Article 348 is a provision in the Indian Constitution, located in Part XVII (Official Language), that mandates the language to be used in the higher judiciary and for legislative texts. The provision was introduced as Draft Article 301F and adopted by the Constituent Assembly on September 14, 1949, to ensure uniformity and clarity in the legal system across India's multilingual environment.
The mechanism of Article 348 is primarily laid out in three clauses. Article 348(1)(a) mandates that all proceedings in the Supreme Court and every High Court shall be in the English language, unless Parliament provides otherwise by law. Crucially, Article 348(1)(b) declares that the authoritative texts of all Bills, Acts passed by Parliament or State Legislatures, Ordinances, and all subordinate legislation (orders, rules, regulations, and bye-laws) must be in the English language.
Article 348(2) provides a limited exception, allowing the Governor of a State, with the previous consent of the President, to authorize the use of Hindi or any other official language of the State in High Court proceedings, but this exception does not apply to any judgment, decree, or order, which must still be passed in English. Furthermore, Article 348(3) stipulates that if a State Legislature uses a language other than English for its Acts, a translation in the English language, published under the Governor's authority, is deemed the authoritative text. In case of any contradiction between a regional language text and the English translation, the English version prevails.
This provision connects to Article 120 and Article 210, which govern the language used in Parliament and State Legislatures, respectively, and are subject to Article 348. The Supreme Court, in Dinesh Trivedi v. Union of India (AIR 1997 SC 2429), supported the use of English as the legal language under Article 348(1) until Parliament officially changes it. While the provision was initially conceived as a temporary measure, it has largely remained unchanged, perpetuating English as the standard legal language.