The Working Of The IBC – Some Thoughts And Reflections : Justice Anand Venkatesh Writes

1. The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), 2016 aims at timely reorganization and resolution of corporates, firms and individuals; to maximize the assets of such debtors for the benefit of all stakeholders. It has been said that introspection is a powerful tool for self-betterment. Aristotle is believed to have said that knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom. There is no doubt...

The Section 138 NI Act Jinx : Critique Of 'Celestium' Judgment Allowing Complainants To File Appeal Under S.372 CrPC

Complainants in cases under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 are a jinxed lot. Although a quarter of a century has passed since its enactment, it passes comprehension as to how frequently the interpretation of its provisions swing like the proverbial pendulum taking with it the fate of thousands of litigants. In the recent past, one can recall the decision of the Supreme...

Contract-Abiding Credit Cards & Usurious Consumers

The Posh China Shop Of Credit CardsIn Hong Kong Shanghai Banking Corporation v Awaz[1] the Supreme Court set aside an order of the National Consumer Dispute Resolution Commission (NCDRC). In its order the NCDRC held that “charging of interest rates in excess of 30% p.a. (and above) from the credit card holders by banks for the former's failure to make full payment on the due date or paying...

Reconsidering Fast Track Arbitration: A Legislative Case For Amending Section 29B Of Arbitration And Conciliation Act, 1996

The Indian arbitration regime has gradually changed over the last two decades, trying to promote efficiency, prevent judicial interference, and keep up with international standards. A big step forward in this process was the introduction of Section 29B to the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 by the 2015 Amendment. It intends to institutionalize a "fast track" method for...

Are Supreme Court Internships Only For Privileged? Making Judicial Internships Inclusive In 2025

Every year, aspiring interns-for-credit from law colleges across India dream of working under at the Supreme Court of India. It's not merely about prestige. It is a great opportunity to learn from the best minds in the legal fraternity of India. But here's a bitter truth: this opportunity remains almost unattainable for many students, not on grounds of merit, but due to systemic barriers.Being...

Emergency@50: How Supreme Court Abdicated Its Duty To Protect Liberty

This June marks fifty years since one of the gravest constitutional crises in India's constitutional history. The Emergency, which lasted from June 1975 to March 1977, is remembered for mass arrests, press censorship, and the suspension of fundamental rights. But amid this grim record of executive overreach, another institution that quietly faltered in its constitutional role was the...

Mechanics and Implications of Forfeiture of Bail Bonds in Criminal Justice

The forfeiture of bail bonds is one of the aspects of criminal law that causes an intriguing discourse between the Bar and the Bench. From my limited experience as a Judicial Magistrate, I have noticed several confusions among the Learned Advocates, primarily related to the process adopted for forfeiting the bail bonds in bail jumping cases. Let us first examine the statutory provisions and...

Concept Of GPA Sale Based On Recent Supreme Court Decisions

“The title is the de facto antecedent, of which the right is the de jure consequent…..For the essence of a title is not that it determines the creation of rights de novo, but that it determines the acquisition of rights new or old.”[1]Enthralling it is, when picturising the transient nature of a 'title' and its consistency of change and acquisition, especially when tasked with the...

Taxation And Inequality: Unspoken Truths Behind India's Economic Success

“Without economic and social justice, political freedom is hollow.” – Dr. B.R. Ambedkar. India's economy is often praised as a success story, but might it bury rather than reveal? The wealth gap is growing and our tax system is quietly making it worse. This is the underlying truth the impressive GDP figures conceal. Ambedkar's warning was not just philosophical—it was prophetic. It's...

Selective Allotment And New Rights Issue Framework: A Double-Edged Reform

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), on 4th March, 2025, introduced the SEBI (Issue of Capital and Disclosure Requirements) (Amendment) Regulations, 2025, which also added a new framework for rights issue. In due course, on March 11, 2025, SEBI issued a circular setting out the timelines for completing various activities involved in rights issues and permitting selective...

A Man Who Walked The Road Less Travelled

The life and times of Justice Krishna Iyer is, in itself, a festival that coronates the most fitting of any memory. He was the Peoples' Emperor of Hearts and often the final refuge for many who had exhausted all remedies. He was thought of as the magical panacea for all ills of the society; and the confidence and belief in him, of those who came seeking his help was absolute. I have always...

Something Disconcerting

Certain utterances in the recent past have been strange as well as disconcerting and do not augur well for our polity. The present debate about the expressions 'socialist' and 'secular' in the Preamble is both sterile and puerile. 'Socialist' may appear to give the Constitution an ideological slant. But the socio-economic revolution and ushering in an egalitarian society were always high on...