Page 102 - Supreme Court

Delhi riots case: Expeditiously hear Sharjeel Imam bail plea, says SC

The Supreme Court on Friday told the Delhi High Court to expeditiously hear the bail plea of student activist Sharjeel Imam in an Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) case related to Delhi riots which took place in February 2020. A bench of Justices Bela M Trivedi and S C Sharma said it was not inclined to entertain the plea, which also sought bail under Article 32 of the Constitution. Imam's counsel, senior advocate Siddharth Dave, said the bail plea had been pending since 2022 while clarifying he was not pressing for bail at the present stage. The top court noted the high court would be hearing the case on November 25. "This being the writ petition filed under Article 32 of the constitution, we are not inclined to entertain the same. However, petitioner shall be at liberty to request the high court to hear the bail application as expeditiously as possible preferably on November 25, as fixed by the high court. The high court shall consider the said request," held the bench.

Journalists no longer need law degrees to cover Supreme Court, CJI rules

This change aims to broaden the scope for journalists without legal backgrounds, empowering more voices to report on India's top court

Aadhaar card not a valid document for determining someone's age: SC

The Supreme Court on Thursday set aside an order of the Punjab and Haryana High Court which had accepted Aadhaar card for determining the age of a road accident victim to grant compensation. A bench comprising Justices Sanjay Karol and Ujjal Bhuyan, therefore, said the age of the deceased had to be determined from the date of birth mentioned in the school leaving certificate under Section 94 of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015. "We find that the Unique Identification Authority of India, by way of its circular number 8 of 2023, has stated, in reference to an office memorandum issued by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology dated December 20, 2018, that an Aadhaar Card, while can be used to establish identity, is not per se proof of date of birth," noted the bench. When it came to determining the age, the top court accepted the contention of the claimant-appellants before it and upheld the judgment of the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal

Justice Sanjiv Khanna is new Chief Justice of India, to take oath on Nov 11

Justice Sanjiv Khanna was on Thursday appointed the 51st Chief Justice of India. He will take oath on November 11, a day after incumbent Justice D Y Chandrachud demits office on attaining the age of 65. Justice Chandrachud took over as the CJI on November 8, 2022. Justice Khanna will have a tenure of a little over six months as CJI and would demit office on May 13, 2025. "In exercise of the power conferred by the Constitution of India, Hon'ble President, after consultation with Hon'ble Chief Justice of India, is pleased to appoint Shri Justice Sanjiv Khanna, Judge of the Supreme Court of India as Chief Justice of India with effect from 11th November, 2024," Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal posted on X.

Those affected can come to court: SC on contempt against state demolitions

The Supreme Court on Thursday refused to entertain a plea alleging contempt of its order on demolition of properties by the authorities in Uttarakhand, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. A bench of Justices B R Gavai, P K Mishra and K V Viswanathan said it was not inclined to entertain the plea filed by the petitioner who was not directly or indirectly related to the alleged act. "We don't want to open a pandora's box," said the bench, adding, "Let the persons who are affected by demolition come to the court". The petitioner's counsel alleged the authorities in Haridwar, Jaipur and Kanpur had demolished properties in contempt of the apex court's order which had said demolition would not be carried out without its permission. "The Supreme Court's order was categorical that without the leave of this court, no demolition would be carried out," the counsel said. He alleged in one of these cases, the property was demolished soon after an FIR was lodged. Additional Solicitor General K M Nata

SC rejects plea alleging contempt of demolition order by three states

The Supreme Court on Thursday refused to entertain a plea alleging contempt of its order on demolition of properties by the authorities in Uttarakhand, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. A bench headed by Justice B R Gavai and comprising Justices P K Mishra and K V Viswanathan said it was not inclined to entertain the plea filed by the petitioner who was not directly or indirectly related to the alleged act. "We don't want to open a pandora box," said the bench. The court said it will hear those affected by the demolition of properties. The petitioner alleged that authorities in Haridwar, Jaipur and Kanpur had demolished properties in contempt of the apex court's order which had said that demolitions would not be carried out without its permission. The top court had earlier reserved its verdict on a batch of petitions raising the plea that properties, including those belonging to persons accused of crimes, were being demolished in several states. The apex court had said in its Septembe

Will hand over next tranche of land for new Bombay HC by Dec: Maha govt

The Maharashtra government on Thursday told the Supreme Court that it will hand over the next tranche of land by December for construction of the Bombay High Court's new building complex in Mumbai's Bandra region. The state government also informed a special bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices B R Gavai and JB Pardiwala that so far it has not received the possession of the Air India building in south Mumbai where the mediation centre of the Bombay High Court is proposed to be shifted. The state government said possession of 30.16 acre of land will be handed over to the high court in a phased manner, adding the first tranche measuring 4.39 acres has already been given. Next tranche of land will be made available by December, Birendra Saraf, Advocate General of the state government, told the bench. The law officer also said a judges committee headed by the chief justice of the Bombay High Court has fixed the next meeting with state officials on November 12-13

Supreme Court Bar objects to new Lady Justice statue without blindfold

The new statue, with open eyes, symbolises that Indian law is guided by awareness and vision, unlike the traditional blindfolded Lady Justice

Apex court upholds states' right to regulate taxes on industrial alcohol

The verdict is likely to impact entities involved in the industrial alcohol sector, who will now have to anticipate future regulatory changes

SC curtails Centre's authority on industrial alcohol; overturns 1990 ruling

Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, writing for himself and seven other judges, declared that the central government does not possess regulatory authority over industrial alcohol

