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LL.M. (Two Years) Sem 1 Law and Social Transformation in India 2010 Jun Question Paper with Solutions

KSLU Solved Question Papers

Law and Social Transformation in India

Previous Year Question Paper with Solution

LL.M. (Two Years) · Sem 1

2010 Jun Examination

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Mumbai

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First published on munotes.in on 1 November 2026.

Published by munotes.in, Mumbai.

Model answers written and edited by the munotes.in editorial desk.

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munotes.in is an independent study resource for students of Karnataka State Law University. It is not affiliated with Karnataka State Law University, and is not endorsed by it.

The University does not publish an official answer key for this paper. The answers in this volume are model answers, written to show how a full-mark answer is built. They are a study aid, not an authority on what an examiner marked.

The question paper reproduced here is the paper as set by Karnataka State Law University at the 2010 Jun examination.

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Contents

The questions below are the paper as Karnataka State Law University set it at the 2010 Jun examination, in the order it was set.

MarksPage

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MarksPage

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The Paper as Set

The questions in this volume are the questions asked at the 2010 Jun examination, reproduced as Karnataka State Law University set them, in the order it set them. Long reading passages are shortened to their first and last lines and our summary; the original paper prints them in full. Only the answers are ours. See the original question paper.

Duration 3 hours  ·  Total marks 80  ·  20 questions answered

Instructions printed on the paper

  • N.B. (1) 1) Answer all questions. 2) Figures to the right indicate marks.

How to use this volume

Solve the paper first, under exam conditions and against the clock. Then read the answers here and mark your own. Reading a solution before attempting the question feels productive and teaches very little, because recognising an answer is not the same as being able to write one.

Read the original question paper

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Q1

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(a)Critically analyse the influence of English Law on India.[10]

Answer

For full marks, cover: what the common law system is (judge-made law, precedent, adversarial trial, rule of law); how it came to India (the Mayor's Courts of 1726; Warren Hastings' plan of 1772; the Supreme Court at Calcutta under the Regulating Act 1773; "justice, equity and good conscience"; the Law Commissions from 1834 and the codes; the High Courts of 1862; Privy Council appeals until 1949); its impact on law and legal institutions (codified law; a unified court hierarchy; precedent; the legal profession; the rule of law and judicial review; secular public law beside personal law; social reform statutes; continuity under article 372; writs under articles 32 and 226); the Indian departures from it (Maneka Gandhi, M.C. Mehta (oleum gas), Nilabati Behera, S.P. Gupta); a critical evaluation (cost, delay, language, displacement of village justice, the rigidity of Anglo-Hindu law; the 2023 criminal codes); a table; a conclusion.

What the common law system is

The common law is the legal system that grew in England. Its main features are:

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  1. Judge-made law. Much of the law is found in the decisions of judges, not only in statutes.
  2. Precedent. The decisions of higher courts bind lower courts (stare decisis).
  3. The adversarial trial. Two parties present their cases before a neutral judge, who decides on the evidence they bring.
  4. The rule of law. Government itself is subject to law and to ordinary courts.
  5. Equity. Courts may soften strict rules to do justice in the individual case.

How it came to India

  1. The Mayor's Courts (1726). A royal charter set up Mayor's Courts in Madras, Bombay and Calcutta, bringing English law to the Company's settlements.
  2. Warren Hastings' plan (1772). It set up civil and criminal courts in Bengal. In matters of inheritance, marriage, caste and religious usage, Hindu law was to apply to Hindus and Muslim law to Muslims.
  3. The Supreme Court at Calcutta. The Regulating Act 1773 led to a Supreme Court of Judicature at Fort William, set up by charter in 1774, applying English law.
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  1. "Justice, equity and good conscience". Where no rule applied, courts in the provinces were told to decide by justice, equity and good conscience. In practice this often meant English law adapted to Indian conditions.
  2. Codification. The Charter Act 1833 led to the first Law Commission in 1834 under Macaulay. The Indian Penal Code 1860, the Code of Civil Procedure, the Code of Criminal Procedure 1861 and the Evidence and Contract Acts of 1872 followed. These codes put English legal ideas into statute form.
  3. High Courts and appeals. The Indian High Courts Act 1861 created the High Courts of Calcutta, Bombay and Madras in 1862. Appeals lay to the Privy Council in London until its jurisdiction was abolished in 1949.

