Page 103 - Supreme Court

FinMin can't treat DRT officers as subordinates, says Supreme Court

A bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Augustine George Masih was hearing a matter related to lawyers' strikes at DRT Visakhapatnam

SC notices ECI after plea claims RP Act provision prevents choosing NOTA

The Supreme Court on Monday sought responses from the Centre and Election Commission of India (ECI) on a plea challenging a provision of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, claiming it prevents voters from choosing the "none of the above" (NOTA) option if there was only one candidate. The plea, which came up for hearing before a bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan, challenged Section 53 (2) of the Act. Section 53 deals with procedure in contested and uncontested elections and Section 53 (2) says if the number of contesting candidates is equal to the number of seats to be filled, the returning officer shall forthwith declare all such candidates to be duly elected to fill those seats. The apex court issued notices to the Centre and the ECI seeking their responses on the petition. Senior advocate Arvind Datar along with advocate Harsh Parashar appeared for petitioner legal think-tank Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy. The plea further sought that Rule 11 read with Forms

SC slams Finance Ministry for asking data from debts recovery tribunals

The Supreme Court on Monday pulled up the Union Finance Ministry for seeking data from the Debts Recovery Tribunals (DRT) over the amount recovered on the basis of the tribunals' orders and sought an explanation. A bench comprising Justices Abhay S Oka and Augustine George Masih said the ministry could not treat the judicial staff of the DRTs as its subordinates and owed an explanation for calling upon the tribunals to collect such huge data within a short time. "You are treating the judicial staff as if they are your subordinates. We expect an apology from the government. Such extent of collection of data is sought within three days. If you want data to be collected, additional staff as required by DRT should be provided. This will not be tolerated. Some of them are judicial officers you are treating them as subordinates," the bench said. The top court expressed its surprise over the DRTs carrying out such an exercise. "The secretary of the department concerned shall look into the

SC stresses on uniform standards for student safety at coaching centres

The Supreme Court on Monday stressed on having "uniform standards" to the extent possible to ensure safety and security of students studying at coaching centres. A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan was hearing a matter related to the deaths of three civil service aspirants at a coaching centre in the national capital in July due to the flooding in the building's basement. On July 27, the three students drowned in the basement library of Rau's IAS Study Circle in Delhi's Old Rajinder Nagar area after it was flooded following heavy rains. The top court was informed by senior advocate Siddharth Dave, who is assisting the top court as an amicus curiae, about the broad areas that required attention. Dave referred to the aspects of fire safety, fee regulation, student to classroom area ratio, student to teacher ratio, installation of CCTVs, medical facilities, mental health care and counselling for those studying at coaching centres. He suggested that all states be impleaded

SC dismisses plea to remove 'socialist' & 'secular' terms from Constitution

A Supreme Court bench was hearing of a Public Interest Litigation that calls for the terms 'socialist' and 'secular' to be removed from the Constitution's Preamble

SC dismisses Kejriwal's plea to quash summons in PM defamation case

Former Delhi chief minister and AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal is facing criminal proceedings in a defamation case over his alleged remarks over Prime Minister Narendra Modi's educational qualification after the Supreme Court on Monday dismissed his plea to quash summons. A Gujarat Metropolitan court had summoned Kejriwal and AAP's Sanjay Singh in the defamation case over their alleged "sarcastic" and "derogatory" statements related to PM Modi's educational degrees. Gujarat University Registrar Piyush Patel had filed the defamation case against the politicians over their alleged comments after the Gujarat High Court set aside an order of the chief information commissioner (CIC) for providing information about Modi's degrees under the Right to Information Act. A bench of Justices Hrishikesh Roy and S V N Bhatti noted that a separate bench of the apex court had junked the plea filed by AAP leader Sanjay Singh on April 8 in the same case, who is a co-accused in the case. "We m

SC grants two weeks more to expert panel to file report on NEET-UG reforms

The Supreme Court on Monday extended by two weeks the time granted to the Centre-appointed seven-member expert panel to file its report on exam reforms after reviewing the National Testing Agency's functioning in holding the NEET-UG. The top court on August 2 had passed its formal order and expanded the remit of the seven-member expert panel, headed by former Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chief K Radhakrishnan, to review the functioning of the National Testing Agency (NTA) and recommend exam reforms to make the controversy-ridden NEET-UG (National Eligibility cum Entrance Test Undergraduate), transparent and free from malpractices. The NEET-UG is conducted by the NTA for admission in undergraduate medical programs. The top court had also refused to annul the NEET-UG of 2024, saying there was no sufficient material on record at present to indicate a systemic leak or malpractice compromising the integrity of the examination. On Monday, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, ...

