Govt. v/s Judiciary

For the last two days, I have been seeing headlines about the public spat between the Central Govt. and the Judiciary splashed about everywhere. This leads me to think - Who will emerge as the eventual winner?

The entire dispute started when the Hon. SC (Supreme Court for this post!!) passed a judgement abolishing the reservation quota in private colleges. Although a majority of the college owners were overjoyed, this order sure made the Govt. see red. You see, they had their vote banks to protect!! The govt. started claiming that the Judiciary was infringing on its territory. On the other hand, the Judiciary curtly asked the Govt. to see to it that they do their job properly.

Well, in a way, the Govt. of India is right. India is a democratic nation and Parliament is the body empowered by the Constitution to make our laws. If we complain that Parliament does not act responsibly, then it is we who are to blame. After all, it is we who send our representatives to Parliament as MPs. Whatever be the case, Parliament SHOULD remain the sole law-making body in the country. The Hon. SC is simply expected to ensure that these laws are upheld in letter and spirit.

On the other hand, it can be argued that the large no. of PILs being filed in courts against the Govt. negligence forces the courts to look into the matter. After all, the Constitution guarantees every citizen the Right to Justice. Hence, it is implicitly implied that it is the duty of the Judiciary to ensure that this right is upheld. This leads to an internal conflict between the duties of Parliament and the Judiciary. Now, how can this conflict be resolved?

I feel that our esteemed Parliamentarians are to blame for this whole mess. If they discharge all the functions expected of them, then it will be no longer necessary for the citizens to resort to the courts for justice. Then, even the courts can carry out their functions without infringing on Parliamentary territory.

Coming round to the original argument, I feel that the executive viz. the Govt. will eventually emerge the winner, and rightly so. The only problem is that the powers of the Judiciary may be curbed in the process, resulting in denial of justice to a citizen in the future. Now, if only our politicians could do their job properly.......Sigh!!!!!