Suo Moto: Meaning, Origin and Explanation
This article titled ‘Suo Moto: Meaning, Origin and Explanation’ is written by Sahajpreet Bhusari and discusses the maxim of suo moto. I. Meaning and Origin Suo moto is a legal term of Latin origin. In Latin, the maxim literally means ‘on its own motion’[1]. Suo Moto emerged in the late 1970s through legal activities to make the judicial process… Read More »
This article titled ‘Suo Moto: Meaning, Origin and Explanation’ is written by Sahajpreet Bhusari and discusses the maxim of suo moto. I. Meaning and Origin Suo moto is a legal term of Latin origin. In Latin, the maxim literally means ‘on its own motion’[1]. Suo Moto emerged in the late 1970s through legal activities to make the judicial process accessible to poor, socially and economically disadvantaged people in society. It has its origins in the concept of...
This article titled ‘Suo Moto: Meaning, Origin and Explanation’ is written by Sahajpreet Bhusari and discusses the maxim of suo moto.
I. Meaning and Origin
Suo moto is a legal term of Latin origin. In Latin, the maxim literally means ‘on its own motion’[1].
Suo Moto emerged in the late 1970s through legal activities to make the judicial process accessible to poor, socially and economically disadvantaged people in society. It has its origins in the concept of “epistolary jurisdiction”.
II. Explanation
Suo Moto is a Latin word and means the action taken by a government agency, court, or other central authority at its sole discretion. Simply put, it means controlling the problem. Suo Moto’s approval exists if the court voluntarily engages in a proceeding, if there is gross negligence on the part of the authorities or government, or if the court deems it appropriate.
The court will notify Suo Moto proceedings when it receives information or notifications from third parties regarding infringement or breach of obligations by the media. The judge decides on his own initiative on public interest issues and does not allow the parties to approach themselves on this issue.
III. Application
In India, suo moto has been guaranteed under Articles 32 and 226 of the Constitution, which give the Supreme Court and the High Courts special powers to issue instructions to perform or refrain from performing a particular act.
In other words, when a court finds that a case requires serious and immediate judicial intervention, Suo Moto will sanction it. The Supreme Court has been given the power to the suo moto under Article 131 of the Constitution of India.
Furthermore in India courts have the power of suo moto in cases like contempt of court, reopening of old cases or orders to investigate new cases.
IV. Illustration
A filed a complaint against B (the hospital) for not admitting an accident patient who later died from his injuries. In this case, A files a petition against B before the court to start the proceedings.
However, if the court is informed by a news story or other third-party source, in which a hospital has been exposed to illegal extortion prior to admitting a patient in need of urgent treatment, granted, the court may initiate an action against the alleged hospital. In this case, the court will have been said to have taken up the matter suo moto.
V. Important Case Laws
Recently, the National Human Rights Commission, NHRC, India has learned from the media that in the Muzaffarpur district of Bihar, a person tried to offend a woman’s modesty and when he failed to do so, he poured kerosene on her and set her on fire.
The Commission found that the contents of the reports, if true, constituted a serious violation of the victim’s human rights. Therefore they issued notices to the General Secretary and Superintendent of Bihar Police, calling for a detailed report on the matter within four weeks. Thus, in this case, NHRC took suo moto cognizance of the case[2].
References
[1] Meaning of Suo Moto, Available Here, Accessed on 11/11/2021.
[2] Suo Moto, Available Here, Accessed on 11/11/2021.
