Privy Purses case
Also called: Madhav Rao Scindia v. Union of India · Topic: Challenges to and Restoration of the Congress System · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
The Privy Purses case is Madhav Rao Jivaji Rao Scindia v. Union of India, decided in December 1970. In September 1970, a bill to abolish privy purses failed in the Rajya Sabha. The President then issued an order under Article 366(22) that derecognised all former rulers. The Supreme Court struck that order down. The ruling was an early clash between Parliament and the courts.
Example
After the 1970 judgment, abolishing privy purses became an issue in the 1971 election. After winning, the government passed the 26th Amendment, 1971. It inserted Article 363A and ended privy purses through the Constitution itself.
Don't confuse with
- The "ordinance" wording: NCERT calls the 1970 step an ordinance. It was actually a presidential order.
- R.C. Cooper v. Union of India (1970): this was the bank nationalisation case. It struck down the 1969 banking law, not the order on the princes.