Winds of Change: New Directions for Environmental Justice Jurisprudence in India

India’s legal framework for environmental protection, while multifaceted, has lacked a clear focus on environmental justice for citizens. The recent Supreme Court case of MK Ranjitsinh & Ors v. Union of India & Ors. appears to have changed that, articulating for the first time in domestic Indian jurisprudence the Constitutional right to be free from the adverse effects of climate change. This progressive stance echoes other emerging cases around the world, creating a promising pathway to domestic enforcement of international environmental treaty obligations.

A growing number of countries in the Global South are turning to jurisprudence as a mechanism for enforcing environmental rights and pursuing climate justice. As this litigation develops, the “green versus green” phenomenon in courts represents the complex interactions between important environmental priorities, in which opposing parties each advocate from environmentally conscious perspectives. For example, efforts toward sustainable development, clean energy, and reduction of carbon emissions can come into tension with conservation and biodiversity goals, as seen in the recent Ranjitsinh case.

How can environmental justice advocates promote balance among important environmental objectives before the courts, avert attempts at greenwashing purely economic interests, and keep human rights at the forefront of environmental litigation?

How is the newly articulated right to be free from the adverse effects of climate change inspiring and empowering public interest litigation in India as a tool to hold parties in power accountable for environmental harm, creating space for more tailored approaches to address impacts on specific vulnerable groups?

This presentation will explore the MK Ranjitsinh & Ors v. Union of India & Ors. case, the Indian environmental legal context in which it sits, and its potential as a foundation for renewed environmental justice efforts in India.