Page 8 - Indian Judiciary

Never faced any political pressure from govt in 24 years as judge: CJI

Allaying apprehension of any interference of the legislature, Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud has said he never faced any political pressure from any government in his 24-year stint as a judge. Responding to a question during a session organised by the Oxford Union, he said judges in India are trained to decide disputes in a manner that allows for courts to decide on the basis of settled traditions based on constitutional scheme as opposed to the passions of the moment. "Political pressure, in the sense if you ask me in the sense of pressure from the government, I would tell you that in the 24 years that I have been a judge, I have never faced a sense of political pressure from the powers that be. Some of the democratic traditions that we follow in India include that we lead lives which are isolated from the political arm of the government. "If you mean 'political pressure' in a broader sense of a judge realising the impact of a decision which may have political ramifications, ...

B'luru court sends rape-accused Prajwal Revanna to 14-day judicial custody

A court here on Monday sent former JD(S) MP Prajwal Revanna, who is facing charges of rape and sexual abuse against several women, to 14 days judicial custody. He was produced before the 42nd Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (ACMM) court as his Special Investigation Team (SIT) custody ended today. The court on May 31 remanded him to SIT custody till June 6, and later extended it till June 10. While in their custody, the SIT conducted a detailed investigation, including gathering evidence and interviewing witnesses, and questioned Revanna extensively about the allegations. The court, taking into consideration the gravity of the allegations and the evidence presented by the SIT, decided to remand him to judicial custody for 14 days, till June 24. The 33-year-old grandson of JD(S) patriarch and former PM H D Deve Gowda had failed in his bid to retain the Hassan parliamentary constituency in the recent polls. SIT officials arrested Revanna soon after he landed at Bengaluru's

Justice Arvind Singh Chandel takes oath as Patna HC judge at Raj Bhavan

Justice Arvind Singh Chandel on Saturday took oath as a judge of the Patna High Court. Bihar Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar administered the oath of office to Justice Chandel in a ceremony held at Raj Bhavan here. Several dignitaries were present in the swearing-in ceremony. Justice Chandel was transferred to Patna High Court from Chhattisgarh High Court on May 29 through a notification issued by the Union Ministry of Law and Justice. Born in Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh on September 1, 1963, Justice Chandel got a BA degree from Pandit Ravi Shankar Shukla University, Raipur and an LLB degree from Guru Ghasidas University, Bilaspur. He joined as a civil judge class II at Civil Court at Shahdol in Madhya Pradesh on August 26, 1987, as per the website of the Chhattisgarh High Court. Thereafter, he served in the subordinate judiciary in various posts in various places in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. He served as the presiding officer, State Transport Appellate Tribunal, Raipur an

Judges reflect sense of continuity of values amid polls: CJI Chandrachud

While elections lie at the core of India's constitutional democracy, judges reflect a sense of continuity of constitutional values that protect the system, Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud said in his address at the Oxford Union Society. Addressing the famous University of Oxford institution on Tuesday on the topic of the humanising role adjudicators can play in society, the senior-most judge of India's top court highlighted the role of technology in injecting greater transparency into the judicial system. Acknowledging some of the "unfair" criticism aimed at judges on social media, the Chief Justice asserted that the overall impact of technology is to help the judiciary reach out to a wider section of society. "Elections lie at the core of constitutional democracy judges are not elected in India and for a reason; judges reflect a sense of continuity of conditions, a continuity of constitutional values," he said in response to a question referencing the general elections, the

Pune car crash: Minor's parents sent to police custody till June 5

A Pune court on Sunday remanded parents of a 17-year-old boy allegedly involved in the Porsche car accident in police custody till June 5 in a case pertaining to destruction of evidence. The duo is being probed for their alleged role in tampering with the blood sample of the minor following the car accident on May 19 in Maharashtra's Pune city, which claimed the lives of two IT professionals. The minor's mother, Shivani Agarwal, was arrested on June 1, after revelation that the boy's blood samples were replaced with hers. The police had taken custody of his father, realtor Vishal Agrawal, arrested earlier in a related case, for allegedly being involved in the destruction of evidence. The police produced the duo before a holiday court in Maharashtra's Pune city and sought their remand, which was allowed till June 5. The police told the court that the Agarwal couple conspired and destroyed the evidence related to the accident. They went to a state-run hospital and manipulated the b

No illegal religious places be permitted on govt land, says Kerala HC

The Kerala High Court has directed that no illegal religious places should be permitted on government land, irrespective of the religion. The High Court said that God is "omnipotent" and is everywhere, including in the bodies of believers, their homes and wherever they go. "Therefore, the believers need not encroach upon government land to construct religious structures. Let it be distributed to landless people and used for mankind. God will be more happy in such a situation and will shower blessings on all believers," Justice P V Kunhikrishnan said. The direction and observations by the court came on a plea by the Plantation Corporation of Kerala Ltd seeking directions to the state government, police and Pathanamthitta district authorities to identify the properties leased to it and evict all the encroachers from there. Allowing the Corporation's plea, the court directed the authorities to identify the properties leased to it and "evict all encroachers including illegal religious

