Page 3 - Law

SC upholds Delhi HC order, rejects Waqf Board claim on Shahdara gurudwara

A bench of Justices Sanjay Karol and Satish Chandra Sharma ruled that the gurudwara's continued existence since 1947 outweighed the Waqf Board's claim to the Shahdara property

US Supreme Court eases key environmental law to speed development projects

The Supreme Court on Thursday narrowed the scope of environmental reviews required for major infrastructure projects in a ruling that could accelerate development of railroads, highways and pipelines around the country. The 8-0 decision follows an appeal to the high court from backers of a multibillion-dollar oil railroad expansion project in Utah, which is aimed at quadrupling oil production in the remote area of sandstone and sagebrush. Environmental groups said the decision would have sweeping impacts on how the National Environmental Policy Act is applied. The landmark environmental law requires federal agencies to study the likely environmental impacts of government-funded projects in an often lengthy review process. President Donald Trump's administration has already said it's speeding up that process after the president in January declared a national energy emergency and vowed to boost US oil and gas production. Justice Brett Kavanaugh referred to the decision as a course ..

SC admits Byju's promoters' pleas, next insolvency hearing on July 21

SC admits cases filed by Byju's promoters challenging NCLAT ruling on BCCI insolvency plea despite settlement; interim relief to be taken up in July

Senior lawyers should not argue cases during summer recess, says SC

The Supreme Court on Wednesday said senior lawyers should not argue cases during summer recess. A bench comprising Justices B V Nagarathna and Satish Chandra Sharma said junior lawyers should be given opportunities during vacation. "Senior lawyers should not argue cases during these partial working days," the bench told senior advocates Mukul Rohatgi, Abhishek Manu Singhvi and Neeraj Kishan Kaul. The lawyers were appearing in a plea filed against an order of the National Company Law Tribunal. One of the counsels in the matter mentioned the matter seeking adjournment as senior advocate Shyam Divan was not available. The top court has rechristened its traditional summer vacations as "partial court working days". The development was a part of an amendment in Supreme Court Rules, 2013, which have now become Supreme Court (Second Amendment) Rules, 2024, notified on November 5. "The length of the partial court working days and the number of holidays for the court and the offices of t

Do expert committees matter? A discarded draft law reveals their influence

SRAs are a major author of law in India today. They have been given the power to legislate - that is, to write legal instruments that demand certain behaviour of private persons

SC condemns terrorist attack in Pahalgam, judges pay tribute to victims

The Supreme Court on Wednesday expressed anguish and strongly condemned the heinous terrorist attack that targeted tourists at Pahalgam in Jammu & Kashmir on Tuesday. Judges and the lawyers in the top court paid tributes to victims by observing a moment of silence. In a full court meeting held on Wednesday morning, the top court unanimously adopted a resolution denouncing the act of terror, the apex court said in a statement. This diabolical act of mindless violence has shaken the conscience of all and is a stark reminder of the brutality and inhumanity that terrorism unleashes," it said. The top court resolution went on, The Supreme Court of India pays its respectful tribute to the innocent lives snuffed out brutally and prematurely while also expressing its heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families. May the departed souls rest in peace and may those who were injured recover soon. The nation stands with the victims and their families in this hour of indescribable grief." The

Only 95 out of 795 judges across 25 HCs, SC have declared assets: Data

The Madras High Court has seen just five of its 65 judges disclose their assets. At the Chhattisgarh HC, only one out of 16 judges has done so

Reward lawyers involved in free legal aid: Parliamentary panel tells govt

Absence of structured incentives has deterred widespread participation of lawyers in free legal aid activities, a parliamentary panel has noted while recommending setting up of a "national registry" for pro-bono lawyers, offering recognition and linking their contributions to career advancement opportunities. The parliamentay committee on law and personnel also lamented that para-legal volunteers (PLVs) remain an under-utilised resource despite their potential to connect marginalised communities with essential legal services. In its action taken report on its previous report on 'review of the working of legal aid under the Legal Services Authority Act, the committee said efforts to encourage pro-bono (free legal service offered, especially to the poor) work and enhance lawyer compensation are progressing. "... yet the absence of structured incentives and formal recognition continues to deter widespread participation. Recognising the vital role of effective legal representation, ...

