Journal of Legal Research

Journal of Legal Research

A Critical Reappraisal of the Nature of Oversight under the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran: With Particular Emphasis on City and Village Councils

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
Seyyed Ehsan Rafie Alavi 1
Saber Jafarzadeh Kasyani 2
1 Associate Professor, Department of Jurisprudence, Faculty of Jurisprudence, Baqir al-Olum University, Qom, Iran.
2 PhD Student in Political Jurisprudence (International Relations Jurisprudence), Faculty of Jurisprudence, Baqir al-Olum University, Qom, Iran.
10.48300/jlr.2024.480313.2755
Abstract
Article 100 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran, commonly known as the provision governing local councils, constitutes a prominent expression of popular participation in the country's constitutional framework. It assigns councils an oversight role in advancing local development objectives. The central question addressed in this article is which form of legally recognized oversight is envisaged by Article 100. The study proceeds from the hypothesis that the constitutional provision contemplates approbatory oversight (nezārat-e estesvābī). Employing a grounded theory-based approach to textual analysis, the research examines the different forms of oversight expressly or implicitly recognized in the Constitution. It also analyses the intention of the constitutional framers through the records of the Assembly for the Final Review of the Constitution and the interpretative opinions of the Guardian Council, seeking to establish a precise and well-supported understanding of oversight under Article 100. The findings identify two principal interpretations of oversight in the Constitution. The first favours informational oversight (nezārat-e estelāʿī) and draws on the constitutional text and the Guardian Council's interpretation, a position also accepted by the majority of legal scholars. The second favours approbatory oversight, which, although it does not share certain characteristics attributed to informational oversight, can be supported by the ordinary meaning of the term, the purposes and underlying objectives of the Islamic Revolution, the thought of the founder of the Islamic Republic, and an interpretation consistent with other relevant constitutional provisions. The article argues that recognizing approbatory oversight under Article 100 is more consistent with the underlying principles and objectives of local councils and provides a more coherent interpretation of their constitutional role.
Keywords
Constitution
Informational Oversight
Approbatory Oversight
Local Councils
Guardian Council
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Journal of Legal Research
Volume 25, Issue 66
Summer 2026
Pages 115-140