The impact on law and legal institutions

  1. A body of codified law. India received comprehensive codes of crime, procedure, evidence, contract and property, many of which lasted over a century.
  2. A unified hierarchy of courts. Courts were organised in a single pyramid from the district courts to the High Courts and, later, the Supreme Court.
  3. Precedent. Judicial decisions became a source of law. Article 141 of the Constitution now makes the law declared by the Supreme Court binding on all courts.
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  1. A legal profession. Trained advocates, bar councils and law colleges grew up, and lawyers led the freedom movement.
  2. The rule of law and judicial review. The idea that rulers are bound by law took root. Article 13 provides for judicial review. The writ jurisdiction in articles 32 and 226 carries forward the English prerogative writs of habeas corpus, mandamus, prohibition, certiorari and quo warranto.
  3. Secular public law. Crime, contract and procedure became the same for all communities, while personal law stayed religious.
  4. Social reform by statute. English-style legislation abolished sati in 1829, removed caste disabilities in 1850 and allowed widow remarriage in 1856.
  5. Continuity. Article 372 kept all existing laws in force after 1950 until changed, so the common law framework passed into the Republic.

The Indian departures from the common law

Indian courts have used the common law as a base but have not followed it blindly.

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Facts. In Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India, AIR 1978 SC 597, the petitioner's passport was impounded without reasons. Held. "Procedure established by law" in article 21 must be fair, just and reasonable, not arbitrary. Why it matters. The Court moved beyond the English idea that any procedure Parliament enacts is enough. It gave Indian law a substantive fairness test.

Facts. In M.C. Mehta v. Union of India (the oleum gas leak case), AIR 1987 SC 1086, oleum gas escaped from a Delhi factory soon after the Bhopal disaster. Held. An enterprise carrying on a hazardous activity is absolutely liable for harm, without the exceptions allowed under the English rule in Rylands v. Fletcher. Why it matters. The Court refused to import an English rule unsuited to industrial India.

Facts. In Nilabati Behera v. State of Orissa, AIR 1993 SC 1960, a young man died in police custody. Held. Compensation for violation of fundamental rights is a public law remedy, to which the common law defence of sovereign immunity does not apply. Why it matters. A colonial-era immunity gave way to constitutional rights.

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Facts. In S.P. Gupta v. President of India, AIR 1982 SC 149, advocates not personally affected challenged decisions on judges' transfers. Held. Any member of the public acting in good faith may approach the court for those unable to do so themselves. Why it matters. The strict common law rule of standing was relaxed, opening the way for public interest litigation.

A critical evaluation

Benefits. The common law gave India codified law, an independent judiciary, the rule of law, a legal profession and judicial review. It also offered a secular, uniform public law across a divided society. These institutions underpin Indian democracy.

Criticisms.

  1. Cost and delay. Adversarial trials, appeals and lawyers made justice slow and expensive, beyond the reach of the poor.
  2. An alien language and form. Proceedings in English in the higher courts were remote from most Indians.
  3. Displacement of local justice. Village panchayats and community settlement lost their place. Marc Galanter described this "displacement of traditional law" in 1968.
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  1. Rigid personal law. Courts relied on texts translated by pandits and maulvis, which hardened Hindu and Muslim law and reduced its local variety.
  2. A colonial purpose. Some laws, such as sedition, served to control subjects rather than protect citizens.

The response. India has tried to correct these defects through Lok Adalats, Gram Nyayalayas, mediation, public interest litigation and the use of Indian languages. The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita and the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam replaced the colonial criminal codes from 1 July 2024. They largely keep the old structure.

The impact at a glance

FieldCommon law contributionIndian development
SourcesPrecedent, codesArt. 141; the 2023 criminal codes
CourtsUnified hierarchySupreme Court; Lok Adalats; Gram Nyayalayas
Fair procedureNatural justiceManeka Gandhi
LiabilityRylands v. FletcherAbsolute liability, M.C. Mehta
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FieldCommon law contributionIndian development
State liabilitySovereign immunityPublic law compensation, Nilabati Behera
AccessStrict standingPIL, S.P. Gupta

Conclusion. The common law came to India through the Company's courts, the Supreme Court at Calcutta, the codes and the High Courts. Its impact was deep. It gave codified law, a unified judiciary, precedent, a legal profession, the rule of law and judicial review. Article 372 and the Constitution carried all of these forward. It also brought cost, delay, an alien idiom and the decline of local justice. Indian courts have since reshaped it to Indian needs, in Maneka Gandhi, M.C. Mehta, Nilabati Behera and S.P. Gupta. India today has a common law system that is increasingly its own.

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