Page 8 - Law

Pak's law minister advocates for minority judges to join higher judiciary

Pakistan's Law Minister Azam Nazir Tarar has advocated for judges from minority communities to join Pakistan's higher judiciary. Speaking at the Justice A R Cornelius Conference held here on Saturday, Tarar emphasised the importance of religious freedom and minority rights in Pakistan and expressed his aspiration for judges from minority communities to join the country's higher judiciary, the Express Tribune newspaper reported on Sunday. The minister highlighted that Pakistan's Constitution guarantees complete religious freedom. At the same time, he lamented the decline in religious tolerance post-Afghan war. Tarar talked about the ongoing efforts to establish a Minority Rights Commission and proposed reserving quotas for minority law officers and legal advisors. Supreme Court Justice Mansoor Ali Shah echoed Tarar's sentiments and advocated for the appointment of minority judges to the higher judiciary. According to data released by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics in 2021, there

CM Kejriwal to return to Tihar jail on June 2 as court denies further bail

After 21 days of freedom, AAP convener and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal will be back in the Tihar Jail on June 2 in the excise policy case as a city court Saturday reserved its order on his plea seeking interim bail on medical grounds. A day before he surrenders before the jail authorities, Kejriwal held a meeting of the AAP's political affairs committee at his residence this morning. He later attended the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) bloc meeting at Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge's home. Kejriwal was released from the jail on May 10 on interim bail granted by the Supreme Court for campaigning in the Lok Sabha polls. Kejriwal said on Friday that he will leave around 3 pm on Sunday to surrender before the jail authorities. The city court on Saturday reserved for June 5 its order on an application moved by Kejriwal seeking interim bail in the money laundering case linked to alleged excise policy scam. The court observed that the plea was fo

Delhi HC dismisses with costs plea seeking reasons from SC collegium

The Delhi High Court has dismissed with costs of Rs 25,000 a petition seeking a direction to the Supreme Court collegium to provide detailed reasons while refusing to accept recommendations for appointment of high court judges. Petitioner Rakesh Kumar Gupta also sought directions to the top court collegium to provide the "qualification" considered for appointment as a high court judge and publish monthly data related to pending and disposal of recommendations. Justice Subramonium Prasad observed that the court cannot sit in appeal over the subjective satisfaction of the Supreme Court's collegium and the petition was a "complete waste of judicial time". "This court is inclined to dismiss the writ petition imposing costs of Rs 25,000 on the petitioner to be deposited with the Armed Forces Battle Casualties Welfare Fund within a period of four weeks from today. The writ petition is dismissed along with pending application(s), if any," the court said in an order passed on May 27. The .

Swati Maliwal assault case: Court dismisses Bibhav Kumar's bail petition

A court here on Monday dismissed the bail plea of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's close aide Bibhav Kumar who is accused of assaulting AAP MP Swati Maliwal at the CM's residence. Metropolitan Magistrate Gaurav Goyal rejected the bail plea of Kumar, a personal assistant of the CM, after hearing arguments from both sides in the court. A detailed order on the matter is awaited. During the proceedings, Rajya Sabh MP Maliwal told the court that there was a threat to her life and grave danger to her family if Kumar was released. She claimed that a one-sided video about the incident "was made by a YouTuber", following which she started receiving the threats. A couple of videos from the chief minister's residence from the day of the incident on May 13 have surfaced on social media, one showed Maliwal having an argument with security personnel, while the other showed her walking out of the CM's residence in the Civil Lines. Maliwal's advocate said that despite the fact that Kumar was in j

Court convicts Medha Patkar in defamation case filed by Delhi L-G Saxena

A Delhi court on Friday convicted Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) leader Medha Patkar in a defamation case lodged against her by V K Saxena, the incumbent lieutenant governor of the national capital. Metropolitan Magistrate Raghav Sharma found Patkar guilty of criminal defamation. Under the relevant law, the activist may get a jail term of two years or fine or both as the punishment. Patkar and Saxena have been locked in a legal battle since 2000 after she filed a suit against him for publishing advertisements against her and the Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA). Saxena was then the chief of Ahmedabad-based NGO National Council for Civil Liberties. Saxena had also filed two cases against her for making derogatory remarks against him on a TV channel and issuing a defamatory press statement.

Porsche crash: Court cancels bail of Pune teen, sends him to remand home

Following an outcry, the Juvenile Justice Board here on Wednesday cancelled the bail granted to a 17-year-old youth allegedly involved in a car accident and remanded him to an observation home till June 5. The board had on Sunday granted bail to him hours after the accident in which two persons were killed, while also asking him to write a 300-word essay on road accidents, an order that drew an onslaught of criticism from various quarters. Police then approached the Board again, seeking a review of its order and permission to treat the teenager as an adult accused on the ground that the crime was of heinous nature. Police have registered a First Information Report against the minor, son of a real estate developer, under IPC sections 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 304 A (causing death by negligence), 279 (rash driving ), 337 (causing hurt by an act which endangers human life), 338 (causing grievous hurt by an act endangering life or personal safety) and relevant ...

