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This is also why institutional checks matter. The Executive, Legislature and Judiciary have distinct constitutional roles, but none exists in isolation from the larger constitutional framework. When one institution has to step in to correct the lapses of another, the objective should not be to establish institutional superiority. It should be to restore the balance that protects the citizen.

The Judiciary has given important directions in the cases arising from the student protests, and its strong observations should not be dismissed merely as rhetoric. The capacity for reflection must extend to every institution. As Chief Justice Surya Kant has said, “Judges, like the institutions they lead, remain capable of growth, correction and improvement.”

That principle applies to all institutions entrusted with public power. Their authority derives ultimately from the Constitution and is sustained by the manner in which the authority is exercised. The citizen, particularly when challenging authority, must not become more vulnerable because the State possesses greater power. Constitutional power carries with it a corresponding duty of restraint, accountability and fairness.