Indian Journal of Law and Justice, Vol. 16, No. 01
Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://ir.nbu.ac.in/handle/123456789/5692
From the Editor’s Desk
Season’s Greetings!
I am glad to announce the publication of the Vol. 16 No. 01 issue of the Indian Journal of Law and Justice. The Indian Journal of Law and Justice has come a long way in the last one decade from being a national law journal to being an internationally acclaimed journal and from being a mere print version to having a website of its own, namely ijlj.nbu.ac.in. Along with being enlisted by the UGC CARE, the journal is proudly indexed with the esteemed SCOPUS along with the HeinOnline and EBSCO. Innumerable scholars, academicians and professionals from the field of law as well as other social sciences sector have been relying on this journal for their scholarly publications and have played a pivotal role in their early career success. I along with my highly efficient editorial team pledge to building on the legacy of this journal. We are making an endeavour for online submissions of articles and research papers to improve and expedite peer review. We, as a team, shall continue to remain committed to making it a forum that welcomes scholarship from a diverse and global group of authors, whose ideas are at the cutting edge of law and policy research.
Keeping the trend of the Indian Journal of Law and Justice, authors across the globe have contributed on varied topical matters and raised relevant and pressing questions in their papers to enrich the journal. The current issue gives the glimpse of insights on international and national issues. The current issue highlights on the Biodiversity Conservation, measures to protect migrant workers, security challenges facing electronic commercial remittance work, evaluation of ADR and practice, principle of common but differentiated practice on climate change, tribal disentanglement, comparative study on competition laws, PoSH, tech-driven rehabilitation, tracing blasphemy in digital media, comparative analysis of legal aid and analysis of reproductive health of Santhal tribals.
And also, in notes and comments the issue highlights on commercialistaion to innovation of Start-Ups in India and the book review highlights the issue of migration, identities and democratic practices in India.
I thank all contributors for their submissions to this edition and their cooperation with the editorial team during the production phase. I express my gratitude again to the entire Editorial Team whose commitment and perseverance made this publication possible.
Suggestions and opinions for the improvement of the journal is solicited.
With best wishes
Dr. Sujit Kumar Biswas
Chief Editor
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Item Open Access Analysing The Reproductive Health Status of Santhal Tribal Women in India: A Field Based Study in Kharibari, Community Development Block of District Darjeeling(University of North Bengal, 2025-03) Ghatani, SwarnimThe reproductive health status of Santhal tribal women in India not only presents socioeconomic inequities but also addresses substantial obstacles towards healthcare accessibility. Members of one of India's largest indigenous populations, Santhal Tribal women, live primarily in rural and economically deprived areas. These limitations significantly limit their access to appropriate healthcare services, resulting in poor reproductive health outcomes. Maternal health for Santhal women is a major concern, with high rates of maternal mortality and morbidity. Insufficient nutrition, limited access towards prenatal and postnatal care and lack of knowledge about reproductive health rights and services all play a role. Traditional beliefs and cultural practices restrict their access to modern healthcare facilities and contraception options which frequently results in unintended pregnancies and unsafe abortions. The objective of the study is to analyse the quality of reproductive health care utilization among Santhal women during prenatal and postnatal pregnancy. The study will further investigate the socioeconomic and psychological status of Santhal women of reproductive age which is greatly influenced by their prevailing culture and value system as against their desired goals, expectation and standard in the select block of Kharibari Community Block Development of Darjeeling District. The present study examines the reproductive health care of women belonging to the Santhal tribal communities in the Kharibari Community Block Development of Darjeeling District. The findings also highlight the Santhal women's quality of life in these areas, emphasising the need for more effective mechanisms to strengthen tribal women's reproductive rights and provide the best possible maternal health care without jeopardising their community-based guidelines.Item Open Access Tracing Blasphemy: Comparing the Legal Overreach on Expression and Free Speech in Digital Media and OTT in India and the US(University of North Bengal, 2025-03) Bandyopadhyay, Bidisha; Mitra, Adwait; Avadhanam, Ishan VijayThe paper examines the scope and impact of blasphemy law in India, which is Section 295-A of the Indian Penal Code (now Section 299 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2024), restricting freedom of expression with reference to digital and Over-the-Top (OTT) media platforms. The hands of the judiciary may have attempted to restrict the application through appreciatory interpretation, but the vagueness of the language involved—most importantly, the undefined concept of a "class of citizens" and the rather broad invocation of "public order"-continues to give ample scope for misuse of the provision. The discussion examines significant cases concerning the arrests of comedians Kiku Sharda and Munawar Faruqui and the controversies surrounding shows like Tandav, Leila, and Paatal Lok, as illustrative cases where Section 295-A has been weaponized as cultural censorship and legal overreach. The paper also carries out a comparative analysis of the constitutional approach to blasphemy and speech in the United States and how the First Amendment and the “clear and present danger” doctrine provide a stronger leeway for creative and dissenting articulation. In the end, this paper argues that India must rethink its laws to avert interfering with artistic freedom and democratic discourses in the digital era.Item Open Access Access to Justice or Illusory Right? A Comparative Analysis of Legal Aid for the Protection of Women's Rights(University of North Bengal, 2025-03) SumitThe operationalization of women's rights, transforming them from abstract