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In the case of A.K. Gopalan v. State of Madras (1950), the Supreme Court of India decided that the…

In "A.K. Gopalan v. State of Madras" (1950), the majority of the Supreme Court adopted the positive law school (analytical positivist) approach, interpreting "law" in…

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In the case of A.K. Gopalan v. State of Madras (1950), the Supreme Court of India decided that the expression "procedure established by law" in Article 21 of the Constitution means "any procedure established by law, irrespective of its reasonableness or otherwise". Which one of the following approaches did the Supreme Court follow in that case?

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Correct answer A

In "A.K. Gopalan v. State of Madras" (1950), the majority of the Supreme Court adopted the positive law school (analytical positivist) approach, interpreting "law" in "procedure established by law" under Article 21 strictly as state-enacted law ("lex") rather than importing principles of natural justice or American "due process of law". This narrow positivist approach was subsequently overruled in "Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India" (1978), which required the procedure under Article 21 to be fair, just, and reasonable.

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