Rule of Law

❖ Rule of law is defined as:

➢ According to Plato, ‘the meaning of rule of law is that it is supreme law
in nature and nobody is above the law’. An understanding can be drawn
from what Plato has written, that if rule of law under the supervision of
any law, then it doesn’t have any value and the concept also collapses.
➢ According to Aristotle, has written that law should be the final sovereign
of the state.
➢ According to Sir Edward Coke, “Rule of Law” means the absence of
arbitrary power on part of government.
➢ Professor William Wade, defined the Rule of law as; “The rule of law
requires that the government should be subject to the law rather than the
law subject to the government.”
➢ Rule of law, according to Black’s law dictionary; “Rule of law is
supremacy of law in which decisions are made based on well established
principles or laws, with no discretionary involvement in the application of
such principles or law.”
➢ Certain scholars of administrative law, has denoted Rule of Law as ‘the
symbol of ultimate authority’.
➢ A distinguished Political scientist as well as Sociologist, Max Weber left
no stone unturned in defining Rue of law, Legal domination as an idea of
the government of law rather than an idea of men.

A French Phrase, ‘La principe de legality’ –

Which refers to government is based on the principles not on any individuals
and according to the law everything will move. Rule of Law is the basic
principle of the English Constitution and doctrine is accepted in United States
and India as well.

• The entire basis of Administrative Law is the Rule of Law and delegated
legislation is the backbone of Administrative Law.
❖ Characteristics of Rule of law:
The doctrine of rule of law comprises of several characteristics: -
1. The Rule of Law explicitly condemns arbitrary actions by men. The
foundation of the Rule of Law is safeguarded when authorities are not
permitted to govern as per their inclinations and eccentricities while
practicing their authority.
2. No one can be prosecuted or severely punished under the concept of the
Rule of Law unless and until he has violated the laws.
3. As per the Rule of Law, everybody is equal before the law. No one is
above the law. Law does not change itself depending on the person before
the law. Rich or poor, plays no role in the implementation of law and it
provides justice to everyone irrespective of their caste, creed, status,
gender, etc.
4. The Rule of Law is a fundamental basis of most democracies around the
world because it is pervasive in its applicability and has been a
component of most judicial systems around the globe.
5. As per the doctrine of Rule of Law, an individual could only be penalised
if he is accused of a violation of any law and that accusation is proven by
an autonomous entity, such as a court.

❖ The main exponents of the Rule of Law:

Originated the
Sir Edward Coke
concept.

Rule of Law

Further developed the

A.V. Dicey
concept.
 ❖ Development of the concept of Rule of Law:
Rule of Law was developed by a British jurist Albert Venn Dicey in his book
called “The Law of the Constitution” 1885. In this book, he develops this
concept and he identifies Three Principles which establishes the Rule of Law:
1. Supremacy of law
2. Equality before law (Article 14)
3. Predominance of legal spirit.

1. Supremacy of law:
Constitution of India is the law of the land. We are all finally answerable
to the Constitution of India. And this phenomenon is called as the ‘Lex
Rex’ that is law is the king of kings. All the powers of a powerful person
are submitted to Constitution of India (As the power is itself derived from
the COI). And no-one is above the Constitution of India, which is the
highest law of the land.
Punishments to be given, in accordance with law and not arbitrarily. Law
is supreme and everything will be governed according to the law.

2. Equality before law:

Equality before law is no-one shall be discriminated or everyone shall be
treated equally. Regardless of whether one is rich or poor, whether one is
powerful or weak. There shall be equality before law. Everyone equal in
front of law, in the eyes of law.

3. Predominance of Legal spirit:

Rights are imbibed, but predominance of legal spirit means, that
constitution recognizes the rights and courts may enforce them.
According to Dicey, for the prevalence of the rule of law there should be
an enforcing authority and that authority he found in the courts. He
believed that the courts are the enforcer of the rule of law and hence it
should be free from impartiality and external influence. Independence of
the judiciary is therefore an important pillar for the existence of rule of
law.
 ❖ Rule of Law and the Constitution of India:
Rule of law which is the basic feature of the Indian Constitution excludes
arbitrariness. Where there is arbitrariness there is denial of Rule of Law.
Another significant derivative of rule of law is judicial review. Judicial
review is the essential part of the rule of law. It not only protects the
constitutional principles but also checks administrative actions and its
legality. The golden triangle of the Constitution of India being Article
14,19 and 2, prior to which the mention of Article 13 shall not go futile
when spoken in context of Rule of law. As Article 13 of the Indian
Constitution is another example which upheld the doctrine of Rule of
Law in India. The “laws’’ defined under Article 13 as rules, regulations,
bye-laws and ordinances can be struck down if they are contrary to the
constitution of India.

❖ Certain precedents which established the doctrine (explicitly or implicitly):

A.K Gopalan Vs State of Madras,1950.
Kesavananda Bharti V. State of Kerala,1973.
Indira Nehru Gandhi V. Shri Raj Narain & Anr,1975.
ADM Jabalpur V. Shivkant Shukla,1976.
P. Sambamurthy & Ors. Etc. Etc V. State of Andhra Pradesh,1986.

❖ Rule of law and Rule by law:

For Rule of Law, there is a Latin maxim Lex rex, that is the law is the
king. Where for Rule by law/Rule by Man the Latin maxim goes on as
the king is law.

❖ Exceptions of the Rule of law:

1. Equality is not an absolute concept in India.
2. Existence of Quasi-judicial bodies.
3. Affirmative action (Article 15 and Article 16).
4. Criminal immunity to the President and Governor of State in office.
(Article 361).
5. Parliamentary privileges (Article 105, Article 194).
6. Diplomatic immunity.

Sources: Blog ipleaders, Finology legal, Unacademy- Dr. Sidharth Arora, Study IQ IAS – Kapil Sikka.