legal pronouncements into tangible realities, is fundamentally mediated by access to justice. State-provided legal aid services represent the primary mechanism for bridging the gap between formal equality and socio-economic disparity; yet, their efficacy remains a site of critical contestation. This paper examines whether these systems serve as genuine conduits for justice or, as this analysis suggests, merely an illusory right for the women they are designed to support. Employing a comparative analytical framework, this research examines the de jure promises and de facto realities of legal aid in India, the United Kingdom, and South Africa. Grounded in the substantive equality standards articulated by the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women particularly its General Recommendation No. 33 the study evaluates the structural integrity of each national model. The analysis reveals a 'paradox of progressive universalism' in India, where an expansive legal right for all women is systematically nullified by profound implementation deficits. By contrast, the United Kingdom's model presents a 'legislated illusion,' where fiscal austerity has deliberately curtailed access, weaponizing procedural hurdles like the 'domestic violence gateway' to exclude even its most explicitly protected beneficiaries. South Africa, in turn, illustrates a 'prioritisation paradox,' with its constitutional mandate for legal aid overwhelmingly resourced for criminal defense, thereby systemically marginalizing the civil justice needs most critical to women's empowerment. Ultimately, this paper argues that despite their divergent political rationales, these systems converge in their failure to provide accessible, high-quality, and responsive services. By foregrounding the persistent gap between legal promise and lived experience, this research contributes a critical, cross-jurisdictional perspective on the structural impediments to women's access to justice, challenging the assumption that the mere existence of legal aid frameworks equates to their functional reality.Item Open Access Tech-Driven Rehabilitation: A New Frontier in Justice Reform(University of North Bengal, 2025-03) Shukla, Anamika; TarunThe prison system in our society is set up on the humanistic principle which inscribes that even if an individual commits a crime, he does not cease to be a human and therefore his human rights must be protected against infringements and violations with the exception of procedures established by law. Introduction of persuasive technologies like self-service or smart kiosks in the prison premises challenges the criminogenic needs of offenders which are in turn pitted in alignment to their recidivistic behavior. This smart rehabilitation which acts as a non-consensual neuro-interventions aimed to alter criminal minds sits at the core of this paper’s ethical debate. This paper shall aim at studying the need for introduction of technological interactions with the offenders to provide them a right against digital exclusion once they are placed back in the society; how technology contributes to reformative justice in a globalizing world and its effects on recidivistic nature of offenders; and how the global trend of sociopolitico narrative has shifted to having a humanistic approach to advocate for the offenders’ right to a second chance in tandem with right to be forgotten.Item Open Access The University Grants Commission (Prevention, Prohibition And Redressal Of Sexual Harassment Of Women Employees And Students At Higher Educational Institutions) Regulations, 2015- An Analysis Of Its Applicability And Interpretation(University of North Bengal, 2025-03) Roy (Maitra), SangeetaSexual harassment of women in the workplace is a burning issue in the nation, particularly after the recent RG Kar Medical College and Hospital incident in Kolkata. Sexual harassment in the workplace and more precisely sexual harassment of women employees and students in Higher Educational Institutions is not a much talked about topic. Experience shows that Institutions are apathetic to such incidents and most often there is a hush-hush attempt to hide the incident. Many times, students are discouraged from voicing out their grievances or traumas. In this background, the article is an attempt to analyze a few perspectives of the “University Grants Commission (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal of Sexual Harassment of Women Employees and Students at Higher Educational Institutions) Regulations, 2015”. The article mainly attempts to understand the concept of sexual harassment in the workplace particularly, in higher educational institutions, and understand who all are covered under the Regulations and also looks into the Constitution of the ICC. Though the Regulations contain several other provisions as well, in this article the author attempts to highlight the analysis and interpretation of four core issues- the concept of sexual harassment; the applicability of the Regulation; the concept of workplace, and the constitution of ICC. A critical approach has been adopted to understand these issues.Item Open Access Comparative Study of Competition Law in Combination Integration: A Legal Contemplation for ensuring fair market dynamics(University of North Bengal, 2025-03) Shadab Zulquarnain; Imran Alam; Singh, Gopal JiIn an open market economy, some enterprises may undermine the market by resorting to anti-competitive practices for short-term gains. These practices can completely nullify the benefits of competition. Unfair combinations are one of the facets of these anti-competitive practices. Combinations mean mergers, amalgamations of companies or acquisition of control by another company. Clayton Anti-Trust Act, 1914 regulate the monopolistic trade practices in U.S. In U.K the European Competition Law regulate the Anti-Competitive conduct by companies in European Single market. The objective of this paper is to analyse the recent changes done to the Competition Act, 2002 with respect to combination in India and its comparative study with the Competition Laws of U.S and U.K. This paper came up with the result that after enactment of the Competition Act the merger and amalgamation process has to be according to the law to maintain the Competition in the relevant market. It also underscores the significance of adapting regulatory frameworks of Competition Commission of India (CCI) to the dynamic nature of industries, fostering healthy competition and promoting consumer welfare. As India continues to witness economic growth, the findings of this research contribute to the ongoing discourse on effective