Fundamental Rights
a) Shankari Prasad Singh Deo v. Union of India (1951)
- The SC asserted that the Parliament’s power to amend under Article 368 also includes the power to amend the Fundamental Rights guaranteed in Part III of the Constitution.
- It said that a constitutional amendment act enacted to abridge or take away the fundamental rights is not void of article 13(2).
b) Sajjan Singh case (1965)
- In this case SC held that the Parliament can amend any part of the Constitution including the Fundamental Rights.
c) Golaknath case (1967)
- In this case, SC reversed its earlier stance that the Fundamental Rights can be amended.
- It held that Fundamental Rights are not amenable to the Parliamentary restriction as stated in Article 13 and that to amend the Fundamental rights a new Constituent Assembly would be required.
- Article 368 gives the procedure to amend but does not confer on Parliament the power to amend the Constitution. It conferred upon Fundamental Rights a transcendental position.