Doctrine of severability
Also called: Doctrine of separability · Topic: Fundamental Rights and Constitutional Remedies · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
Under Article 13, a law is void only "to the extent" it breaks a fundamental right. So when part of a law is unconstitutional, the court strikes down only that part. The rest of the law survives if it can stand on its own. This saves useful laws from being thrown out completely because of one bad section.
Example
In Shreya Singhal (2015), the Supreme Court struck down section 66A of the IT Act, which punished "offensive" online messages, because it was vague and too broad. The rest of the Act, including the power to block content under section 69A, stayed in force.
Don't confuse with
- Reading down: in reading down, no words are cut out. The court gives a provision a narrower meaning so that it stays valid.
- Doctrine of eclipse: under eclipse, a law made before the Constitution that breaks a right is only put to sleep, not removed.
Related concepts
- State under Article 12
- Horizontal application of fundamental rights
- Laws inconsistent with fundamental rights
- Doctrine of eclipse
- Doctrine of waiver
- Reading down
- Right to property
- Article 31A
- Article 31B
- Eminent domain