Page 17 - Bombay High Court

Bombay High Court rejects Chanda Kochhar plea for retirement benefits

Private lender's sacked chief has filed a lawsuit asking her former employer to fulfill contractual responsibilities

POCSO enacted not to punish minors in consensual relations, says HC

The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act was enacted not to punish minors in a consensual relationship and to brand them as criminals, the Bombay High Court has said while granting bail to a 23-year-old man who was booked on the charge of raping a minor. A single bench of Justice Anuja Prabhudessai in the order passed on April 26 noted that it was true that the victim in the case was a minor, but her statement prima facie indicates that the relationship was consensual. "It needs to be noted that the POCSO Act has been enacted to protect children from offences of sexual assault, sexual harassment, etc, and contains stringent penal provisions as to safeguard the interest and the well-being of the children," the HC said. "The object is certainly not to punish minors in romantic or consensual relationship and brand them as criminals," it added. The court was hearing a plea filed by one Imran Shaikh, who was booked by the Mumbai police for allegedly kidnapping and ...

Supreme Court paves way for tribunal to act against IL&FS auditors

The court said the intention of the legislature behind Section 145 is very clear

HC appoints arbitrator in Max Healthcare, Care Hospitals dispute case

Max says as it has signed a term sheet with Quality Care for the acquisition of Care Hospitals, its offer should be decided first

Max Healthcare Institute moves Bombay HC against Quality Care, Evercare

Breach of contract alleged in an offer to acquire Hyderabad-based Care Hospitals

Restaurants holding eating house licence can't serve hookah: Bombay HC

An eating house licence does not automatically include permission to serve hookah or herbal hookah, the Bombay High Court said while refusing relief to a suburban restaurant facing revocation of licence for serving herbal hookah. A division bench of Justices G S Kulkarni and R N Laddha in its order dated April 24 noted that hookah cannot be one of the items being served in a restaurant where children, women and elderly visit for refreshments or food. "This would amount to an absolute nuisance in so far as an eating house is concerned. Further, if this is to be a reality, the impact it would create on such customers at the eating house can just be imagined," the court said. It further observed that if every eating house in the city was permitted to provide hookah, then it would result in a "situation beyond one's imagination" and would be "totally uncontrolled". The bench was hearing a petition filed by one Sayli Parkhi challenging an April 18, 2023 order passed by the Brihanmumbai

Fact-checking unit will not be notified until July 5, says Centre

The division bench had said that the rules did not seem to offer protection to fair criticism of the government like parody and satire

Won't notify fact checking unit for fake news against govt till Jul 5: Govt

The Union government told the Bombay High Court on Thursday that it will not notify till July 5, 2023 a fact checking unit to identify fake news against the government on social media under the recently amended Information Technology Rules. A division bench of Justices Gautam Patel and Neela Gokhale accepted the statement and said since the amended rules would be inoperable in the absence of a fact checking unit, no urgent hearing was required on stay of the rules as sought by stand-up comic Kunal Kamra. The bench posted the petition filed by Kamra, challenging the constitutional validity of the rules, for hearing on June 8. Additional Solicitor General Anil Singh, appearing for the Union government, told the HC that the fact checking unit would not be notified till July 5, 2023 so that the court could hear the matter in June when it reopens after the summer vacation. Kamra's counsel Darius Khambata insisted the court hear the matter for interim relief on Thursday itself and argued

Obtain fresh environment clearances: HC to bidders of Goa's mining blocks

The Goa bench of the Bombay High Court on Wednesday ordered the successful bidders of the recently-auctioned mining blocks in the state to obtain fresh environmental clearances (ECs). A division bench comprising Justices Mahesh Sonak and Valmiki Menezes of the high court passed the order. The ruling is likely to delay the resumption of the state's iron ore mining operations that came to a standstill in 2018 after the Supreme Court quashed 88 mining leases. In December last year, the Goa government had said that it completed the first phase of auction of mining blocks with four companies winning bids for the extraction of ore from different mineral rich stretches of the coastal state. The mining industry used to be one of the major revenue earners for the state. "We clarify that fresh ECs will have to be obtained even by the successful bidders...," the high court said in its order. The Goa Foundation had submitted an intervention application over a petition filed by mining firm ...

Benefits of technology should be made available to senior citizens: HC

The Bombay High Court has said that the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) should ensure that benefits of modern technology are made available to the public, especially senior citizens, to make commuting in the city "easier and more comfortable". A division bench of Justices G S Kulkarni and R N Laddha was hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) about the non-availability of a foot-over-bridge (FOB) connecting Bandra (East) railway station with the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) office-end. Disposing of the PIL on Monday, the court said the BMC should consider whether a part of the sky-walk can be a mechanized walkway so that it becomes useful to senior citizens and persons with disabilities. "The Central and Western Railways as also the Metro Rail have provided such mechanisms at several railway stations including escalators," the court said. Benefits of modern technology should be made available to commuters to make their commuting life in ..

