Page 1249 - Law Crime
Benefit of ambiguity in tax exemption will be in favour of State: SC
Overruling its 21-year-old verdict, the Supreme Court today said that when there is ambiguity in tax exemption notification, the benefit of such uncertainty must be interpreted in favour of the State. It, however, reiterated that if in the event of ambiguity in a taxation liability statute, the benefit should go to the subject/assessee. A five-judge Constitution bench said that benefit of ambiguity in exemption notification of the government, which is subject to strict interpretation, cannot be claimed by the assessee. The bench headed by Justice Ranjan Gogoi said the burden of proving applicability of benefit would be on the assessee to show that his case comes within the parameters of the exemption clause or exemption notification. The bench, also comprising justices N V Ramana, R Banumathi, M M Shantanagoudar and S Abdul Nazeer over-ruled a three-judge bench verdict given in 1997 in a case of Sun Export Corporation versus Collector of Customs, Bombay in which it was held that in ...
3 cops held for extorting money in Bhilwara: police official
Three policemen posted at the Sultanpur police station of Kota district were held today with unaccounted Rs 1.31 lakh which they allegedly extorted from villagers in Bhilwara district of Rajasthan, officials said. The accused policemen had gone to Sawaipur village of Bhilwara in connection with a case lodged under the NDPS act. They threatened the villagers saying they would fabricate them in the case and extorted money, Additional SP, Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB-Bhilwara) Sobhagya Singh said. "On receiving information, we chased the police party and stopped it in front of the Bigod police station in the evening. During the checking of their vehicle, unaccounted cash of Rs 1,31,672 was recovered," he said. The accused policemen-- Ramavtar Meena (head constable), Bharatram and Sajid (both constables) -- were detained and action under the prevention of corruption act would be taken, he added.
Five criminals held in Delhi
Five members of a gang involved in robberies and snatchings at gun point here have been arrested, police said on Monday.
Former Akali minister Langah acquitted in rape case
Former SAD minister Sucha Singh Langah was acquitted today by a Gurdaspur court in a rape case filed against him by a lady constable. Langah was present in the court of Additional Sessions Judge Prem Kumar when the judgement was pronounced. The former minister was represented by defence counsels Santokh Singh Basra and Karanjit Singh. "It was a totally falsified case registered against me at the time of parliamentary elections. It was an act of political vendetta," Langah said. The alleged victim, a police constable, had filed a complaint with the then SSP Harcharan Singh Bhullar in September last year claiming she was repeatedly raped by the Akali leader. As evidence, she also handed over a video clip to the SSP. She also got her confessional statement recorded under section 164 of the CrPC in front of a judge. The video, however, went viral during the Gurdaspur by-polls severely denting the image of the SAD-BJP combine. After a preliminary inquiry was conducted by then DSP (city) A .
BDD chawl redevelopment: HC dismisses pvt firm's plea
The Bombay High Court today dismissed a petition filed by private construction firm ACC India Pvt Ltd, challenging the validity of a Rs 11,000-crore redevelopment project that was awarded to Tata Projects Limited. A bench of justices RM Borde and VM Deshpande held that the petitioner had failed to prove any illegality in the Maharashtra government and the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) awarding the tender to Tata Projects Ltd for the redevelopment of the BDD chawls in Mumbai. ACC had claimed in its plea that replies received from the the state and MHADA under the Right to Information Act had revealed that Tata Projects did not meet the requisite eligibility conditions to bid for the redevelopment work. The bench, however, dismissed the argument. A detailed judgment of the bench on the plea is likely to be made public later this week. As per the plea, the BDD chawls were developed by the British in the 1920s as low-cost housing facilities. There are 207 such
SC for report on prisons across the country
The Supreme Court on Monday sought a comprehensive report from the Centre and states on the condition of prisons and observation homes across the country.
Ex BJP MLA moves Guj HC seeking quashing of rape FIR filed against him
Former BJP MLA Jayanti Bhanushali has approached the Gujarat High Court seeking quashing of an FIR lodged against him after a 21-year-old woman accused him of rape. The petition was listed in the court of Justice P P Bhatt but did not come up for hearing today. Bhanushali's lawyer P B Khandheria said that the petition would come up for hearing tomorrow. In his petition, Bhanushali has alleged that the rape case against him has been concocted by a gang led by Manisha Goswami. In the petition, the former BJP MLA said Goswami had first targeted his relative Sunil Bhanushali and tried to extort Rs 10 crore from him. But his relative approached the police and Goswami was arrested and jailed, the petition said. Bhanushali's petition further claimed that, to extract revenge, Goswami had asked another member of her gang to target him. A 21-year-old woman had filed a complaint with Sarthana police station in Surat that Bhanushali had raped her on several occasions between November last year ..