Supreme Court to hear on Monday civil services aspirants' death case

The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear on Monday a matter related to the death of three civil service aspirants at a coaching centre here in July due to the flooding in the building's basement. On July 27, three civil services aspirants drowned in the basement library of Rau's IAS Study Circle in the Old Rajinder Nagar area here after it was flooded following heavy rain. As per the cause list of October 21 uploaded on the apex court's website, a bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan is slated to hear the matter. On September 20, the top court directed a Union government-appointed committee probing the case to submit an interim report about the measures it wanted to be taken to prevent recurrence of such incidents. The apex court had also asked the Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi governments to apprise it of the policy and legislative and administrative changes made to prevent a repeat of such incidents. It had said uniform initiatives should be taken in the entire Nationa

No place for derogatory language against women in courtrooms: CJI

Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud on Saturday said all forms of derogatory language, particularly against women, have no place in courts, noting that insensitive words can perpetuate stereotypes and may disproportionately affect women and marginalised communities. The CJI referred to complaints from women judicial officers about the use of derogatory language by some members of the administrative establishment towards women. Addressing a gathering at the inauguration of the North Goa District Courts Complex near Panaji, the CJI said, "We must actively work to dismantle all barriers to have truly democratic access to justice". "As we strive for inclusivity within our courtrooms, the language which we use must reflect our ethos. We must be vigilant in our choice of words ensuring that our language is not only precise but also respectful and intrusive," the CJI said. He said the insensitive or dismissive language can perpetuate stereotypes and may disproportionately affect women

Have tried to make SC a people's court since becoming CJI: Chandrachud

CJI DY Chandrachud, further asserted that AORs are a vital stakeholder in all the decisions which the Court makes and have a crucial voice in the Court's administrative and judicial decision-making

Fed up with frivolous petitions filed by states, PSUs despite warnings: SC

The Supreme Court on Friday said it is fed up with the "frivolous petitions" filed by various state governments and public sector undertakings despite repeated warnings. A bench of Justices B R Gavai and K V Viswanathan said merely because officers of the state governments or public sector undertakings (PSUs) do not have to bear the cost of litigation personally, the court is burdened with such frivolous matters. "We are fed up with such frivolous special leave petition(s) filed by various state governments and public undertakings," the bench said after it got annoyed over an appeal moved by the Jharkhand government in the case of a government employee who has challenged his dismissal from service. "We have been telling this for the past six months. It is enough," the bench said and added that in spite of warnings, the counsel appearing for various state governments and public undertakings have not shown any intention to refrain from filing such frivolous petitions. "We continue to

Big relief for Sadhguru, SC ruling on Benami transactions, PM Modi in BRICS & more

The Supreme Court today cancelled all proceedings against the Isha Foundation in a petition filed by a father alleging his two daughters had been ‘brainwashed’ to reside at Sadhguru’s ashram.

Will process 3k tonne more solid waste per day in Delhi by 2026: MCD in SC

The Supreme Court was on Friday informed by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), which said by 2026 it will exceed its capacity of processing 11,000 tonnes of solid waste generated daily in the national capital. A bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Augustine George Masih was informed by senior advocate Menaka Guruswamy, appearing for the MCD that in compliance of the court's order, the civic body was able to clear all the bottlenecks and had started the bidding process for hiring contractors for the management of municipal solid waste. "By 2026, we will not only be able to meet the new waste generated on a daily basis but also be ahead of it by 3,000 tonnes a day. We have started the tender process and in the next two weeks, we will be able to finalise the bids for the purpose," she submitted. Guruswamy further said that due to the July 26 order of the apex court, the MCD was able to get all necessary clearances and the work had now started. "The Delhi government has set the li

AERA's appeal against TDSAT order over levying of tariff maintainable: SC

The Supreme Court on Friday held the Airports Economic Regulatory Authority (AERA), which regulates the aeronautical charges, can file an appeal against the orders of Telecommunications Dispute Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT). A bench comprising Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud and Justice J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra said the appeals filed by AERA against a TDSAT order, which held that the authority cannot impose tariffs on ground and cargo handling services, were maintainable. AERA, the top court said, has a statutory duty to regulate tariff upon a consideration of multiple factors to ensure that airports were run in an economically viable manner without compromising on the interests of the public. "When AERA determines the tariff for aeronautical services in terms of Section 13(1)(a) of the AERA Act, it is acting as a regulator and an interested party. It is interested not in a personal capacity. Its interest lies in ensuring that the concerns of public interest.

