Doctrine of basic structure, the doctrine of 'a basic structure' was nothing more than a set of obvious inferences relating to the intents of the Constitution-makers arrived at by applying the established canons of construction rather broadly, as they should be so far as an organic constitutional document, meant to govern the fate of a nation, is concerned. But, in every case where reliance is placed upon it, in the course of an attack upon legislation, whether ordinary or constituent (in the sense that it is an amendment of the Constitution), what is put forward as part of 'a basic structure' must be justified by references to the express provisions of the Constitution. That structure does not exist in vacuo. Inferences from it must be shown to be embedded in and to flow logically and naturally from the bases of that structure. In other words, it must be related to the provisions of the Constitution and to the manner in which they could indubitably be presumed to naturally and reasonably function, State of Karnataka v. Union of India (1977) 4 SCC 608: AIR 1978 SC 68: (1978) 2 SCR 1.
View Judgments Citing this Phrase View Acts Citing this Phrase