Constitutional Law 1 Notes for LLB — Landmark Cases & Blueprints
📑 Course: KSLU LL.B. (3-Year / 5-Year) • Semester: 1st Semester • Subject: Constitutional Law I “The Constitution is not a mere lawyers’ document, it is a vehicle of life, and its spirit is always the spirit of the age.” — B.R. Ambedkar
Free, exam-ready KSLU Constitutional Law I notes for the LL.B. course — the entire syllabus, topic by topic, on one page. Every topic below has comprehensive notes, the leading Supreme Court cases, and solved problems. Nothing is held back: the notes cover Fundamental Rights (Articles 12–35), the Preamble, citizenship, judicial review, reservation, the writs and the FR–DPSP relationship in full. Buy the bundle only if you want it all in one printable PDF with the complete question bank — the reading is free.
📘 Syllabus: These notes follow the current KSLU 3-Year & 5-Year LL.B. Constitutional Law-I syllabus (Fundamental Rights, Directive Principles and Fundamental Duties). All five units are covered below.
Unit I — The Constitution, Preamble & Citizenship
- What is a Constitution? Constitutionalism
- Salient Features — Federal with a Unitary Bias
- The Preamble
- Citizenship (Articles 5–11)
Unit II — State, Article 13 & Right to Equality
- State under Article 12
- Article 13 — Void Laws, Severability, Eclipse & Judicial Review
- Right to Equality — Article 14
Unit III — Protective Discrimination & the Freedoms
- Protective Discrimination — Articles 15 & 16
- Abolition of Untouchability — Article 17
- Right to Freedom — Article 19
Unit IV — Rights of the Accused, Life & Religion
- Rights of the Accused — Article 20
- Right to Life & Personal Liberty — Article 21
- Arrest & Preventive Detention — Article 22
- Right Against Exploitation & Freedom of Religion — Articles 23–28
Unit V — Minority Rights, Writs & DPSP
- Cultural & Educational Rights of Minorities — Articles 29–30
- Constitutional Remedies & the Writs — Articles 32 & 226
- Right to Property, DPSP & Fundamental Duties
Landmark Case Laws
Every case explained on its own page — facts, issue, held and significance: Full one-page briefs — facts, issue, held and why it matters — for every case the KSLU examiner keeps returning to:
| Case Name | Key Exam Concept | Quick Link |
|---|---|---|
| Kesavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala (1973) | Basic Structure doctrine | Read Brief |
| S.R. Bommai v. Union of India (1994) | Federalism, secularism & Article 356 | Read Brief |
| Berubari Union, In re (1960) | Is the Preamble part of the Constitution? | Read Brief |
| R.D. Shetty v. International Airport Authority (1979) | Instrumentality of “State” (Art. 12) | Read Brief |
| State of West Bengal v. Anwar Ali Sarkar (1952) | Reasonable classification (Art. 14) | Read Brief |
| Shayara Bano v. Union of India (2017) | Manifest arbitrariness / triple talaq | Read Brief |
| Indra Sawhney v. Union of India (1992) | Mandal case, 50% cap & creamy layer | Read Brief |
| Bijoe Emmanuel v. State of Kerala (1986) | National Anthem, right to silence | Read Brief |
| K.A. Abbas v. Union of India (1971) | Film censorship & free speech | Read Brief |
| Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India (1978) | The golden triangle (Arts. 14, 19, 21) | Read Brief |
| State of Bombay v. Kathi Kalu Oghad (1961) | Self-incrimination (Art. 20(3)) | Read Brief |
| K.S. Puttaswamy v. Union of India (2017) | Right to privacy (Art. 21) | Read Brief |
| Commissioner, HRE v. Shirur Mutt (1954) | Essential religious practices (Arts. 25–26) | Read Brief |
| T.M.A. Pai Foundation v. State of Karnataka (2002) | Minority educational rights (Art. 30) | Read Brief |
| Minerva Mills v. Union of India (1980) | The FR–DPSP balance | Read Brief |
| State of Madras v. Champakam Dorairajan (1951) | FRs prevail over DPSP | Read Brief |
✏️ Practice
- 10 Solved Problems (IRAC Method) — worked fact-pattern answers across all five units
- KSLU Past Questions & Exam Topics
📖 Explainers
- Why Article 226 Is Wider Than Article 32 — the five reasons in plain language, with a comparison table and a solved problem
Download the Constitutional Law I Complete Bundle + Question Bank — ₹199 — the full study notes plus a Question Bank of model answers (essays + solved problems) for every previously-asked KSLU question, in one printable PDF.
🆓 Free sample: Download Unit 1 (free PDF)