Course Description

As a new-age experiment, NLS has taken to teaching concentration courses in the LL.M programme. The Concentration course entails students opting for elective courses in their chosen area of specialization and finally writing a dissertation on a topic related to it. The Concentration course also aims to introduce the students to materials, issues and debates in their chosen concentration to equip them to take advanced courses in that area.

The course has been designed as a core concentration in Public Law which encompasses Constitutional Law, Administrative Law and Regulatory Mechanisms. Public Law fundamentally deals with the relationship between Citizens, State and State functionaries. It deals with foundations of state, governance, politics, democratic representation, sovereignty, organs of the modern state and rights. In a modern day administration the relationship of citizens and state has become complex. The state has transitioned from welfare approach towards regulatory framework. The traditional organs of the state are faced with newer challenges. This course will examine the foundations of Public Law and introduce few fundamental debates of contemporary importance to the students. The course will revisit some of the basic components of Constitutional Law, Administrative Law and Norms of Good Governance and Accountability and then navigate the students towards contemporary debates on critical issues, including privatization and the diminishing role of the state.

The course will start with raising the fundamental question – what is public law, what are its foundations and then analyse the distinctive characteristics of the domain of public law. Analysing the purpose of public law will enable the students to understand the objective of constitution, the functions of the organs of the state and its instrumentalities and the need to limit the powers of the state. The role of law becomes a focal point of discussion towards maintaining governance. The constitutional principles of rule of law, separation of power, judicial review etc. has been instrumental in establishing the legal framework of the government and its boundaries. The primary objective of public law is the ‘activity of governing’ and the course through the different modules will analyse the different forms of governance. The traditional tasks of the government used to be categorised as to maintain defence from external enemies, to preserve internal peace, to enable the citizen to acquire wealth and to promote the full enjoyment of the citizen’s liberty. In the words of Hobbes the responsibility of the state is described by the phrase, ‘salus populi suprema lex esto’ (Ode to the Citizen) and the meaning of salus changes with the changing needs of the people with core focus on ‘safety, health, abundance, welfare and salvation. Modern day state has become engaged in promoting welfare of the society on one hand and managing the economy in a massive way on the other hand – both of these factors have compelled the state to undergo changes in the manner of administration by creating a mammoth administrative apparatus which has been empowered with tasks of collecting increased taxes, collecting statistical data from the citizens, and promoting health, education and welfare benefits to the citizens. The biggest challenge in the modern day governance is the need to protect the concerns and welfare of the individual citizens as well as to ensure the well ‘corporate well-being of the nation’. In this course through the core principles of public law the contemporary challenges faced by the citizens and the nation  will be analysed, discussed and debated by encompassing the elements from constitutional law, administrative law, separation of powers, judicial review, principles of democratic accountability, privatisation of public functions and the emergence of regulatory state. This course is an advanced course based on the basic understanding of Constitutional Law and Administrative Law.