Abstract

Tribal rights to land in India are an extremely important issue and have long been intermeshed into the socio-economic and cultural fabric of tribal societies. Indian judicial pronouncements have been crucial in interpreting constitutional provisions and special legislation, such as the Fifth Schedule and the Forest Rights Act, 2006, in order to protect these rights. The research focuses on analysing the response of the judiciary in protecting tribal land rights, especially in cases of conflicts with development projects and the role of judicial interventions in enhancing tribal access to and control over natural resources. This research study has the main objective of critically evaluating judicial decisions and their implications for tribal land rights protection under the Fifth Schedule, the resolution of tribal land rights versus development conflicts, and the strengthening of access of the tribe to natural resources. The empirical methodology is employed in gathering data through the analysis of case law reports, interviews with legal experts and tribal community representatives, and field surveys. Key findings Conclusions indicate that, although the judiciary has made great strides in terms of its protection of tribal land rights, the implementation of judicial decisions calls for improvement and the uneasy balance between development and the protection of tribal rights. Moreover, mixed results have emerged from judicial interventions in strengthening tribal access to natural resources because of political and bureaucratic hurdles.

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