<p>The Doctrine of Promissory Estoppel: A Public Law Perspective&nbsp;provides a thorough and careful analysis of the doctrine as it has developed and been applied within Indian public law. Authored by two practitioners with extensive backgrounds in taxation, commercial law, and constitutional litigation, the work intentionally moves away from the traditional view of promissory estoppel as solely a private contract law tool or a loose equitable remedy. Instead, it considers the doctrine as a fully developed principle of administrative and constitutional law&mdash;one that operates at the junction of governmental promises, executive power, citizen reliance, and judicial oversight.<br />
The doctrine, as the authors describe it, is neither an unconditional weapon against the State nor just a moral appeal. It is an equitable principle that has been examined, shaped, and refined through decades of Supreme Court jurisprudence&mdash;starting with&nbsp;UOI v. Indo-Afghan Agencies Ltd.&nbsp;and established in Justice Bhagwati&#39;s landmark ruling in&nbsp;Motilal Padampat Sugar Mills Ltd. v. State of U.P.&nbsp;&mdash;into a distinctive tool of constitutional accountability. The book traces this history: from the doctrine&#39;s roots in English equity and its transition into Indian law as what the authors call a &#39;colonial stowaway,&#39; to its modern application in areas such as fiscal policy, land reform, government incentives, and political promises.<br />
With a foreword by Justice Ujjal Bhuyan, Judge of the Supreme Court of India, the book is characterised, in his words, by &#39;doctrinal discipline and sustained engagement with public law principles. &#39; It is a work that invites practitioners, judges, scholars, and policymakers alike to seriously engage with one of the most complex and important doctrines in Indian public law.</p>
