Article 50 — Separation of judiciary from executive

The State shall take steps to separate the judiciary from the executive in the public services of the State.

Source: Constitution of India, as published by the Ministry of Law and Justice.

At the time of independence, many states had a system in which the same officer served as both the executive magistrate (enforcing law and order) and the judicial magistrate (deciding criminal cases). This meant the officer who arrested you could also try you — a fundamental violation of natural justice and the separation of powers. Article 50 mandated ending this conflation. The Code of Criminal Procedure 1973 substantially implemented the separation by creating distinct cadres of executive and judicial magistrates, though the pace and completeness of separation varied by state. The article applies to state public services, not the central government, and concerns the subordinate judiciary rather than the higher courts.

• Article 233
• Article 234
• Article 235
• Article 50

Last reviewed: 3 July 2026