Language to be used in the Supreme Court and in the High Courts and for Acts, Bills, etc

Quick Summary (TL;DR)

Article 348 (Language to be used in the Supreme Court and in the High Courts and for Acts, Bills, etc): Regulates official languages of the Union, States, Judiciary, and linguistic minority protections under Part XVII.

In Simple Citizen Words

Article 348 ('Language to be used in the Supreme Court and in the High Courts and for Acts, Bills, etc') in Part XVII (Official Language, Articles 343–351) harmonizes India's rich linguistic diversity. It governs the official language of the Union (Arts 343–344), regional official languages adopted by States (Arts 345–347), language of the Supreme Court, High Courts, and authoritative Bills/Acts (Art 348), the right of every citizen to submit grievance petitions in any language used in the Union or State (Art 350), and primary education in the mother tongue (Art 350A). Specifically: (1) Notwithstanding anything in the foregoing provisions of this Part, until Parliament by law otherwise provides — (a) all proceedings in the Supreme Court and in every High Court, (b) the authoritative texts — (i) of all Bills...

Key Constitutional Provisions

Constitutional Mandate (Art. 348): Directly codifies the legal rule for 'Language to be used in the Supreme Court and in the High Courts and for Acts, Bills, etc' under Part XVII

Structured across 5 clause(s) and 5 sub-clause(s) with explicit constitutional provisos/safeguards

Backed by independent judicial oversight of the Supreme Court to protect constitutional legality

Exceptions & Reasonable Restrictions

Under Article 350, no authority can reject a citizen's representation for redress of grievances merely because it is written in any regional/Eighth Schedule language used in the Union or the State.

Why This Matters in Daily Life

Respects India's multilingual heritage by ensuring governance and grievance redressal remain accessible in people's own languages.

Want deeper legal & historical context? Explore the official Bare Act or Supreme Court Precedents & CAD Debates:

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N. Gopalaswami Ayyangar, K. M. Munshi & Dr. Rajendra Prasad

Architects of the Linguistic Consensus • September 12–14, 1949 (Munshi-Ayyangar Formula)

🏛️ Constituent Assembly Debates (1946–1949)

Core Constitutional Debate & Dilemma

Framing context for Article 348: Uniting a multilingual nation by designating an official Union language while fully protecting English for official/judicial use and every State's right to its own regional languages and mother-tongue education.

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"Our language policy is not born of imposition, but of mutual accommodation and national integration—preserving the rich linguistic heritage of every province of India."

Assembly Resolution & Final Synthesis

Constitutional resolution in Article 348: Enacted Part XVII (Articles 343–351) adopting the Munshi-Ayyangar consensus, protecting State official languages (Art 345), grievance redressal in any language (Art 350), and mother-tongue instruction (Art 350A).

🏛️ Constitutional Significance: During the Constituent Assembly deliberations, Article 348 was codified as an integral pillar of India's constitutional governance.

Official Constitutional Text (Gazette Bare Act)

Authoritative statutory text as enacted and amended by Parliament • Clause-by-Clause Statutory Breakdown

India Code • Govt. of India Archive

Clause (1)

Notwithstanding anything in the foregoing provisions of this Part, until Parliament by law otherwise provides —

Sub-clause (a)

all proceedings in the Supreme Court and in every High Court,

Sub-clause (b)

the authoritative texts —

Sub-clause (i)

of all Bills to be introduced or amendments thereto to be moved in either House of Parliament or in the House or either House of the Legislature of a State,

Sub-clause (ii)

of all Acts passed by Parliament or the Legislature of a State and of all Ordinances promulgated by the President or the Governor of a State, and

Sub-clause (iii)

of all orders, rules, regulations and bye-laws issued under this Constitution or under any law made by Parliament or the Legislature of a State,

shall be in the English language.

Clause (2)

Notwithstanding anything in sub-clause (a) of clause (1), the Governor of a State may, with the previous consent of the President, authorise the use of the Hindi language, or any other language used for any official purposes of the State, in proceedings in the High Court having its principal seat in that State: Provided that nothing in this clause shall apply to any judgment, decree or order passed or made by such High Court.

Clause (3)

Notwithstanding anything in sub-clause (b) of clause (1), where the Legislature of a State has prescribed any language other than the English language for use in Bills introduced in, or Acts passed by, the Legislature of the State or in Ordinances promulgated by the Governor of the State or in any order, rule, regulation or bye-law referred to in paragraph (iii) of that sub-clause, a translation of the same in the English language published under the authority of the Governor of the State in the Official Gazette of that State shall be deemed to be the authoritative text thereof in the English language under this article.

Public Domain & Statutory Authenticity Notice

Under Section 52(1)(q) of the Indian Copyright Act, 1957, the Constitution of India, Bare Acts of Parliament, Gazette Notifications, and Judicial Judgments of the Supreme Court and High Courts are in the Public Domain. Text is reproduced from the official Legislative Department, Ministry of Law & Justice, Government of India (India Code) archives.

Then vs Now: Constitutional Evolution & Visual Diff

Language to be used in the Supreme Court and in the High Courts and for Acts, Bills, etc

🟢 Original 1950 Text Intact (Zero Textual Repeal) Baseline: Jan 26, 1950 → Today

ORIGINAL BASELINE (1950)

Enacted on 26 January 1950 by the Constituent Assembly of India. The foundational constitutional text of Article 348 (Language to be used in the Supreme Court and in the High Courts and for Acts, Bills, etc) has remained intact since Day 1 without parliamentary deletion or repeal.

CURRENT ENFORCEABLE STATUS (TODAY)

100% Original 1950 Text Enforceable Today: Article 348 (Language to be used in the Supreme Court and in the High Courts and for Acts, Bills, etc): Regulates official languages of the Union, States, Judiciary, and linguistic minority protections under Part XVII.

Key Amendment Milestones & Textual Modifications

Original Enactment by the Constituent Assembly

Year 1950

Why it happened: Crafted by the Founding Fathers & Mothers with enduring constitutional clarity; its core text has stood untouched for over 75 years.

                                    Status: 🟢 Unchanged Since 26 January 1950 — Original Constitutional Mandate Preserved Intact                                

Article 347 Ask Nyaya Saarthi AI About This Article Article 349

Emergency Citizen Helplines

Language to be used in the Supreme Court and in the High Courts and for Acts, Bills, etc

Official Constitutional Text (Gazette Bare Act)

Then vs Now: Constitutional Evolution & Visual Diff

Key Amendment Milestones & Textual Modifications