Erasing Digital Past: Courts Are Listening

In an era where personal information is archived, indexed, and retrievable with the tap of a finger, the concept of being allowed to move on from one's past is increasingly being tested in legal systems around the world. Yet, in India, even today, many remain unaware that the right to seek removal or delisting of such personal data, through what is legally recognised as the “right to be forgotten” is available within our constitutional and judicial discourse. As digital footprints grow harder to...

Stranded Innovation: Legal Grey Zones Holding Back India's Bike Taxi Revolution

The recent judgment by the Karnataka High Court on June 13, 2025, that unless the state frames a policy under Section 93 of the Motor Vehicles Act, all bike taxi operations must cease from June 16, 2025, has led to a complete halt in bike taxi services across the state, triggering widespread debate over the legal status and future of bike taxis in India. Despite offering comfort, convenience, and affordability to thousands of users, bike taxis have been abruptly suspended, raising questions...

Superlative Injunction:Most Secretive Form Of Legal Protection

Injunctions are a familiar tool in the legal world. They're court orders used to prevent someone from doing something or, in some cases, to compel them to act. But what happens when even the existence of such an order needs to be kept secret? That's where superlative injunctions come into play a rarely used, high-level form of judicial protection that operates entirely in the shadows. Recently Delhi High Court issued first of its kind superlative injunction in favor of streaming channel giant...

When Does An Arbitration Clause Bind? – Reading Delhi High Court's Belvedere Judgment Against Wider Jurisprudence

The Delhi High Court's recent judgment in Belvedere Resources DMCC v OCL Iron and Steel Ltd. & Others[1] held that an arbitration clause in a contract whose terms were finalised over a series of WhatsApp messages, followed by an email with a soft copy of the agreement attached, satisfied the requirements of a valid arbitration agreement provided in Section 7 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 (“the Arbitration Act”). Although the Court dismissed the Petition for want of...

Framed, Not Freed: Bureaucratization Of Trans Identity In India

The judgment in NALSA v. Union of India (2014) was historic, not just for its re-imagining of transgender as a “third gender,” but also for rooting this re-imagination in constitutional morality. Based on provisions in Articles 14, 15, 19(1)(a) , and 21 of the Indian constitution , the Court reaffirmed entitlements to dignity, autonomy, and self-description— highlighting that gender identity is core to liberty.  But declaratory power is only one side. A decade after, NALSA is more talked about...

Are We Still Chasing Ghosts? Anti-Dacoity Law And Outdated Justice In Chambal

The Chambal valley, consist of north Madhya Pradesh and the adjacent districts of Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, has long been infamous for dacoity, though this region always been a stronghold for powerful and organized gangs of dreaded dacoits. The land of ravines combined with worsening economic conditions created a favourable environment for the rise and operation of dacoits. The rise of dacoits, which often referred to locally as “baaghis” or rebels, originates because of poverty, feudal...

Right To Sit: Just A “Chair” Or Dignity “Denied”

Why is a simple right to sit come with a privilege and only given to those with dignity? A normal stroll to the neighborhood shops or a fancy mall can clearly reflect how these workers are made to stand for hours without a break. A matter of just sitting might look like an ordinary routine, but when it is denied, it might question the existing dominance of power and class that persists in our society. It represents silent oppression and divides the weak and reinforces control. What is a call for...

Freedom Of Creative Expression V. Popularity Test: A Constitutional Dissection

Recently, Janaki vs State of Kerala a Malayalam film starring Union Minister Suresh Gopi has faced an objection from Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) for using the name 'Janaki' and producer was asked to change the name because the victim, named 'Janaki', is aggrieved by sexual assault. Janaki is the name of goddess Sita in Ramayana, thus carrying the emotional and mythological connection.This is not the first instance rather a film named 'Token Number' did face the same objection for...

Delivery Of An Arbitral Award- A Piece Of Legal Fiction

A Sole Arbitrator was appointed at Mumbai to adjudicate a dispute between the Claimant and the Respondent. He conducted the proceeding and prepared an Arbitral Award which was emailed to the Advocates for the parties. He awarded a hefty sum to the Claimant, much to the dismay of the Respondent.However, Section 31(5) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 (“Arbitration Act”) mandates that the Award “shall be delivered to each party” and no other; as was the law laid down by the Apex Court,...

Fixing Rate: How FPBAI's Currency Markup Became A Competition Law Flashpoint

A quiet 3% markup added to foreign exchange rates may not raise eyebrows in financial circles. But when a national publishing federation prescribes this rate uniformly and when that rate aims to determine the cost of thousands of academic journals and books, it remains not just a matter of accounting, but of antitrust.In Pranav Gupta v. Federation of Publishers' and Booksellers' Association in India (Case No. 38 of 2021), the Competition Commission of India (CCI) investigated the FPBAI's...

Custodial Death; A Unique Occurrence In India

In February 2025, the High Court of Justice in London, King's Bench Division, rejected the extradition of Sanjay Bhandari who was facing money laundering and tax evasion charges on the grounds that custodial torture was a 'Commonplace' and a widespread 'Epidemic' and extraditing him will cause a breach of his 'Human Rights'. The question now arises, whether this statement by King's Division Bench is a conjecture on the part of bench and is portraying India in a bad light?The answer to the above...

Of Profits And People: A Legal Odyssey Between Shareholder Supremacy And Stakeholderism

Professor Joe Badaracco in the documentary titled 'The Corporation' puts forward the idea that a Corporation is composed of a group of individuals who work for a bouquet of goals, the leading one of which is to earn huge sustainable and lawful return for the proprietors. The Civil War coupled with the Industrial Revolution changed the magnitude at which these corporations operated. The Corporations grew more power hungry, and they wanted to free themselves from the constraints which were imposed...