Therefore, such a would, by its very nature, be an absolute

17
right, and since Art. 21 does not guarantee any absolute rights, it does
not guarantee the right to good governance.

The argument for reading into Art. 21a right to corruption- free service
runs along the same lines as that for recognizing the right to good
governance, and is incorrect for the same reason - namely, that the right
to corruption- free service is also intrinsically an absolute right. In
addition, the incorporation of such a right is unlikely to curb corruption
in practice, because recourse to constitutional courts in every instance of
corruption is not a feasible option for most citizens. However, this is not
to undermine the constitutional role of the Courts in ensuring effective
governance. Although it does not provide any fundamental right to good
governance or corruption- free service, the Constitution, in Parts III, IV
and IV- A, does establish a set of justiciable principles of good
governance.

CONCLUSION
Rightful implementation of different attributes of governance like accountability,
impartiality, transparency, responsiveness, rule of law, etc. Improve the quality of
governance. It is always important on part of the government to analyse its work thoroughly
and to improve it whenever necessary. There are multiple methods devised by international
organisations to assess the performance of countries and states in governance and
administration. United nations development programme has come up with Human
development index which is a summary measure of average achievement in key dimensions
of human development: a long and healthy life, being knowledgeable and have a decent
standard of living. Then there are methods like ease of doing business index and
environmental performance index that evaluates the performance of a government in specific
areas like environment and finance. According to a recent human development index report,
India has been positioned at 131 out 189 countries. Despite achieving success on several
counts, there are still many challenges for the governance system in our country. Governance
is a holistic approach. The government should adopt people friendly policies and work in
tandem and close association with the other wings of the state. Judiciary’s role in the Indian
constitutional democracy cannot be more stressed upon. Human rights forms an intrinsic part

18
of governance and it is only an independent judiciary that can ensure checks and balances on
the arbitrary use of powers by the executive. Therefore, the judicial system should be made
more quick transparent and efficient. Steps should be taken to fill the vacancies in important
judicial positions. It cannot be denied that an ideal form of government is the one which takes
into the consideration the needs and demands of its stakeholders i.e. the people. The true
sovereignty lies in the people of the country. Therefore, transparent and democratic form of
governance wherein the citizen not only has the right to express its views but also the dissent.
Freedom of press is one such way through which the citizen can ensure its participation in the
decision making process. There have been instances wherein the freedom of speech and
expression was violated and arbitrary censorship powers were imposed to stifle the dissenting
voice. But time and again, citizens have mobilised support and protested against the unjust
and anti-democratic laws and policies. History has shown that the government that steers
away from the ideals of good governance is replaced by the people. Hence, good governance
simply means the government that works for, of and by the people. As famously quoted,
“There should be only one political ideology and that is good governance.”

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