Jilted lover sets ablaze minor girl in UP, commits suicide later
A 17-year-old girl died here after she was set ablaze allegedly by a jilted lover in the Alamnagar area here, police said today. The man later ended his life, they said. The incident occurred yesterday under the City Kotwali police station area here, police said. The accused, identified as Zahid Ansari (22), allegedly barged into the house of the minor victim and set her ablaze after sprinkling kerosene over her, Circle Officer Abhishek Pandey said. The victim gave the accused a chase in an attempt to catch him but lost unconscious as the flames engulfed her, he said. She was rushed to a local hospital from where she was referred to a hospital in Varanasi, where she died, Pandey said, adding that she had suffered about 80 per cent burn injuries. The accused often harassed the girl, he said. Police said when raids were conducted to nab Ansari, they were told that he had committed suicide by coming under a train at the Revara Paraspur railway crossing. Ansari's family members identified
CBI court grants bail to six accused in Muzaffarpur abduction
A special CBI court today granted bail to six persons, who were currently lodged in jail in connection with the abduction and murder of a 12-year-old from Muzaffarpur six years ago, after the agency failed to file a charge sheet. CBI special court in-charge judge Rajiv Ranjan Singh granted bail to the six accused after the investigating agency could not submit the charge sheet against them within the stipulated time. Giving the benefit to the accused persons under section 167 (2) of CrPC, the court said in its order that the accused persons could be released by furnishing two bail bond of Rs 10,000 each and sureties. This is the second time when the premier investigating agency could not file the charge sheet within a period of 90 days ever since it took over the probe from the state police four and half years ago. The state government had handed over probe to the crime branch, but the CBI took over the case in February 2014 on Supreme Court's order. The six were called for ...
Court sentences man to life for beating his wife to death
A Baripada court today sentenced a man to life imprisonment for beating his wife to death in February last year. Mayurbhanj District and Sessions Judge Sanjay Ranjan Bahidar convicted Sambhu Naik and sentenced him to life imprisonment. The court also ordered Naik to pay a fine of Rs 10,000. According to prosecution, Naik had beaten his wife Shanti Naik (30), mother of three, to death, at Patharsahi village under the jurisdiction of Kaptipada police station on the night of February 7, 2017. Police registered a murder case on the basis of a complaint filed by family members of the deceased woman. The court delivered its verdict after examining 15 witnesses during trial.
Manipur encounters: Yet to get complete records, says CBI
The CBI which is probing 41 cases related to extrajudicial killings in Manipur is yet to get complete records from local police, Army and paramilitary forces allegedly involved in the crime, officials said today. After the orders of the Supreme Court to register fresh cases in the fake encounters rather than re-registering police FIRs (a norm followed by the CBI), the agency has registered 27 cases and filed two charge sheets, they said. In one of the charge sheets in a custodial killing matter, the CBI has found that local police in its probe had falsely claimed that the victim had a fight with militants in which he was beaten up severely and succumbed to those injuries in custody. The CBI has chargesheeted a sub-inspector of the Manipur Police and others in the case while in another case of fake encounter a Deputy SP ranked officer has been chargesheeted for alleged murder. A total of 14 persons have been chargesheeted in these two cases, they said, adding charge sheets are ...
Myanmar journalist testifies he didn't know about documents
One of two Reuters journalists charged with possessing official information testified today that he knew nothing about documents that police allegedly found on his phone and had no idea where they came from. Kyaw Soe Oo and colleague Wa Lone have pleaded innocent to violating Myanmar's Official Secrets Act, under which they could get up to 14 years in prison if convicted. They were arrested in December and have been detained since then after being denied bail. The two and their supporters say they were framed by police, apparently because of their reporting on the brutal crackdown by security forces on minority Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar's Rakhine state. About 700,000 Rohingya fled to neighboring Bangladesh after the crackdown began last August. Their lawyer, Than Zaw Aung, told reporters after Monday's court session that documents presented as prosecution evidence were neither secret nor sensitive one was the agenda of a trip by the vice president which had already been publicized .
Malegaon blast: HC admits discharge pleas of Thakur, Kulkarni
The Bombay High Court today admitted pleas filed by Malegaon blast accused Sadhvi Pragya Thakur and her co-accused Sameer Kulkarni seeking discharge from the case. Six persons were killed and over a 100 injured when an explosive device, strapped on a motorcycle, went off near a mosque in Malegaon in Maharashtra on September 29, 2008. Thakur and Kulkarni have challenged the order of a special NIA court, which on December 27 last year, had dismissed their pleas of discharge. The NIA court had, however, given them partial relief by dropping charges against them under the stringent Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA). Thakur and her co-accused are still facing charges under the UAPA (Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and some provisions of the Indian Penal Code. Advocate Prashant Maggu, the lawyer for Thakur and Kulkarni, today told a high court bench of Justices Ranjit More and Anuja Prabhudessai that the special court had erred in rejecting the discharge pleas. He ...
Criminal Law Bill that proposes death penalty for child rape convicts passed in LS
The Lok Sabha on Monday passed the Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill 2018, which ensures stringent punishment for those convicted of raping girls below 12 years of age.The bill was taken up for discussion in the Lok Sabha earlier today. During the discussion, Minister of State (MoS) for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju said, "New provision proposes that court, where rape cases are trialed, should be presided by a woman judge. The statements in rape cases should be recorded by a woman police officer."Reacting to the rise in the number of rape cases against children, All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) President Asaduddin Owaisi said, "Law cannot stop the rape of children, change of men's mentality can."The bill will now replace the Criminal Law Ordinance promulgated by President Ram Nath Kovind on April 22, to strengthen the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.In the wake of an increase in incidents of rape of minors, the Union Cabinet on April 21 approved a number .
