Ram temple, Meghalaya miners, Lokpal: Issues SC dealt with on Friday

Ram Janmabhoomi Hearing

The Supreme Court on Friday deferred hearing on the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid land title dispute to 10 January, and said an appropriate Bench will hear the case. Further orders will be delivered by that Bench. The SC is likely to hear about 14 pleas filed against the Allahabad High Court judgment, which had said the land should be partitioned equally among the three parties — Sunni Waqf Board, Nirmohi Akhara, and Ram Lalla.

Rescuing Meghalaya Miners 

The SC has asked the Centre and Meghalaya to file status report of the ongoing rescue operations of miners trapped in an illegal coal mine in since December 13. It also asked the Centre and the state to respond to allegations of a newspaper report that adequate steps were not being taken by the governments to rescue those trapped inside the mines. The directions came after the Solicitor General said they were facing problems in rescue operations. 

Search for Lokpal 

The apex court has asked the Centre to place an affidavit detailing the steps taken since September last year for setting up the Lokpal search committee. On July 24, 2017, the top court had said the government’s submissions on the issue were “wholly unsatisfactory”. It had asked the Centre to place a better affidavit with all the details on steps taken. The matter will be next heard on January 17. The Lokpal and Lokayukta Act of 2013 had not been implemented up until now.