Abstract:
Rule of Law, a principle in constitutional law and a concept in political science discourse
has been understood for more than a century as a heavily loaded tenet of democracy.
Governments were to be tested for their qualitative character of democracy by employing
the yardstick of rule of law. Constitutionalism has come into being as one of the best
means of ensuring rule of law. By asserting the supremacy of the constitution the principle
of rule of law was to be embodied into various constitutions around the world.
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Constitutionalism for such States was nothing but the supremacy of the constitution that
entrenched the peoples rule. Sovereignty of the people was thus explained not in the sense
of ownership but in its characteristic of being possessed by the rulers.
With the collapse of the Soviet Union and other socialist regimes, debates over
constitutionalism resurfaced with a new vigour in that international human rights regime
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has come to influence and dominate domestic laws in many of those newly admitted
members to the democratic guild.
Since early 1990s, there has been a debate among scholars of international law as to the
legality of the right to democracy in international law. In light of the globalization process
of the last two decades, many States have to face the challenge of either rewriting their
constitutions or allowing international human rights norms to roll back into their domestic
legislative sphere. There were occasions of forceful introduction of these norms into
domestic law and r legality of that has not been checked in any international forum.
As such, this paper attempts to discuss the legal basis of the claim of right to democracy
from constitutional and international law perspective. Analysis of the constitutional
principle of rule of law and its scope and application would form the main basis for testing
the legality of the claim over democracy
