• Advocate Madhumita Bhattacharjee files a PIL challenging Section 143.
• Supreme Court issues notice on October 26, 2026.
• Petition raises concerns over customary settlements in serious criminal cases.
• Constitutional questions include Articles 14, 15 and 21 and the Sixth Schedule.

GG News Bureau
Agartala, 7th Nov: The Jamatia Customary Law Act has come under judicial scrutiny after a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by Tripura-based advocate Madhumita Bhattacharjee challenged the constitutional validity of Section 143 of the 2017 legislation before the Supreme Court of India.

The Supreme Court issued notice on October 26, 2026, in the matter titled Madhumita Bhattacharjee v. State of Tripura, Diary No. 32298/2026. The petition raises concerns over the alleged provision for addressing serious offences, including rape, through monetary penalties or customary settlements.

The case has also drawn attention to earlier publications by Tripurainfo.com, which had raised questions about the provisions of the customary law and their compatibility with constitutional guarantees and the country’s criminal justice framework.

According to the petitioner’s account, Advocate Bhattacharjee had first highlighted the disputed provisions through an article. A subsequent investigative report by a Tripurainfo.com correspondent examined related aspects of the legislation and brought the issue into wider public discussion.

The publications raised questions about whether the customary law’s provisions were consistent with constitutional protections, statutory provisions governing criminal offences and the limits of legislative powers under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution.

Bhattacharjee subsequently approached the Supreme Court, seeking judicial examination of the disputed provision and appropriate constitutional relief.

The petition reportedly challenges the provision in relation to Articles 14, 15 and 21 of the Constitution, which deal with equality before the law, protection against specified forms of discrimination, and the right to life and personal liberty. It also raises questions about the relationship between customary law, the Sixth Schedule and applicable central criminal legislation.

The case brings into focus the relationship between customary legal practices and the broader criminal justice framework. However, the constitutional validity of the disputed provision remains for the judiciary to determine. The filing of the petition and the issuance of notice do not amount to a final finding on its legality.

The Jamatia Customary Laws Act, 2017, was enacted during the tenure of Manik Sarkar as Chief Minister of Tripura. Tathagata Roy was the Governor of the state at the time.