On 27th May 1949, an interesting exchange of words took place at the Constituent Assembly and they are narrated as follows;
Shri H. V. Kamath; Mr. President, Sir, I move
That in Article 117 for the words “all courts, the words, “all other courts be substituted.”
So, if this is accepted the Article will read thus;
“The law declared by the Supreme Court shall be binding on all other courts within the territory of India.”
I have no doubt in my own mind that this Article does not seek to bind a Supreme Court by its own Judgment. What is intended by this Article is, I am sure that other Courts Subordinate to the Supreme Court in this land shall be bound by the Judgment and the law declared by the Supreme Court from time to time. It will be unwise to bind the Supreme Court itself. Because in order to ensure elasticity, in order to enable the mistake and error were to be rectified and to leave room for growth. The Supreme Court will have to be excluded from the purview of this Article. The Supreme Court may amend its own Judgments or its own interpretation of law, which it might have made on a previous occasion and rectify error it has committed earlier. Therefore, I feel that intention of this Article would be correctly and precisely conveyed by saying that the law of the Supreme Court shall be binding on all other courts within the territory of India.
Sir I move,
Amendments No 1947, 1948 were not moved.
The Honourable Dr. B. R. Ambedkar: Sir, there is one point which I would like to mention. It is not certainly intention of the proposed Article that the Supreme Court should be bound by its own decision like the House of Lords. The Supreme Court would be free to change its decision and take a different view from the one which it had taken before. So far as the Language is concerned, I am quite satisfied that the intention is carried out.
H. V. Kamath: Then why not say all other Courts?
Dr. B. R. Ambedkar: all courts means all other courts
President: The question is that Article 117 for the words all courts, the words all other courts be substituted.
The Amendment was negative.
Comment: Now we know why different benches, different judgments independently and not bound by other bench of Supreme Court on the same point.