Roadside trees not to be cut in favour of commerce: Kerala HC to govt

The Kerala High Court has directed the state government to ensure no trees on roadsides are felled merely because they obstruct commercial activities. The High Court said that trees can be cut and removed only if they are in damaged condition and as a result pose a danger to public safety. A decision regarding that should be taken by a committee constituted in accordance with a 2010 government order regulating the felling and disposal of trees growing on government lands, Justice P V Kunhikrishnan said. "Without such a decision, no trees on the roadside of the State shall be cut and removed by any authorities. The Chief Secretary of the State shall issue necessary orders to that effect. "...the State of Kerala should see that no request to cut and remove trees on the roadsides of the State can be permitted without sufficient reasons. Trees give cool shades, pure oxygen and shelter to birds and animals," the court said in its order of May 22. The court's ruling came while dismissin

If INDIA bloc comes to power, will free judiciary of 'pressure': Kejriwal

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Wednesday that if the INDIA bloc comes to power, it will free the judiciary from "tremendous pressure" at present, and added that this will lead to his release from jail on June 5 as all cases against him are bogus. After being freed from Tihar jail on interim bail, Kejriwal had said in his election rallies that he will be free the day after the results of the Lok Sabha elections are announced on June 4 if the opposition INDIA bloc wins. In an interview to PTI Videos, Kejriwal was asked how he could make such a statement, which implies that the INDIA bloc will twist the court's arm to get him freed despite serious corruption charges against him. "Judiciary is under tremendous pressure currently. Everyone knows how much pressure they are working under now," Kejriwal said in his first interview to a media house after being freed on bail. Asked if he meant that a possible future government of the INDIA bloc will also put pressure on the cou

SC Collegium recommends two judges as permanent judges of Gauhati HC

The Supreme Court Collegium headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) D Y Chandrachud has recommended to the Centre the names of two additional judges for appointment as permanent judges of the Gauhati High Court. The Collegium, also comprising Justices Sanjiv Khanna and B R Gavai, recommended that Justice Rajesh Sekhri be appointed as an additional judge of the Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh High Court for a fresh term of one year with effect from July 29, 2024. "... the Collegium resolves to recommend that Justice Susmita Phukan Khaund and Justice Mitali Thakuria, additional judges, be appointed as permanent judges of the Gauhati High Court against the existing vacancies," said one of the Collegium resolutions uploaded on the apex court website. It noted that the Collegium of the Gauhati High Court had unanimously recommended on April 1 the names of these two judges for appointment as permanent judges. "The chief ministers of the States of Assam, Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh and the ..

Handover the land for Bombay High Court building by September, says SC

The Supreme Court on Friday asked the Maharashtra government to strive to handover by the end of September the first tranche of land for construction of a new Bombay High Court building. A bench headed by Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud asserted that the state authorities need not wait till the end of the year to handover the entire land and smaller areas can be given as they become available. "We direct the Maharashtra government to make all endeavour to hand over the first tranche of land of 9.64 acre by the end of September 2024. The government of Maharashtra need not wait till December to handover the entire 9.64 acre and smaller areas could be handed over. All endeavour be made for 9.64 acre to be handed over by September 30, 2024," the court said. The top court was hearing a case under its suo motu (on its own) jurisdiction, initiated after taking note of an April 29 letter petition of Bombay Bar Association president Nitin Thakker and other bar leaders with respect to

Battle over butter chicken's legacy heats up with new court evidence

Two Indian restaurant chains have been sparring since January at the Delhi High Court

Verdict of Constitution bench binding on benches of lesser strength: SC

A judgement of a Constitution bench would be "binding" on benches of lesser strength, the Supreme Court has said while recalling an April 2022 verdict delivered by it. In its order dated April 7, 2022, the apex court had held that a panchayat cannot claim ownership of the land which has been taken from the real owners from their permissible ceiling limits under the land law in Haryana. The apex court had consequently said panchayats can only manage and control the land which has been taken from the owners and cannot claim title. "It is pertinent to note here that for the land taken from the proprietors by applying pro-rata cut from the permissible ceiling limits of the proprietors, management and control alone vests with the panchayat but such vesting of management and control is irreversible and the land would not revert to the proprietors for redistribution as the common purposes for which land has been carved out not only include the present requirements but the future requiremen

Indian courts have come to be reimagined as democratic spaces, says CJI

CJI Chandrachud also pointed crucial areas in which digitisation and technology can help us create better justice delivery mechanisms

Advocates can't be held liable under Consumer Protection Act, says SC

The Supreme Court on Tuesday held that advocates are not liable for deficiency of services under the Consumer Protection Act 1986 and cannot be sued for poor service before consumer courts. A bench of Justices Bela M Trivedi and Pankaj Mithal said the legal profession is sui generis (unique) and the nature of work is specialised and cannot be compared with other professions. "Advocates have to respect client's autonomy, not entitled to make concessions without express instructions from client and transgress authority. Considerable amount of direct control is with client of advocate. This strengthens our opinion that contract is of personal service and excluded from definition of service under Consumer Protection Act," the bench said. The judgement came on plea filed by bar bodies, such as Bar Council of India, Delhi High Court Bar Association and Bar of Indian Lawyers, and other individuals challenging a 2007 verdict of the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC), ..

