East Punjab Urban Rent Restriction Act 1949 – Evolution

As the word Rent suggests it can easily be construed that any Rent Law is a law that is used as a tool to control and regulate the relationship and also adjudicate the disputes arising between the landlord and tenant. The historical background of the rent legislation in the erstwhile State of Punjab relates back to the time of Second World War, which started in the year 1939, when various taxes were imposed by the British Government to set off the cost of the war under the provisions...

COVID-19 A Force Majeure Event- Threshold Of A New Jurisprudence

The outbreak of Covid-19 virus has confronted the world with an unprecedented situation where the economic and commercial activities across the globe have been significantly disrupted. As a consequence of the said disruption, the performance of countless contracts shall inevitably be delayed, disrupted or rendered impossible. The present situation is likely to lead to significant number of cases involving reliance on the Force Majuere stipulation and consequent development of a novel...

A Comic Tale Of The Gown

Intimidating for some, penguinesque for others. Stuffy for the ones wearing it when the weather application tells us we are being slow roasted. For High Courts and the Supreme Court in India, like in many other countries, the lawyers' and judges' dress code consists of white (more or less) clothing topped with a white band, a black coat and a black gown (the last two turn a bit swanky if you're admitted into the League of Extraordinary Legal Gentlemen, the senior advocates and the judges,...

The Supreme Court Is In the Thrall Of The Government

A month ago, on April 27, a bench of the Supreme Court testily informed activist-lawyer Prashant Bhushan that "this institution is not a hostage to the government".And undoubtedly right they were. The Supreme Court of India has for almost four decades been recognised globally as extraordinarily influential and powerful, its verdicts keenly read and commented upon by legal scholars and even constitutional courts throughout the free world; the sheer expanse of its reach has amazed commentators;...

Confusion On Consortium: Constitution Bench Decision Of Pranay Sethi Requires A Revisit

Right from the time when Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 ("Act") was enacted, the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT) have been struggling to adopt a rather standardised method of calculating compensation which is both just and fair. Over the years Hon'ble Supreme Court has made various attempts to draw a yard stick for calculating the compensation, latest in the line being 5 Judges Bench decision of NationalInsurance Corporation Vs. Pranay Sethi, (2017) 16 SCC 680. This decision had put...

Supreme Court Clears The Air On The Section 13(2) Of The Consumer Protection Act As Being Mandatory Or Directory

A Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court recently in the case of New India Assurance Co. Ltd. v. Hilli Multipurpose Cold Storage Pvt. Ltd. MANU/SC/0272/2020 held that the time period to file the reply within forty five (30 days or such extended period, not exceeding 15 days) under Section 13 (2) of the Consumer Protection Act, 1986 (Act) is mandatory and there cannot be any extension beyond the said period. The issue whether the time period as prescribed under Section 13 (2) of...

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...