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India is a democratic country. For the well functioning of our country, we need some bodies which can govern it. Power is divided into three major bodies. They are executive, legislative, and Judiciary. This article will focus on the third body, i.e., Judiciary. The functions of the Judiciary are to interpret laws and settle disputes. It is also called the watchdog of democracy. As the guardian of the constitution, it takes care of justice. There are three types of Judiciary in India, namely Supreme Courts, High Courts, and District Courts. In this article, we will also discuss the powers of the Judiciary in detail.
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Functions of Judiciary
The main function of the Judiciary is to interpret laws and settle disputes between peoples. It works as the protector of the constitution. Some other functions are listed below:
It takes care of the fundamental rights of the people and protects them
According to the law, it helps in resolving disputes
It helps in carrying out the major political decisions
It ensures that the Constitution is Supreme, and the Judiciary should take all the decisions according to it
It plays a prominent role in law-making
As a watchdog of democracy, it takes care of the proper functioning of the system and government
It is responsible for safeguarding the rights of the people
It also provides advice to the executive and legislative bodies
Whenever there is a dispute between the state and the central, the Judiciary resolves it
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Powers of Judiciary
The Indian Judiciary has the power to review the existing judgments. This power of the Judiciary is referred to as the judicial powers. The Judiciary is independent to exercise its power without fear of anyone. The judges appointed in the courts must be highly qualified and experienced. The judicial powers are discussed below in detail.
Original Jurisdiction: When the case’s first hearing is done, it is referred to as having original jurisdiction
Appellate Jurisdiction: When the first or the original decision is questioned in the court, it is known as appellate jurisdiction
Redress: When the court deals with the damages, it is referred to as redress
Diversity Jurisdiction: The federal courts can hear cases that involve people from different states. This type of jurisdiction is known as Diversity Jurisdiction
Subject Jurisdiction: When the federal courts have jurisdiction over those cases which involve federal law, then the jurisdiction is the subject
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Types of Judiciary
There are three types of Judiciary in India, namely Supreme Courts, High Courts, and District Courts. Let us discuss them one by one in detail.
- Supreme Court: Supreme Courts are the top most courts. It was established on 28th January 1950. It is known to be the highest court. The decisions taken by it are final until the president modifies them. If the punishment of the crime is an offence against union law, granted by the military or court, or the punishment of death, the President of India has the power to grant pardon. In the Supreme Court, there is one chief justice and a group of thirty-three judges. Every other court exercises the decisions taken by the Supreme court. The President of India appoints the Chief Justice.
- High Court: After the Supreme Court, the most powerful courts are high courts. They are at the state level and are mainly for resolving state disputes. They also look into the matter of company law-related cases. In total, there are twenty-five high courts in India. They also look after the criminal matters if the dispute is not resolved at lower-level courts. The judges of High court get appointed by the President of India.
- District Courts: The courts at the district level are referred to as district courts. There are two types of district courts, namely, Civil courts and criminal courts. The disputes related to properties or divorces are resolved in civil courts. The disputes among families are resolved in family courts. The criminal court deals with matters related to crime.
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Conclusion
Hence, it is concluded that as the guardian of the constitution, the Judiciary takes care of justice. There are three types of Judiciary in India. They are Supreme Courts, High Courts, and District Courts. The Judiciary ensures that the Constitution is Supreme, and the Judiciary should take all the decisions following it. In this article, we discussed the functions of the Judiciary. We also discussed the powers of the Judiciary and different types of judicial powers. After reading this article, I hope all the concepts related to Judiciary will be clear.
