Page 233 - Supreme Court

Pandemic forced judiciary to adopt modern methods to impart justice: CJI

Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud said on Friday the COVID-19 pandemic forced the judicial system to adopt modern methods to impart justice and the goal now must be to evolve judicial institutions and not wait for another pandemic to take active decisions. Speaking at the 18th meeting of the chief justices of the Supreme Courts of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) member states, Chandrachud highlighted the steps taken by the Indian judiciary with the onset of the pandemic. He said since the pandemic, the district courts in India heard 16.5 million cases, the high courts 7.58 million cases, while the Supreme Court heard 3,79,954 cases through video-conference. "In conclusion, the pandemic forced the judicial system to adopt modern methods to impart justice. But our goal must lie in evolving our judicial institutions as a matter of principle, and not wait for another pandemic to take active decisions," the CJI said at a joint interactive session. The Supreme Court and t

Appointment delayed for lack of I-T returns, SC relief for ITAT members

The Supreme Court has allowed a member of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) to continue in the post till the age of 62 years as per the provisions of the Income Tax Act, 1961

Top headlines: FMCG demand up in Feb, Torrent moves SC against NCLAT order

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Free and fair

Law must establish Election Commission's independence

Torrent moves SC against NCLAT order on auction of Reliance Capital assets

The lenders' of RCap have decided to hold the second round of e-auction, following the NCLAT order, on March 20

Judiciary must be allowed to interpret Constitution, says SC judge Kohli

The judiciary must be allowed to interpret the Constitution and its independence is not just a legal principle but fundamental pillar of a vibrant democracy, Justice Hima Kohli of the Supreme Court has said. "It is imperative that all three pillars (legislature, executive and judiciary) of the State work in parallel and not in tandem, at arm's length and not hand in hand, to give strength to the democratic system. "This itself will preserve the independence of the judiciary and protect its autonomy and impartiality. It is equally essential to recognise the judiciary's role in the constitutional dialogue as it acts like a safety valve for fostering our democratic values," Justice Kohli said. She was speaking on the subject of "Independent Judiciary: Critical for a Vibrant Democracy" at a function organised by FICCI in collaboration with Bharat Chamber of Commerce and the Indian Council of Arbitration in Kolkata on Saturday. "Independence of the judiciary is not just a legal principl

Regulatory independence

Courts should not worry about financial market volatility

Delhi govt calls LG mini-dictator after he returns file on teacher training

Delhi government on Saturday claimed that LG V K Saxena has returned the file on Finland teacher training programme in "flagrant violation" of the Constitution and SC orders, and described him as a "mini-dictator". The lieutenant governor has given in-principle approval to the city government's proposal to send primary teachers of state-run schools to Finland for training but with certain conditions, officials said on Saturday. Saxena, in his approval, said he was okaying the proposal in the "interest of facilitating an executive decision flawed that it may be, rather than joining issues to enable anarchic disruption". He also noted that there was refusal by the Arvind Kejriwal government to bring on record the "impact assessment of the foreign training programmes conducted in the past". Hitting out at the LG, the Delhi government, in a statement, alleged that he returned the proposal after sitting on it for four months and ensuring that it became infructuous since the trainings w

SC issues notice on TN govt's plea against Madras HC order on Gutka ban

The Supreme Court has sought a response to a plea challenging an order of the Madras High Court quashing a May 2018 notification prohibiting the sale, manufacture and transport of gutkha and other tobacco-based products. A bench of justices KM Joseph and BV Nagarathna issued notice to Food Safety Commissioner, Jayavilas Tobacco Traders and others on a plea filed by the Tamil Nadu government. "Issue notice in the special leave petition. Issue notice in the prayer for interim relief also" the bench said. Additional Advocate General Amit Anand Tiwari, appearing for the state, argued that orders of the Food Safety Commissioner banning the sale, storage, manufacture, etc. of gutkha and other tobacco products are backed by Regulation 2.3.4 of the Food Safety and Standards (Prohibition and Restriction on Sales) Regulations, 2011. The high court had set aside a notification issued by the Food Safety Commissioner on May 23, 2018, banning the manufacture, storage, transport, distribution and

EPFO link programmed to deny benefits of SC order on higher pension: Union

The letter also highlighted "practical problems" being faced by the pensioners who are opting for higher pension options and said that the commissioner should take immediate action

SC issues notices on pleas against HC order on YES Bank's AT1 bonds

The Supreme Court on Friday issued notices to Axis Trustee Services Ltd on a batch of appeals filed by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and others challenging a Bombay High Court order quashing a decision of the Yes Bank Administrator to write off Additional Tier 1 (AT-1) bonds. The top court also extended the stay on the operation of the Bombay High Court order quashing the decision of the Yes Bank Administrator to write off AT-1 bond worth Rs 8,415 crore as part of the bailout in March 2020. A bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud, however, assured the AT-1 bond investors that it would try to find out some kind of solution to the financial trouble being faced by them after senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for Axis Trustee Services Ltd, said the invested money has become zero for no fault of theirs. It was the top officials of the bank who brought down the bank. Their men are in jail. Our money has become zero... we are not Tata-Birla. We are institutional investors.

