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At the opening of three new Master's programs at OP Jindal Global University, the Solicitor General gave a speech.
Legislative drafting is a science, a mathema, and an art, according to Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta, who made this statement on Saturday.
He emphasized the need for "able and committed professionals" with proper training in law making in India.
Legislative drafting is one of the legal topics that is most neglected. When we discuss legislative drafting, we often overlook key aspects and don't think it's something that can be taught. But on its own, it is a science," Mehta said.
Speaking during the opening of three new Master's programs at OP Jindal Global University, including a Master's degree in Legislative Drafting, was the Solicitor General.
Among other dignitaries, the university's chancellor, law minister Arjun Ram Meghwal, and speaker of the Lok Sabha Om Birla attended the occasion.
Speaking to law students in attendance, Mehta stated that drafting ultimately determines how laws function.
Most of the law students present would agree that drafting is crucial, and those who actually draft the legislation that affects everyone are the draftspersons. Important leaders are present, including the head of the Law Ministry and the leader of the Lok Sabha," he stated.
Mehta continued by highlighting the significance of using exact wording when drafting, stating that a single word can alter the meaning of a statutory provision.
He stated that, depending on the legislative intent and context, the use of "may" rather than "shall" in a law's phrasing might establish whether a provision is mandatory or merely directory.
That's what makes drafting legislation so beautiful. He clarified, "The draftsman determines whether he wants a specific provision to be mandatory or directory."
After over 25 years at the Bar, Mehta recalled an incident from his practice that astonished him by demonstrating how even punctuation might affect statute interpretation.
"After over 25 years of practice, I was surprised to learn that a punctuation mark has a significance of its own when I was arguing before a Constitution Bench. We debated where to put a comma in a specific portion of the new Land Acquisition Act, and British courts have rendered decisions regarding how the punctuation mark's placement affects interpretation," he said.
Mehta also used Lord Macaulay's 1800s draft of the Indian Penal Code as an example. He claimed that because the Code was so carefully worded, it needed almost no revisions for many years following independence.
He claimed that the only changes made dealt with offenses that he could not have foreseen, like those involving electronic devices, electoral fraud, and family conflicts.
"OP Jindal Global University is possibly the first-ever institution to offer a full-time postgraduate course in legislative drafting," Mehta said in closing.
"This would go a very long way, because good legislative drafting is what we lack as a nation," he said in closing.
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