Page 1 of 25

APPLICATION OF SOCIAL
RESEARCH FINDINGS IN
THE FIELD OF LAW
In the subject of

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Submitted to: Dr. Gulshan Kumar Submitted by: Arnav Singh

Professor 245/19
UILS Section E
Panjab University B.COM.LLB.
Chandigarh Semester 6
Page 2 of 25

ACKNOWLEDEGEMENT

The detailed project would not have been possible without the kind support and help of many
individuals. I would like to thank them all.

I am highly indebted to Professor (Dr.) Gulshan for providing his invaluable guidance,
comments and suggestions throughout the project.

I would also like to thank my parents and friends for bearing with me throughout the project.

ARNAV SINGH
Page 3 of 25

TABLE OF CONTENT

ACKNOWLEDEGEMENT......................................................................................................... 2

TABLE OF CONTENT .............................................................................................................. 3

INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................................... 4

SOCIO-LEGAL RESEARCH ..................................................................................................... 5

SOCIAL RESEARCH & LAWS ................................................................................................. 7

LAWS WITHOUT SOCIAL RESEARCH...................................................................................22

CHALLENGES IN SOCIO-LEGAL RESEARCH ......................................................................23

CONCLUSION..........................................................................................................................24

BIBLIOGRAPHY & WEBLIOGRAPHY ...................................................................................25

Page 4 of 25

INTRODUCTION
“I do not understand how any one can possibly understand the law or know anything of it, except
memoriter, without getting a clear idea of how it is in fact generated in society and adapted from
age to age to its immediate needs and uses.”

-Woodrow Wilson

Law and society work hand in hand. The father of sociological jurisprudence 'Dean Roscoe
Pound' propounded that law is predominant instrument of social engineering. Both are
supplementary and complementary for each other. Legal research can't be done without
considering the social conditions. Law and society is indivisible. Legal research deals with social
and behavioral phenomenon. As the society and human attitude changes from time to time, there
needs to be a change in law also.

Law can be simply defined as a system of rules that are used to regulate a society or rather
control it.

Why a society requires control is because there is always a necessity to keep a balance between
society and the people living in it so that they can coexist interdependently which in turn will
help in bringing social change.

A society is a heterogeneous place where people of all class, caste, creed, color, gender,
background resides. It is essential that no difference should be created among these people
irrespective of their identities bringing homogeneity which can only be carried out by the subject
of law.

Social research refers to the study of individuals and societies and is often used to identify regularly
occurring social patterns in social life. It can be defined as the systematic understanding of social
facts or phenomena. It is used to gather information on the social world, in order to come up with a
course of action or simply to develop new knowledge.

The objective of social research is to identify the cause-and-effect relationship between social
problems so that these problems can be solved to enhance societal welfare. This method of research
is employed by researchers and social scientists for many different reasons but all having one
common factor i.e. to identify the outlook of the society towards the social problem.

Social research should be the bedrock of any law or statute. It is because of the social research that
the framers of the law will be able to know about the impact of the social change the law intended to
be passed will bring forth.
Page 5 of 25

Social change is something that every society and its people look forward to it as social change is
often presumed to be a carrier of good and a change for good is always welcoming. Law plays an
indispensable role in bringing in a social change. In a lawless society there is absence of
harmony and peace between the people and the society.

SOCIO-LEGAL RESEARCH
Socio-Legal Research or Study is an event where the science of law meets that the
science of society. This research requires a multidisciplinary approach to analyze and
interpret the law, the legal phenomenon, the relationship between those two and also their
relationship with the society in its widest sense.

Law is an important aspect when it comes to any social investigation. In societies where
the development is planned, law plays the role of a catalyst which helps and speeds the
process of social reform. Thus in a dynamic or developing society a legal researcher
must adopt a multi-disciplinary approach as the legal problems in the society will be
largely in connection with the social, economic, political and psychological issues.

It seeks to understand law as a social phenomenon. It can be clearly distinguished from

other traditions of legal-research, such as the "black letter" tradition. Its methodology is
predominantly empirical and social-theoretical rather than doctrinal.

Law is not merely a black letter. Rather, it is an instrument of social control. It

originates and functions in a society and for society. The law originates and functions
in a society based upon the particular needs, customs, traditions of the society and it also
possesses the ability to greatly influence the social structure and functions of any society.

Therefore, just as researchers are clueless and hapless if they have no knowledge of even
the basics of the law, legal system and the various important if not all the law institutions,
legal researchers too would be clueless and hapless and would do no justice whatsoever
to legal inquiry if they do not possess the basic knowledge and are not aware of the
mechanics of social research methods.

The need for a new law, a change in existing law and the difficulties that surround its
implementation cannot be studied in a better manner without the sociological enquiry.