Ex-Judge Abhijit Gangopadhyay moves Cal HC, alleges police overaction

Former Judge Abhijit Gangopadhyay, a BJP candidate from Tamluk Lok Sabha seat, on Monday moved the Calcutta High Court alleging police overaction by registering an attempt to murder case against him. Justice Jay Sengupta, before whose court the matter was mentioned, directed that the petition will be taken up for hearing on Tuesday. Alleging malafide and overaction on the part of police, Gangopadhyay's lawyer Rajdeep Majumder submitted before the court that the FIR was lodged to prevent him from campaigning for the election. Majumder stated that section 307 (attempt to murder) was registered against Gangopadhyay. Gangopadhyay, who resigned as a judge of the Calcutta High Court in March, is a BJP candidate from Tamluk Lok Sabha constituency. An alleged incident of protest against him by some persons claiming to belong to a teachers' organisation is stated to have taken place when Gangopadhyay went to file his nomination papers for the polls.

Muslims can't claim rights in live-in relationship when having spouse: HC

The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court on Wednesday said that Muslims cannot claim rights in a live-in relationship when they have a living spouse, as such a relationship is not permitted under the tenets of Islam. A bench of justices AR Masoodi and AK Srivastava-I made the observations while hearing a writ petition by Sneha Devi and Mohd Shadab Khan, who were seeking protection from police action after the woman's parents filed a kidnapping case against Khan, and directed that Sneha Devi be sent to her parents under security. The petitioners claimed that they were in a live-in relationship but the woman's parents lodged a police complaint accusing Khan of kidnapping and inducing her to marry him. They also sought protection of their lives and liberty, saying they were adults and as per the apex court, they were free to reside together in a live-in relationship. "Islamic tenets do not permit live-in relationships during the subsisting marriage. The position may be different

Lawsuit asks if Facebook users can control their feeds using external tools

Do social media users have the right to control what they see or don't see on their feeds? A lawsuit filed against Facebook parent Meta Platforms Inc. is arguing that a federal law often used to shield internet companies from liability also allows people to use external tools to take control of their feed even if that means shutting it off entirely. The Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University filed a lawsuit Wednesday against Meta Platforms on behalf of an Amherst professor who wants to release a tool that enables users to unfollow all the content fed to them by Facebook's algorithm. The tool, called Unfollow Everything 2.0, is a browser extension that would let Facebook users unfollow friends, groups and pages and empty their newsfeed the stream of posts, photos and videos that can keep them scrolling endlessly. The idea is that without this constant, addicting stream of content, people might use it less. If the past is any indication, Meta will not be keen on t

As SC highlights climate change, lawyers draw attention towards attribution

Amid the likelihood of a rise in litigations following the Supreme Court's observation that climate change impacts the constitutional guarantee of the right to equality, scientists have urged for fixing inadequacies in data and modelling for attribution in such lawsuits. Attribution science determines the likelihood of an extreme weather event due to climate change. Environment lawyers and field experts agree that being evidence-based, attribution science will be crucial to climate litigation and play a key role in limiting baseless lawsuits. "Attribution data has been important in litigation as it is scientific and evidentiary in nature. It definitely will help support a case," said Prachi Pratap, a Supreme Court advocate. The Supreme Court on April 18 said that by impacting clean environment and health, climate change impacts the constitutional guarantee of the right to equality. "Without a clean environment which is stable and unimpacted by the vagaries of climate change, the r

India set for major overhaul of criminal justice system with new laws: CJI

Hailing the enactment of the new criminal justice laws as a watershed moment for society, Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud on Saturday said India is set for a significant overhaul of its criminal justice system. Speaking at a conference here on 'India's Progressive Path in the Administration of Criminal Justice System', he said the new laws would be successful if "we as citizens adopt them". The newly enacted laws have transitioned India's legal framework on criminal justice into a new age, Chief Justice of India (CJI) Chandrachud said. He also said that much-needed improvements have been introduced to protect the interests of victims and carry out investigation and prosecution of offences efficiently. "The enactment of these laws by Parliament is a clear indication that India is changing and on the move, and needs new legal instruments to deal with the current challenges," the CJI said. Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal, Attorney General R Venkataramani and Solicitor General Tush

NCLAT shuns insolvency plea against Parsvnath Landmark Developers

The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) has dismissed the plea filed by four unit buyers of Parsvnath Landmark Developers to initiate insolvency proceedings against the subsidiary of Parsvnath Developer. The appellate tribunal upheld the orders of the Principal bench of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), which on October 17, 2023, rejected their plea on technical grounds as the number of petitioners was only four, while the total number of allottees by Parsvnath Landmark is 488. The matter relates to La Tropicana Khyber Pass, a Delhi-based project of the realty firm. Section 7(1) of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) mandates a petition on behalf of the homebuyers (as financial creditors) is maintainable only if either 100 in number or 10 per cent of the allottees join the petition. Moreover, the appellate tribunal also rejected the plea of flat buyers that they are of a different class, having an order from Delhi RERA directing the developer to refund the