Articles
Supreme Court's Web Access For The Litigant, Lawyer And The Judge With Disability?
The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act came into force on 19th April 2017. It was perceived as a landmark legislation keeping in mind the progressive shift it brought in the approach towards and the overall gamut of rights for persons with disabilities in India. The law essentially looked at and spoke of persons with disabilities as equal participants in public life, who must mandatorily enjoy access to all those rights, which are available to persons without disabilities. At the...
Law As The Shapeshifting Demon : What The Arrest Of 'Pinjra Tod' Activists Signals
New lines are being drawn on the Map of India. New categories of classification are being inserted in Art. 14 and Art. 15 of the Indian Constitution, albeit silently but ironically in broad daylight. Shapeshifting, a common theme in mythology and folklore, is the ability of a creature to 'shapeshift', and acquire full body transformation, enabling it to trick, deceive, hunt and kill humans. Vampires, popularized by Hollywood, and Lycanthropes (commonly known as werewolves) are...
Retrospective Applicability Of Provisions Relating To Bail Under The Companies Act, 2013
The Companies Act, 1956 (the "1956 Act") was repealed by the Companies Act, 2013 (the "2013 Act"). Section 1(3) of the 2013 Act states that different provisions of the 2013 Act shall come into force on such dates as the government may so specify by issuing a notification in the official gazette. Section 212(6) of the 2013 Act was notified in the gazette on 26.03.2014. Section 212(6) of the 2013 Act Section 212(6) requires the court to record 'reasonable grounds' for believing...
Supreme Court And Restoration Of 4G In Kashmir: A Disappointment
The Supreme Court of India (SC) on 11th May 2020 refused to restore 4G internet services in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir (UT). The order came in response to a petition filed to quash orders restricting internet services to 2G in the UT. The SC vide its judgment in Anuradha Bhasin v Union of India had directed the UT to timely review the internet shutdown order. Accordingly, the administration in the UT lifted restrictions on regular time intervals. Currently, the UT has 2G mobile...
India's Lost Opportunity To Recognize The Principle Of Transboundary Environmental Impact Assessment
A consistent remark in the Prime Minister's speeches has been about "New India" paving way for development and progress. However, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change's (MoEF&CC) new draft Notification for Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA Notification 2020) has been anything but progressive. What's new in this draft notification is the inclusion of term "border area" in the definition clause. The clause defines such areas to be the ones falling within the...
Hate Speech is Not Free Speech
On 19th May 2020 a two-judge bench of the Supreme Court (SC), speaking through Justice D Y Chandrachud refused either to quash the proceedings or transfer the investigation to CBI in respect of two different FIRs registered in Maharashtra against Arnab Goswami (Petitioner) in respect of two different broadcasts made by him on 21st April and 29th April on Republic Bharat. The FIRs had invoked various hate speech penal provisions of IPC as also criminal defamation. As regards the 21st April...
Hindi In Haryana Courts: A Line Drawn
The State of Haryana vide notification, dated 11th May 2020, notified that 'Hindi' should be used in all Courts and Tribunals of Haryana. The State of Haryana amended section 3 of The Haryana Official Language (Amendment) Act, 1969. This Act is now called The Haryana Official Language (Amendment) Act, 2020. The Haryana cabinet earlier, in the first week of May, had approved introduction of Hindi language in subordinate courts of the State. The legislative assembly had passed the Bill...
Social Security In India During COVID-19
Social security is a kind of natural right recognised by legal right which recognises certain basic human right for the socially underprivileged persons which aims to ameliorate distress of those individuals and give them a sense of belongingness in the society. The ILO definition is as under: "The notion of social security adopted here covers all measures providing benefits, whether in cash or in kind, to secure protection, inter alia, from (a) lack of work-related income (or ...
Implied Conditions And Warranties: Caveat Emptor
INTRODUCTION Contract is a transaction between the parties wherein they decide themselves the various terms or stipulations to be added or substracted from the contract. Thus similarly for the transaction qua goods among the parties which is governed by the Sale of Goods Act, 1930 (hereinafter referred as act) , they decide the various terms or stipulations to be agreed and acted upon. Such terms or stipulations may be essential or mere collateral i.e. not essential to be performed for...
Artificial Intelligence: A Friend Or Foe For The Legal Industry?
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the most trending topic around the world these days,1 with multiple industries exploring their possibilities2 and its use cases emerging almost every day.3 The old and monotonous manual jobs requiring large numbers of skilled labours and workers are now can be done in just seconds with the help of computers.4 As technology advances it has paved a new concept commonly known as "Artificial Intelligence". Quickly after its inception AI has paved its way into...
COVID-19 Response: India Should Use The Security Exception Under The TRIPS Agreement
The devastating effect of COVID-19 pandemic is indicated by the alarming figures of the infection and related deaths. For an effective response to COVID-19, we should have affordable access to various medical products such as medicines, medical devices including diagnostic kits and personal protective equipment. These products may not be accessible or affordable in the absence of competition. Manufacturers use IP protection as an important tool to eliminate or control competition and it...