National Law University Jodhpur

UG V Semester
Public International Law
STATEMENT OF FACTS

Regarded as one of the fastest growing economies and grudgingly hailed as the 'future super power',
'Princia' was basking in the glory of her recent success in many a field, especially in the area of
international diplomacy. She was credited with making great strides under the leadership of her
Prime Minister, Kabali, popularly known as 'Bali'.
'Gracia', once an integral part of undivided 'Princia', and splintered away to become an independent
nation in the wake of the end of the British Raj over 'Princia', had always been a thorn in the side of
the latter since partition. Always jealous of her maternal cousin, viz., Princia, Gracia left no stone
unturned to pick fights with her. In fact, she had waged three full-blown but unsuccessful wars
against Princia and ended up biting dust.
Post-1990s, when Gracia realized that she was no match for Princia in direct fights, she chose to
pursue proxy wars by sending into Princian territory insurgents and terrorists to unnerve the
Princian morale and disrupt her economy. While these tactics yielded anything but a decisive
victory to her, they nevertheless proved to be irritant pricks for Princia. Emboldened by such minor
gains, Gracia chose to attack 'The Crown', one of the best known 7-star hotel in the heart of the
Princian capital, Killi. The terrorist attack left several hundred dead and thousands wounded.
Among others, many diplomats and foreign tourists of the leading nations, attending a conclave,
became the target of this senseless scourge.
Although the successive governments had adopted a very hard stand against such cowardly and
dastardly attacks, lack of clinching evidence against Gracia and/or terrorists sponsored by her,
coupled with an emphatic denial by her had made it extremely difficult for the Princian authorities
to contemplate a definite and tenable action in this regard. However, when Bali rose to power, he
had made a public pledge that his government would hound the terrorists and bring them to book.
His defence minister, a known hardliner, Sunder Karipar, affectionately called 'Hawk' by his
admirers, had vowed publicly that he would avenge these attacks.
On the first Sunday of May 2015, Princians woke up to see a vividly beaming and smiling Prime
Minister and defence minister, silhouetted by the President's mansion, announcing to the nation that
their elite secret service had apprehended Drako, the mastermind of 'The Crown' attack, and a
citizen of Gracia, on the other side of the border along with other accomplices and conspirators.
They further claimed that all the perpetrators, including Drako, were shot to death at the border
when they made a vain attempt to escape and that this group of 20 contained four traitors who
brought disgrace to Princia. Both of them showered encomiums on the elite force comprising the
handpicked agents from Princian Bureau of Investigation (VBI), Princian Intelligence (VI) and
Princian Armed Forces Intelligence (VAFI).
While Princians took to streets with joy, Gracia, which reacted initially with a stunned silence, later
indulged in a tirade. While accepting that Drako was her citizen, an emphatic denial was made that
he was involved in the terror attack and demanded an immediate enquiry into the circumstances
leading to his death. Official protests were lodged, and a hue and cry was raised.
Human Rights Angels (HRA), an NGO, against which the Princian Government was conducting an
enquiry for alleged fraud and embezzlement, filed a PIL in the Supreme Court of Princia requesting

an extensive enquiry by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to be constituted by it. Inter alia, HRA
claimed that the encounter amounted to extra-constitutional killings and hence ultra-vires the
Constitution; that the act of the state has violated the fundamental rights; that the killings were a
flagrant violation of the normative structure of international law; and that the incident resulted in
violation of a catena of human rights.
On its part, the government contended that the petitioner lacked the locus standi; that the matter
involved the question of national security and international peace and hence not within the
jurisdiction of the court; that the action was a culmination of state action and act of state and hence
not amenable to the purview of national law; that international law cannot override the sovereign
priorities of a nation; and that the act indicated the quest for justice of scores of people whose
human rights were senselessly violated by Drako and his associates. It also contended that security
and integrity of the country must be preferred to the utopian standards of theoretical constitutional
underpinnings.

The matter is posted for final hearing.

NOTE: The laws and the legal system of Princia are in pari materia with that of India.