• Characteristics of Socio-Legal Research

Page 6 of 25

The main characteristics of social research:

o The social research aims at finding out the new facts;

o The social research is based on the distinct, systematic and precise
knowledge;
o The social research is logical and objective in orientation;
o The social research aims at quantification of the social facts;
o The social research aims at investigating the facts in-depth and comes out
with a format.

• Components of Socio-Legal Research

The socio-legal research is comprised of the following key elements:

1. To undertake theoretical and empirical analyses of the nature of law and its
relationship to society and the State in the context of a rapidly changing world;

2. Analyze, both historical and contemporary, of the social, economic and

political factors leading to the development of the law and legal process;

3. An examination of the operation of the law in formal contexts; for example,

the courts, or in informal contexts, for example, the law office;

4. Analyze of the process of decision-taking by those responsible for the

administration of the law; and

5. An analysis of the experience of those affected by the process of law

• Utilities of Socio-Legal Research

The socio-legal research has following utility:

1. Socio-legal research can be useful in formulating new theories;

2. Socio-legal research gives clue to the decision-making;

3. Socio-legal research gives a lead and moulds public opinion;

4. Socio-legal research is useful in framing new laws;

5. Socio-legal research is useful in finding root causes of crimes and differential

behavior among different tribes and races;
Page 7 of 25

6. Socio-legal research provides the knowledge which widens the outlook of

legislators, executives and judiciary;

7. Socio-legal research paves the way for broad minded social reforms.

SOCIAL RESEARCH &

LAWS
Law and society are not divisible as water-tight compartments. They are interlinked. Co-
operative inter disciplinary research is required to deal with the social-legal problems as socio-
legal research is all interdisciplinary approach which extends into the fields of an social sciences.

Upendra Baxi was of the opinion that a lawyer must know much of sociology and sociolologist
must know much of law.

Areas of Socio-Legal Research

1. Labour laws & Welfare of the Working Class

Labour laws are a set of compliances that set the tone for the treatment of the
labour force in the workplace. Labour is the greatest asset for an organisation and to
ensure that their rights are protected and to safeguard them against any exploitation,
labour laws are enforced. It regulates the companies, workers, and trade unions. Non-
compliance with the laws can lead to punitive action towards the organisation.

Labour Laws are imposed by the State as well as the Central Government. The labour law
compliances are not just restricted to filing returns, but these records serve as evidence
for the compliance of the laws and must be produced to the authorities in case of any
discrepancies. There are laws that are enforceable only for certain work environments
and there are some laws that are enforceable to all organisations.

The major acts included in the industrial law compliance rules are:

A. Minimum Wages Act,1948

Page 8 of 25

Fair wage is that level of wage that not just maintains a level of employment, but
seeks to increase it keeping in perspective the industry's capacity to pay. Due to
an unjust attention towards the decades old law it exploited by major businesses
to underpay their employees. In public opinion, government must set a yearly
wage change just like countries internationally do.

To achieve this in its first session during November 1948, the Central Advisory
Council appointed a Tripartite Committee of Fair Wage. This committee came up
with the concept of a minimum wage, which not only guarantees bare
subsistence and preserves efficiency but also provides for education, medical
requirements and some level of comfort.

The Minimum Wages Act 1948 is an Act of Parliament concerning Indian

labour law that sets the minimum wages that must be paid to skilled and
unskilled labourers. It is an Act to provide for fixing minimum rates of wages in
certain employments.

Payment of wages below the minimum wage rate amounts to forced labour.
Wage boards are set up to review the industry's capacity to pay and fix minimum
wages such that they at least cover a family of four's requirements of calories,
shelter, clothing, education, medical assistance, and entertainment.

Under the law, wage rates in scheduled employments differ across states, sectors,
skills, regions and occupations owing to difference in costs of living, regional
industries' capacity to pay, consumption patterns, etc. Hence, there is no single
uniform minimum wage rate across the country and the structure has become
overly complex. Central and state governments have discretion to set wages
according to kind of work and location, and they range between as much
as ₹ 143 to 1120 per day for work in the so-called central sphere. State
governments have their own minimum wage schedules.

In 2011, 42% of all wage earners in India receive wages below the national
minimum wage floor rate. The data used for these statistics includes half of
casual labourers and 1/4th of those salaried. Female workers and those in rural
areas are more likely to be paid below a minimum wage. Those who are
illiterate or have no mid-level education are most likely to be paid below a
minimum wage.

For Salaried workers, if they are employed in agriculture, it is more likely that
they are paid higher than the minimum wage. Whereas casual workers in
construction and unionised workers in production & manufacturing are likely to
receive wages at the minimum wage rate.
Page 9 of 25

In sum, the implementation and enforcement of minimum wages is dismal and

marginalised groups and communities suffer the most.

B. Contract Labour Act, 1970

Contract labour is the system of employing labourers through a contract by a

contractor for a specified period. A workman is known as a contract labourer
when they are assigned to a work of an establishment for a specific period
through a contract by a contractor with or without the knowledge of the
principal employer.