SC scraps pleas for review of verdict upholding revocation of Article 370

The Supreme Court has dismissed a batch of petitions seeking review of its December 11, 2023 verdict that unanimously upheld the Centre's decision to abrogate provisions of Article 370 bestowing special status to the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir. A five-judge bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud considered the pleas in chambers and dismissed applications for listing of the review petition in open Court. "Having perused the review petitions, there is no error apparent on the face of the record. No case for review under Order XLVII Rule 1 of the Supreme Court Rules 2013. The review petitions are, therefore, dismissed," the bench, also comprising justices Sanjiv Khanna, B R Gavai, Surya Kant and A S Bopanna (since retired) said in its May 1 order. It also rejected permission to appear and argue in person, a request made by various petitioners. The review petitions were filed by Awami National Conference, Jammu and Kashmir People Democratic Party, CPI(M) leader Mohamme

Excise scam case: HC dismisses Sisodia's bail pleas, AAP disagrees

After the rejection of the bail pleas of Manish Sisodia in the excise case, the AAP on Tuesday said the party "respectfully disagrees" with the Delhi High Court's decision and will approach the Supreme Court to seek "justice" for the former Delhi deputy chief minister. The high court on Tuesday dismissed the bail pleas of Sisodia in money laundering and corruption cases lodged by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the CBI respectively in connection with the alleged liquor scam. Addressing a press conference, Delhi minister Atishi said the excise policy case is a "political conspiracy" of the BJP. "We respect HC but we respectfully disagree with its decision. This alleged liquor scam is a political conspiracy by BJP. It is a political conspiracy to attack AAP, crush and trample the party. "When the BJP couldn't defeat AAP in Delhi and Punjab in the electoral battle, this conspiracy was hatched," she charged. The AAP leader said there are certain facts that prove this is a ...

Maliwal assault case: Bibhav taken to Mumbai for retrieval of phone data

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's aide Bibhav Kumar, arrested for allegedly assaulting AAP MP Swati Maliwal, was taken to Mumbai to retreive data from his allegedly formatted phone, police said on Tuesday. Kumar is in a five-day police custody in connection with the alleged assault on Maliwal, a Rajya Sabha MP, at the Delhi CM's residence. Police said Kumar had formatted his phone after transferring its data to some person or device in Mumbai. His mobile phone was seized following his arrest but it was found to have been formatted, they said. A five-member police team landed at the Mumbai airport around 4.30 pm with Kumar. They took him to many locations, including the place where he stayed before coming to Delhi on May 18. Kumar's phones, laptop and CCTV recordings have been sent for forensic examination, an officer said. The officer said as the police custody of Kumar is ending on Thursday, investigators are trying to collect all the evidence related to the case. Maliwal

SC notice to Centre on plea alleging overuse of pesticides on crops

The Supreme Court on Friday sought response from the Centre and others on a plea claiming overuse of pesticides and other chemicals on crops and food items is resulting in deaths across the country. A bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra issued notices to the Union government, Ministry of Agriculture, Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) and others while seeking their replies to the plea. Senior advocate Anitha Shenoy told the court that the petitioner has collected data from across the country showing a very high number of deaths due to pesticides. The top court was hearing a plea filed by advocate Akash Vashisht. "The use and overuse of pesticides and inorganic chemical substances, including insecticides, weedicides, fungicides, rodenticides, herbicides or any other inorganic chemical substances, on food crops and food items has emerged as the primary and predominant cause of causing cancers and other fatal ...

In matters concerning liberty of citizens, every single day counts, says SC

Every single day counts in matters concerning the liberty of citizens, the Supreme Court said on Friday while asking the Delhi High Court to decide on the regular bail plea of a businessman in a corruption case related to the now scrapped Delhi excise policy. The petitioner's regular bail application has been heard by the high court on 40 occasions and now the matter has been adjourned to July 8, a bench of Justices B R Gavai and Sandeep Mehta was told by senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for businessman Amandeep Singh Dhall. "This cannot be that after 40 hearings, you don't decide the regular bail," he said. The bench noted it has been informed that his regular bail plea was filed in July last year. "In matters concerning the liberty of citizens, every single day counts. Keeping the matter of regular bail pending after almost 11 months deprives the petitioner of his liberty," the bench said. "We request the high court to decide the bail application prior to the closure for .

