A lack of common knowledge about the laws governing public interest may exempt people from their basic rights. Read on to know more about Public Interest Litigation (PIL) in India

The very first flames of public interest litigation were seen when a lawyer named M.C Mehta filed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking help from the court, taking steps to stop pollution. The lawyer observed that the Taj Mahal, one of the seven wonders of the world, was almost destroyed by pollution. The establishment of the concept of ‘absolute liability in Indian law was also observed during the ‘Oleum gas leak case’. This article aims to state the various aspects of PIL and the laws governing it.

What is PIL? 

PIL stands for Public Interest Litigation and is a legal action taken in a Court of law to safeguard the public interest. Whenever the public or a particular class of public having the same interest finds that their legal rights are affected, they can file Public Interest Litigation (PIL). PIL is considered one of the most widely used judicial tools for government and other legal rights of the common people. People choose PIL because of lower court fees, speedy results, relaxed procedural rules, and a wide variety of new techniques of investigation.

Who Can File a Public Interest Litigation? 

Individuals or organizations in their standing can file public interest litigation to safeguard a right given to them by the government or on behalf of the section of a society that is deprived or oppressed and is not able to use their rights. PIL can also be filed by those individuals who are poor, deprived, illiterate, disabled, or unable to approach the court by themselves. The concept of ‘locus standi’ has also been relaxed in the case of PIL. The court will never entertain people who file a case for personal gain or any private profit. Where to File Public Interest Litigation?

The whole process of filing public interest litigation is quite simple and easy. An individual or a party can file a PIL before The Honorable Supreme Court of India under article 332 of the Indian constitution or any High Court under article 226 of the Indian Constitution. PIL can also be filed differently. An individual or a party can even write a letter or a postcard addressing the Chief Justice of India or the Chief Justice of the High Court. The court then converts the letter or postcard into PIL. One example where the court converted the letter into PIL was during the case of Rural Litigation and Entitlement Kendra Dehradun vs the state of Uttar Pradesh. The whole issue was regarding unauthorised and illegal mining in Mussoorie Hills into a Writ petition under public interest litigation.

What Are the Laws Governing Pil in India?

Over the years, various principles concerning PIL have been formulated by the courts of India. Following are the laws that govern the PIL of India.

1. Relaxed rule of locus standi – As discussed before PIL works under the relaxed rule of locus standi. It means anyone who cannot approach the courts themselves can also file a PIL. So those who are deprived, poor, illiterate, or have any other disadvantages can also safeguard their interests.
2. Intervention by courts – Under article 14 and article 21 of the Indian Constitution, the court provides individuals or groups of individuals with a fair and reasonable trial. This means that the Court can intervene if it sees any injustice done to a person or a group of individuals.
3. Procedural rules – As mentioned before, the court considers letters and postcards in the form of PIL. Procedural rules being relaxed were seen during the case of rural litigation and entitlement of Kendra Dehradun vs the State of Uttar Pradesh.
4. Questions of maintainability – According to this law, the government is not allowed to raise questions on the maintainability of the PIL if the court is satisfied with the variation of any constitutional rights directed towards the derived category of people.
5. The Res Judicata – The principle of res judicata or any principle analogous to it would depend on the facts of the case and the circumstances surrounding it. Also, it will depend on the nature of PIL.
6. Appointment of a commission – The court may appoint any investigative body or a commission in case of special circumstances. In that case, the commission will take over the charge of the event of a public institution and the court may handle the direct management of it.
7. Law to support complete justice – This is the law under which the Supreme Court of India can pass a decree or an order which can be necessary justice to an individual or a group of individuals. This law comes under article 142 of the Constitution of India.
8. Law to take steps against misuse of PIL – the supreme court and the high courts are always cautious to ensure that cannot be misused at any cost. This proves that the court does its best to safeguard the interest of the people who are deprived, poor, illiterate, and have other disadvantages. Kusum Lata vs Union of India was one such case.

What Are Some Essential Steps to Be Kept in Mind While Drafting a Pil?

As discussed before,  drafting a PIL is a very easy process but some essential steps need to be followed while drafting a PIL.

1. An individual or a group of individuals must collect all the relevant information about the issue before drafting a PIL.
2. Collection of various documents related to the case such as photographs and other important documents must be collated by the petitioner.
3. The petitioner must decide all to keep it clear in mind which court to take the petition to, Supreme Court or  High Court.
4. The petitioner must also be very clear about who they are addressing the PIL. Is it before the chief justice of the supreme court or before the chief justice of the High Court?
5. Several public litigation guidelines must be followed by the petitioner while drafting a PIL. Petitioners can check the websites of respective courts and keep themselves updated about the guidelines.
6. Apart from collecting documents and maintaining guidelines, the petitioner must be very clear about their appearance to the court. He/she/ they can either appoint an advocate or choose to appear in person as well.

Conclusion

For those who are unable to approach the court themselves or to safeguard the general public interest, PIL has always been an important tool. PIL is one of the most commonly used forms of litigation pics of environmental issues. Also, the court takes a step forward to make the rules regarding PIL easy so that anyone can file a case easily and take further steps. The court also remains very cautious and particular about not letting anyone misuse PIL for their profit. If you want to properly understand the requirements of the PIL filing process, you should consult and seek guidance from our expert team of legal professionals at Vakilsearch.

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