In India, contract labourers are used in various industries varying from skilled to
semi-skilled jobs. Before and after independence the status and condition of
contract labour were analysed by numerous commissions, committees, Labour
Bureau Ministry of Labour, etc. and it was found that the major characteristics of
contract labour are poor economic conditions of the workers, casual nature of
employment, lack of job security, etc.

Therefore the legislature enacted the Contract Labour (Regulation & Abolition)
Act, 1970(which came into force on 10th February, 1971) to regulate the adequate
functioning of the contract labourers and to prevent the exploitation of contract
labourers by the hands of management.

Foreign Direct Investment & Indian Labour Laws

Foreign direct investment (FDI) is an essential part of efforts to globalize the world
economy. The impact of FDI on India has been impressive. The growth of international
production is driven by economic and technological forces. It is also stimulated by the
ongoing process of FDI liberalization and trade policy.

A remarkable feature of today's world is the movement of private capital flows in the
form of FDI in developing countries, especially since the 1990s. Since the 1980s,
multinational enterprises (MNEs) have established themselves as major players in the
globalizing landscape. Governments around the world - both in advanced and developing
countries - have drawn multinational companies to their respective countries with their
foreign direct investment (FDI). This experience can be linked to the broader context of
liberalization, in which most developing and transition countries have turned to market-
oriented strategies. Against this backdrop, globalization offers unprecedented
opportunities for developing countries like India to achieve faster economic growth
through trade and investment.
Page 10 of 25

FDI is one of the major monetary sources for economic development for a developing
country. Every country is taking initiatives to attract FDI. South Asian countries
especially like India and China have been seen as the most favourable recipients of FDI,
as they offer comparatively cheap labour.

India has more than 100 laws that deals with the subject of labour & and these laws are
regulated by both central and state government. But these laws are so outdated and biased
that creates a rift between the interest of the labourers and that of MNC’s.

The Contract Labour (Regulation & Abolition) Act, 1970 is an essential legislature when
it comes to the protection of the rights of workers who are appointed based on a contract
by a contractor. However, the Act has several drawbacks which should be taken into
account by the legislature and the Act should be amended accordingly.

The Act states that it applies to every organisation employing 20 or more contract
labourers, thus it enables the establishment or contractor to avoid their responsibility
regarding the welfare of the workers by employing less than 20 workmen.
Often the establishments take advantage of the provisions by taking licenses in different
names. The penal provisions of the Act are not deterrent enough, so it enables the
principal employer to rather face prosecution instead of following the provisions of the
Act.

FDI are brought by MNCs that are engaged in large-scale productions and are often in
manufacturing activities that some time may be dangerous to human life. Furthermore,
these activities also take toll on the resources and environment of a country. These
companies hide behind their investments to break labour laws of the country where they
invested as at the end of the day, MNCs are all about profit.

2. Environmental Laws & Social Research

In India, the detailed and developed framework for environmental protection came after
the UN conference on Human Environment in Stockholm, in 1972.This led to the
formation of the National Council for Environmental Policy and Planning in 1972 within
the science and technology department.

The government of India has made numerous acts to protect the environment and
biodiversity. The important and impactful environmental laws and acts are listed and
explained below.

I. Constitution of India

Our constitution, originally, did not contain any direct provision regarding the
protection of the natural environment. However, after the United Nations
Page 11 of 25

Conference on Human Environment, held in Stockholm in 1972, the Indian

constitution was amended to include protection of the environment as a
constitutional mandate.

The forty second amendment added Article 51A (g) of the Indian constitution
made it a fundamental duty to protect and improve the natural environment.
“It shall to be duty of every citizen of India to protect and improve the natural
environment including forests, lakes, rivers and wild life and have compassion for
living creatures.”

There is a directive, given to the State as one of the Directive Principles of State
Policy regarding the protection and improvement of the environment. Article 48A
states “The State shall endeavour to protect and improve the environment and to
safeguard the forests and wildlife of the country”.

II. Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972

In 1972, Parliament enacted the Wild Life Act (Protection) Act. The Wild Life Act
provides for state wildlife advisory boards, regulations for hunting wild animals
and birds, the establishment of sanctuaries and national parks, regulations for trade
in wild animals, animal products, and trophies, and judicially imposed penalties for
violating the Act.

It has six schedules that give varying degrees of protection:

o Schedule I and part II of Schedule provide absolute protection,
offences under these are prescribed the highest penalties.
o Species listed in Schedule III and Schedule IV are also protected, but
the penalties are much lower.
o Animals under Schedule V, e.g. common crows, fruit bats, rats, and mice,
are legally considered vermin and may be hunted freely.
o The specified endemic plants in Schedule VI are prohibited from
cultivation and planting.

India is a signatory to the Convention of International Trade in

Endangered Species of Fauna and Flora (CITES 1976). Under this
convention, export or import of endangered species and their products are
governed by the conditions and stipulations laid down therein.

