[Law On Reels] 'The Trial of The Chicago 7' : A Courtroom Drama Mirroring Present Day Realities

The movie shows the tragedy that can happen when a Court of Justice acts like a mere Court of Power

The Industrial Relations Code, 2020: Implications For Workers' Rights

The Industrial Relations Code, 2020 that was notified by the central government on 29 September 2020 consolidates the provisions of the three major central laws in the country relating to industrial relations, namely, the Trade Unions Act, 1926; the Industrial Disputes Act 1947 and the Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act 1946. Many of the features of these laws continue to be retained in the Code. At the same time, the Code has introduced some significant changes in the law...

Paralysis In Hearing Of RTI Appeals Without Chiefs & With Increasing Vacancies

The Right to Information Act has completed its 15 years of truncated existence on 12th October 2020, with several empty Commissions, especially Commissions without 'heads', resulting in high increase in pending appeals and extending period of delay in delivery of decisions. It is not Coronavirus but a virus of reluctance and anti-transparency attitude that is keeping the Central and State Information Commissions from deciding disclosure issues. With two and half lakh cases pending in...

Limiting The Operation Of Stay Up To Six Months By Judicial Fiat, An Impermissible Legislative Act

In the last week, the Supreme Court has in Asian Resurfacing of Road Agency v. CBI (Second case), by order dated 15 October 2020 reiterated that whatever stay granted by any court, including the High Court, automatically expires within a period of six months, unless extension is granted for good reason, as per the judgment. This gives an impression that the aforesaid directions apply to all kinds of stay or injunctions. According to me, the directions issued in Asian Resurfacing of Road...

Getting To Yes – An Understanding And Summation

Negotiation as a concept as a way of life is a part of our daily lives. What is Negotiation to you? To me it is a conversation directed at reaching a consensus or an agreement. We negotiate get the best of life, be it a better salary, discounts or sometimes even an agreement to understand our thought process. Although, this is an art we have engaged in since our childhood, very few have been able to uncover the right strategy to ensure that the process creates wise agreements. In the...

Labour Reforms and the Elusive Quest for Workers' Rights

As the second largest labour force in the world, with a youthful demographic profile to boot, India is blessed with an abundance of human resource it can leverage to its advantage. Yet, one of its most enduring, if somewhat pitiless, paradoxes is that it has a deplorable history of underutilizing and ill-treating its workforce. To date, all attempts to set right this anomaly have met with limited success. In what might seem as a rational, pro-working class initiative, the Parliament...

Limitation Act In COVID- 19 Times: Need To Reconsider Decision In 'Sagufa Ahmed vs. Upper Assam Plywood'

When COVID 19 struck India, the administration of justice by the Courts suffered greatly. Under trying circumstances, the Courts including the highest Court of the land started functioning. The Judges functioned to ensure that justice was met to the common man under challenging circumstances. The Supreme Court, realizing the difficulties that were likely to be faced by the litigants on account of the pandemic and the 'lockdown' announced by the Government, on March 23, 2020, SuoMotto...

The Crumbling Rule Of Law In India

The Government of India needs a firm reminder of what Justice K.K. Mathew[1] said: "The rule of law is not like a twinkling star up above the constitution, it is very much a terrestrial concept which has its habitat within the four corners of the constitution." Human rights activists, lawyers, journalists, academicians and even independent agencies have faced widespread criticism, intimidation and violence for exposing the breakdown of rule of law in India....

Have International Relations Overshadowed Principles Of International Law?

Apart from the global pandemic, the year 2020 has also marked important developments in the areas of international law and international relations. Currently, the conflict between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces looms large as international powers like Russia and Turkey have started showing interest in the dispute. Just about a few months back, a hand-to-hand skirmish between Chinese and Indian troops at the Galwan valley resulted in a few casualties despite mutual commitments. The ...

Relief Under RERA In Rajasthan– Real Or Illusory

After the enactment and implementation of the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016, the stakeholders in the real estate sector in Rajasthan have not been able to reap the benefits of the Act. Various rights conferred on both the promoters and buyers still remain on paper and very little progress can be seen on the ground in the working of the Act. The Real Estate Act of 2016 was enacted by the Parliament at the time when several issues like inordinate delay in completion...

Reforms And Criminal Laws: A Layperson's Perspective

The Committee for Reforms in Criminal Laws was instituted by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in May 2020, with a mandate to "recommend reforms in the criminal law of the country in a principled, effective, and efficient manner…" among other things. Since then, legal practitioners, law students, activists, and even members from allied fields like the Indian Civil Services have spoken up against the nature and constitution of the Committee, against the deadlines that have been set, and...

Resolution Process Against Personal Guarantors – A Violation Of Principles Of Guarantee?

Aggrieved by the order of NCLT, Bombay initiating insolvency process against him, Mr. Anil Ambani, has challenged before the Delhi High Court the constitutional vires of Notification dated 15.11.2019, which notified the provisions relating to insolvency proceedings against personal guarantors, and the corresponding Rules[1] and Regulations[2]. Following the Delhi High Court's order of interim stay of the order passed by NCLT a number of personal guarantors have also filed similar...