SC defers hearing on pleas for criminalising marital rape by 4 weeks

Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud, who is demitting office on November 10, Wednesday deferred by four weeks hearing on pleas challenging the immunity granted to husbands in cases of marital rape. At the outset, a bench comprising the CJI and justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, which commenced final hearing on October 17 on the pleas, asked lawyers about the time they would be needing individually to argue. Senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, appearing for a party, said he will take at least a day to complete his submissions as he did not want to stifle the elaborate pleadings needed to be advanced in an important matter like this. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre, senior advocates Rakesh Dwivedi, who represents Maharashtra, and Indira Jaising, representing a woman, also said they would need a day each to argue. The apex court, which is closing for Diwali vacation on October 26, reopens on November 4 and the CJI will be effectively left with five working d

'Not aware of need for court approval': Delhi LG tells SC on tree felling

On October 16, the Supreme Court gave Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena an October 22 deadline to take action against DDA officials for the illegal felling of trees

SC slams centre for ineffective 'toothless' environmental laws, penalties

The Supreme Court on Wednesday pulled up the Centre for making the environment protection law toothless, and said the provision under the CAQM Act which deals with penalty for stubble burning was not being implemented. A bench of Justices Abhay S Oka, Ahsanuddin Amanulllah and Augustine George Masih said the Commission for Air Quality Management in National Capital Region and Adjoining Areas Act of 2021 (CAQM Act) was enacted without creating required machinery for implementing the provision to curb air pollution. Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati, appearing for the Centre, said section 15 of the CAQM Act, which deals with penalty for stubble burning, will be implemented effectively as regulations for it will be issued in 10 days. She submitted that an adjudicating officer will be appointed and all necessary actions will be taken to enforce the law effectively. Bhati pointed out that the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) has issued notices to senior ...

Byju's in trouble again as SC scraps NCLAT ruling on insolvency proceedings

A bench led by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud revoked the NCLAT's approval of Byju's settlement of Rs 158.9 cr in outstanding dues to the BCCI

Haryana suspends 24 agri dept officials for failing to stop stubble burning

Haryana's Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare Department has suspended 24 officials over alleged failure to take adequate steps to prevent stubble burning incidents in their respective areas. An order in this regard was issued on October 20. While the order mentioned that the officials are suspended on administrative grounds, a senior officer of the department on Tuesday said the action has been taken because of the alleged failure of these officials to prevent stubble burning incidents. He said that more stubble burning cases were found in their areas. The officials, who have been placed under suspension, include agriculture inspectors, supervisors and agriculture development officers from nine districts --Jind, Panipat, Hisar, Kaithal, Karnal, Fatehabad, Kurukshetra, Sonipat and Ambala. When reporters here on Tuesday asked Haryana's Agriculture Minister Shyam Singh Rana the reason behind suspension of the 24 officials, he said, "The reason is that stubble should not be burnt." "Wh

Criticism is everyone's right, not levelling defamatory allegations: BJP

The BJP said on Tuesday that everyone in politics has a right to criticise but those levelling defamatory allegations will have to suffer consequences, as the Supreme Court cleared the way for AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal to face trial in a defamation case for remarks on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's educational qualifications. BJP leader and Lok Sabha MP Ravi Shankar Prasad claimed that Kejriwal's conduct towards PM Modi has been utterly irresponsible, saying it need not be told the kind of "abuses" he has heaped on Modi. Prasad said Kejriwal offered to tender an apology during the hearing in the Supreme Court on Monday but it was declined. He has become an expert in tendering apologies, the BJP leader said, adding he has apologised 10 times to different leaders, including Arun Jaitley, Nitin Gadkari and Kapil Sibal, for his defamatory remarks. In a swipe at Rahul Gandhi, Prasad described him as a companion of Kejriwal and noted that the Congress leader has also been facing defamati

Punjab CM approves prosecution of Dera Sacha Sauda head in sacrilege cases

Cases were filed after several incidents in Bargari, Faridkot district, where the Guru Granth Sahib, the holy scripture of the Sikhs, was allegedly desecrated and had gone missing

SC permits govt-appointed Unitech board to seek police aid for disturbances

The Supreme Court on Tuesday permitted the Centre-appointed board of directors of Unitech Ltd to seek police assistance to deal with "impediments" created by third parties on properties of the embattled realty firm. The top court had on January 20, 2020 come to the rescue of over 12,000 hassled homebuyers of Unitech Ltd by permitting the union ministry of corporate affairs to take "total management control" of the real estate firm and appointed retired Haryana cadre IAS officer Yudvir Singh Malik as chairman and managing director (CMD). On Tuesday, a bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra took note of an interim plea of the government-appointed board that it has been facing third party disturbances in effectively dealing with the properties and other affairs of the real estate company. "It has been clarified that in the event of impediments created by any third party, the board (of directors) can seek police assistance," ordered the

Bahraich violence: SC to hear plea against demolition notices by UP govt

The Supreme Court agreed to hear on Wednesday a plea filed by three accused in the Bahraich communal violence incident against demolition notices issued by the Uttar Pradesh government. Senior advocate C U Singh, appearing for the petitioners, mentioned the matter before a bench of Justices B R Gavai and K V Viswanathan seeking urgent hearing. "This is an application by three persons who are recipients of demolition notices. The state government has given only three days to respond to the notices," Singh told the bench. Singh submitted that petitioner No.1's father and brothers have surrendered and notices were purportedly issued on October 17 and pasted on 18th evening. "We sought hearing on Sunday, but that did not happen," he added. Additional Solicitor General K M Nataraj, appearing for the Uttar Pradesh government, told the court that the Allahabad High Court is seized of the matter and has given 15 days' time to respond to the notice. The bench then said, "If they (UP govt)

Ram Rahim to face trial for 2015 sacrilege, Punjab govt grants nod

The development follows the Supreme Court lifting the Punjab and Haryana High Court's stay on Dera Sacha Sauda head Ram Rahim Singh's trial in the 2015 sacrilege cases three days ago