Indian government has also started some conservation projects for individual
endangered species like Hungal (1970), Lion (1972), Tiger (1973), Crocodiles
(1974), Brown-antlered Deer (1981) and Elephant (1991-92).

III. The Water ( Prevention & Control Of Pollution ) Act,1974

Page 12 of 25

The main objective of this act is to provide prevention and control of water
pollution and maintaining or restoring of wholesomeness and purity of water (in
the streams or wells or on land).

It vests regulatory authority in Centre Pollution Control Boards

(CPCB) and State Pollution Control Board (SPCB).

Prior to its amendment in 1988, enforcement under the Water Act was achieved
through criminal prosecutions initiated by the Boards, and through applications to
magistrates for injunctions to restrain polluters.

The 1988 amendment strengthened the Act‘s implementation the pollution

provisions. Board may close a defaulting industrial plant or withdraw its supply of
power or water by an administrative order; the penalties are more stringent, and a
citizen‘s suit provision supports the enforcement machinery.

IV. The Air ( Prevention & Control Of Pollution ) Act,1981

The main objectives of this Act are to improve the quality of air and to prevent,
control and abate air pollution in the country.

The Air Act’s framework is similar to that of the Water Act of 1974. To enable an
integrated approach to environmental problems, the Air Act expanded the authority
of the central and state boards established under the Water Act, to include air
pollution control.

Prior to its amendment in 1987, the Air Act was enforced through mild court
administered penalties on violations. The 1987 amendment strengthened the
enforcement machinery and introduced stiffer penalties. Now, the boards may
close down a defaulting industrial plant or may stop its supply of electricity or
water. A board may also apply to the court to restrain emissions that exceed
prescribed limits.

V. Environment ( Protection ) Act,1986

This act was passed under article 253 (legislation for giving effect to international
agreements).This was passed in the wake of the Bhopal gas tragedy in December
1984.

After the Bhopal tragedy, the Indian government enacted the Environment
(Protection) Act 1986. The purpose of this act is to implement the decisions of the
United Nations Conference on the Human Environment in 1972 related to the
Page 13 of 25

protection and improves the human environment and prevents risks to people,
other living things, plants and property.

The Environment (Protection)Act was the first environmental legislation to give

the Central Government authority to issue direct orders, included orders to close,
prohibit or regulate any industry, operation or process or to stop or regulate the
supply of electricity, water or any other service to the industry, operation and
process.

The Act explicitly prohibits discharges of environmental pollutants in excess

of prescribed regulatory standards. There is also a specific prohibition against
handling hazardous substances except those in compliance with regulatory
procedures and standards. Persons responsible for the discharge of pollutants in
excess of prescribed standards must prevent or mitigate the pollution and must also
to report the governmental authorities.

New Environmental Laws in India

India is one of the few countries in the world that mandates CSR reporting and
expenditure. The Companies Corporate Social Responsibilities Policy Rules (2014) and
Companies Act (2013) hold certain businesses (i.e., with a certain net worth, turnover, or net
profit) to sustainability reporting standards. These companies must constitute a CSR Committee,
spend at least 2% of its average net profits on CSR initiatives, and include an annual report on
CSR in its annual board report.

Despite recent steps to step up sustainability, India’s rapidly growing economy and lack of
enforcement still add up to insufficiency. As such, Indian regulators are (quietly) revising its
existing environmental acts and rules, which will likely result in more stringent requirements for
companies.

The Environmental Laws (Amendment) Bill is a draft of the proposed amendment in

Environment protection Act 1986 and the National Green Tribunal Act of 2010.

The bill proposes to categorize the environmental damages into three parts. These include:

• Minor

• Non-substantial

• Substantial

While Minister Narendra Modi sang India’s praises for its climate change efforts at the
2021 UN Climate Change Conference (COP26), the government remains rather quiet
about the details of forthcoming environmental regulation.
Page 14 of 25

The process of formulating and adopting environment laws in India has neither been
transparent nor participatory for the community. In fact, the government enacted some
of recent laws as a way to cater to expanding industrial growth rather than the
environment or public.

3. Income Tax & Social Change

Income tax in India is governed by Entry 82 of the Union List of the Seventh Schedule to
the Constitution of India, empowering the central government to tax non-agricultural
income; agricultural income is defined in Section 10(1) of the Income-tax Act, 1961.

Income-tax law consists of the 1961 act, Income Tax Rules 1962, Notifications and
Circulars issued by the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), annual Finance Acts, and
judicial pronouncements by the Supreme and high courts.

The government taxes certain income of individuals, Hindu Undivided Families (HUF's),
companies, firms, LLPs, associations, bodies, local authorities and any other juridical
person. Personal tax depends on residential status.

The CBDT administers the Income Tax Department, which is part of the Ministry of
Finance's Department of Revenue. Income tax is a key source of government funding.

