Page 172 - Supreme Court

Row over Bills: Supreme Court asks TN Guv to meet CM to resolve impasse

The Supreme Court on Friday asked Tamil Nadu Governor R N Ravi to hold a meeting with Chief Minister M K Stalin to resolve the impasse over the non-grant of assent to Bills by him passed by the state legislative Assembly. A bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra took note of the submissions of senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, appearing for the state government, that the governor has now remanded the readopted Bills for consideration by the President. We would like the governor to resolve the impasse...We will appreciate it if the governor resolves the impasse with the chief minister. I think the governor invites the chief minister and let them sit down and discuss it," the bench said and fixed December 11 as the date to hear the plea. "We are conscious of the fact that we are dealing with high constitutional functionaries, it said. Referring to Article 200 of the Constitution, the bench said the governor cannot send the bills to t

Article on Adani Group: SC extends protection from arrest to 4 journalists

The Supreme Court on Friday extended the interim protection from arrest it had granted to four journalists against whom the Gujarat Police had issued summonses in connection with an article published on the Adani Group. A bench of Justices Justice Hrishikesh Roy and Justice Sanjay Karol asked the Gujarat government to file its response on their pleas within a week. The top court was hearing the pleas filed by Ravi Nair, Anand Mangnale, Benjamin Nicholas Brooke Parkin and Chloe Nina Cornish against the summonses. Nair and Mangnale have challenged the summonses issued by the Ahmedabad crime branch asking them to appear for questioning with respect to the preliminary enquiry (PE) into their article published on the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) website. Nair and Mangnale received notices from the crime branch in October directing them to appear in person in connection with the PE launched on the complaint by an investor Yogeshbhai Mafatlal Bhansali. The oth

SC already dealt with it: Delhi HC refuses to entertain pleas seeking UCC

The Delhi High Court Friday refused to entertain a batch of petitions seeking a Uniform Civil Code (UCC), saying the Supreme Court has already dealt with the issue and has rejected the pleas. The high court said it cannot direct the legislature to enact a law and referred to an order of the apex court in which it was held that framing of law lies exclusively within the domain of legislature. "The Supreme Court order is clear and categorical. We will not go beyond the Supreme Court order. They (Law Commission) don't need us. They are an authority constituted by the Constitution to do it. They will do it," a bench of Acting Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Mini Pushkarna said. This prompted lawyer Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay, one of the petitioners, and other petitioners to withdraw their pleas from the high court. The high court noted that the Law Commission is already seized of the issue and if petitioners wish, they can approach the commission with their suggestions. The high court

AoRs can't merely be signing authority, have to take responsibility: SC

The Supreme Court on Friday said the advocate-on-record (AoR) cannot merely be a "signing authority" but will have to take the responsibility of what they file in the apex court. According to the rules framed by the Supreme Court under Article 145 of the Constitution, only advocates designated as advocate-on-record can plead for a party in the top court. A bench of justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Sudhanshu Dhulia observed that its primary concern was an AoR should perform his or her duties. "We want to stop this system of somebody irresponsibly signing something," the bench said. The issue concerning AoRs rose before the apex court while hearing a plea for declaring Articles 20 and 22 as ultra vires Part III of the Constitution. While Article 20 of the Constitution deals with protection in respect of conviction for offences, Article 22 pertains to protection against arrest and detention in certain cases. On October 31, the apex court had noted in its order, "We are in a way troub

Expansion of BSF jurisdiction doesn't take away power of Punjab Police: SC

The Supreme Court on Friday orally observed that the power of the Punjab Police has not been taken away by the Centre's decision to expand the BSF's jurisdiction to undertake search, seizure and arrest within a larger 50-km stretch from the International Border as compared to the earlier 15 km limit. The bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, hearing the 2021 lawsuit of the Punjab government, said the issues for adjudication by this court have to be settled. It asked Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre, lawyer Shadan Farasat, representing the Punjab government, to sit together and jointly decide on issues to be decided by the bench. The parties shall exchange issues so that they can be settled before the next date of listing, the bench said, adding the advocate general of Punjab can also take part in the meeting of parties. After perusing the records, the CJI prima facie observed that there were concurrent pow

Delhi High Court closes hearing on drafting and implementation of UCC

The petitions said that the country-wide application of UCC would end multiple personal laws promoting tolerance among various groups across the nation

State govts vs Governors saga takes new twists with SC's intervention

Article 200 of the Constitution asks Governors to sign Bills passed by legislatures 'as soon as possible', and state governments requested the apex court to prescribe a time limit for it

SC to mull over forming guidelines on when governors can send bills to prez

Voicing displeasure over Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan "sitting" for two years on bills passed by the state legislature, the Supreme Court said on Wednesday it will consider laying down the guidelines as to when the governors can refer bills to the President of India for assent. While noting that the Kerala governor has taken decisions with regard to eight bills, the apex court asked him to meet Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and the minister concerned to discuss the legislations, observing let's hope some "political sagacity" takes over. A bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud took note of the submissions of Attorney General R Venkataramani, appearing for the office of the governor, that out of the eight bills, seven have been "reserved" for consideration by the president, while Khan has given his assent to one. "What was the governor doing for two years by sitting on the bills?" the bench, also comprising justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, asked. The attorney .

