Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India (1978)

Constitutional Law I · Right to Life — Article 21

Facts.

The passport of the journalist Maneka Gandhi was impounded by the government “in the public interest”, without giving her any reasons or a hearing. She challenged the order as a violation of her personal liberty.

Issue.

Must a “procedure established by law” under Article 21 be fair, just and reasonable, and are Articles 14, 19 and 21 to be read together or as separate compartments?

Held.

A seven-judge Bench held that the procedure depriving a person of life or liberty must be fair, just and reasonable — not arbitrary, fanciful or oppressive. It demolished the watertight-compartments theory of Gopalan and held that Articles 14, 19 and 21 form a “golden triangle” that a law must satisfy together.

Why it matters.

This is the single most important Article 21 case. It read substantive fairness (a form of due process) into Article 21 and became the foundation on which dignity, livelihood, privacy and dozens of other rights were later built.

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