Page 266 - Supreme Court

Supreme Court to hear plea against CJI-designate Justice D Y Chandrachud

The Supreme Court on Wednesday decided to hear during the day a plea seeking to restrain the senior most judge, Justice D Y Chandrachud, from taking oath as the Chief Justice of India on November 9. A bench headed by Chief Justice Uday Umesh Lalit said instead of Thursday, it will hear the petition at 12.45 pm when a lawyer mentioned the case for hearing on Thursday. Get the paper books for my brother and sister (Justices S Ravindra Bhat and Bela M Trivedi). We will list the matter at 12.45 pm today itself, the CJI said. Justice Chandrachud, the CJI-designate, will take oath as the 50th Chief Justice of India on November 9.

SC refuses to entertain PIL on putting up draft laws in public domain

The Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to entertain a PIL seeking directions to the Centre and the states to publish draft laws prominently on government websites and in the public domain at least 60 days before they are introduced in Parliament and state assemblies. A bench of Chief Justice U U Lalit and Justice Bela M Trivedi, however, hoped that the governments would put the laws in public domain in local languages so that citizens know about the legislations made for them. With regard to the pleas seeking a direction to put future laws in public domain, the bench said, It would not be proper on our part to direct the government to publish draft legislations. It is entirely left up to the government to take such decisions. As regards to the second prayer, we do believe that people must know the legislations made for them and such legislations must be provided in public domain in local languages. Senior lawyer Gopal Sankarnarayanan, appearing for petitioner Ashwini Upadhyay, said t

Matter to have far-reaching ramifications, Centre on idenitfying minorities

The central government has sought more time from the Supreme Court to hold consultations with the state governments on petitions seeking to identify minorities, including Hindus, at the state level

Morbi bridge collapse: SC to hear plea on Nov 14 seeking judicial probe

The plea was mentioned by advocate Vishal Tiwari before a bench headed by Chief Justice of India U.U. Lalit

Is it time to rethink the collegium system of judicial appointments?

The govt says that appointments and transfers in judiciary have been opaque. But the SC believes, scrapping the collegium system will compromise its independence. Let's delve deeper into the debate

SC seeks status of inquiry commission on hospital fire from Gujarat govt

The Supreme Court Monday asked the Gujarat government to apprise it whether the report of a commission of inquiry headed by Justice D A Mehta (retd), which had probed two incidents of fire at hospitals in Rajkot and Ahmedabad in 2020, has been tabled in assembly and if not, by when it will be done. A bench of Justice DY Chandrachud and Justice Hima Kohli also asked the Gujarat government to file an affidavit indicating steps taken in view of the findings of the Justice Mehta (retd) commission. The top court was hearing a suo motu matter on the proper treatment of COVID-19 patients and dignified handling of the dead in the Gujarat hospitals in which it had taken cognizance of fire incidents during the peak of COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. At the outset, senior advocate Dushyant Dave, appearing for some of the kin of victims of fire incidents said some kind of strict action is needed and court must take note of the incident, which had happened in Gujarat on Sunday. The bench told Dave

Supreme Court to hear Gyanvapi mosque dispute case on November 10

The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear a plea on a dispute involving the Gyanvapi mosque in Varanasi on November 10. A bench of justices D Y Chandrachud and Hima Kohli was told by advocate Vishnu Shankar Jain that the matter requires an urgent hearing as the court's order to preserve the area of the mosque where a "Shivling" is said to be found during a survey expires on November 12. "Our difficulty is that the court's interim order is coming to end on November 12," Jain submitted. The bench then agreed to hear the matter on November 10. On May 20, the top court had transferred a civil suit filed by Hindu devotees on the Gyanvapi mosque from the civil judge (senior division) to the district judge, Varanasi, saying looking at the "complexities" and the "sensitivity" of the issue, it is better if a senior judicial officer with more than 25-30 years of experience handles the case. In an important observation, the apex court had also said a process to ascertain the religious chara

