GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF INT’L TRADE LAW

PROJECT SYNOPSIS
FEDERALISM AND ITS THREAT TO INDIA’S WTO OBLIGATIONS : A COMPARATIVE
PERSPECTIVE

Submitted to:
Submitted by: Krishna Ravishankar
(2029)

NATIONAL LAW UNIVERSITY, JODHPUR

WINTER SESSION (JANUARY, 2024 – MAY, 2024)

 SYNOPSIS

ROLL NO. 2029 NAME: Krishna Ravishankar

STATEMENT OF PROBLEM
Federalism and its threat to India’s WTO Obligations

INTRODUCTION
India’s unique federal structure creates a Constitutional conundrum with regard to compliance of
India’s obligations under international treaties, specifically India’s obligations at the World
Trade Organization (WTO).1 This comes at a juncture when supranational economic regulation
as a result of globalization under the guise of the Bretton Woods Conference Institutions of
2
GATT-IMF-World Bank. With advent of the Uruguay Round of Talks which resulted in the
modern WTO, globalization became a reality affecting all spheres of life and market economy
becoming the norm and not the exception, the need for an interdependent financial system
3
increased. Thus, this interdependence also made nations reimagine their sovereignty which
based on Westphalian peace and consensus to a more transnational idea of regulating national
4
governments based on multilateral treaties. The federal structures and the sub-federal units
which made up these structures particularly acted as bulwarks against this “disaggregated
theory” of the state. 5

Understanding Indian federalism as a unique case starts from the distribution of powers as
6
mentioned in Article 246 read with the 3 lists and the Seventh Schedule. Often described as
only being quasi-federal, there are some quandaries that arise given this distribution of power.
This project seeks to examine three main things in this context: first, a state (i.e. sub-federal)
government’s policy on subjects falling within its exclusive legislative domain potentially falling
foul of the union (i.e. the federal) government’s WTO obligations; secondly, the possibility of
availing internal Constitutional constraints as a defence against breach of WTO obligations; and

1
KC Wheare, Federal Government (2nd edn, Oxford University Press 1951) 33.
2
Thomas L. Friedman, The Lexus And The Olive Tree, Understanding Globalization (Anchor Books 2000) (1999).
3
Fukuyama, Francis. The end of history and the last man. Simon and Schuster, 2006.
4
Anne-Marie Slaughter, The Real New World Order, FOREIGN AFF., Sept.-Oct. 1997 at 183
5
Id.
6
MP Singh, ‘The Federal Scheme’ in S Choudhry, M Khosla and PB Mehta (eds), The Oxford Handbook of The
Indian Constitution (South Asia edn, Oxford University Press 2016) 451–52.
lastly, the applicability of the doctrine of repugnance to resolve any potential conflict as
identified in the first point. The author of this project will try and examine these three
perspectives through both national and international judicial pronouncements. This project will
also yearn to do a cross-sectional analysis with other federal jurisdictions of USA and China and
try and conclude with reasonable solutions that India can adopt for furthering her WTO
obligations in spite of her unique governance structure.

RESEARCH QUESTIONS
1. How does the changing nature of sovereignty that WTO unleashed affect this federal
distribution of power?
2. What are the challenges that India’s federalist structure poses to the implementation of
her WTO Obligations?
3. How does India fare compared to other federal jurisdictions?
4. In what ways can these obstacles be overcome for facilitating smoother implementation
mechanisms of her WTO obligations ?

RESEARCH OBJECTIVES
1. To understand the obstacles India’s federalist structure causes on implementing WTO
obligations
2. To try and formulate workable solutions within the existing body of constitutional
jurisprudence of India and WTO Annexed Agreements and WTO Dispute Settlement
Reports.

TENTATIVE CHAPTERIZATION
1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
2. RESEARCH OBJECTIVES
3. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
4. INTRODUCTION – A BRIEF POSTULATION
5. UNDERSTANDING THE HISTORY OF INTERNATIONAL TRADE REGULATION : A GATT-
WTO PERSPECTIVE
6. EXAMINING THE PARADIGM SHIFT IN THE IDEA OF SOVEREIGNTY : FROM WESTPHALIA TO
URUGUAY
 7. THE CONSTITUTIONAL ARCHITECTURE OF INDIA: ANALYZING THE DISTRIBUTION OF