IT Rules amendments don't offer protection to parody, satire: Bombay HC

The amendments to the Information Technology Rules, prima facie, do not seem to offer protection to parody and satire, the Bombay High Court said on Monday while hearing a petition filed by stand-up comedian Kunal Kamra. The HC bench also said Kamra's petition challenging the amendments was maintainable. On April 6, the Union government promulgated certain amendments to the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, including a provision of a fact check unit to identify fake or false or misleading online content related to the government. Kamra, in his petition, claimed the new rules could potentially lead to his content being arbitrarily blocked or his social media accounts being suspended or deactivated, thus harming him professionally. He has sought that the court declare the amended rules as unconstitutional and give a direction to the government to restrain from taking action against any individual under the rules. The Union .

Indian courts to hear domestic violence cases if offence happens abroad: HC

A court in India can take cognizance of a case of domestic violence even if the alleged offence takes place in a foreign country, the Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court has held. The court recently rejected a plea by an Indian man who claimed that a magistrate's court in Nagpur can not act on a complaint of domestic violence filed by his estranged wife because the alleged incidents had taken place in Germany. Justice G A Sanap noted in the ruling that the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act (DV Act) was a "social beneficial legislation", and it does not matter where the offence has taken place. The copy of the judgement, passed on March 29, became available on Wednesday. "...though the Domestic Violence Act extends only to the whole of India as provided under section 1 of the DV Act, the domestic violence caused on the foreign soil could also be taken cognizance of," the high court said. In the present case, consequence of trauma, suffering and distress carried by th

SC sets aside HC order acquitting Saibaba, others in alleged Maoist link

A bench of Justices MR Shah and CT Ravikumar remanded the matter to the High Court for fresh consideration and directed that the case be decided within four months

HC raps SFIO for not completing probe against Naresh Goyal even after 4 yrs

The Bombay High Court on Tuesday rebuked the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) for not completing its probe against Jet Airways founder Naresh Goyal and his wife in a case of an alleged Rs 7,000 crore fraud. A division bench of Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Sharmila Deshmukh expressed displeasure about the tardy pace of probe while allowing Goyal's wife Anita to travel to the United Arab Emirates for a month on April 20. Naresh Goyal, however, failed to get a similar permission as the court said it could not hear his application in detail due to paucity of time. The couple had moved the court seeking permission to travel abroad. The SFIO, which falls under the jurisdiction of the Corporate Affairs Ministry, said it was opposed to the couple traveling together, but had no objection if Anita Goyal were to travel alone. Advocate Hiten Venegaonkar, appearing for the central agency, told the court that the investigation against the Goyals, initiated in 2019, was still under

HC bench to decide on taxability of intermediary services to clients abroad

Situation arises as two judges of Bombay HC are divided over the matter, which has now been referred to a third judge

Widowed daughter-in-law need not pay maintenance to her parents-in-law: HC

The Aurangabad bench of the Bombay High Court has ruled that a daughter-in-law need not pay maintenance to the parents of her deceased husband. A single bench of Justice Kishor Sant on April 12 passed its order on a petition filed by a 38-year-old woman, Shobha Tidke, challenging an order passed by the Nyayadhikari Gram Nyayalaya (local court) at Latur city in Maharashtra directing her to pay maintenance to the parents of her deceased husband. "By reading of section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, it is clear that the father-in-law and mother-in-law are not mentioned in the said section," the HC said in its order. Shobha's husband, who used to work with the MSRTC (Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation), had died, after which she started working at the state-run JJ Hospital in Mumbai. Kishanrao Tidke (68) and Kantabai Tidke (60), the in-laws of Shobha Tidke, claimed they have no source of income after the death of their son and therefore sought maintenance. The woman

Malegaon blast: SC rejects Lt Col Purohit's plea challenging HC's order

The Supreme Court has rejected Lt Col Prasad Purohit's petition challenging the Bombay High Court order dismissing his petition seeking to discharge him in the Malegaon 2008 blast case

Ex-Maha Guv, BJP leader's remarks on Shivaji no criminal offence: HC

The Bombay High Court has dismissed a petition that sought action against former Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari and BJP MP Sudhanshu Trivedi for their statements on Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and other icons, saying the remarks do not prima facie constitute an offence under any criminal act. The court also said that the statements reflect the perception and opinion of the speaker about those figures with an aim to persuade the audience, and the intention appears to be of enlightenment of the society for its betterment. Koshyari, whose tenure was dogged by controversies caused by his utterances about Shivaji Maharaj, social reformers Mahatma Phule and his wife Savitribai and Marathi people, stepped down as the state governor last month. Koshyari had faced flak for calling Shivaji Maharaj an "icon of olden times", while Trivedi had allegedly said that the founder of the Maratha empire had apologised to Mughal emperor Aurangzeb. Justices Sunil Shukre and Abhay Waghwase, o

Fight over control of Hikal: Hiremath, family move HC against Baba Kalyani

Hikal said it did not expect any financial implications arising due to compensation, penalty, etc, due to the suit

SC stays Bombay HC order permitting UIL Chairperson to travel abroad

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta mentioned the matter for urgent orders before a bench headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud and comprising Justice P.S. Narasimha