Page 185 - Supreme Court

SC appoints sign-language interpreter to help hearing-impaired persons

Chief Justice of India (CJI) D Y Chandrachud on Friday announced the appointment of a sign-language interpreter by the Supreme Court to help hearing-impaired lawyers and litigants to comprehend judicial proceedings. "Today, we have an interpreter whom the Supreme Court has appointed," the CJI said at the outset of the proceedings. "This is a historic moment," a lawyer said. The CJI said he wanted to have a sign-language interpreter for the Constitution bench hearings. On September 22, a bench headed by the CJI heard hearing-impaired lawyer Sarah Sunny through sign-language interpreter Saurav Roy Chowdhury in a case related to the rights of persons with disability (PwD). Lawyers and bar bodies had lauded the fact that the Supreme Court allowed a hearing-impaired lawyer to argue a case through a sign-language interpreter. CJI Chandrachud, who is sensitive towards providing accessibility to justice delivery systems to the differently-abled, also constituted a Supreme Court committee

In trials, genetically modified mustard's yield against peers under scanner

SC to take a call on further trials on October 10

SC reserves verdict on 1998 immunity to lawmakers judgement reconsideration

A seven-judge bench of the Supreme Court on Thursday reserved its verdict on reconsideration of its 1998 judgement which had held that MPs and MLAs enjoy immunity from prosecution for taking bribe to make a speech or vote in legislature. The constitution bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud reserved the verdict after hearing a battery of senior lawyers including Attorney General R Venkataramani and Solicitor General Tushar Mehta. The larger bench is reconsidering the 1998 verdict delivered in the JMM bribery case by a five-judge bench by which the MPs and MLAs were granted immunity from prosecution for taking bribe to make a speech or vote in legislature. The apex court is revisiting the judgement 25 years after the JMM bribery scandal rocked the country. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, while arguing the matter, urged the court to not go into the immunity aspect under Article 105 of the Constitution. The offence of bribery is complete when a bribe is given and accepted by

AAP may stand accused in Delhi Excise Policy Case following MP arrest

The Aam Aadmi Party to stage protest against the arrest of MP Sanjay Singh outside the BJP headquarters today

Torrent files urgent plea in SC against Hinduja plan for Reliance Capital

Company says insolvency tribunal approved plan when appeals against it are pending

ED not expected to be vindictive in conduct, should act with probity: SC

The Enforcement Directorate is not expected to be "vindictive" in its conduct and must act with utmost probity and fairness, the Supreme Court has held, and directed the anti-money laundering agency to henceforth furnish the grounds of arrest to the accused in writing "without exception". In a significant verdict having far-reaching ramifications, the apex court said being a premier investigating agency charged with the onerous responsibility of curbing the debilitating economic offence of money laundering in the country, every action of the ED in the course of such exercise is expected to be "transparent, above board and conforming to pristine standards of fair play in action". "The ED, mantled with far-reaching powers under the stringent Act of 2002, is not expected to be vindictive in its conduct and must be seen to be acting with utmost probity and with the highest degree of dispassion and fairness," a bench of Justices AS Bopanna and Sanjay Kumar said. The top court, which set

Will examine immunity to lawmakers if criminality attached to acts: SC

The Supreme Court said on Wednesday it will examine whether the immunity granted to lawmakers from prosecution for taking bribe to make a speech or vote in Parliament and state legislatures extends to them even if criminality is attached to their actions, as it began reconsideration of its 1998 judgement in the JMM bribery scandal that rocked the country 25 years ago. The apex court's 1998 verdict granted MPs and MLAs immunity from prosecution for taking bribes to make a speech or vote in legislature. At the outset of the day-long proceedings, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta urged the seven-judge constitution bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud that the court need not go into the immunity aspect under Article 105 of the Constitution and the controversy, possibly, can be narrowed down in view of the fact that the offence of bribery is complete when a bribe is given and accepted by the lawmaker, something which can be tackled under the Prevention of Corruption Act. Article ..

Why political party not made accused in liquor policy case: SC asks ED

The court query came during the hearing on a bail plea filed on behalf of former Delhi deputy chief minister and AAP leader Manish Sisodia

SC directs Centre to look into mediation process over SYL canal dispute

The court came down heavily on the Punjab government for not taking steps for construction of the canal. The court remarked that Punjab has to co-operate in the process.

SC defers hearing on Naidu's plea till Mon, asks AP govt to file documents

The Supreme Court on Tuesday deferred till October 9 hearing on a plea by TDP leader N Chandrababu Naidu challenging an Andhra Pradesh High Court order dismissing his petition to quash an FIR against him in the Skill Development Corporation scam case. A bench of Justices Aniruddha Bose and Bela M Trivedi asked senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for the Andhra Pradesh government, to place on record all materials which were produced before the high court in connection with the case. Rohatgi said Naidu's petition for quashing the FIR should be rejected as the question of section 17A of the Prevention of Corruption Act does not arise as the provision came in July 2018, while the inquiry into the case was started in 2017 by the CBI. Senior advocates Harish Salve, Abhisehk Singhvi and Siddharth Luthra, appearing for Naidu, said all the allegations in the FIR pertains to the decisions, instructions or recommendations made by Naidu while being the chief minister of the state. "This