POWERS AMONG THE UNION AND THE STATE

8. CURRENT CHALLENGES OF WTO OBLIGATIONS IMPLEMENTATION IN INDIA VIZ-A-VIZ

FEDERALIST FETTERS

9. A SNEAK-PEEK INTO OTHER FEDERAL SYSTEMS : A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS

10. CONCLUSION
11. REFERENCES

LITERATURE SURVEY
Some important pieces of literature that need to be considered are as follows:

 ‘End of History and the Last Man’ by Francis Fukuyama analyses the inevitability of
globalization , the emergence of market economy as the fittest governance model and the
need for international economic regulation through multilateral institutions. 7
 ‘The Real New World Order’ by Anne-Marie Slaughter which postulates on how
globalization has changed the nature of sovereignty from the Westphalian consensus of
autonomy and non-interference to that interdependence and positive intervention. 8
 ‘International Law And Federalism: What Is The Reach Of Regulation?’ by Judge Diane
Wood who analyses the impact of transnational economic and trade regulation on the
distribution of powers equilibrium between the states and the US Federal Government. 9
 ‘Federalism’ by Professor KC Wheare who postulates about the unique federal nature of
Indian constitutional structures and its impediments in implementation of international
obligations. 10
 ‘Federalism and Global Governance: Comparative Analysis of Trade Agreement
Negotiation and Approval Mechanisms Used in U.S. and Other federalist Governance
Systems’ by Mary Bottari and Lori Wallach who examine the conundrums other federal

7
Quoidbach, Jordi, Daniel T. Gilbert, and Timothy D. Wilson. "The end of history illusion." science 339, no. 6115
(2013): 96-98.
8
Anne-Marie Slaughter, The Real New World Order, FOREIGN AFF., Sept.-Oct. 1997 at 183.
9
Afilalo, A., 2001. Not in my Backyard: Power and Protectionism in the US Trade Policy. NYUJ Int'l L. & Pol., 34,
p.749.
10
KC Wheare, Federal Government (2nd edn, Oxford University Press 1951) 33.
 jurisdictions of China, Canada, Switzerland and Australia face will implementing
international trade obligations. 11

BIBLIOGRAPHY
JOURNALS

1. Hayes, E. T. (2004). Changing Notions of Sovereignty and Federalism int he

International Economic System: A Reassessment of WTO Regulation of Federal States
and the Regional and Local Governments within Their Territories. Nw. J. Int'l L. &
Bus., 25, 1.
2. Wood, Diane P. "International law and federalism: what is the reach of regulation." Harv.
JL & Pub. Pol'y 23 (1999): 97.
3. Bagchi, A., 2008. Globalization and Federalism: Uneasy partners?. Economic and
Political Weekly, pp.41-48.
4. McGinnis, John O. "The Decline of the Western Nation State and the Rise of the Regime
of International Federalism." Cardozo L. Rev. 18 (1996): 903.
5. Joost Pauwelyn, ‘The Role of Public International Law in the WTO: How Far Can We
Go?’ (2001) 95 American Journal of International Law 535, 539.

6. John H. Jackson, Sovereignty-Modern: A New Approach to an Outdated Concept, 97

AM. J. INT'L L., 782, 786 (Oct. 2003)

7. Kal Raustiala, Rethinking the Sovereignty Debate in International Economic Law, 6 J.

INT'L ECON. L. 841 (December 2003).
BOOKS

1. KC WHEARE, FEDERAL GOVERNMENT (2ND EDN, OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS 1951) 33.
2. MP SINGH, ‘THE FEDERAL SCHEME’ IN S CHOUDHRY, M KHOSLA AND PB MEHTA
(EDS), THE OXFORD HANDBOOK OF THE INDIAN CONSTITUTION (SOUTH ASIA EDN,

OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS 2016) 451–52.

3. JOHN H. JACKSON, THE WORLD TRADING SYSTEM, LAW AND POLICY OF
INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC RELATIONS 35-36 (2ND ED. 2000)

11
Mary Bottari and Lori Wallach, Federalism and Global Governance: Comparative Analysis of Trade Agreement
Negotiation and Approval Mechanisms Used in U.S. and Other federalist Governance Systems (Public Citizen 2008)
9.
 4. ThOMAS L. FRIEDMAN, THE LEXUS AND THE OLIVE TREE, UNDERSTANDING
GLOBALIZATION (ANCHOR BOOKS 2000) (1999).

INTERNET

1. Shruddha Kulari & Sujoy Chatterjee, Is India’s federalism a threat to its WTO
obligations? Through the prism of Article 253, (21 July, 2017),
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/24730580.2017.1354281