DOI: 10.70650/rvimj.2025v2i70002

  DOI URL: https://doi.org/10.70650/rvimj.2025v2i70002

Abstract: Gandhian jurisprudence offers a distinctive legal philosophy that intertwines ethics, law, and political resistance in the context of colonial India. It challenges traditional notions of law by grounding legal obligation in moral conscience rather than mere state authority. Central to this approach is Satyagraha, Gandhi’s doctrine of nonviolent civil disobedience, which served as a deliberate, principled refusal to obey unjust colonial laws imposed by the British Empire. Unlike conventional legal frameworks that prioritize obedience to formal statutes, Gandhian jurisprudence elevates truth and justice as the highest legal values, advocating resistance rooted in ethical responsibility. The history of civil disobedience in colonial India exemplifies the dynamic interaction between indigenous resistance and colonial legal structures. Movements such as the Salt March and the Quit India Movement reveal how civil disobedience was employed not only as political defiance but as a form of legal and ethical contestation that questioned the legitimacy of colonial governance. This paper interrogates how Gandhi’s legal thought blurred the boundaries between legality and illegality, reshaping law as a tool for emancipation rather than oppression. The analysis highlights the colonial legal system’s responses to such acts of resistance, exposing inherent contradictions between imperial power and indigenous demands for justice and autonomy. Gandhian jurisprudence thus critiques positivist legal theories by emphasizing the moral foundations of law and the importance of conscience-driven resistance. Its legacy extends beyond India’s independence, inspiring contemporary movements that seek to challenge unjust laws through ethical civil disobedience worldwide. This exploration contributes to understanding the transformative potential of law when infused with ethics and resistance, positioning Gandhian jurisprudence as a critical framework for analyzing justice, authority, and human rights in both historical and modern contexts.

Keywords:Gandhian Jurisprudence, Civil Disobedience, Satyagraha, Colonial India, Legal Ethics, Anti-Colonial Resistance, Moral Law, British Colonialism, Nonviolent Protest, Legal Philosophy.