Natural justice, according to Lord Parker C.J. in Re R.N, is the obligation to behave honestly. While the terms "duty to behave fairly" and "natural justice" are synonymous, there is a significant distinction between them. People have the right to natural justice to defend them against bigotry and arbitrary acts.
The obligation to behave reasonably, on the other hand, is a requirement placed on regulatory and quasi-judicial entities in order to prohibit them from behaving in an unfair or discriminatory manner.
This paper would deal with the notion of Duty to Act Fairly and through different principles of natural justice elaborate on as to how in the contemporary times this notion is most important in materialising the concrete working of the state through its three different pillars. In the end, emphasis would be given on the case of Keshav Mills Vs. Union of India1 as it stands a landmark judgment in the history of determining duty to act fairly.
Keywords: Accountability, Transparency, Governance, Arbitrariness, bigotry and Regulatory
JEL Classification: K23
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation