KSLU Solved Question Papers
Law and Social Transformation in India
Previous Year Question Paper with Solution
LL.M. (Two Years) · Sem 1
2012 Dec Examination
munotes.in
Mumbai
LL.M. (Two Years) Sem 1 Law and Social Transformation in India 2012 Dec Question Paper with Solutions
First published on munotes.in on 23 October 2026.
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The question paper reproduced here is the paper as set by Karnataka State Law University at the 2012 Dec examination.
Contents
The questions below are the paper as Karnataka State Law University set it at the 2012 Dec examination, in the order it was set.
MarksPage
MarksPage
The Paper as Set
The questions in this volume are the questions asked at the 2012 Dec 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) Answer all questions. (2) Figures to the right indicate the 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.
Q1
(a)Define 'Law'. Explain the relation between law and social change.[10]
Answer
For full marks, cover: definitions of law from the main schools (Austin's command; Salmond's principles applied by courts; Kelsen's hierarchy of norms; Hart's union of primary and secondary rules; Pound's social engineering; Ehrlich's living law) and the Constitution's own wide definition in article 13(3)(a); a working definition; what social change is; the relation in four propositions: law follows change (Savigny; Vishaka and the POSH Act 2013), law leads change (Bentham; article 17; State of Karnataka v. Appa Balu Ingale), law consolidates change (Independent Thought and section 63 of the BNS), and law channels and limits change; the conditions under which law changes society; a table; a conclusion.
Defining law
There is no single definition of law. Each school of jurisprudence stresses one side of it.
- John Austin (The Province of Jurisprudence Determined, 1832): law is a command of the sovereign, backed by a sanction. This stresses law's force.
- Sir John Salmond: law is the body of principles recognised and applied by the State in the administration of justice. This stresses the courts.
- Hans Kelsen (Pure Theory of Law, 1934): law is a hierarchy of norms. Each norm is valid because a higher norm authorises it, up to a basic norm. This stresses validity.
- H.L.A. Hart (The Concept of Law, 1961): law is a union of primary rules of conduct and secondary rules that recognise, change and apply them. This stresses the system.
- Roscoe Pound: law is a means of social engineering, balancing competing interests with the least friction and waste. This stresses purpose.
- Eugen Ehrlich: the "living law" is the order people actually follow in families, villages and associations. This stresses society.
The Indian Constitution takes a wide view. Article 13(3)(a) says "law" includes any ordinance, order, bye-law, rule, regulation, notification, custom or usage having the force of law.
A working definition. Law is the body of rules, made or recognised by the State and enforced through its institutions, that orders conduct and resolves disputes in society. It includes custom that the State recognises.
What social change is
Social change is a change in the structure of society: in its groups, relations, norms, roles and values. Examples are the decline of untouchability, women entering paid work, and the shift from joint to nuclear families.
The relation between law and social change
The relation can be stated in four propositions.
First, law follows social change. Savigny held that law grows from the spirit of a people and follows its customs. Law often records a change that society has already made.
Facts. In Vishaka v. State of Rajasthan, (1997) 6 SCC 241, women had entered workplaces in large numbers, but no law dealt with sexual harassment. Women's groups brought the issue to the Court after a social worker was allegedly gang-raped. Held. Sexual harassment at work violates articles 14, 15, 19(1)(g) and 21, and the Court laid down binding guidelines. Why it matters. A social change, women at work, created a need that law then met. Parliament followed with the POSH Act 2013.
Second, law leads social change. Bentham saw legislation as the engine of reform. Law can set a standard that society has not yet reached. Article 17 abolished untouchability in 1950, when it was still widely practised.
Facts. In State of Karnataka v. Appa Balu Ingale, AIR 1993 SC 1126, villagers stopped Scheduled Caste people from drawing water from a new borewell because they were "untouchables". The High Court acquitted the accused. Held. The Supreme Court restored the conviction under the Protection of Civil Rights Act 1955. Why it matters. Over forty years after article 17, practice still lagged behind the law. When law leads, society may take decades to follow, and enforcement must close the gap.
Third, law consolidates social change. Once a new value takes hold, law removes the rules that contradict it.
Facts. In Independent Thought v. Union of India, (2017) 10 SCC 800, the Penal Code exempted a husband from rape for intercourse with a wife over fifteen. POCSO protected every child under eighteen. Held. The exception was read down to eighteen, because it denied married girls the protection given to all others. Why it matters. The law caught up with the value that a girl under eighteen must be protected, married or not. Section 63 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023 now writes eighteen into Exception 2.
Fourth, law channels and limits social change. Law gives change a peaceful route through elections, legislation and courts, instead of violence. It also sets limits. Fundamental rights and the basic structure of the Constitution protect individuals and minorities against change pressed by a majority.
How law works on society
Yehezkel Dror distinguished two roles. Law acts directly when it orders or forbids conduct, as article 17 does. It acts indirectly when it builds institutions that then produce change, such as schools under the Right to Education Act or panchayats under Part IX. Most deep change comes through the indirect route.
When law succeeds in changing society
- The law is backed by a strong social movement or by the moral authority of the Constitution.
- Those it protects can use it themselves, through a right, a remedy or a forum.
- The State enforces it steadily.
- Education and economic change support it.
- It is clear, and people know of it.
The limits of law
- Law cannot by itself change beliefs. Caste prejudice outlived article 17.
- A law that runs far ahead of opinion may be ignored or resisted.
- Poor enforcement turns a strong statute into a paper promise.
- Law can also freeze society, as when personal law was fixed into rigid text under colonial courts.
The four relations at a glance
| Relation | Theorist | Indian example |
|---|---|---|
| Law follows change | Savigny, Ehrlich | Vishaka; POSH Act 2013 |
| Law leads change | Bentham, Pound | Article 17; Appa Balu Ingale |
| Relation | Theorist | Indian example |
|---|---|---|
| Law consolidates change | Hart's rules of change | Independent Thought; BNS s.63 |
| Law channels and limits change | Kelsen's hierarchy | Fundamental rights; basic structure |
Conclusion. Law may be defined as the rules made or recognised by the State and enforced through its institutions. Article 13(3)(a) widens the definition to custom and usage. Its relation with social change runs in four directions. It follows change, as Vishaka did, and leads it, as article 17 did, though Appa Balu Ingale shows society lagging. It consolidates change, as Independent Thought did, and it channels change peacefully within constitutional limits.
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