Recently, the Government of India introduced a new optional tax rate regime starting
from April 1, 2020 (FY 2020-21. Consequently, Section 115BAC has been added to the
Income Tax Act, 1961 (the Act) that prescribes reduced tax rates for individual taxpayers
and HUFs on forgoing specified tax deductions or exemptions.

For an individual taxpayer, FY 2020-21 is the first instance where they get to choose
between the old tax regime and the new tax regime while filing their income tax returns.

The new tax regime has widened the scope of taxation with seven tax slab rates ranging
from 0% to 30% with the highest tax rate applicable on income above INR 15 lakh.
Contrary to the new regime, there were four tax slabs in the old regime from 0% to 30%
with the maximum rate applicable on income above INR 10 lakh.
Page 15 of 25

Though new tax regime looks more beneficial on the face but there is a catch to it. To
give relief to taxpayers, the simplified tax rate regime requires specified tax deductions
and exemptions to be forgone. Therefore, it is important to evaluate the impact of
deductions/exemptions being claimed vis-à-vis the benefit of lower tax rates. Some of the
popular tax exemptions/deductions which are not allowed under new tax regime include:

• Leave travel allowance (LTA)

• House rent allowance (HRA)

• Children education allowance

• Standard deduction on salary

• Deduction for professional tax

• Interest on housing loan

• Deduction for specified investments or expenses under Chapter VI-A such as:

o Deduction under Section 80C towards contribution to Public Provident Fund,

repayment of principal on housing loan, children’s school fees, life insurance
premium, etc.
o Other deductions towards medical insurance premium, interest on education
loan, etc.

Both the regimes have their own set of pros and cons but when we take a look at the new
regime it will not be inaccurate that it’s an old wine packaged in a new bottle. Though it
charges less income tax but there will only be a negligible difference in tax paid in old
regime.
Page 16 of 25

One has to also see that most of the tax payers in India come from middle-class
background that require these deductions to support their families and without availing
these deductions it will be difficult for them to perform familial duties. The new tax
regime may can be give benefits to the younger generation or person with limited family
responsibilities but the new tax regime is not for the average middle-class family man.

4. Offences against Women & Indian Law

Swami Vivekanand rightly said, "Just as a bird cannot fly with one wing, a country
cannot move forward if women are left behind". Man and woman are two holes in a
perfect whole. Strength comes from their union, their separation leads to weakness. Each
complements the other and is complemented by the others.

But still in a country like India where several goddesses are worshipped, women are
treated are treated as second class citizens. Women are given rights and are not given
freedom by the society to exercise those rights.

Though we got independence in 1947 but are social mindset is still that of colonial times.
Patriarchal practices are so much prevalent in the country that parliament has to intervene
several times by enacting laws for the safety of women.

Some of these legislations are:

a. Child Marriage Restraint Act, 1929

Child marriage is one-way exploitation against the girl child. In an age

when children should pursue education, they are married in order to
remove responsibilities on the part of the parents and society. The impact
of the same on the child is severe. The legal force was necessary in order
to remove this social issue from society because society was in need of the
same. Therefore legislation was brought in for the society to follow in
order to create a social change.

Child marriage is one unfair customs that use to prevail until the coming
of the Child Marriage Restraint Act, 1929. This Act was further amended
in the year 2006 and came to be known as the Prohibition of the Child
Marriage Act (PCMA), 2006.

PCMA, 2006 gives the definition of Child under S. 3(d). This Act does not
make the child marriage void-ab-initio (except Karnataka) but voidable at
the option of the person who was minor at the time of marriage. National
Health Survey (2005) shows that 46% women were married before the
age of 18 years.
Page 17 of 25

A Statistical Analysis of Child Marriage in India based on Census

2011 (National Commission for the Protection of Child Rights and Young
Lives, 2017): Mortality rate is higher between the age group of 15-19
years owing to early pregnancy and childbirth. The chances of death are
double for the earlier mentioned age group as compare to grown women.

(In Independent Thought v. Union of India, SC gave suggestion to make

the child marriage void under PCMA, 2006)

b. Justice Verma Committee & Criminal Amendment of 2013

India has seen a steep rise in rape cases among the females. A social
change by bringing change in the minds of the people can be brought
about by creating a strong deterrent for the offenders which can as well act
as fear for them and make them think before committing anything of this
sort.

Justice Verma Committee was constituted after the abhorrent crime took
place in Delhi (Nirbhaya’s rape case) to provide enhanced punishment and
speedy trial for cases of rape.

Verma Committee report suggested widening the horizon of definition of

rape. It was also recommended that exception of marital rape (of girl
between the age of 15 and 18 years) should also be removed.

Consequently, Criminal law Amendment Bill of 2013 was introduced and

definition of rape under S. 375 was amended as per the recommendations.
However, exception of marital rape was not removed.