NewsClick founder Purkayastha released from Tihar Jail on SC orders

NewsClick founder and editor-in-chief Prabir Purkayastha was released from the Tihar Jail here on Wednesday, hours after the Supreme Court declared his arrest "invalid". Purkayastha had been lodged in the jail since November 2 last year. The Delhi Police's Special Cell had arrested Purkayastha on October 3 last year under anti-terror law Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) for allegedly receiving money to peddle pro-China propaganda through stories. According to his lawyer Arshdeep Singh Khurana, Purkayastha came out of jail number 10 of the prison in Rohini at 9 pm. His family members and friends received him outside the jail complex. Observing that the right to life and personal liberty was the "most sacrosanct" fundamental right guaranteed under Articles 20, 21 and 22 of the Constitution, the apex court said any person arrested over allegations of commission of offences under the UAPA or other offences has a fundamental and a statutory right to be informed about the grou

TikTok creators sue US govt over law that could ban popular platform

Eight TikTok content creators sued the U.S. government on Tuesday, issuing another challenge to the new federal law that would ban the popular social media platform nationwide if its China-based parent company doesn't sell its stakes within a year. Attorneys for the creators argued in the lawsuit that the law violates users' First Amendment rights to free speech, echoing legal arguments made by TikTok in a separate lawsuit filed by the company last week. The legal challenge could end up before the Supreme Court. The complaint filed Tuesday comes from a diverse set of content creators, including a Texas-based rancher who has previously appeared in a TikTok commercial, a creator in Arizona who uses TikTok to show his daily life and spread awareness about LGBTQ issues as well as a business owner who sells skincare products on TikTok Shop, the e-commerce arm of the platform. The lawsuit said the creators rely on TikTok to express themselves, learn, advocate for causes, share opinions, .

Excise case: Court to consider ED chargesheet against Kavitha on May 14

A Delhi court is likely to consider on Tuesday a fresh charge sheet filed by the Enforcement Directorate in the Delhi excise policy-linked money laundering case naming BRS leader K Kavitha and four others as accused. Special Judge for ED and CBI cases, Kaveri Baweja, who was likely to take up the charge sheet for cognisance on Monday, adjourned the matter for May 14. The ED on Friday filed the nearly 200-page prosecution complaint (charge sheet) along with annexures under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). Kavitha, an MLC of the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) party, three employees of a company that handled AAP's Goa campaign (Chariot Productions Media Pvt Ltd) -- Damodar Sharma, Prince Kumar and Chanpreet Singh -- and a former employee of India Ahead news channel Arvind Singh have been named as accused in the latest charge sheet, sources said. The federal agency had arrested 46-year-old Kavitha, the daughter of former Telangana chief minister K ...

Over 171,000 matters settled at second National Lok Adalat in Delhi

According to the official release, a total of 254,392 cases were referred to Lok Adalat

Forest fires: SC bats for preventive steps, says cloud seeding no solution

The Supreme Court on Wednesday said cloud seeding or "depending on rain god" is not the answer to the raging forest fires in Uttarakhand and that authorities will have to take preventive measures to tackle the problem. The Uttarakhand government apprised the apex court about the steps taken to control the forest fires and said 0.1 per cent of the wildlife cover in the state was on fire due to such incidents. The state government told a bench of Justices B R Gavai and Sandeep Mehta that since November last year, there were 398 forest fires in Uttarakhand and five people were killed in such incidents. Deputy Advocate General of Uttarakhand Jatinder Kumar Sethi told the court that all the fires were man-made. A total of 350 criminal cases have been lodged in connection with the forest fires, he said, adding that 62 people have been named in those. "People say that 40 per cent of Uttarakhand is on fire, whereas 0.1 per cent of the wildlife cover was on fire. And all this was man-made.

HC asks Centre to respond to plea on non-regulation of deepfake technology

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday sought the Centre's response on a PIL by veteran journalist Rajat Sharma against non-regulation of deepfake technology in the country and seeking directions to block public access to applications and software enabling creation of such content. A bench of Acting Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Manmeet PS Arora issued notice to the Union Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology on the petition. Deepfake technology facilitates creation of realistic videos, audio recordings and images that can manipulate and mislead viewers by superimposing the likeness of one person onto another, altering their words and actions, thereby presenting a false narrative or spreading misinformation. The bench said it was a major problem and sought to know from the central government if it was willing to act on the issue. Political parties are complaining about this as well. You are not taking any action, the court said. Rajat Sharma, the Chairman and ...

Excise scam case: Court extends Kavitha's judicial custody till May 14

A Delhi court on Tuesday extended till May 14 the judicial custody of BRS leader K Kavitha in a money laundering case related to the alleged excise scam. Special judge for CBI and ED matters Kaveri Baweja extended the custody of the Telangana MLC after she was produced before the court on expiry of her remand. During the proceedings, the Enforcement Directorate told the court the investigation was at a crucial stage and it may file a charge sheet against Kavitha within a week.

CLAT 2025: Exam date announced on consortiumofnlus.ac.in, details inside

The Consortium of National Law Universities has announced the CLAT 2025 exam dates in the official notice for Common Law Admission Test (CLAT) exam on the site consortiumofnlus.ac.in

Judge warns Trump of possible jail time, fines $1k for gag order violation

The judge presiding over Donald Trump's hush money trial has fined him $1,000 for violating his gag order and sternly warned the former president that additional violation could result in jail time. The fine marks the second sanction for Trump for inflammatory comments about witnesses since the start of the trial last month. He was fined $9,000 last week for nine violations. Judge Juan M Merchan warned Monday that additional gag order violations could potentially result in jail time, though he said that was the last thing I want to do.