competition policy, offering recommendations to enhance regulatory mechanisms and maintain a competitive and vibrant marketplace.Item Open Access Re-envisioning Tribal Disentanglements by Tracing the Roots of Law and Technology: Substantial Transformations in place of Lip Service Interventions(University of North Bengal, 2025-03) Saraswat, Nitesh; Singh, SanjeetTribals, the people of the land, have undergone abrupt and meteoric changes in the underpinnings of epistemicide, ecocide and indigenocide. Industrial civilization is in the process of completing its destruction of technologically simple but indigenous tribal cultures. It is becoming apparent that in the disguise of modernization there is a drastic modification of these cultures, which is ironically considered imperative for civilization as well as beneficial for them in long term. In recent years we may detect a rekindling of scholarships on questions concerning the tribals, whose lives have been impacted by tremendous transformation in technology and legal system. A spurt of technological development in the last three decades has laid some foundational reshaping in the behavioural aspects of tribals. Their social construction in conformity with innovative technology like FinTech is attracting a new kind of attention. This paper objectifies how the ongoing legal and technological developments have impacted the lives and cultural ethos of the tribals. It seeks to find whether those changes have uplifted their life’s vitality or have affected them adversely. The Constitution of India endows the tribals with special rights not to be violated by the state, but the question arises and the enquiry is how much that has been implemented positively since independence. This inquiry is perceived to fulfil holistically the need for systematizing law and technological advancement in reference to tribal’s rights and to contextualise it. From time to time, the union, as well as the federal governments, have formulated various schemes to provide the tribal population with a decent standard of living so that they can develop along national lines. This study endeavours to diagnose whether those outlays have met the envisaged outcomes.Item Open Access Principle of ‘Common but Differentiated’ Responsibility under Global Climate Change Legal Regime: Mapping Future Pathways from the Lens of Redistributive Justice(University of North Bengal, 2025-03) Kumar, AmrendraThe global climate change legal regime has witnessed satisfactory progress in reducing greenhouse gasses in environment. Since the Copenhagen Accord, there has been a substantial shift in global climate commitment and governance, particularly in application of the principle of Common but Differentiated Responsibility (CBDR). Differentiation of duties and responsibilities among sovereign States has been a key aspect of global climate governance, reflecting socio-economic conditions and concerns about fairness. Instead of adopting more ambitious and time-bound emission reduction targets, developed nations have increasingly contested this established principle of CBDR under the global climate change legal regime. Recent commitments under the Paris Agreement clearly show that binding targets and deadlines for emission reductions have become asymmetrical in climate negotiations between developed and developing nations, especially with respect to the new post-2020 climate legal regime. Tensions among these nations have arisen due to assertion of ‘Redistributive Justice' for global climate change commitment and governance. Against this background, the principle of CBDR has been explored under the concept of 'redistributive justice’ as potential pathway for future GHG emission reductions. The paper argues that the concept of 'redistributive justice' is crucial for ensuring the proper implementation of the CBDR principle among member nations for GHG emission reductions in the post-2020 global climate legal regime. In view of this, the central part of this paper examine the principle of CBDR within global climate change regime, its progressive development in post-Copenhagen Accord climate negotiations, theoretical analysis of the concept of redistributive justice and its application for climate actions; concept of redistributive justice as future pathways for proper implementation of the principle of CBDR.Item Open Access Evaluating ADR in Practice: Empirical Evidence from the State of West Bengal(University of North Bengal, 2025-03) Bhat B., Sandeepa; D., ShyamalaThe Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) mechanisms are the best illustrations of the proverb, “Necessity is the mother of invention”. As the litigations started to increase and the court-based settlement system started to crumble, different ADR mechanisms mushroomed across the globe. Since the understanding and development of ADR in different parts of the world are at different levels, practical implementation of ADR differs from country to country. No system of dispute settlement can be effective unless people repose faith in it. Hence, creating awareness by understanding and addressing impediments in the administration of ADR mechanisms attains great significance. The success of ADR in different parts of India is not at the expected level, which is evident in the increasing pendency of cases before the judiciary at all levels. In light of this, an attempt is made here to evaluate the practical scenario of ADR in the State of West Bengal by looking into judicial trends, government efforts, responses of the legal fraternity, and public perception.Item Open Access The Security Challenges Facing Electronic Commercial Remittance Work and Ways to Confront Them(University of North Bengal, 2026-03) Mohamed Alkaise; Mohammed A. Sulaiman; Fadoua KahouajSome difficulties affect the effectiveness of the role performed by electronic commercial remittance, and these difficulties are related to the electronic method through which it is initiated and processed. Information technology has played a significant role in the development of commercial remittance, yet at the same time, it could hinder it if proper protection and security measures are not in place. This can be attributed to the possibility of errors occurring, whether these errors are due to the individuals’ entering data, technical malfunctions, or other reasons. There is also the possibility of tampering, destruction, and theft, which hinders the acceptance of electronic commercial remittance. However, there are ways to overcome the security difficulties facing electronic commercial remittance, which will be highlighted to address these challenges.