Coal scam: Delhi court discharges former coal secretary H C Gupta

A Delhi court has discharged former coal secretary H C Gupta and ex-joint secretary (coal) K S Kropha in a case related to alleged irregularities in allocation of Mednirai coal bock in Jharkhand. Special Judge Sanjay Bansal granted the relief to Gupta and Kropha citing lack of evidence against them in the case. "It is held that both the accused public servants are entitled for discharge and are hereby discharged," the judge said in an order passed on April 4. The judge, however, directed framing of charges of criminal conspiracy and cheating against Kohinoor Steel Pvt. Ltd., its director, Vijay Bothra, and employee Rakesh Khare, saying "they dishonestly and fraudulently induced MoS (Ministry of Steel), MoC (Ministry of Coal) and Govt. of India to allocate Mednirai Coal Block to the company." "They appear to have been in conspiracy with one another. The circumstances tend to show existence of such a conspiracy," the judge said. The present case relates to allocation of Mednirai coa

Savarkar remarks case: Court allows Rahul Gandhi's plea for summons trial

A Pune court on Monday allowed Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's plea to convert the defamation case over his alleged remarks on V D Savarkar from a summary to a summons trial so that historical references and evidence can be discussed. Judicial Magistrate (First Class) Amol Shinde of the Special Court for MPs/MLAs allowed the application filed by Gandhi's lawyer Milind Pawar. The case, prima facie, falls in the category of a summons case, the court order said. "In the present case the accused is claiming and raising questions of facts as well as law which are complex in nature. The accused also raised certain issues which will be determined on historical facts. Therefore, in my view it is undesirable to try this case as a summary. Because in summary trial detail evidence, cross examination is not taken," it said. "In (summons) case, the accused has to lead detailed evidence and has to cross examine the witnesses of the complainant thoroughly. It shall be incumbent in the interest of

Razing bulldozer justice: Apex court underlines the need for due process

Apex court underlines the need for due process

Appoint prosecutors on merit, not on political leanings: Supreme Court

The apex court's remarks in the judgment came while hearing a plea against a decision of the Punjab and Haryana High Court

SC to hear Tuesday plea challenging validity of 1991 Places of Worship Act

The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear on Tuesday a plea challenging the validity of a provision of the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991, which mandates maintaining the religious character of a place as it existed on August 15, 1947. As per the cause list of April 1, the plea is slated to come up for hearing before a bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar. The law prohibits conversion of any place of worship and provides for the maintenance of the religious character of any place of worship as it existed on August 15, 1947. However, the dispute relating to the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid at Ayodhya was kept out of its purview. The plea has sought the apex court's direction allowing courts to pass appropriate orders to ascertain the original religious character of a place of worship. It has challenged section 4(2) of the Act that barred proceedings to change the religious character, besides prohibiting filing of fresh cases for the ..

Codifying citizens' role in lawmaking for more accountable legislation

In a democracy, citizens hold the highest office, vested with significant rights and responsibilities

SC asks Danny Gaekwad to deposit Rs 600 crore for Religare counter offer

It asked US-based investor Danny Gaekwad to deposit Rs 600 crore in terms of its competing offer against the Burman family's open offer on or before February 12

No proposal at present to hike salaries of SC, HC judges, says govt

There is no proposal at present to hike the salary and allowances of Supreme Court and high court judges, the government said in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday. The last time their salary, allowances and pensions were hiked was in 2017. "Presently, no proposal for enhancing pay, allowances and pension etc for the judges of Supreme Court and High Courts is under consideration of the government," Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal said in a written reply. He said the pay, allowance and pension in respect of judges of the Supreme Court and the 25 high courts are governed by The Supreme Court Judges (Salaries and Conditions of Service) Act, 1958 and The High Court Judges (Salary and Conditions of Services) Act, 1954 respectively. The salary, pension and allowances of judges of the higher were last revised with effect from January 1, 2016 following the implementation of the 7th Pay Commission recommendation by the government, through an amendment in both the laws. The chief justice of India

AGI Greenpac bid for Hindustan National Glass unsustainable: Supreme Court

The case pertains to HNG, which was admitted to insolvency in October 2021. Two bidders, AGI Greenpac and Independent Sugar Corp. (INSCO), were vying for HNG

AIBE 19 exam result 2024 to be out soon; here's how to check and download

The AIBE 19 exam result is expected to be out soon. This exam is mandatory for law graduates to practice law in India and obtain the Certificate of Practice (CoP)

Delhi High Court tells SpiceJet to pay $2.67 million to lessor in a week

Chairman and Managing Director of SpiceJet Ajay Singh appeared before the Delhi High Court during the hearing

Delhi High Court exempts electricity commissions' fees from GST

The judgment came in response to show cause notices (SCNs) issued by tax authorities demanding GST on regulatory fees under the Central GST (CGST) Act, 2017, and the Integrated GST (IGST) Act, 2017