2 directors of realty firm M3M granted bail by SC in money laundering case

The Supreme Court on Tuesday granted bail to Basant Bansal and Pankaj Bansal, directors of Gurugram-based realty group M3M, in a money laundering case. A bench of justices A S Bopanna and Sanjay Kumar, which had reserved the verdict on September 11 after hearing submissions of lawyers, granted the relief to the directors of the realty firm. The Bansals had moved the top court against the July 20 order of the Punjab and Haryana High Court which had dismissed their bail pleas, saying the case is quite serious in nature. Basant and Pankaj Bansal were earlier arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with the money laundering probe linked to the alleged bribery case. The top court on August 11 had sought responses from the Centre and the Enforcement Directorate on the bail plea of the accused directors against the high court order refusing to release them on bail in the ED's probe linked to an alleged bribery case against a former judge. The money laundering case in which

SC refuses plea seeking direction to declare Ram Sethu as national monument

The Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to entertain a plea seeking a direction to declare the 'Ram Sethu' as a national monument. 'Ram Sethu', also known as Adam's bridge, is a chain of limestone shoals between Pamban Island, off the south-eastern coast of Tamil Nadu, and Mannar Island, off the north-western coast of Sri Lanka. The plea, which was also seeking direction for construction of a wall at the site, came up for hearing before a bench of Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Sudhanshu Dhulia. The plea was filed by the Hindu Personal Law Board, through its president Ashok Pandey.

Is it the end of bribery immunity for Indian legislators?

In India, a significant legal development is underway as Chief Justice Chandrachud constitutes a seven-judge bench to reevaluate a 1998 judgment related to legislators' immunity from prosecution.

Skill Development scam: SC to hear TDP leader Naidu's plea on Oct 3

The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear on Tuesday a plea of TDP leader N Chandrababu Naidu challenging the Andhra Pradesh High Court order dismissing his petition for quashing the FIR against him in connection with an alleged scam in the Skill Development Corporation. A bench of justices Aniruddha Bose and Bela M Trivedi will take up the plea for hearing on October 3. On September 27, the top court had said it would not restrain the trial court from dealing with a plea seeking police custody of Naidu as it announced that a new bench will hear his petition for quashing the FIR in the alleged Rs 371 crore scam in the state. The plea by Naidu, who was arrested in the case on September 9, had come up before two benches in the top court but without any effective hearing. Initially, it came up before the designated bench of justices Sanjiv Khanna and SVN Bhatti, but the latter recused himself from hearing the matter on Wednesday. Senior advocate Siddharth Luthra, appearing for the TDP .

No fault of police in killing of Atiq Ahmad, his brother: UP govt tells SC

The Uttar Pradesh government has told the Supreme Court that "no fault" has been found on the part of the police in an ongoing probe into the killing of dreaded gangster and former Lok Sabha member Atiq Ahmad and his brother Ashraf in Prayagraj on April 15. In a status report filed in the apex court, the state of Uttar Pradesh has said it has left no stone unturned to ensure a fair and impartial investigation into the incident and other cases, including the killing of gangster Vikas Dubey and various police encounters since 2017, raised by the petitioner. Ahmad (60) and Ashraf were shot dead at point-blank range by three men posing as journalists while police personnel were escorting them to a medical college for examination on April 15. The entire shooting was captured live on national television. In its report, the state has given details of the status of cases mentioned in the plea filed by advocate Vishal Tiwari, who sought an independent probe into the killing of Ahmad and ...

Cauvery water row: Karnataka govt to file review petition before SC, CWMA

The Karnataka government will file a review petition before the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA) and the Supreme Court on Saturday. On Friday, the CWMA endorsed the direction of its assisting body, Cauvery Water Regulation Committe (CRWC) asking Karnataka to release 3,000 cusecs of water to Tamil Nadu. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said, "We do not have water and therefore cannot release water". The chief minister spoke to reporters at his Home-Office 'Krishna' after a meeting with retired Supreme Court judges and former Advocate Generals of the state. Siddaramaiah said they have given some opinion and suggestions. It was suggested to form an expert advisory committee to the government exclusively regarding the irrigation projects of the state. "Data collection and advisory work should be done by the committee. The committee should advise the government and provide information to the legal team about inter-state water disputes," he said about the suggestion aired in the ...

Supreme Court committee orders protection of religious buildings in Manipur

386 religious structures have been vandalised over the course of the ongoing unrest, including 254 churches and 132 temples

SC rejects PIL alleging exorbitant air fare for destinations in Gulf

The Supreme Court has refused to entertain a plea alleging exorbitant air fares from destinations like Dubai to Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala. A bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra asked the Kerala Pravasi Association', which filed the PIL, to move the Kerala High Court with its grievances. The PIL also challenged one of the rules of the Indian Aviation Act which permits airlines to set ticket prices, and alleged it violated the citizens' right to travel and resulted in exploitation of Indian travellers. Having regard to the nature of the cause of action in the present case, we are of the considered view that it would be appropriate for the petitioners to take recourse to the remedy under Article 226 of the Constitution of India. Granting liberty to the petitioners to do so, the Writ Petition is disposed of, the bench said in its order on Wednesday. The association alleged the air fare to and from Gulf destinations to .

Supreme Court allows Orbit Electricals to vote in Finolex Cables' AGM

The dispute is related to the executive control of Finolex Cables involving the cousins Prakash and Deepak Chhabria

Govt can ask land owner to handover some portion free of cost: SC

The top court remark came while setting aside a Bombay High Court judgement