Judicial Activism Analysis

Judicial Activism: A Panacea?
‘ “Do you see over yonder, friend Sancho, thirty or forty hulking giants? I intend to do battle with them and slay them. This is a righteous war and the removal of so foul a brood from off the face of the earth is a service God will bless” (Cervantes 2003: 113). Benjamin Nathan Cardozo, the illustrious American jurist and legal essayist observes in his magnum opus The Nature of the Judicial Process that “The judge is not a knight errant, roaming at will in pursuit of his own ideal of beauty and goodness” (Schultz 2002: 249).
The extract from the 17th century Spanish work Don Quixote and the statement made by an extinguished jurist- Benjamin Cardozo- in the 20th century, do reciprocate the same idea and spirit. Justice is synonymous with moral goodness and righteousness. Those who uphold and espouse the moral high ground are to be appreciated and cherished. But a demarcating line should be there in order to prevent the moral sense from turning into something addictive and troublesome which in turn blurs a person’s ability to think and act rationally. This brings us to Judicial Activism, the much hyped word in media, legal and political circle these days. The fine line demarcating Judicial Activism from Judicial ‘Over’ Activism calls for a special attention and focus.
What is

Judicial Activism succeeded in providing a ‘safety valve’ to a democracy like India by ensuring a glimmering hope to its people that justice is not beyond their reach and by delivering relief to the disadvantaged groups. Judicial Activism enhances and enriches social betterment and upgrades the functioning of various government machineries. In India Judicial Activism has in fact earned a human face by delivering justice to the poor and the