In its judgment dated November 9, 2019, a Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court of India, comprising the Chief Justice of India (CJI), Ranjan Gogoi, and Justices S.A. Bobde, Dr. D.Y Chandrachud (as he was then), Ashok Bhushan, and S. Abdul Nazeer interpreted the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991 in the case of M Siddiq (Dead) Through Legal Representatives vs Mahant Suresh Das and Ors. (Ram Janmabhoomi temple case).
The Court gave a binding declaration of the law interpreting the Act, which, under the constitutional scheme, becomes the law of the land and binds all courts within the territory of India under Article 141 of the Constitution of India. Its decisions must be followed by all courts (even the top court) in subsequent cases following the Doctrines of “Precedent” and stare decisis. The rationale is that the law by which the citizens are governed should be fixed, definite, and known.
