The state and the patriarch: rewriting Charan Lal Sahu, Rakesh Shrouti, Rajkumar Keswani, Nasrin Bi and others v. Union of India (1990) 1 SCC 613

Das, Sannoy and Mazumdar, Ananyaa (2021) The state and the patriarch: rewriting Charan Lal Sahu, Rakesh Shrouti, Rajkumar Keswani, Nasrin Bi and others v. Union of India (1990) 1 SCC 613. Indian Law Review, 5 (3). pp. 382-398. ISSN 24730580

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Abstract

In this contribution, as part of the Indian Feminist Judgement Project, we reconsider the decision of the Supreme Court of India in the Charan Lal Sahu case that followed the Bhopal gas leak tragedy. We present a dissenting opinion on the case, finding that the law empowering the State to supplant the victim-survivors as plaintiffs was unconstitutional. Alongside, we offer a brief commentary on why this finding comports with what a feminist judge on the bench might have decided. We consider a variety of ways in which feminist criticism of the majority decision might proceed, and how this criticism informs our rewriting. We also consider a set of persistent questions about feminist judging, and ways in which our rewriting, in turn, might be subject to further feminist objections.

Item Type: Article
Keywords: Bhopal gas tragedy | Charan Lal Sahu | Constitutional law | Feminism | Feminist judgement project | Parens patriae | Procedural law
Subjects: Social Sciences and humanities > Social Sciences > Law and Legal Studies
JGU School/Centre: Jindal Global Law School
Depositing User: Mr. Syed Anas
Date Deposited: 24 Jan 2022 14:22
Last Modified: 24 Jan 2022 14:22
Official URL: https://doi.org/10.1080/24730580.2021.1922032
Additional Information: The authors thank Krithika Ashok for suggesting this case for rewriting and for continuous critical engagement; Jhuma Sen, Aparna Chandra, Rachna Chaudhry, participants at the IFJP Workshop at Jindal Global Law School (May 2018), and anonymous reviewers at ILR for comments. Errors are solely ours.
URI: https://pure.jgu.edu.in/id/eprint/808

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