Doctrine of sovereign immunity and the tortious liability of the State
LUG-101 Law of Torts including Motor Vehicle Accident and Consumer Protection Act, Unit I: Doctrine of sovereign immunity. · LLB · 60 min
Can the State be sued for the torts of its servants? The English maxim "the King can do no wrong" and the Crown Proceedings Act 1947; Article 300 and its ancestry (s. 65 Government of India Act 1858, s. 176 Government of India Act 1935); the sovereign / non-sovereign distinction of P. and O. Steam Navigation (1861); State of Rajasthan v. Vidyawati (1962) and Kasturilal (1965); the retreat from Kasturilal in N. Nagendra Rao (1994), Common Cause (1999) and Chandrima Das (2000); constitutional tort - compensation under Articles 32 and 226 for violation of Article 21 (Rudul Sah, Bhim Singh, Saheli, Nilabati Behera, D.K. Basu) and the Court's protection of the right to life against polluters; the First Law Commission Report; and the act of State. It answers 2024-25 Q2(c) and Q3(b), 2025-26 Q1(b) and the postal-van problem of 2022-23 Q5(b).
Objectives
- Explain the doctrine of sovereign immunity and its English origin and abolition.
- Trace Article 300 back to the Government of India Acts 1858 and 1935 and explain why the East India Company's liability still matters.
- State the facts and principles of P. and O. Steam Navigation, Vidyawati and Kasturilal, and reconcile them.
- Explain the later cases that eroded Kasturilal and the public-law remedy of compensation for violation of fundamental rights.
- Explain the act of State as a defence and solve problems on the State's liability for its servants' torts.
Slides
- The doctrine of sovereign immunity
- Article 300 and its history
- P. and O. Steam Navigation Co. v. Secretary of State (1861)
- State of Rajasthan v. Vidyawati (1962)
- Kasturilal Ralia Ram Jain v. State of U.P. (1965)
- The retreat from Kasturilal: Nagendra Rao, Common Cause, Chandrima Das
- Constitutional tort: compensation for violation of Article 21
- Protecting the right to life against polluters and other tortfeasors
- Sovereign and non-sovereign functions: a working table
- Act of State
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