NGO moves SC to notify appointment of names reiterated by Collegium
An NGO today moved the Supreme Court seeking direction to the Centre to notify appointments of the candidates in the higher judiciary whose names have been reiterated by the Collegium. The Centre for Public Interest Litigation (CPIL) has also sought notification of appointment of candidates in cases where recommendations have been pending with the government for more than six weeks. The NGO alleged that the Centre's act of not notifying the names that have either been recommended more than six weeks back or have already been reiterated by the collegium is violative of the Supreme Court order. "The facts set out herein not only show complete disregard of the law so declared by this court but also a virtual breakdown of the consultative process thereby diminishing if not destroying the primacy of the Chief Justice of India with regard to appointment in the manner laid down in the judgment. "The picture that emerges reflects an extremely sorry state of affairs with regard to appointments
Manipur encounters: Expedite probe, issue involves life & death, says SC
The Supreme Court said today that cases of alleged fake encounters in Manipur by the Army, Assam Rifles and state police involved the issue of "life and death" of people and asked the CBI's SIT to expeditiously complete its investigations in these matter. A bench comprising Justices Madan B Lokur and U U Lalit was informed by CBI director Alok Kumar Verma, who was present in the court in pursuance to its direction, that two charge sheets were filed today before the competent court in the encounter cases and five more final reports would be filed by August 31. Verma said that 14 persons have been chargesheeted in two cases for the alleged offences of murder, criminal conspiracy and destruction of evidence under the provisions of Indian Penal Code (IPC). The CBI director was earlier summoned by the apex court which was unhappy over the "unduly long time" taken by the special investigating team (SIT) in probing the cases of alleged extra-judicial killings and fake encounters in ...
SC slams FGM practice in Dawoodi Bohra Muslim community
The Supreme Court today questioned the prevalent practice of female genital mutilation (FGM) of minor girls in the Dawoodi Bohra Muslim community, saying the women cannot be "subjugated" to the level where they have to "please" their husbands only. A bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra, which was hearing a plea seeking a ban on the practice, also referred to fundamental rights including Article 15 (prohibition of discrimination on grounds like caste, creed and sex) under the Constitution and said a person has the right to "have control over her body". The bench wondered and said, "when you are thinking of women (then) how can you go into the reverse gear". Attorney General K K Venugopal, appearing for the Centre, said that the government supported the plea against the practice of FGM. "Irrespective of how it (FGM) is performed, the issue is that it violates fundamental rights and more particularly Article 15," the bench, also comprising justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y ...
Six Dera followers acquitted in rioting case
A court here today acquitted six Dera Sacha Sauda followers in a case related to rioting that took place following the conviction of sect chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in a rape case on August 25 last year. District and Sessions Judge Ritu Tagore ordered the acquittal of six accused who were arrested by Haryana Police last year, defence counsel R S Chauhan said. The charges against the six persons could not be proved before the court, he said. The six persons were booked last year by the Panchkula Police on various charges including rioting and damage to public property and disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant. In May also, a court here had acquitted six followers of the sect accused of rioting charges in another related case of violence. Violence had broken out in Panchkula after Dera chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh was convicted of rape in August last year. The Dera chief is currently lodged in Sunaria jail in Rohtak.
SC refuses to entertain plea on paid news
The Supreme Court today refused to entertain a plea seeking action against 'paid news' after which the petitioner withdrew it to approach an appropriate forum. Paid news is a phenomenon by which political advertising is presented as news item. "Don't you think enough is enough," a bench headed by Justice Ranjan Gogoi asked BJP leader and advocate Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay, who had filed the petition. "Everybody who has a grievance in this world cannot come to the Supreme Court with a petition under Article 32," the bench, also comprising justices R Banumathi and Navin Sinha, said. Article 32 of the Constitution deals with the writ jurisdiction of the apex court through which citizens can seek the enforcement of their fundamental rights. During the brief hearing, the counsel appearing for Upadhyay said they had not approached the appropriate forum, that is the Election Commission of India, before filing the petition and wanted to withdraw the plea. "Counsel for the petitioner prays for ...
Mallya to return to UK court for extradition hearing tomorrow
Embattled liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya will return to Westminster Magistrates' Court in London tomorrow for closing arguments in his extradition trial and for the judge to set a timeline for a ruling in the high-profile case. The 62-year-old former Kingfisher Airlines boss, who has been on bail on an extradition warrant since his arrest in April last year, is fighting extradition to India on charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs 9,000 crores. The Senior District Judge (Emma Arbuthnot) will hear final submissions. Judgment will be reserved until a future date (to be arranged), said a spokesperson for the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), which is representing the Indian authorities in the case. At the last hearing in the case on April 27, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had received a boost in the case as Judge Arbuthnot confirmed that the bulk of the evidence submitted by the Indian authorities will be admissible in the case. The CBI had submitted a ...