Such an interpretation allows Articles 4 and 5 to be harmoniously construed, and permits amendments to be made to the Constitution. This is important as the Constitution represents the nation's philosophy, aims and objectives for attaining political stability and economic prosperity for the people, and thus must necessarily be adaptable to political and social developments. Basic features doctrine In addition to the need to uphold constitutional supremacy and the principle of rigidity, the Constitution is also a living document that can be amended where necessary. As the Constitution does not appear to place restrictions on the extent to which its provisions may be amended, the question of whether there are any implied restrictions on Parliament's power to amend the Constitution arises. If such limitations exist, they would serve as a safeguard against unrestrained amendment by the legislature and protect the essential constitutional features and structure. India takes this stand – the Supreme Court held in Kesavananda Bharati v. The State of Kerala (1973) that there are certain implied basic features of the Indian Constitution that are not amenable to changes and amendment by Parliament. On the other hand, in Singapore it has been established that there are no implied limitations on Parliament's power to amend the Constitution. Position in India The basic structure or basic features doctrine holds that there is an implied restriction on the powers of the legislature to amend the Constitution: it is precluded from amending the basic features of the Constitution. The landmark case of Kesavananda Bharati established that the doctrine applies in India, highlighting that while Parliament's power to amend the Constitution extends to all its sections, essential features of the Constitution must not be altered. The development of the basic features doctrine in India can be attributed to the role of the judiciary in maintaining a balance between the powers of the Parliament and the judiciary. The Supreme Court perceived itself as the institutional guardian and protector of individual liberties against political aggression, adopting a judicial role parallel to that of the Supreme Court of the United States as mentioned by Chief Justice John Marshall in Marbury v. Madison. Chief Justice Sarv Mittra Sikri, delivering the leading judgment of the Supreme Court, averred that "[e]very provision of the Constitution can be amended provided in the result the basic foundation and structure of the Constitution remains the same". He proceeded to lay down the basic