Notice to the Attorney General or the Advocate-General
Full Text
In any suit in which it appears to the Court that any such question as is referred to in clause (1) of Article 132, read with Article 147 of the Constitution, is involved, the Court shall not proceed to determine that question until after notice has been given to the Attorney General for India if the question of law concerns the Central Government and to the Advocate-General of the State if the question of law concerns a State Government.
Plain English Summary
Mandates that whenever a civil suit raises a substantial question of law as to the interpretation of the Constitution (under Article 132(1) read with Article 147), the court is statutorily prohibited from determining that question without prior notice to the Attorney General for India or the concerned State Advocate-General.
Key Legal Elements
- Constitutional Trigger: Involves substantial question of law as to interpretation of the Constitution (Article 132(1) r/w Art 147).
- Mandatory Pre-condition: 'Court shall not proceed to determine that question until after notice has been given'.
- Notice Recipient: Attorney General for India (Central issues) or Advocate-General of the State (State issues).
- Jurisdictional Defect: Deciding constitutional validity in absentia without notice renders the judgment vulnerable to being set aside.
Practical Note
Constitutional Challenges in Civil Courts: 1. Non-Compliance is Fatal: In State of Gujarat v. Shri Ambica Mills Ltd. (1974) 4 SCC 656, the Supreme Court stressed that the requirement of notice under Order XXVII-A Rule 1 is not an empty formality; it ensures that sovereign constitutional provisions are not struck down or interpreted without hearing the highest law officers of the land. 2. Duty of Counsel: If your plaint or written statement impugns the constitutional validity of a statute or invokes constitutional interpretation, specifically pray in the application for issuance of formal notice to the Attorney General / Advocate General to avoid subsequent retrial.
हिंदी पाठ
किसी भी ऐसे वाद में, जिसमें न्यायालय को यह प्रतीत होता है कि कोई ऐसा प्रश्न अंतर्वलित है जो संविधान के अनुच्छेद 147 के साथ पठित अनुच्छेद 132 के खंड (1) में निर्दिष्ट है (संविधान के निर्वचन के बारे में विधि का कोई सारवान् प्रश्न), न्यायालय उस प्रश्न का अवधारण करने के लिए तब तक अग्रसर नहीं होगा जब तक कि भारत के महान्यायवादी (Attorney General for India) को (यदि विधि का प्रश्न केंद्रीय सरकार से संबंधित है) और राज्य के महाधिवक्ता (Advocate-General of the State) को (यदि विधि का प्रश्न राज्य सरकार से संबंधित है) सूचना न दे दी गई हो।