Union Of India And Anr vs Azadi Bachao Andolan And Anr on 7 October, 2003
11.2. The doctrine of stare decisis means `to stand by the decided
cases' or `to uphold precedents'. It states that when a point of law has
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been decided, it takes the form of a precedent which is to be followed
subsequently and should not normally be departed from. A decision
which is followed for a long time will generally be followed, even
though the court before whom the matter arises afterwards might be of
different view. This rule has been quoted with approval by the Hon'ble
Supreme Court in Union of India vs. Azadi Bachao Andolan (2003) 263
ITR 706 (SC).