Judicial independence and the rise of the Supreme Court in India

The Indian judiciary, particularly the Supreme Court of India, has assumed a formidable reputation. Dubbed ‘the most powerful court in the world’, the Supreme Court has issued landmark decisions holding constitutional amendments unconstitutional, recognising unenumerated socioeconomic rights and devising a range of procedural innovations to enforce fundamental rights. Yet, as I have written elsewhere, the judiciary has not consistently held powerful actors to account. For instance, courts have largely deferred to the executive on emergency regulations, and defined secularism in line with the majority Hindu religion.