Powers And Functions Of Supreme Court To Deal With Matters

The Supreme Court has the authority of hearing a wide range of cases. The jurisdiction of the Supreme Court can be classified into original, appellate as well as advisory. The Supreme Court has the power of enforcing fundamental rights, hearing federal disputes as well as transferring cases under its original jurisdiction.

The Supreme Court like any other Court serves as a guardian of protecting the fundamental rights of citizens. The Supreme Court has the exclusive authority for settling federal disputes with respect to the disputes between Union and State or between two states. The appellate authority of the Supreme Court allows the Supreme Court to hear constitutional, civil as well as criminal appeals against the High Court Judgement.

The Supreme Court is the highest appeal court that is also known as the apex court of India and even the last resort, where the citizens of India can seek justice if they are not satisfied with the judgment of the High court.

There are different types of petitions that the Supreme Court deals with, which are- 

1. Arbitration Petition- Supreme Court has the power to deal with arbitration petitions under section 11(5) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996
2. Civil matter appeal- there are various cases that shall be registered as civil appeals. For instance, appeals by certificate under Articles 132 and 133 of the Constitution in respect of any judgment, decree, or final order of High Court, must be read with Order XIX of the Code of Civil Procedure, appeal upon grant of special leave to appeal under Article 136 of the Constitution must be read with Order XXI of Code of Civil Procedure,1908 (CPC).
3. Contempt Petition (Civil)-Under Rule 3 of the Rules to Regulate Proceedings for Contempt of the Supreme Court 1975, contempt petition (civil) is dealt which must be read with Section 2(b) of the Contempt of Courts Act 1971. The petition shall also be read with Article 129 and 142(2) of the Constitution.
4. Contempt Petition (Criminal)- Similar to contempt petition (Civil), this petition must be read with Section 2(c) of the Contempt of Courts Act 1971.
5. Criminal Appeal- Cases that shall be registered as criminal appeals are, appeals by certificate under Article 132 (1) along with 134 (1) (c) must be read with Order XX of CPC and appeal under Section 374 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.
6. Writ Petition- Article 32 of the Constitution of India deals with the power of Supreme Court where the individuals have the right to move to Supreme Court when their rights have been infringed or violated. There are 5 types of writ petition, namely, habeas corpus, quo-warranto, prohibition, certiorari, mandamus.

Other petitions include review petition under Article 13 of the Constitution, curative petition, transfer petition, election petition and original suit.

Original Jurisdiction

• The Supreme Court has the power under original jurisdiction to deal with matters of disputes between the Central government and the state government or between two or more state governments.
• The original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court empowers it under Article 131 of the Constitution to issue writs, order or directions.
• As mentioned earlier the Supreme Court also has the power of enforcing Fundamental Rights under Article 32 of the Constitution.
• Article 139 A of the Constitution empowers the Supreme Court while functioning under the original jurisdiction to take cases during pendency of any matter from the High Courts on its own discretion or on advice of the Attorney general of India. 
• And it can also transfer the pending cases, appeal or other proceedings to give justice from one High Court to another High Court.

Appellate Jurisdiction

• The Supreme Court, under the appellate jurisdiction, has the authority to deal with matters such as civil, criminal, or constitutional according to Articles 132, 133, 134 of the Constitution. 
• Article 136 empowers the Supreme Court for issuing special leave that is by any tribunal courts in India. However, this is not applicable to the Army courts.

Advisory Jurisdiction

• The Supreme Court has the authority for advising the President of India in matters relating to the question of law as well as the nature of the matters which are associated with public importance. The President has the right to seek opinion in matters which are concerning Article 131 of the Constitution.

Review jurisdiction

• The Supreme Court has the authority to review the laws that are being passed by the legislature under Article 137 of the Constitution.

Functions of Supreme Court

The following are the Supreme Court functions:

• The Supreme Court is empowered to give the final verdict against an appeal from other lower courts such as the High Court.
• It has the powers to deal with issues and resolve the matters from different government bodies, namely, central, and state governments.
• Any law which has been passed by the Supreme Court is applicable to all the courts within the territory of India.
• The Supreme Court has the power to act on its own as well as can pass suo moto orders.

Importance of the Supreme Court in India

• The Supreme Court is regarded as the highest court of appeal and is also known as the apex court of India. It is also known as the last resort where an individual can seek justice in case of violation of his or her rights or if the individual is not satisfied with the judgment of the High Court.
• One of the important rights citizens have under Article 32 of the Constitution is seeking remedy through writs from the Supreme Court when there is a violation of fundamental rights.
• The Supreme Court has Judicial Review power that is vested through Article 13 of the Constitution, which means the Supreme Court has the power to strike down any legislation and executive action if such acts are found to be inconsistent with the Constitution of India.

It can be concluded that the Supreme court is the apex judicial authority of India. The Supreme Court has very wide jurisdiction and it enjoys enormous powers and functions that it performs for the general interest of the public. It is the protector of the fundamental rights of an individual and through its grand vision interprets the provisions of the constitution. It guarantees socio-economic justice to the citizens of India.

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