Supreme CourtImage source: PTI
Can the government take over the private property of an individual or community in the name of society under Article 39(B) of the Constitution? The Supreme Court has ruled on this important issue. In a major judgment on Tuesday, the nine-judge Supreme Court bench said the government cannot use all private property unless it involves public interest.
Chief Justice DY Chandrachud ruled in the case with a majority vote in the nine-judge bench. The court also overturned the earlier ruling of Justice Krishna Iyer by a majority vote. Justice Iyer’s previous judgment had said that all privately owned resources can be acquired by the state. It says that the old regime was inspired by a specific economic and socialist ideology.
At the same time, the Supreme Court overturned post-1978 decisions that adopted socialist themes and ruled that the state could take over all private property for the common good.
CJI Chandrachud said some of the decisions were wrong as all personal resources of an individual are material resources of the community. The role of the courts is not to determine economic policy but to promote the establishment of economic democracy.