Guaranteeing personal guarantees

Through its recent judgment the apex court has rescued the institution of surety

Manish Sisodia approaches SC seeking review of order denying him bail

Former Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia has moved the Supreme Court seeking a review of its order denying him bail in the corruption and money laundering cases related to the alleged Delhi excise policy scam. The top court had on October 30 refused to grant him bail, saying the accusation against him of facilitating "windfall gains" of Rs 338 crore to wholesale liquor dealers was "tentatively supported" by evidence. A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and SVN Bhatti, which termed several charges levelled by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) against Sisodia as debatable, had said, "However, there is one clear ground or charge in the complaint filed under the PML Act, which is free from perceptible legal challenge and the facts as alleged are tentatively supported by material and evidence." It had referred to the CBI's charge sheet, which said the excess amount of 7 per cent commission/fee earned by wholesale distributors of Rs 338 crore constitutes an offence as defined under

SC backs Centre's decision to extend Delhi chief secy's tenure by 6 months

The Supreme Court on Wednesday upheld the Centre's decision to extend the tenure of Delhi Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar, who was all set to demit office on November 30, by six more months. A bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Candrachud and justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra said, the Union government's decision "cannot be construed to be violative of law. We clarify that this (the order upholding the extension of tenure) is based on our prima facie view without any consideration to issues pending adjudication before the constitution bench (examining the amended law dealing with services in the national capital), it said. The bench said the union ministry of home affairs is empowered to extend the tenure of the chief secretary who deals with all issues related to Entry 1, 2 and 8 (police, public order and land) of the seventh schedule of the State List of the Constitution. It said these subjects are beyond the legislative and executive ambit of the Delhi government and hence, pr

K'taka HC allows Dy CM to file memo seeking withdrawal of appeal in DA case

The High Court of Karnataka on Wednesday allowed Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar to withdraw his appeal against a single judge order over the issue of sanction to the CBI to prosecute him in assets case. The court allowed the deputy CM to file a memo seeking to withdraw the appeal filed by him challenging the earlier order. The single judge bench had refused to quash the sanction granted by the previous government to the CBI to prosecute him. Senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi who appeared on video conference arguing for Shivakumar said that since the sanction that is under challenge has been withdrawn by the incumbent government, the issue has become infructuous and therefore he has instructions to withdraw it. "The practical issue is very simple. The Writ is filed challenging a sanction. Today, the sanction under challenge is withdrawn. Somebody will challenge, some will not (the sanction) but that is not of concern today. It (Appeal) is infructuous. It is liable to be allowed

Supreme Court asks Kerala Governor to meet CM, minister to discuss bills

The Supreme Court on Wednesday noted that Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan has taken decisions on eight bills and asked him to meet Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan along with the minister concerned to discuss the bills, saying let us hope that some political sagacity takes over. A bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud took note of the submissions of Attorney General R Venkataramani, appearing for the office of the governor, that out of eight Bills, seven have been reserved for consideration by the President, while one has been assented by Khan. The top court, meanwhile, permitted the state government to amend its plea to seek issuance of guidelines for the governors on grant or decline of assent to the bills passed by the assembly in a time-bound manner. We will record that the governor will discuss the matter with both the chief minister and the minister in charge and related to the Bill..., the bench said. Let us hope that some political sagacity takes over the state an

SC-appointed SIT on black money to submit eighth interim report soon

The Supreme Court-appointed Special Investigation Team (SIT) on black money will soon submit its eighth interim report to the apex court, the panel's vice-chairman Justice (Retired) Arijit Pasayat said here. After coming to power in May 2014, the Narendra Modi government, in its first cabinet meeting, approved the appointment of the SIT as directed by the Supreme Court. In the last nine years, the SIT has submitted seven interim reports to the apex court. Justice Pasayat held a meeting at his residence here on Tuesday with officers of both central and state governments in connection with the detection and curbing of black money generation in the country. "A meeting of officers from Income Tax, Enforcement Directorate, Customs and Excise and Central Board of Indirect Tax departments was held for over two hours in which participants discussed the methods to be applied for detection and curbing of generation of black money in India and abroad," Justice Pasayat told reporters.

