Reading Down
/ˈriːdɪŋ daʊn/
Constitutional Law Technique
Images
CC-licensed · free to useVideo
Definition
A technique of constitutional interpretation where a court, instead of striking down a broad or ambiguous statutory provision that could potentially be unconstitutional, reads it in a narrow, constitutionally valid sense. The court gives the provision a restricted meaning to save it from being struck down while still operating within constitutional boundaries.
Examples
Case Study
In Navtej Singh Johar v. Union of India (2018), the Supreme Court 'read down' Section 377 IPC — instead of striking it down entirely, the Court read it to not apply to consensual sexual acts between adults in private, while retaining its application to non-consensual acts and those involving minors. This preserved the provision for legitimate purposes while removing its unconstitutional application.
Key Cases
Navtej Singh Johar v. Union of India
2018(2018) 10 SCC 1
Read down Section 377 IPC to exclude consensual adult same-sex acts from criminal liability while retaining its application to non-consensual acts. Classic application of the reading down technique in Indian constitutional law.
View on Indian Kanoon →