SC recalls 2022 verdict terming benami law provisions 'unconstitutional'

In a significant development, the Supreme Court on Friday recalled its 2022 verdict that had declared as unconstitutional two provisions of the law on prohibition of benami property transactions that restrains such deals and acquisition of properties by authorities. Allowing the Centre's review of the August 23, 2022 verdict, a bench Chief Justice of India (CJI) D Y Chandrachud, Justices P S Narasimha and Manoj Misra recalled the judgement delivered by a three-judge bench headed by former CJI N V Ramana. In its August 2022 verdict, the top court had then held that Sections 3(2) and 5 of the Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act, 1988 being "manifestly arbitrary" were unconstitutional. While Section 3 of the Act deals with prohibition of benami (a property held by a person through proxies) transactions, Section 5 pertains to property of benami liable to acquisition. On Friday, the top court agreed with the submissions of Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, who appeared for the

SC lifts stay on proceedings against Ram Rahim in 2015 sacrilege case

Dera Chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh is currently serving a 20-year jail sentence for his conviction in a rape case and has also been found guilty of murder

SC junks plea for cases' disposal within fixed time, says 'not American SC'

The Supreme Court on Friday said it was not the American Supreme Court as it dismissed a plea seeking directions for the disposal of cases pending before all the courts in the country within a fixed time frame. A bench of Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud, Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra observed that the plea sought disposal of all cases in courts, including the apex court, between 12 and 36 months. "We are not the American Supreme Court," remarked the top court after the petitioner highlighted the presence of a time frame for disposal of cases in other countries. "You want hearing in all the cases to be disposed of within 12 months in the Supreme Court?" the bench questioned the petitioner. The CJI then remarked although it was "very desirable" the same was "unachievable". He added several things were required for such an exercise, which included enhancing the infrastructure and increasing in the number of judges. The top court questioned the petitioner whether he wa

SC upholds anticipatory bail to Bhavani Revanna in kidnapping case

The Supreme Court on Friday refused to set aside the anticipatory bail given to Bhavani Revanna, the mother of suspended JD(S) leader and rape accused Prajwal Revanna, in a kidnapping case while dismissing the Karnataka government's plea. In a setback to the Karnataka government, a bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan took into account that the chargesheet had been filed in the case and refused to interfere with the Karnataka High Court order. During the hearing, the state government counsel, claimed the mother was directly involved in allegedly procuring women for her son. The apex court noted that the principal accused in the case had been arrested and put under custodial interrogation. After the Karnataka government sought the cancellation of the anticipatory bail to Bhavani, the top court on July 10, refused to set it aside and sought her response. The high court had on June 18 granted anticipatory bail to Bhavani emphasising she had already answered 85 questions duri

Supreme Court closes proceedings against Jaggi Vasudev's Isha Foundation

The Supreme Court on Friday closed the proceedings in a habeas corpus petition filed by a man who had alleged that his two daughters were held captive inside the premises of spiritual leader Jaggi Vasudev's Isha Foundation at Coimbatore. A bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud noted that both the women were major and have stated that they were residing at the ashram voluntarily and without any coercion. A habeas corpus petition is filed seeking direction to produce before the court a person who is missing or has been illegally detained. The bench, also comprising Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, also noted that in pursuance of its October 3 order, the police has submitted a status report before it. The bench observed it would be unnecessary for the apex court to expand upon the ambit of these proceedings which arises from a habeas corpus petition which was initially filed before the Madras High Court. On October 3, the top court had effectively halted the police prob

Supreme Court rejects petition for regulatory body over OTT platforms

The Union of India and the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting introduced IT Rules 2021 to self-regulate OTT platforms however the same has been inefficient, the petition stated