Indian Legal Framework for Strategic Trade Management

Abstract

As in any country that has the rule of law to sculpt governance, India relies on its legal system. For strategic trade control management, too, India has a legal framework. Some of these laws are old, and mirror India’s national philosophy, and a broad policy towards developments in science and technology as well as the country’s idea of national and international security. These laws tell India’s international understanding to undertake some enduring obligations arrived at in negotiations with nations in multilateral organisations as well as in bilateral diplomacy. The broad legal framework through which India manages its strategic trade may not be originally drafted or conceived for strategic trade control; however, after realising that the objective of strategic trade control can also be met with a particular legislation, the Indian government uses the existing law or act for providing statutory authority to concerned officials or institutions. It should not indicate that the framework does not have a new law or specific law for strategic trade control. The Weapons of Mass Destruction Act of 2005 entered into India’s body of law to bridge the gap that existed for strategic trade management. The Indian legal system has usual practices for strategic trade management. Quite significantly, the Indian legal framework has a layered punishment structure. Some of the practices, to be found in the regulatory system, are in the Indian laws. Remarkably, some of the old laws have modern or current strategic trade control practices.