The judge-made doctrine that Parliament can amend the Constitution under Article 368 but cannot alter or destroy its essential framework, the "basic structure".
- Laid down in Kesavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala (1973), which overruled the earlier Golak Nath (1967) position.
- Parliament's amending power under Article 368 is wide but not unlimited; an amendment damaging the basic structure is void.
- Illustrative basic features: supremacy of the Constitution, rule of law, separation of powers, judicial review, federalism, secularism, free and fair elections, and the Preamble's ideals.
- Applied later to strike down parts of amendments, for example the 39th Amendment in Indira Nehru Gandhi (1975) and parts of the 99th Amendment (NJAC) in 2015.
- Not a fixed list; courts decide case by case what counts as basic structure.
It is the leading constitutional-law concept linking concept judicial review and amendment power; the 1973 Kesavananda case and Article 368 are standard recall items.
The doctrine limits amendments, not ordinary lawmaking; Parliament can still amend most of the Constitution, just not destroy its core.
Kesavananda Bharati (1973): Parliament may amend under Art 368 but cannot destroy the Constitution's basic structure.