A fortnightly feature inspired by I-CONnect’s weekly “What’s New in Public Law” feature that addresses the lacuna of a one-stop-shop public law newsletter in the Indian legal space.
What’s new at LAOT
1. Call for Applications: CEDE–LAOT Legal Writing Analysts (LAOT in collaboration with CEDE, invites applications for the position of Legal Writing Analysts. Selected applicants will work on developing concise, accessible explainers of public law issues. The initiative aims to bridge gaps between academic writing and public understanding of constitutional and legal developments.)
2. Tanishq Desai, What Is In The Interest Of The General Public? Examining The Constitutional Validity Of Meat Ban Orders During Religious Festivals (this piece argues that meat-ban directives during religious festivals violate Article 19(1)(g) by misusing “interests of the general public”- a phrase that, under both literal and purposive interpretations, excludes sectarian preferences).
3. Gokul K. Sunoj & Adithi Holla, The Truth and Nothing But the Truth? The Constitutional Ghost of J&K’s Truth & Reconciliation Commission (this article examines the non-implementation of Justice Kaul’s recommendation for a Truth and Reconciliation Commission in Jammu & Kashmir, questioning its legal weight, feasibility, and whether such a process could meaningfully advance transitional justice).
4. Namya Nanda, Challenging Majoritarianism in Questions of Religious Freedom: A Critique of Ramesh Baghel (the author critiques the Supreme Court’s decision in Ramesh Baghel v. State of Chhattisgarh for endorsing exclusionary local customs over religious freedom, advocating a three-pronged test rooted in constitutional morality and international norms).
5. Shivank Yadav, Judicial Review of Speaker’s Inaction Under the Tenth Schedule (this article argues that judicial review should be limited but effective to compel Speakers to dispose of Tenth Schedule disqualification petitions within a reasonable time, pointing to repeated delays and democratic distortions as seen in cases like Padi Kaushik Reddy).
6. Masoom Sanyal, The 130th Constitutional (Amendment) Bill: Classic Case of a Constitutional Hardball (the author characterizes the 130th Amendment Bill as a form of “constitutional hardball” that tests the limits of constitutional norms, especially parliamentary democracy, and argues that challenging it would require a steep, high-stakes confrontation invoking the Basic Structure doctrine).
Elsewhere Online
1. Vasudev Davadasan, The Constitutional Demand at the Heart of Voter Fraud Allegations, Constitutional Law and Philosophy Blog
2. Hany Babu and Surendra Gadling, When Najeeb Meets Watali: On the Statutory Restrictions on Grant of Bail under UAPA, Constitutional Law and Philosophy Blog
3. Sara Dharwadkar, The Gendered Legacy of Inheritance, Vidhi Legal Policy Blog
4. Adhya Pandey and Navdha Sharma, The Waqf Amendment as Settler Law in a Postcolonial State, Law School Policy Review.
5. Sheetal Mahek Routray and Aastha Nayak, The Marital Panopticon: The Legitimization of Spousal Surveillance, Law School Policy Review
6. Devang Kala, Legality of Israel’s Pre-Emptive Strikes Against Iran: A Disguised Preventive War?, Jindal Forum for International & Economic Laws Blog
Lately in Academic Articles
1. Rahul Mohanty, Legal readiness towards climate finance in India: a critical evaluation, Indian Law Review, Indian Law Review, (Conceptualizes the meaning of legal readiness towards climate change in the context of a developing country and applies it to India. It examines several legislation and policies that India has enacted in recent years to deal with different types of climate finance).
2. Nupur Chowdhury, Reviewing the legitimacy of suo moto actions: a case study of the National Green Tribunal, Indian Law Review (Develops a normative standard of review for assessing the legitimacy of suo moto actions, and demonstrate the utility of this standard by assessing the NGT’s suo moto actions from 2010 till 2023).
3. Anshuman Shukla, Sayan Mukherjee, Ipsita Ray, Women in security services: a (post)feminist reading of Lt Col Nitisha v Union of India, Indian Law Review (Reads the Nitisha judgment as postfeminist, arguing it advances institutional goals but sidelines collective feminist agency in military service).
4. Jyothsna Gurumurthy, In the Pursuance of a Robust Legal Framework to Address Deepfake Harms: An Analysis of the Indian Legal Discourse, Indian Journal of Law and Technology, (Advocates a harms-based regulatory framework to tackle deepfakes, urging interdisciplinary collaboration between law and computer science).
5. Nicolás Zambrana Tévar, Clergy authority and civil liability for sex abuse from a comparative perspective, Oxford Journal of Law and Religion, (Compares judicial perceptions of clergy authority in sex abuse litigation with internal church structures, highlighting doctrinal tensions).
6. Aishwarya Singh and Meenakshi Ramkumar, Oppositional Practice in India: Understanding Parliamentary Responses to Populism, VRÜ Verfassung und Recht in Übersee (Examines how parliamentary opposition, traditionally seen as both a check on government and a government-in-waiting, faces unique challenges under populist regimes that restrict political change. Using India as a case study, it argues that opposition practices of advocacy and legislative “de-acceleration” can counter populist anti-pluralism).
7. Jamil Ddamulira Mujuzi, The deployment of Ugandan troops abroad: the (un)constitutionality of section 38 of the Uganda Peoples’ Defence Forces Act (2005), Statute Law Review, (Critiques the constitutionality of Uganda’s troop deployment provisions, noting divergence from both constitutional history and legislative intent.).
Listen up
1. Arghya Sengupta, Uniform Inequality : Representation of Women in Indian Army Ft. Meenakshi Arora, VIDHI’s Justify Podcasts (Traces the journey from short-service commissions in 1992 to the Babita Puniya and Nitisha rulings and highlights the constitutional and institutional battles still underway for gender equality)
2. The Hindu Podcast, Is the Constitution (One Hundred and Thirtieth) Amendment Bill Anti-Federal? (Breaks down the 130th Amendment Bill, 2025, and allied Bills extending to UTs and J&K, and the Opposition’s charge that they weaken India’s federal structure.)
3. The Hindu Podcast, Does India Need to Decriminalise Teenage Relationships? (Explores whether consensual sex among 16–18 year olds should remain criminal under POCSO, balancing child protection with teenage autonomy.)
4. Anurag Minus One, The Strange Story of India’s Fading Democracy (Political commentator Meghnad discusses fake IDs, electoral fairness, and judicial rulings, raising concerns about India’s democratic decline.)
Opportunities and other things
1. Call for papers by Indian Law Review, NLIU Bhopal. The last date for submission is September 15th, 2025.
2. Call for Papers by GLC-SPIL International Law Journal Volume VI. Submit by September 15,2025.
3. Call or Papers by NUSRL Journal of Law and Policy. Submit by October 31st, 2025.
4. Call for Papers by DSNLU’s Journal on Arbitration Law and Allied Fields. The last date to submit is September 30th, 2025.
5. Call for papers by Indian Journal of Criminology, NLU Delhi. The last date for submission is November 15th, 2025.
This edition has been prepared by the LAOT team composed of Hansika, Nida, Ira, Saloni led by Jeetendra Vishwakarma. Nividita managed the social media outreach. The newsletter is published under the guidance of Surbhi Karwa and Anubhav Kumar from the senior editorial board.