The Committee also suggested, “The proposed Criminal Law

Amendment Act, 2012, should be modified, since the possibility of sexual
assault on men, as well as homosexual, transgender and transsexual
rape, is a reality the provisions have to be cognizant of the same.”

c. Domestic Violence Act, 2005

The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 was enacted
by the Parliament of India to provide for more effective protection of the
rights of women guaranteed under the Constitution who are victims of
violence of any kind occurring within the family and other related
incidents.

The Act covers all women who may be mother, sister, wife, widow or
partners living in a shared household. The relationship may be in nature of
Page 18 of 25

marriage or adoption. In addition relationships with family members living

together as a joint family are also included. However, no female relative of
the husband or the male partner can file a complaint against the wife or the
female partner.

Remedies under the Act are:

o Protection orders- prohibiting a person from committing domestic
violence
o Residence orders- dispossessing such person from a shared
household
o Custody orders- granting custody of a child
o Compensation orders- directing payment of compensation

d. Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961

Dowry is a social evil in society that has caused unimaginable tortures and
crimes towards women and polluted the Indian marital system. Dowry is
payment made in cash or kind to a bride’s in-laws at the time of her
marriage.

Dowry System is in the roots of Indian Society. To abolish this practice in

India, Dowry Prohibition Act was passed in 1961.

However, there was continuous rise in the deaths of married women.

Therefore, S. 304B was introduced in 1986. Simultaneously, the Code of
Criminal Procedure Act and Indian Evidence Act were amended. S. 113-B
of Indian Evidence Act provides the presumption of dowry death if it is
shown that the deceased was subjected to cruelty or harassment soon
before her death. (Ordinarily, presumption of innocence is the rule and
prosecution has to establish the case beyond reasonable doubt.)

e. Sections 326-A & 326-B of The Indian Penal Code, 1860

Sections 326-A and 326-B were inserted after Section 326 with the
passing of Act 13 of 2013 i.e., the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013.
By way of Section 5 of the Amendment Act, Section 326-A and Section
326-B were inserted within the Indian Penal Code.

Section 326-A and 326-B were specifically inserted by the 2013

Amendment Act to control and prevent acid-attacks, a type of gender-
based crime against women.
Page 19 of 25

A report conducted by Cornell University of Indian news reports

determined that 72% of cases reported
from January 2002 to October 2010 included at least one female
victim. Further, the report stated that in India, a primary reason for these
attacks was the rejection of sexual or marital proposals. Acid attack
perpetrators do not usually intend to kill their victims, but to cause long-
lasting physical damage and emotional trauma. Such attackers commonly
aim at the face, neck, and upper body. In some cases, perpetrators throw
acid at sexual and reproductive areas of the body.

Even if the perpetrator does not intend to cause death, the injuries
sustained by the victim may still result in death. Indeed, even if the
attacker intends to disfigure the victim, for example, as retaliation for
rejecting a marriage proposal or to create an unexpected burden for the
victim’s family as revenge against the family, the victim may nonetheless
die due to severe wounds inflicted during the acid attack.

5. Sexuality & Indian Law

India is a land of tolerance and acceptance. Homosexuality was never a crime in India
until the Britishers came along. With them they brought their mindset of intolerance and
censorship.

Ancient temples and art are evidences that there was a society no judgement on
expression of sexuality. Transgenders were not socially ostracized. This was the thinking
of the west that what you don’t understand censor it.

Section 377 in the Indian Penal Code, 1861 was one such example of censoring the right
to expression of sexuality and life

Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 that use to criminalise unnatural offences that
is if intercourse takes place between two men or between two women, the same will be
declared as an offence under this provision was scraped off by the Supreme Court of
India on the grounds that homosexuality is no more an offence in the eyes of law.

Supreme Court in the landmark judgment of Navtej Singh Johar v. Union of India1
decriminalised all kinds of consensual sex among adults which were inclusive of
homosexual sex also. This decision by the apex court brought in a revolutionary change
in the Indian society, traditions and beliefs. It was a welcoming judgment for the majority
of the people especially the queer community.

1
AIR 2018 SC 4321
Page 20 of 25

Supreme Court observed that sexual orientation is an essential attribute of privacy. s.377
is not in consonance with the Article 14, 15 and 21 of Indian Constitution.

But still there is a long way ahead for queer community in India to go as the law of India
does not identify same sex marriage.

There are very few laws in India that are gender neutral, one such legislation is
Prevention Of Children From Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012

The POCSO Act was enacted in 2012 and is gender neutral — it recognises that boys can
be victims of sexual violence as well. It defines a child as someone under the age of 18.
The Indian Penal Code does not recognise that sexual assault can be committed on boys.

Being a special law, this Act has overriding effect on any other law by virtue of S. 42-A
of POCSO Act, 2012. IPC also cleared the path for POCSO because of provision of s.5
read with s.41 of IPC. This was held in Independent Thought of India v. Union of India2 .

