Their Lordships Are "Also Humans"! : Justice Anand Venkatesh

Mental Health in common parlance includes our emotional, psychological and social well-being. It affects how we think, feel and act. It also determines how we handle stress, relate to others and make choices. Mental health is important at every stage of life. Positive mental health allows people to realize their potential at its fullest capacity, cope with the stresses of life, work productively and make meaningful contributions to the community. Judges, in particular, undertake the difficult...

Shreya Singhal v. Union Of India's Blindspot: Website Blocking

Shreya Singhal v. Union of India is perhaps best known for striking down Section 66A of the Information Technology Act, 2000 ('IT Act') as unconstitutional. In Part one of this three part series commemorating five years of the judgement, we focused on the Supreme Court's decision to strike down Section 66A as unconstitutional. However, in the same judgement, the Supreme Court also upheld the constitutionality of another tool of web censorship under the IT Act: Section 69A and the accompanying...

Raising Of IBC Threshold : Retrospective Or Prospective?

On 24th March 2020, a press conference was held by the Union Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitaraman, at which she set out various decisions that were to be taken by the Government to combat the economic crises that has arisen due to the COVID-19 pandemic. One of the decisions was to raise the threshold of loan default amounts that could trigger insolvency proceedings from Rs. 1 Lakh to Rs. 1 Crore.[1] The Finance Minister also stated that the government was "considering the suspension of...

Justice In The Time Of Covid-19: First-Hand Experience Of Videoconferencing At Supreme Court

After a self-imposed quarantine of more than 10 days, it was rather exciting to see the cause list on the website of the Supreme Court which showed that my matter was listed at 3 PM on 27.03.2020.What is rather commendable is that in times of complete lockdown due to Covid-19, the Apex Court has evolved an extra-ordinary process to ensure the listing and hearing of urgent matters. The method to get the matter listed is simple and, in my experience, far easier than getting the matter listed...

Celebrating The Life Of Eminent Jurist T R Andhyarujina

"A gentleman is one who puts more into the world than he takes out." -George Bernard Shaw

When Doors Of Justice Remain Closed

Is complete shutting down of a HC, without providing options for moving urgent cases, justifiable?

Ranjan Gogoi's Allegations Against Justice AP Shah: What Is The Truth?

Faced with a barrage of criticism from a number of former judges, many of whom had been his colleagues, such as, Justices A.K. Patnaik, J. Chelameswar, M. Lokur, K. Joseph and A.P. Shah, for accepting a Rajya Sabha seat from the government soon after his retirement, and after having delivered several important judgements like Ayodhya, Sabrimala, Rafale to the government, Justice Gogoi has defended himself by mounting an offensive against his former colleagues and judges and against what he...

No Justification For Police Brutality Against Persons During Lockdown

"Public compliance cannot be obtained with violence and in order to combat COVID-19 successfully, a reversal of the adversarial relationship between the police and the public is the need of the hour".

Criminal Justice system Amid Corona Outbreak : Global Report

"The coronavirus requires a challenging balance of rights: the rights of the defendant to a speedy trial and a trial by a jury of their peers against the rights of courtroom actors and jury members to their health" - Theodore Wilson, University of Albany's School of Criminal Justice The rapid release of Novel Corona Virus around the globe has put the criminal justice system on a halt. Amid this global crisis, an interesting insight emerging from approximately all nations is the...

Privacy In Times Of Corona : Problems With Publication Of Personal Data Of Covid-19 Victims

There are numerous problems with the publication of an online database consisting of personal data of the Covid-19 Victims

[Law On Reels] Netflix Documentary 13th : On Use Of Legal System As Tool Of Discrimination

"Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction." -Reads the 13th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States of America. With this amendment the Constitution of USA abolished slavery in December 1865. And yet almost 150 years since then, oppression of African American community continues in America. African Americans...

COVID-19 : Centre's Promise To SC For Relief Mechanism On Tax Recoveries Yet to Be Fulfilled

The scope of the extensions given by the Finance Ministry are different from those that were covered in the orders of Kerala & Allahabad HCs