SC dismisses Mallya's plea against bid to declare him fugitive offender

The Supreme Court Friday dismissed a plea by beleaguered businessman Vijay Mallya challenging the proceedings in a Mumbai court to declare him a fugitive economic offender and confiscate his properties. The apex court dismissed the petition for non-prosecution after the counsel representing Mallya submitted that he was not getting any instructions from the petitioner in the matter. The counsel for petitioner states that the petitioner is not giving any instructions to the advocate for the petitioner. In view of this statement, the petition is dismissed for non-prosecution, a bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Rajesh Bindal said. The top court, which had on December 7, 2018 issued notice to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Mallya's plea, had refused to stay the proceedings on the probe agency's plea before a special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court at Mumbai seeking the fugitive' tag for him under the Fugitive Economic Offenders' Act, 2018. On January 5, 2019, the .

SC lowers criterion for appointment as president, member of consumer forums

The Supreme Court Friday said lawyers and professionals with 10 years of experience will be eligible for appointment as President and member of the state consumer commission and district forums. The apex court said the Central government and the state governments concerned have to come with an amendment in the Consumer Protection (Qualification for appointment, method of recruitment, procedure of appointment, term of office, resignation and removal of President and Members of State Commission and District Commission) Rules, 2020 to provide for 10 years' experience to become eligible for appointment as President and member of the state commission and district forums instead of 20 years and 15 years respectively. A bench of Justices M R Shah and M M Sundresh, in exercise of powers under Article 142 of the Constitution to do complete justice, directed that till suitable amendments are made, a person with bachelor's degree from a recognised university and having ability, integrity and ..

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Remarks against PM: SC extends interim bail of Pawan Khera till March 17

The Supreme Court on Friday extended till March 17 the interim bail granted to Congress leader Pawan Khera in a case related to alleged objectionable remarks he made against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The Assam Police had arrested Khera in the case. A three-judge bench of Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices P S Narasimha and J B Pardiwala adjourned the hearing to March 17 as it had run out of time. The bench also pointed out that the replies of Uttar Pradesh and Assam were not on record and it will hear the plea after the Holi vacation. It made clear that the interim bail granted to Khera will be extended till March 17 when it will hear the matter. Earlier, on February 27, the court had extended the protection to the Congress spokesperson till Friday. Khera was arrested at the Delhi airport after being deplaned from a flight to Raipur over his alleged remarks against Modi made at a press conference on February 17 in Mumbai. He was later granted bail by a magisterial co

SC issues notice to Axis on a batch of RBI appeals to write off AT-1 bonds

The Supreme Court on Friday issued notices to Axis Trustee Services Ltd on a batch of appeals filed by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and others challenging a Bombay High Court order quashing a decision of the Yes Bank Administrator to write off Additional Tier 1 (AT-1) bonds. A bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud took note of the submissions of Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for RBI, and senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing Yes Bank, and extended the stay on the high court order quashing the decision of writing off AT-1 bonds. The Bombay High Court, while quashing the decision of the Yes Bank Administrator, had however said its decision will be in abeyance so the central bank and Yes Bank may appeal against it in the apex court. Issue notice. The stay granted (by the Bombay HC on its decision) will continue, said the bench, which also comprised justices P S Narasimha and J B Pardiwala. AT-1 bonds have no maturity date. These debt instruments offer highe

Karnataka hijab ban: SC to set up bench to hear plea of Muslim girls

The Supreme Court Friday said it will set up a three-judge bench to hear a plea of Muslim girl students to sit for examinations in Karnataka government schools while wearing hijab. I will create a bench, said a bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices P S Narasimha and J B Pardiwala when a woman lawyer sought urgent hearing of the plea saying girls are on the verge of losing another academic year as the exams are being held in government schools which are not permitting wearing of headscarf. Initially, the CJI said the matter will be listed for hearing after Holi vacations. The examinations are scheduled to be held after five days, the lawyer said, adding, They have missed one year. They will miss another year. On being told by the bench that the matter has been mentioned on the last day before the vacation, the lawyer said it has been mentioned twice earlier. Without specifying the date, the bench then said it will create the bench. The matter was last mention

Had Pegasus on my phone, intelligence officers cautioned me: Rahul Gandhi

Talking to students at Cambridge University, Gandhi said that a 'yatra' is a journey or pilgrimage in which people 'shut themselves down so they can listen to others'

Crowdfunding 'misuse' case: SC to hear on Mar 13 Saket Gokhale's bail plea

The Supreme Court on Friday said it will consider on March 13 a plea filed by Trinamool Congress spokesperson Saket Gokhale seeking bail in a case related to alleged misuse of money collected through crowdfunding. A bench of Justices BR Gavai and Vikram Nath said it has not gone through the case file. "We will have it immediately after vacation. This file came late night, we have not seen the file. We will take it up after reopening," the bench said. Senior advocate AM Singhvi, appearing for Gokhale, submitted that the petitioner has always maintained that he has collected money from crowdfunding. This is not a case to deny bail, he said. The top court posted the matter for hearing on March 13. The Gujarat High Court on January 23 had refused bail to Gokhale and asked him to approach the court only after a charge sheet is filed. Gokhale was arrested by the Ahmedabad Cyber Crime Branch from Delhi on December 30, 2022, in a case of alleged misuse of money he had collected through

After CEC, will there also be a change in how judges are appointed?

The govt may now come back with a modified version of the NJAC bill whereby the practice of judges appointing themselves is stopped