142. Enforcement of decrees and orders of Supreme Court and orders as to discovery, etc.:
(1) The Supreme Court in the exercise of its jurisdiction may pass such decree or make such order as is necessary for doing complete justice in any case or matter pending before it, and any decree so passed or order so made shall be enforceable throughout the territory of India in such a manner as may be prescribed by or under any law made by the Parliament and, until provision in that behalf is so made in such a manners as the President may by order prescribe.
(2) Subject to the provisions of any law made in this behalf by the Parliament, the Supreme Court shall, as respects the whole of the territory of India, have all and every power to make any order for the purpose of securing the attendance of any person, the discovery or production of any documents, or the investigation or punishment of any contempt of itself.
COMMENTS
The main purpose of Article 142 is to do complete justice. In Manohar Lal Sharma vs. Principal Secy, & Ors., the court held that the Supreme Court has been conferred with very wide powers for proper and effective administration of justice. In many matters of environment protection, family law and for the welfare of downtrodden, the Supreme Court invoked its powers under Article 14 of the Constitution.
143. Power of President to consult the Supreme Court:
(1) If, at any time, it appears to the President that a question of law or fact has arisen, or is likely to arise, which is of such a nature and of such public importance that it is expedient to obtain the opinion of the Supreme Court upon it, he may refer the question to that Court for consideration and the Court may, after such hearing as it thinks fit, report to the President its opinion thereon.
(2) The President may, notwithstanding anything in the proviso to Article 131, refer a dispute of the kind mentioned in the said proviso to the Supreme Court for opinion and the Supreme Court shall, after such hearing as it thinks fit, report to the President its opinion thereon.
COMMENTS
The minimum number of Judges to give such opinion shall be five. The important reference under Article 143 are Kerala Education Bill, 1958, In Re Berubari’s case in 1960, In Re Sea Customs Act case in 1962, In Re Keshav Singh’s case in 1965, In Re President Poll, in Re the Supreme Court’s Bill, In Re Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunals, In Re Principles and Procedure regarding appointment of Supreme Court and High Court Judges, Gujarat Assembly and in Re Special Reference No.1 of 2012 (2G Spectrum Case). In 2G Spectrum case, the court observed that no part of the natural resource can be dissipated as a matter of largess, charity, donation or endowment, for private exploitation. Each bit of natural resources expended must bring back a reciprocal consideration. The consideration may be in the nature of earning revenue or may be to “best subserve the common good”. It may well be the amalgam of the two. There cannot be dissipation of material resources free of cost or at a consideration lower than their actual worth. One set of citizens cannot prosper at the cost of another set of citizens, for that would not be fair or reasonable.
144. Civil and judicial authorities to act in aid of the Supreme Court:
All authorities, civil and judicial, in the territory of India, shall act in aid of the Supreme Court.
COMMENTS
Article 144 to be read with Article 141 of the Indian Constitution which enacts that the law declared by the Supreme Court shall be binding on ‘all courts’ in the territory of India. Under the Constitution, the rule of precedent is followed which is also known as the doctrine of stare decisis. Under this doctrine, even the single judgement of a higher court must be followed by lower courts and other authorities.
145. Rules of Court, etc.:
(1) Subject to the provision of any law made by Parliament, the Supreme Court may from time to time, with the approval of the President, make rules for regulating generally the practice and procedure of the Court including—
(a) rules as to the persons practicing before the court;
(b) rules as to the procedure for hearing appeals and other matters pertaining to appeals including the time within which appeals to the Court are to entered;
(c ) rules as to the proceedings in the Court for the enforcement of any of the rights conferred by Part III;
(CC) rules as to the proceedings in the Court under Article 139A;
(d) rules as to the entertainment of appeals under sub-clause (c ) of clause (1) of Article 134;
(e)rules as to the conditions subject to which any judgement pronounced or order made by the Court may be reviewed and the procedure for such review including the time within which applications to the Courts for such review are to be entered;
(f) rules as to the costs of and incidental to any proceedings in the Court and as to the fees to be charges in respect of proceedings therein;
(g) rules as to the granting of bail;
(h) rules as to stay of proceedings;
(i) rules providing for the summary determination of any appeal, which appears to the Court to be frivolous or vexatious or brought for the purpose of delay;
(j) rules as to the procedure for inquiries referred to in clause (1) of Article 317.
(2) Subject to the Provisions of clause (3), rules made under this Article may fix the minimum number of Judges who are to sit for any purpose, and may provide for the powers of single Judges and Division Courts.
(3) The minimum number of Judges who are to sit for the purpose of deciding any case involving a substantial question of law as to the interpretation of this Constitution or for the purpose of hearing any reference under Article 143 shall be five:
Provided that, where the Court hearing an appeal under any of the provisions of this Chapter other than Article 132 consists of less than five Judges and in the course of the hearing of the appeal, the Court is satisfied that the appeal involves a substantial question of law as to the interpretation of this Constitution, the determination of which is necessary for the disposal of the appeal, such Court shall refer the question for the purpose of deciding any case involving such a question and shall on receipt of the opinion dispose of the appeal in conformity with such opinion.
(4) No Judgement shall be delivered by the Supreme Court save in open Court, and no report shall be made under Article 143 saves in accordance with an opinion also delivered in open Court.
(5) No Judgement and no such opinion shall be delivered by the Supreme Court save with the concurrence of a majority of the judges present at the hearing of the case, but nothing in this clause shall be deemed to prevent a Judge who does not concur from delivering a dissenting judgement or opinion.
COMMENTS
In its initial years, on an average, one hundred cases were heard by a bench of five judges or more. After Emergency the number of cases heard by five judges or more declined. In an illuminating Article published in Economic and Political weekly (30) titled interpreting the Constitution: Supreme Court Constitution Benches since Independence (February 26, 2011), it is stated that as of November 2010, there were 754 five-judge or larger matters pending to be heard for regular hearing in the Supreme Court. Although many of these matters could be clubbed together to be heard in fewer hearings, this still represents a major backlog of vital constitution bench matters.
146. Officers and servants and the expenses of the Supreme Court:
(1) Appointments of officers and servants of the Supreme Court shall be made by the Chief Justice of India or such other judge or officer of the Court as he may direct:
Provided that the President may by rule require that in such cases, as may be specified in the rule, no person not already attached to the Court shall be appointed to any office connected with the Court, save after consultation with the Union Public Service Commission.
(2) Subject to the provisions of any law made by the Parliament, the conditions of service of officers and servants of the Supreme Court shall be such as may be prescribed by rules made by the Chief Justice of India or by some other Judge or officer of the Court authorized by the Chief Justice of India to make rules for the purpose:
Provided that the rules made under this clause shall, so far as they relate to salaried allowances, leave or pensions require the approval of the President.
(3) The administrative expenses of the Supreme Court including all salaries, allowances and pensions payable to or in respect of the officers and servants of the Court, shall be charged upon the Consolidated Fund of India, and any fees or other moneys taken by the Court shall form part of that Fund.
147. Interpretation:
In this Chapter and in Chapter V of Part VI, references to any substantial question of law as to the interpretation of this Constitution shall be construed as including references to any substantial question of law as to the interpretation of the Government of India Act, 1935 (including any enactment amending or supplementing that Act), or of any Order in Council or order made there under, or of the Indian Independence Act 1947, or of any order made there under.