The concept of 'Rule of Law' was propounded by:

Dicey. The British jurist Albert Venn Dicey propounded the concept of the Rule of Law in his book "Introduction to the Study of the Law of the Constitution", published in 1885.

Dicey's three principles of the Rule of Law:

• Absence of arbitrary power: no person can be punished except for a breach of law established in the ordinary manner before the ordinary courts.
• Equality before the law: all persons, whatever their rank or condition, are equally subject to the ordinary law of the land, administered by the ordinary courts.
• Primacy of the rights of the individual: in Britain, the constitution is the result of the rights of individuals as defined and enforced by the courts, rather than the source of those rights.

Rule of Law in India:

• The Indian Constitution adopts the first two elements of Dicey's Rule of Law.
• Article 14 guarantees equality before the law and equal protection of the laws.
• The third element does not apply fully in India, because the Constitution itself is the source of individual rights.
• The Supreme Court has held that the Rule of Law is part of the basic structure of the Constitution.

Exceptions in India:

• The President and Governors enjoy immunity from court proceedings for their official acts during their term (Article 361).
• Foreign diplomats enjoy immunity under international law.

Judicial view:

In the A.D.M. Jabalpur case (1976), Justice H.R. Khanna's dissent, defending the Rule of Law even during an emergency, is widely admired.

In the Maneka Gandhi case (1978), the Court held that any law depriving a person of liberty must be just, fair and reasonable.

Other thinkers associated with constitutional ideas:

• John Locke: natural rights of life, liberty and property, and government by consent.
• Montesquieu: separation of powers, in "The Spirit of the Laws" (1748).
• Jean-Jacques Rousseau: social contract and general will.

Why not the other options?

• ✗Locke, Montesquieu and Rousseau are known for other political theories.