ICSE Class 10 Civics: Indian Judiciary — Supreme Court Notes 2026

Structure of Indian Judiciary

• Integrated judiciary: single unified court system; Supreme Court → High Courts → Subordinate Courts
• Supreme Court: apex court; New Delhi; Chief Justice of India (CJI) + 33 judges (increased from 30 in 2019)
• High Courts: one per state (or shared); below SC; above district courts; both original and appellate jurisdiction

Supreme Court Jurisdiction

• Original: disputes between states or state and central government; Centre vs Maharashtra over revenue shares
• Appellate: appeals from High Courts; civil, criminal, constitutional cases
• Advisory: President can seek Supreme Court's opinion on constitutional questions (Article 143)

Writ Jurisdiction

• Article 32: right to move Supreme Court for enforcement of Fundamental Rights; DR BR Ambedkar called it 'heart and soul of Constitution'
• 5 writs: Habeas Corpus (produce the body), Mandamus (command to perform duty), Prohibition (stop inferior court from exceeding jurisdiction), Certiorari (quash order), Quo Warranto (by what authority?)
• High Courts also issue writs under Article 226; broader jurisdiction than SC

Independence of Judiciary

• Security of tenure: judges not removed except by impeachment; retires at 65 (SC) or 62 (HC)
• Salaries charged to Consolidated Fund: Parliament cannot reduce judges' salaries
• No discussion of judges' conduct in Parliament except during impeachment proceedings

Judicial Review

• Power to examine constitutionality of laws; strike down if violates Constitution
• Basic Structure Doctrine: Kesavananda Bharati case (1973); Parliament cannot amend Constitution to destroy basic structure
• Basic structure: sovereignty, democracy, federalism, secularism, separation of powers — all protected

Lok Adalats and ADR

• Lok Adalat: alternative dispute resolution; settlement by compromise; fast; no court fees
• NALSA (National Legal Services Authority): provides free legal services to poor; organises Lok Adalats
• Consumer Courts, Family Courts, Labour Courts: specialised courts; reduce burden on regular judiciary

ICSE Civics Exam Tips

• 5 writs: HPMQC — memorise all 5 with meaning and use case; 5-mark question common
• Jurisdiction types: original, appellate, advisory — define and give one example each
• Independence: 4 safeguards; explain each briefly; 3-mark question