Pleas on CAA: SC grants time to Assam, Tripura; fixes Dec 6 for hearing

The Supreme Court on Monday granted three weeks to Assam and Tripura governments to file their responses to certain pleas challenging the constitutional validity of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) and fixed December 6 for hearing a batch of petitions on the issue. A bench headed by Chief Justice Uday Umesh Lalit appointed two lawyers - Pallavi Pratap and Kanu Agarawal as nodal counsel to assist it in ensuring the smooth handling of over 230 pleas by preparing a common compilation and deciding the petitions that can be treated as the lead ones. The bench, also comprising justices S Ravindra Bhat and Bela M Trivedi took note of the submissions of senior advocate Kapil Sibal that the petition filed by Indian Union of Muslim League (IUML) can be treated as the lead matter as the pleadings in this case was complete. "Having noted that there are various matters projecting multiple issues, in our view the resolution to instant controversy can be achieved if two-three matters are tak

SC seeks replies on plea for national health plan on lumpy skin disease

The Supreme Court sought responses from the Centre and six states on Monday on a plea that has sought the formulation of a national health plan on lumpy skin disease in cattle. Lumpy skin disease is a contagious viral infection that affects cattle and causes fever, nodules on the skin, and can also lead to death. The disease spreads through mosquitoes, flies, lice and wasps by direct contact among cattle, and through contaminated food and water. The plea, filed by Pune-based NGO Aryavarta Mahasabha Foundation, came up for hearing before a bench of justices Surya Kant and J B Pardiwala, which issued notices and sought responses from the Centre and the states of Rajasthan, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana and Madhya Pradesh. The plea, drafted by advocate Pawan Prakash Pathak, said lumpy skin disease has been rapidly spreading among cattle in eight states and more than 75,000 cattle have died due to it since July. According to the plea, the Centre has begun administering the "g

Supreme Court deprecates 'regressive' two-finger test on rape victims

The Supreme Court on Monday deprecated the "regressive" and "invasive" practice of the 'two-finger test' on rape survivors and said it has no scientific basis and instead re-victimises women who may have been sexually assaulted, and is an affront to their dignity. The 'two-finger test' is conducted on victims of sexual assault and rape to determine whether they are habituated to sexual intercourse. The top court said it is "patriarchal" and "sexist" to suggest that a woman cannot be believed when she states that she was raped, merely for the reason that she is sexually active. It said any person who conducts the two-finger test or per vaginum examination (while examining a person alleged to have been subjected to a sexual assault) in contravention of the directions of this court shall be guilty of misconduct. A bench of Justices D Y Chandrachud and Hima Kohli made the remarks in a judgement on a plea of the Jharkhand government in which it challenged the acquittal of one Shailendra

Order putting sedition law on hold to continue, SC grants time to Centre

An interim order putting on hold the contentious sedition law and the consequential registration of FIRs will continue as the Supreme Court granted additional time to the Centre on Monday to take "appropriate steps" with regard to the reviewing of the colonial-era provision. A bench of Chief Justice Uday Umesh Lalit and justices S Ravindra Bhat and Bela M Trivedi was told by Attorney General R Venkataramani that some more time be granted to the Centre as "something may happen in the winter session of Parliament". The topmost law officer said the issue has been under consideration of the authorities concerned and moreover, there was "no reason to worry" in view of the May 11 interim order, which had put the use of the provision on hold. "Mr R Venkataramani, the attorney general, submits that in terms of the directions issued by this court in order dated May 11, 2022, the matter is still engaging the attention of the relevant authorities. He submits that some additional time be grante

SC to examine plea challenging decision to link electoral data with Aadhaar

The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to examine a plea challenging the Centre's decision that enables linking electoral roll data with the Aadhaar ecosystem. A bench of Justices S K Kaul and Abhay S Oka tagged the petition filed by former Major General S G Vombatkere with a similar pending matter. "Petitioner has drawn attention to 2019 Aadhaar judgment to contend that only if some benefit is sought to be conferred then Aadhaar can be mandatory but not to deny rights, and the right to vote is the highest of such rights. "Two other petitions have also been filed by him and there may be some overlapping. Thus, this requires tagging. Tag this petition with that matter," the bench said. Senior advocate Shyam Divan, appearing for the petitioner, submitted that right to vote is one of the most sacred rights and it should not be denied if an individual lacks Aadhaar. The Centre had earlier amended the Registration of Electors Rules to allow linking Aadhaar details with a voters list to wee

