Supreme Court's Refusal To Stay Electoral Bonds Undermines Transparency In Electoral Process

The Court omitted to consider the impact of amendments made by Finance Act 2017 and also the concerns expressed by Election Commission and Reserve Bank of India.

Insolvency Law in Review – February 2021

The enactment of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code 2016 (Code) has had significant ramifications on the corporate insolvency landscape. Over time, the Code has witnessed a manifold increase in litigation, and consequently in the number of decisions. This has made it difficult for insolvency practitioners to stay updated with developments in the field. The purpose of this column is to fill this gap by providing brief summaries of latest decisions, from the various fora dealing with Insolvency...

Right Of Residence Of Daughter-In-Law In Wake Of The New Judgment By The Supreme Court

Pitaji(father), Mataji(mother), Bahu(daughter-in-law) and Beta(son) were all living together happilyafter the marriage of Bahu and Beta. Their house let's call it, Swarg, where they all stayed, was owned by Pitaji. Mataji and Bahu used to cook together in the common Rasoi(kitchen). After a few years, differences arose between Beta and Bahu. Now, Pitaji wanted Bahu to leave Swarg. The question that arises is whether Bahu can be asked to leave Swarg, since the property exclusively ...

Women In Constituent Assembly : Wide Ranging Interventions of Begum Aizaz Rasul

'Women In Constituent Assembly' series will discuss the role played by women in the Constituent Assembly of India. This is the fifth article of the series.

Child Marriage And Muslim Personal Law In India

Recently, the High Court of Punjab & Haryana (India) held that marriage between a 17 years old girl and 36 years old man is valid. The couple belongs to the Muslim community and under Muslim Personal Law [Muslim law] i.e. uncodified religious law, marriage is allowed between Muslim individuals who have attained puberty i.e. the age of fifteen years. This goes contrary to the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act [PCMA], which prescribes 18 and 21 years as the age of marriage for female and...

Does The Traceability Requirement Meet The Puttaswamy Test?

1. Introduction Encryption technology has popularly been used for varied purposes including secure communication. This allows for individuals to communicate amongst each other without anyone else being able to monitor the content of such conversations. This, thus, keeps such conversations even outside the purview of Law Enforcement Agencies ('LEAs'). This preserves the privacy of the users and allows them to safely communicate without any threats of surveillance. However, this...

Extension Of Limitation Prescribed Under General/Special Law Due To COVID 19 Pandemic – An Analysis

Various Statutes prescribe a time limit for filing of statutory appeal to the concerned appellate authority. Take for instance statute like Central Excise, Service Tax (Chapter V of Finance Act 1994), FTDR Act 1992, Electricity Act, Consumer Protection Act and so on. These statute while prescribing the time limit for filing appeal also provides for another period within which delay in filing appeal can be condoned. In the statues abovementioned the delay in filing is condonable only for...

The Bench, The Bar, And The Balance

The irritated judge warned the counsel, "If you argue for another minute, I will impose a cost of Rs. 1000/-". The lawyer stopped, turned around to whisper to his client, and then said: "Your Lordship may impose a cost of Rs. 20,000/-", and continued to argue. I am not sure, who the judge was. I am not sure who the lawyer was. This corridor legend has its versions in almost all High Courts of the Country. The names, the quantum of costs, and the size of pocket of the client does...

The Road Never Travelled: An Analysis Of The Constitutionality Of The Haryana Bill Reserving Jobs In Private Sector

In line with the recent surge in the autochthonous spirit that public policymakers have adopted, Haryana Governor Sh. SN Arya gave his assent to the Haryana State Employment of Local Candidates Bill, 2020. The assembly passed the Bill in November 2020. It is much on the same lines as the governments of Andhra Pradesh, and Madhya Pradesh promised. As of the date of writing, the Bill has not been notified. What the Bill means: As per section 4 of the Bill, its purpose is to...

Non-Poaching Clause And Its Relation With Competition

Employers tend to prefer experienced professionals as opposed to an employee with no prior experience, especially in markets requiring skilled workers with technical knowledge. However, during lateral hiring, an employee also takes with one the technical skills and experience acquired over the period of employment. To ensure benefit, from an employer's perspective, in lateral hiring amongst competitors, non-poaching clauses are often added to agreements. Non-poaching agreements are...

Re-visiting 'Reinstatement': The Vacillatting Interpretations Of 'Reinstatement'

The Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 at Section 11A confers upon Labour Courts, Industrial Tribunals and National Industrial Tribunals (collectively referred to as 'Tribunals') the power to "set aside an order of discharge or dismissal of workmen and direct reinstatement of the workmen on such terms and conditions, if any, as it thinks fit". The recently enacted Industrial Relations Code, 2020 which will replace the 1947 Act upon coming into force, also confers the same powers in the very...

"Reasons To Believe": A System Of Checks & Balances On The Powers Of The Enforcement Directorate Under PMLA, 2002

Concept of 'Reasons to Believe' Strangely, the phrase "reasons to believe" finds no definition under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA) (hereinafter "the Act") despite being the sine qua non which empowers the Enforcement Directorate to attach the properties of a person alleged to be involved in money-laundering under Sections 3 & 4 of the Act. For guidance, one could refer to Section 26 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, which defines "reasons to believe", as...