Supreme Court refuses to entertain plea seeking report on ‘population explosion’

‘There is a declining population … we cannot wipe out population,” the Bench observed orally to petitioner Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay.

NEW DELHI:

The Supreme Court on Friday, November 18, 2022, refused to entertain a plea to direct the Law Commission of India to prepare a report on population “explosion” and the feasibility of having a population control law.

A Bench led by Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul said the subject lay solely within the domain of the government and noted “there is a declining population”.

The court said there were several issues, including social ones, to consider and the court cannot get into it.

“There is a declining population and it will reach a stabilising point probably in 10 or 20 years… we cannot wipe out population,” the Bench observed orally to petitioner Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay.

Mr. Upadhyay said the country hosts 20% of the population and covers only 2.1% of the land. He withdrew the petition.

In its reply to the petition, the government had made it clear that it cannot coerce couples into having a “certain number of children” in a bid to curb population explosion.