Increase in litigation reflects people's confidence in system: SC judge

Supreme Court judge Justice Rajesh Bindal on Tuesday said the increase in litigation should not dishearten anybody as it shows people's confidence in the country's legal system. Delivering a lecture as part of the Constitution Day celebrations at the India International University of Legal Education and Research (IIULER) in Goa, Justice Bindal said that around five crore cases are pending in civil courts in the country, including 4.2 crore cases in district courts, about 60 lakh in the high courts and 70,000 in the Supreme Court. If the average number of parties in each case was assumed to be four and each party's family member average taken as four, the total number of people affected by the pendency would be five crore multiplied twice by four and it comes to 80 crore. Then there are a large number of witnesses also associated with these cases, he said. In a country with a population of 140 crore, this number shows that the legal fraternity is connected with almost everybody's ..

RRTS project: Want complete compliance of order, SC to Delhi govt

The Supreme Court on Tuesday made it clear that there can be no partial compliance of its order directing the Delhi government to release funds for the Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) project and complete compliance of its directions must take place according to the schedule. The RRTS project entails semi-high speed rail corridors connecting Delhi to Meerut in Uttar Pradesh, Alwar in Rajasthan, and Panipat in Haryana. The apex court observed the problem was that the Delhi government can make a budgetary provision of Rs 580 crore for advertisements but it cannot make a budgetary provision of Rs 400 crore which it is supposed to pay for the project. "You have to be arm twisted for the money which you are liable to pay. That is the problem. Why are you doing this? "The issue is why you have not made budgetary provision. You can make budgetary provision for Rs 580 crore odd for advertisements. But you can't make budgetary provision of Rs 400 odd crore which you are supposed to pay

Returning officer likely to take decision of WFI poll date tomorrow: Bajwa

A fresh date date for Wresting Federation of India's (WFI) long-pending elections is likely to be announced on Wednesday after the Supreme Court set aside the stay imposed by Punjab and Haryana High Court, a member of the IOA-appointed ad hoc committee said. An SC bench of justices Abhay S Oka and Pankaj Mithal on Tuesday vacated the stay of the high court. The ad-hoc panel appointed by the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) had moved the apex court against the September 25 order of the HC. "I have spoken the returning officer appointed by the IOA to conduct the elections and he is waiting for the SC order. It is up to him to take a decision on when the election process will start again," ad hoc committee member Bhupender Singh Bajwa told PTI. "I think most probably, he (returning officer) will take the decision (on election date) by Wednesday," Bajwa said. "As far as the ad hoc committee is concerned, we are ready." The IOA had on April 27 appointed an ad-hoc committee to run wrest

Gyanvapi mosque complex: ASI again seeks more time to submit survey report

The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) on Tuesday sought three more weeks from the district court here for submitting the scientific survey report of the Gyanvapi mosque complex. The court will hear the plea on Wednesday. The district court of Varanasi had asked the ASI to submit the report on the Gyanvapi Masjid complex by November 28. On Tuesday, the ASI sought an extension of three weeks, saying it needed more time for the assimilation of information generated by different experts, counsel for the Hindu side Madan Mohan Yadav said. In its application, the ASI said that its experts are working on various types of data collected by archaeologists, surveyors and other experts, etc. "Assimilation of information generated by different experts and different tools is a difficult and slow process and it will take some more time to complete the report for final submission. "The court is therefore requested to give three more weeks to ASI to submit it," Yadav said quoting the applicati

SC sets aside stay imposed by Punjab and Haryana HC on WFI elections

The Supreme Court on Tuesday set aside the stay imposed by the Punjab and Haryana High Court on holding of elections to the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI). A bench of justices Abhay S Oka and Pankaj Mithal said it failed to understand how the entire process of the election could have been set at naught by high court. "Pending a writ petition filed by the Haryana Wrestling Association, by an interim order the high court has stayed the election of WFI. We fail to understand how the entire process of the election could have been set at naught by HC. The proper course would have been to allow the election to be conducted and make the election subject to the outcome of the pending writ petition. "Accordingly, the impugned order granting interim relief is set aside. It will be open for returning officer to proceed with the election by publishing a revised election program. We make it clear that the outcome of the election will be subject to orders that may be passed in the petition,"

SC issues direction for ensuring burial or cremation of bodies in Manipur

The Supreme Court on Tuesday issued directions for ensuring burial or cremation of bodies lying in mortuaries in Manipur, where ethnic clashes had claimed several lives in May. A bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud noted that a report filed by the apex court-appointed all-woman committee of former high court judges, headed by justice (retd) Gita Mittal, has indicated the position of the bodies that are lying in mortuaries in the northeastern state. The bench, also comprising justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, said the report indicated that 169 of the 175 bodies have been identified while six have not been identified. It noted that of the 169 identified bodies, 81 have been claimed by the next of kin while 88 have not been claimed. The bench observed that the state government has identified nine sites where the burial or cremation can take place. "Bearing in mind the fact that violence in the state of Manipur had taken place in May 2023, it would not be either ...