Article 142 as a Catalyst for Social and Gender Justice in India

The Indian Constitution is not only a legal document but also a document of change, with the goal of a just society. The judiciary has no "purse and sword" like the executive and legislative, but the framers of the Constitution gave the Supreme Court “teeth” by changing draft Article 118 to Article 142. This is meant to give the apex court "plenary" powers to pass any decree or order it may deem "necessary for doing complete justice": a constitutional safety-valve that ensures that the freedom of equity is not allowed to be sacrificed at the altar of procedural rigidity. This research paper attempts to examine the change from the use of Article 142 as a procedural instrument to a "beacon of hope" for marginalised and vulnerable people. Moreover, the Court has applied this extraordinary power to combat overreach by the State, including giving guidance to the State to stop "bulldozer justice" and to ensure the rule of law is maintained. Article 142 has played a key role in combating institutional bias in the military in the context of Gender Justice. The Court's ruling on the categorization of a flawed assessment system that had been adopted for women officers, which resulted in the “systemic denial” of permanent commissions to female officers, went beyond the individual to the institutional level and prevented women from being marginalized by biological stereotyping. Social Justice is a goal, and Article 142 is a means to achieve it.