International Court of Justice

‘The issue that the PIL raised is a normative one that goes beyond Israel’ | Photo Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto The Supreme Court of India, earlier this month, dismissed a public interest litigation (PIL) asking that the central government be directed to stop exporting defence equipment to Israel as Tel Aviv is allegedly committing war crimes in Gaza. The top court refused to intervene, reportedly because foreign policy is not its domain. However, the issue that the PIL raised is a normative one that goes beyond Israel. It must be clearly understood given India’s aspirations to become a major defence exporting nation.It is critical to recall that quite a few countries have curbed defence exports to Israel. For instance, a court in the Netherlands ordered the Dutch government to block t...

A Bench of the Supreme Court of India, headed by the Chief Justice of India, recently dismissed a petition filed by former civil servants, academics, and activists. The petition, in Ashok Kumar Sharma and Others vs Union of India, had sought the suspension of existing licences and the withholding of further licences by the government to public sector and private companies, for exporting military equipment to Israel during the ongoing war. While the Court made it clear that it was not ruling on the merits of the case, it went on to issue a somewhat detailed judgment. The dismissal raises important questions about the limits of judicial review over executive decisions in matters of foreign policy and especially where there are grave violations of international humanitarian law.Also Read | Ra...

Tag: International Court of Justice

India’s defence exports and humanitarian law

Indian military export to Israel — aiding genocide