2026 · Q43
Which of the following statements about Public Interest Litigation (PIL) is/are correct?
- 1In India, it adheres to the strict requirements imposed by the doctrine of locus standi.
- 2Letters to judges may be treated as petitions.
- 3M. C. Mehta vs. Union of India was a PIL that expanded the scope of Article 21 and Article 32 of the Constitution of India. Select the answer using the code given below.
indian-polity-economyjudiciary
- A1, 2 and 3
- B2 and 3 only
- C3 only
- D1 and 2 only
Explanation
Public Interest Litigation deliberately relaxes, rather than adheres to, the strict doctrine of locus standi — statement 1 is false. Letters addressed to judges have been treated as writ petitions under the Court's epistolary jurisdiction (e.g., the Sunil Batra case) — statement 2 is true. The M.C. Mehta environmental cases expanded the scope of Articles 21 and 32 — statement 3 is true. Hence statements 2 and 3 only.