Doesn't encourage illegal migration or influx of foreigners: Centre on CAA

The Centre on Sunday urged the Supreme Court to dismiss pleas challenging the validity of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), stressing that the law does not encourage illegal migration in Assam or any future influx of foreigners in the country. It also vehemently defended the exclusion of certain areas of Assam and other Northeastern states from the application of the CAA, saying it has been done to protect the ethnic/linguistic rights of the natives and this was not discriminatory. It is a focused law that grants citizenship only to members of six specified communities who came on or before December 31, 2014 and does not affect the legal, democratic or secular rights of any Indian, the Ministry of Home Affairs said in a detailed 150-page affidavit. Also, the existing regime for obtaining citizenship by foreigners of any country continues to be untouched by the present law and they remain the same, it said ahead of the hearing of petitions on the contentious CAA that had sparked

SC to hear 232 pleas on CAA issue on Oct 31 on reopening after Diwali

The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear around 240 PILs, including a large batch of petitions challenging the constitutional validity of the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), on Monday when it would reopen after a nine-day Diwali vacation. A bench comprising Chief Justice Uday Umesh Lalit and justices S Ravindra Bhat and Bela M Trivedi has listed for hearing as many as 232 petitions, mostly PILs, on October 31 on the issue of CAA alone. Earlier, the bench headed by CJI Lalit, who is scheduled to demit office on November 8, had said that the pleas challenging the CAA will be referred to a three-judge bench. The 2019 amended law, which seeks to grant Indian citizenship to non-Muslim migrants belonging to Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Christian, Jain, and Parsi communities from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan who have come to the country till 2014, has come in for stinging criticism by opposition parties, leaders and other entities over the exclusion of Muslims. The lead pl

SC to hear plea to replace party symbols on EVMs with candidate's details

The Supreme Court has decided to hear a plea on Monday, i.e., October 31 that sought direction to the Election Commission to remove symbols from ballot and EVMs

Decide early date for pleas on 2019 violence in Jamia: Delhi HC tells bench

Taking note of a Supreme Court order asking it to promptly hear such matters, the Delhi High Court on Friday requested its division bench to decide at an "early date" petitions concerning incidents of violence in Jamia Millia Islamia in December 2019 following student protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act. A bench headed by Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma sent the batch of petitions, which have alleged the use of ruthless and excessive force by the police and paramilitary forces on students, to the division bench headed by Justice Siddharth Mridul and directed that it be listed for hearing on November 29 along with pleas concerning the riots of February 2020. "List all matters before Division Bench (DB) II.on November 29. The DB is requested to decide the matter at an early date as directed by the Supreme Court," the bench, also comprising Justice Subramonium Prasad, said. The petitions seek directions for setting up a Special Investigation Team (SIT), Commission of .

Sebi's front-running investigations rise even as overall cases dip

More probes were completed than in the previous year

SC order puts 'charity' in charitable education institutes back in focus

Possible loss of tax exemption for educational institutions that are making profits puts the question of charity back in focus

SC to examine validity of age restriction for tests before abortion

The Supreme Court of India has agreed to examine the validity of the age restriction of 35 years on women's reproductive rights for conducting pre-conception and pre-natal diagnostic tests

SC to hear plea to establish special anti-corruption courts on Oct 31

The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear on October 31 a plea seeking to establish special anti-corruption courts in every district to decide cases related to various economic offences like money laundering and tax evasion within one year. According to the cause list of October 31 uploaded on the apex court website, the petition is slated to come up for hearing before a bench comprising Chief Justice U U Lalit and Justices S R Bhat and Bela M Trivedi. The PIL filed by advocate Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay has also sought directions to high courts to take appropriate steps to decide cases related to economic offences. The PIL, filed through advocate Ashwani Kumar Dubey, contended that the Centre and State governments have also not taken appropriate steps in this regard. None of the government departments are corruption-free, it submitted. Due to long pendency and ineffective anti-corruption laws, even after 73 years of Independence and 70 years after becoming a socialist secular democratic