Another hallmark of the POCSO Act was that it set up procedures to make the criminal
justice system child-friendly and prevent re-traumatisation. This includes everything
from how the statement of the child should be recorded, to the medical examination, to
designation of special child friendly.

6. Consumer Laws in India

When demand is more than the supply naturally consumer is neglected as was the case in
India till the middle of 80’s; it was sellers market, actually there was no marketing
because consumer was coming to seller rather the opposite which is the trend in countries
of West, and Japan where the position was just the opposite, as they have to compete with
each other to attract customers for all types of goods and services.

In India consumer had to buy what was offered and he had no choice even if the price
was high, the quality and service was poor and terms of sales were unattractive and
sometimes even unreasonable compared to situation prevailing in free economy
countries.

The Indian industry and trade completely ignored the consumer even in the matter of
after sales service or keeping to their promise to repair or replacement. Consumers often
felt helpless because our laws are very complicated, costly and time consuming and
requires an advocate to plead the case.

In 1986, the Consumer Protection Act was passed “to provide for the better protection
of the interest of consumers and for that purpose to make provisions for the establishment

2
AIR 2017 SC 800
Page 21 of 25

of consumer’s councils and other authorities for the settlement of the consumer disputes
and for matters connected therewith”.

The Digital Age has ushered in a new era of commerce and digital branding, as well as a
new set of customer expectations. Digitalization has provided easy access, a large variety
of choices, convenient payment mechanisms, improved services and shopping as per
convenience. However, there are also associated challenges related to consumer
protection.

To help address the new set of challenges faced by consumers in the digital age, the
Indian Parliament passed the landmark Consumer Protection Bill, 2019 which aims to
provide timely and effective administration and settlement of consumer disputes.

Another legislation passed to counter unfair trade practices is Essential Commodities Act,
1955.

The ECA was enacted in 1955 and has since been used by the Government to regulate the
production, supply, and distribution of a whole host of commodities that it declares
‘essential’ to make them available to consumers at fair prices. Additionally, the
government can also fix the minimum support price (MSP) of any packaged product that
it declares an “essential commodity”.

The following commodities are included under the ECA:

o essential drugs;
o fertilizer, whether inorganic, organic or mixed;
o foodstuffs, including edible oilseeds and oils; hank yarn made wholly
from cotton;
o petroleum and petroleum products; raw jute and jute textile;
o seeds of food-crops and seeds of fruits and vegetables;
o seeds of cattle fodder;
o jute seeds and cotton seed.

(In the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak, Masks and Sanitizers also
became listed under the ECA.)

In the event of a commodity’s supply becoming short and its price increasing as a
result, then the Centre can set stock holding limits for a specific period. Once the
limit is set, the States will ensure that adequate steps are taken to ensure the
guidelines are followed by preventing wholesalers, retailers, importers etc from
accumulating a commodity beyond the specified quantity.
Page 22 of 25

It is however at the discretion of the State to impose any form of restrictions. But
should restrictions be imposed then the State will punish any errant shopkeeper
and traders who indulge in black market practices by conducting raids and
auctioning off the excess goods.

LAWS WITHOUT SOCIAL

RESEARCH
Law is not for law sake. Law is an instrument of social control. It originates and functions
in a society and for society. The need for a new law, a change in existing law and the
difficulties that surround its implementation cannot be studied in a better manner without
the sociological enquiry. Law is an important variable in any social investigation.

Law without backing of social research can sometimes lead to public outrage. An
outstanding example of public opinion being moulded in the jar of law is regarding
the defamation bill that the Rajiv Gandhi government wanted to bring about but
subsequently had removed the idea of doing so as there was opposition from the public’s
end regarding the bill. This says that whenever it is required, public opinion takes the role
of law.

Thus law can be adjusted in whichever way the society wants it to be so as to use it as an
instrument in creating a social change.

The Farming Laws of 2020 which included the amendment for Essential Commodities
Act, 1955 were set of laws with a view to change the agricultural sector of India.

The amendment related to Essential Commodities Act was to allow the Government of
India to delist certain commodities as essential, allowing the government to regulate their
supply and prices only in cases of war, famine, extraordinary price rises, or natural
calamities. The commodities that have been deregulated are food items, including cereals,
pulses, potatoes, onion, edible oilseeds, and oils. These can only be regulated in the
extraordinary circumstances previously mentioned, by imposing limits on the number of
stocks of such items that can be held by persons. The Ordinance states that government
regulation of stocks will be based on rising prices, and can only be imposed if there is a
100% increase in retail price (in the case of horticultural produce) and a 50% increase in
retail price (in the case of non-perishable agricultural food items). These restrictions will
not apply to stocks of food held for public distribution in India.
Page 23 of 25

Despite being visionary in intent, the bills come with their own share of loopholes. In
rushing the bills through parliament on the strength of numbers, the Union government
seems to have handed the short end of the stick to the states and farmers.

