Article 141 — Law Declared by Supreme Court to be Binding on All Courts

The law declared by the Supreme Court shall be binding on all courts within the territory of India.

Source: Constitution of India, as published by the Ministry of Law and Justice.

The binding precedent principle (stare decisis) was inherited from English common law. Without Article 141, lower courts could theoretically ignore Supreme Court rulings, creating inconsistency in how the law is applied across India. The article ensures that once the Supreme Court decides a constitutional question, that decision applies uniformly from Kashmir to Kanyakumari.

• Article 131
• Article 32
• Article 226

Last reviewed: 3 July 2026