Informal amendment of the Constitution
Topic: Amendment of the Constitution and the Basic Structure · NCERT: Class 11, Ch 9 "Constitution as a Living Document"
Meaning
An informal amendment changes how the Constitution works in practice without changing its words. It mostly happens through court interpretation, meaning how judges read and explain the text. It can also come from political practice. The judiciary cannot start an amendment, but its readings can change the Constitution's working meaning a great deal.
Example
Courts have read new meaning into the text in several ways. The 50% ceiling on reservation (M.R. Balaji, 1962; Indra Sawhney, 1992) and the creamy layer (Indra Sawhney) came from courts. So did the right to privacy under Art. 21 (Puttaswamy, 2017) and the right to fly the national flag as free expression (Naveen Jindal, 2004). The right to education was read in by the courts (Unni Krishnan, 1993) and later written into the text by the 86th Amendment (2002, Art. 21A).
Don't confuse with
- Formal amendment under Article 368: a formal amendment changes the actual text. It is passed by a special majority in Parliament, and some amendments also need ratification by half the states.