A greater degree of consultation could have provided much needed impetus for the
realisation of the vision for transformation. By not considering the voices of important
stakeholders, the government had sown the seeds of mistrust and faced a tremendous
amount of backlash, not just from the farmers but from the general public as well.
Some states contested the bills in the Supreme Court, while others tried to circumvent
their way around them. A huge protest broke out around the outskirts of Delhi which
went on for a period of more than 365 days. In order to truly transform agriculture in
India, the central government needed to be far more inclusive in their planning and
decision-making processes.

A clear message was sent by the citizens of the country to the government that it cannot
pass any laws without taking into confidence the stakeholders interest. It made the
government take into consideration the aspect of social research before enacting any
laws.

CHALLENGES IN SOCIO-
LEGAL RESEARCH
Socio-Legal Research denotes the trans-disciplinary research combining law and other
social sciences. The challenges faced by socio-legal researchers and scholars though
manageable are not to be taken lightly.

In today's world, we will find that most lawyers, judges, and jurists agree that the study of
law is a source of progress for the country, although it may be qualitatively different from
with many other countries. Law, like all other disciplines, can never be isolated. The
applicable legal rules and regulations regarding the various real life situations that may
arise can be applied to produce certain results certain desire. Different intellectual
fields such as history, science (both physical and social), religion and philosophy are all
interrelated and affect real situations as well as related to law.

The most eminent problem is the fact that the number of social sciences that are
recognized in today’s world are quite large and each of them have been researched upon
and studied for a considerable period of time which has led to many sub-categorisations
within a single discipline. For example, the study of economics is just one distinct
Page 24 of 25

discipline for the non-economists but in reality we find that economics has been further
divided into various categories such as finance, economic theory, econometrics,
economic history, economic policy, etc., and there are scholars who have specialized only
or rather exclusively in one or maybe more of those sub-categories under the broad
headed discipline of economics.

CONCLUSION
Law is rooted in social institutions and also in socio-economic network. These social
factors influence the course of law or the direction of legal change. This is the outcome of
personal and social interactions which are variable and often unpredictable. At the same
time, law may itself change norms in various ways. For example, in free India, legal
abolition of untouchability is an attempt to change a long-standing social norm. Yet it has
not succeeded much due to inadequate social support. Thus there is a reciprocal
relationship between law and society.

Society is a “web of relationships” and social change obviously means a change in the
system of social relationships where a social relationship is understood terms of social
processes and social interactions and social organizations.

Law plays an important role in this system of social relationships as it tries to imbibe in it
certain factors that make these relationships harmonious and create a peaceful
environment for these relationships to evolve.

It is true that, socio-legal research actually expresses the opinion, needs of people
towards any old or new legislations the data in socio-legal research based on public
opinion. Mostly, it includes studies of public opinion and law, legal forms and economic
realities, judicial values and perspectives.

Law does not operate in vacuum, it operates in society and so legislation which is useful
to society, only becomes an adequate or effective legislation. It is ineffective if it is
completely against social need of changing society, and for that socio-legal research is
only an effective medium to increase the effectiveness of any legislation.
Page 25 of 25

BIBLIOGRAPHY &
WEBLIOGRAPHY
➢ Book(s)
a) Legal Research Methodology : Myeni,S.R., Allahabad Law
Agency,Faridabad, 5th edition 2012
b) Research Methodology : Cauvery,R., S Chand & Company Ltd., New
Delhi, 1st edition, 2018
c) Legal Research and Methodology : Verma,S.K. & Wani, M. Afzal,
Indian Law Institute,New Delhi, 2nd edition, 2006
d) Legal Research Methodology : Singh, Rattan, LexisNexis, Gurgaon, 2nd
edition, 2017

➢ Website(s)
a) https://blog.ipleaders.in/can-law-used-instrument-creating-social-change/
b) https://blog.ipleaders.in/all-about-section-326-326-a-and-326-b-of-the-
indian-penal-code-1860/#Section_326-A_IP
c) https://www.legalservicesindia.com/law/article/966/18/Law-is-a-form-of-
Social-Science?id=966&u=18
d) https://legalpoint-india.blogspot.com/2021/07/question-what-are-main-
characteristics.html
e) https://epgp.inflibnet.ac.in/epgpdata/uploads/epgp_content/law/09._resear
ch_methodology/04._socio-legal_research/et/8151_et_et.pdf
f) https://www.enhesa.com/resources/article/new-environmental-laws-in-
india-the-next-chapter-of-change/
g) https://www.legalserviceindia.com/laws/women_issues.htm#:~:text=admi
n%40legalserviceindia.com-
,Women%20laws%20in%20India,discrimination%20in%20favour%20of
%20women.
h) https://www.business-standard.com/podcast/current-affairs/four-labour-
codes-that-everyone-is-talking-about-121122900040_1.html

➢ Research Paper
a) Socio-legal Research: Module IV; National Law University, Delhi