Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta on Saturday said that legislative drafting is not merely an academic subject but a science, mathematics and an art.
He emphasised that India requires “able and committed professionals” who are formally trained in drafting legislation.
“One of the most ignored subjects in law is legislative drafting. When we talk of legislative drafting, we forget certain things and do not consider it to be a part that can be taught. But it is a science by itself,” Mehta remarked.
The Solicitor General was speaking at the launch event of three new Master’s programmes at OP Jindal Global University, which also included a Master’s degree in Legislative Drafting.
The event was attended by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal and the Chancellor of the University, among other dignitaries.
Addressing law students present at the event, Mehta said drafting ultimately makes the difference in how laws operate.
“By and large, all law students who are here would know that drafting makes the difference, and the draftspersons, those who really draft the law which applies to all of us, are here. The leader who commands the Lok Sabha and the person who commands the Law Ministry, both important figures, are here,” he said.
Mehta went on to emphasise the importance of precise language in drafting and said that even a single word can change the nature of a statutory provision.
He noted that when a law is framed, the use of “may” instead of “shall” can determine whether a provision is mandatory or merely directory, depending on legislative intent and context.
“That is the beauty of legislative drafting. The draftsman decides whether he wants a particular provision to be mandatory or directory,” he explained.
Recalling an experience from his practice, Mehta said that after nearly 25 years at the Bar, he was surprised to see how even punctuation can influence statutory interpretation.
“I came across, to my surprise, after almost 25 years of my practice, when I was arguing before a Constitution Bench, that a punctuation mark has its own meaning. We argued the position of a comma in a particular section of the new Land Acquisition Act, and there were judgments of British courts on how the position of that punctuation mark makes a difference in interpretation,” he recounted.
Mehta also cited the example of the Indian Penal Code drafted by Lord Macaulay in the 1800s. He said the Code was so precisely framed that it required virtually no amendments for decades after Independence.
“The only amendments that came were with regard to offences which he could not have envisaged, such as offences relating to electronic devices, electoral malpractices and family disputes,” he said.
Mehta concluded by saying that OP Jindal Global University is perhaps the first-ever institution to offer a full-time postgraduate course in legislative drafting.
“This would go a very long way, because what we are lacking as a nation is good legislative drafting,” he concluded.