• Research
  • Politika
  • About
Carnegie Russia Eurasia center logoCarnegie lettermark logo
  • Donate
{
  "authors": [
    "Suyash Rai",
    "Anirudh Burman"
  ],
  "type": "legacyinthemedia",
  "centerAffiliationAll": "",
  "centers": [
    "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace",
    "Carnegie India"
  ],
  "collections": [],
  "englishNewsletterAll": "",
  "nonEnglishNewsletterAll": "",
  "primaryCenter": "Carnegie India",
  "programAffiliation": "",
  "programs": [],
  "projects": [
    "Political Economy"
  ],
  "regions": [
    "India",
    "South Asia"
  ],
  "topics": [
    "Domestic Politics",
    "Democracy"
  ]
}

Source: Getty

In The Media
Carnegie India

Indian Society Must Find Ways to Hold ‘Privileged’ Judicial Community Accountable

In recent years, some of the most dramatic situations in Indian public life have arisen in the higher judiciary—an arm of the state ideally characterized by collegiality, scholarship, predictability, and remoteness from raucous politics.

Link Copied
By Suyash Rai and Anirudh Burman
Published on May 7, 2019
Project hero Image

Project

Political Economy

This program studies contemporary developments in India’s political economy, with a view towards understanding and informing India’s developmental choices. Scholars in the program analyze economic and regulatory policies, design and working of public institutions, interfaces between politics and the economy, and performance of key sectors of the economy such as finance and land.

Learn More

Source: Print

In recent years, some of the most dramatic situations in Indian public life have arisen in the higher judiciary – an arm of the state ideally characterised by collegiality, scholarship, predictability, and remoteness from raucous politics.

From the disregard of principles of natural justice and public squabbling among the judges to the politically consequential activism around the National Register of Citizens (NRC) and unpredictable reasoning in judgments (treatment of money bill argument in the Aadhaar case, and ignoring of evidence of low fatalities in the liquor ban case), the reality of the higher judiciary is increasingly divergent from the ideal conception. These situations also remind us how difficult it is to hold the higher judiciary accountable.

Read the Full Text

This article was originally published in the Print.

About the Authors

Suyash Rai

Former Fellow, Carnegie India

Suyash Rai was a fellow at Carnegie India. His research focuses on the political economy of economic reforms, and the performance of public institutions in India.

Anirudh Burman

Former Associate Research Director and Fellow, Carnegie India

Anirudh Burman was an associate research director and fellow at Carnegie India. He works on key issues relating to public institutions, public administration, the administrative and regulatory state, and state capacity.

Authors

Suyash Rai
Former Fellow, Carnegie India
Suyash Rai
Anirudh Burman
Former Associate Research Director and Fellow, Carnegie India
Anirudh Burman
Domestic PoliticsDemocracyIndiaSouth Asia

Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.

More Work from Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center

  • Commentary
    Carnegie Politika
    In Russia, Private Companies Have Been Left to Pick Up the Tab for Ukrainian Drone Attacks

    The cost of air defense has become an unregistered tax on revenue for businesses. While military rents are consolidated in the federal budget, the costs of defense are being spread across the balance sheets of companies and regional governments.

      Alexandra Prokopenko

  • Commentary
    Carnegie Politika
    Could the Rise of the New People Party Reshape Russia’s Managed Political System?

    Anger over online restrictions has led to a surge in support for the New People party, which has replaced the Communists as Russia’s second most popular political party.  

      Andrey Pertsev

  • Commentary
    Carnegie Politika
    In Russia, the Public Mood Is Souring

    The Russian regime is now visibly motivated by fear.

      Alexander Baunov

  • Commentary
    Carnegie Politika
    Why Is Belarus’s Approach to Online Censorship So Different From Russia’s?

    For Lukashenko, abandoning Western internet services and embracing Russian equivalents would mean tying himself even closer to Moscow.

      Artyom Shraibman

  • Commentary
    Carnegie Politika
    The Rada Reawakens: Ukraine’s Messy Politics Returns

    The return of parliamentary politics reflects a broader shift from earlier expectations of a settlement and elections toward the reality of a prolonged war.

      Balázs Jarábik

Get more news and analysis from
Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center
Carnegie Russia Eurasia logo, white
  • Research
  • Politika
  • About
  • Experts
  • Events
  • Contact
  • Privacy
  • For Media
Get more news and analysis from
Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center
© 2026 Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. All rights reserved.