Stalled Seas: Contemporary Shipping Accidents And India's Unratified Maritime Laws

In just three weeks, two large cargo ships had encountered operational failure in the territorial waters of India. A Liberian-flagged vessel, MSC ELSA-3, the first ship, allegedly suffered ballast problems and, as a result, capsized beyond the territorial sea of India. In the second case, a fire broke out in the Singapore-flagged vessel MV Wan Hai 503, resulting in cargo damage and destruction of the ship. It is unbelievable that all this happened within three weeks, inside India's territorial...

India's Abortion Law: Progressive On Paper, Hesitant In Practice

At a time when many nations are retreating from reproductive rights, India presents a curious contrast: a country that legalised abortion over five decades ago with minimal public protest or political controversy. Yet, what appears progressive in law often falters in practice. India's Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act, enacted in 1971, was ahead of its time. But in the face of today's global debates on reproductive justice, it demands renewed scrutiny and reform.Global Contrast: A...

Stifling Competition: Why CCI's Table Tennis Verdict Is A Game-Changer For Sports Regulation

The Competition Commission of India in a landmark decision has ruled against four table tennis associations for abusing their dominant positions, extending the reach of competition law into the realm of sports governance. It began with a single WhatsApp message, a brief advisory sent by a district-level sports official. But that message, warning players against participating in unaffiliated table tennis tournaments, set off a chain reaction that would drag four powerful sporting bodies before...

Soaring Through Safety: India's Aviation Laws And Quest For Safer Skies

The Indian aviation industry stands at a critical juncture. The proposition' Ude Desh ka Aam Nagrik' was proposed by the government in 2016, and since then, efforts have been made to make it a reality. With increasingly crowded skies, ambitious growth targets, and an expanding airline fleet. The recent tragic Air India Crash in Ahmedabad shows that progress without proper safety measures can result in devastating consequences. The Indian aviation sector faces unprecedented scrutiny as more than...

Parole Is The Rule, Denial An Exception—Justice Beyond Bars

The recent judgment of the Kerala High Court in Shafeena P.H. v. State of Kerala & Another, 2025 LiveLaw (Ker) 329, where Justice P.V. Kunhikrishnan granted parole to a prisoner to facilitate his child's admission to higher education, observing that a father's presence plays a vital role in a child's education.Parole rules are generally incorporated into Jail Manuals or established through other state-specific laws. Each state has its own laws governing prisons and jails, which set out...

Inheritance Under Enemy Property Act, Back To Surface With Saif Ali Khan's Case

The interplay between sovereignty and individual rights is fully visible in the Enemy Property Act, 1968. The core constitutional issue is as to whether the State permanently appropriate privately owned property based on the geopolitical choices of ancestors? The Act empowers the government to appropriate the properties left behind by those who migrated to enemy nations – primarily Pakistan and China and acquired citizenship. However, this provision affected those who remained in India seeking...

"We Worship Game, But Does It Mourn Us?” Chinnaswamy Stadium Tragedy Through A Legal Lens

On June 4, 2025, a city's joy turned to horror. What should have been a jubilant celebration of Royal Challengers Bangalore's IPL title win at Bengaluru's M. Chinnaswamy Stadium ended in a deadly stampede that claimed eleven lives and injured at least thirty-three more. Within hours, outrage rippled through the city and beyond—not just over the incident, but over how preventable it was.The legal response was swift. The Bengaluru Police filed an FIR under Section 304A of the Bharatiya Nyaya...

Need For A Refugee Law And Sensitisation Of Higher Judiciary

Recently, while dealing with a matter pertaining to the asylum of a refugee from Sri Lanka, the Supreme Court Justice Dipankar Dutta has made a remark that “Is India a Dharamshala to host refugees from all over the world? We are struggling with 140 crore population”. The petition was to allow a Tamil refugee to stay as an out-camp refugee so that he can make necessary arrangements to move to another country apart from Sri Lanka, where he fears persecution. This observation by the Supreme...

Snipped And Sued: The 10-Second Clip That Sparked A Copyright War

The Mohak Mangal and ANI controversy has grabbed national interest and sparked debates across platforms regarding the 'fairness' of the use of a 10 second clip owned by ANI in a video made by Mangal spanning close to 30 minutes. On one side we have a party seeking compensation for use of its copyrighted material whereas proponents of the opponent side claim that the usage of the clip was incidental and would fall under the exception of 'Fair Use'.This controversy also brings to the fore the...

Surrogacy Law In India: Navigating Complexities Amidst Legal Reforms

In the evolving terrain of reproductive rights and biotechnology, India has emerged as both a frontier and a flashpoint for global surrogacy arrangements. The nation's surrogacy landscape has been punctuated by legal grey zones, ethical dilemmas, and emotionally charged courtroom dramas that have challenged the contours of parenthood, nationality, and dignity. A 76-year-old woman giving birth through IVF, her eyes brimmed with tears, sagging teats, emaciated body frame and longing fulfilled,...

Love Or Crime? The Legal Dilemma Of Teenage Relationships Under POCSO

A 19 year old boy finds himself in jail, charged with rape, not because he actually committed the offence, but because his minor girlfriend (17 years 11 months old) agreed for a consensual sexual relationship. Her parents, after finding out, filed a case under POCSO, putting a big stain on his character and ruining his whole life that lies ahead- all for loving someone who is just a few days away from legal adulthood.This is not a rare case, across India young people are being punished by laws...

Reviewing New Access And Benefit Sharing Regulations, 2025

India had the early mover's advantage when it came to developing a suo-motu legislation to protect and manage its bio-resources, i.e. the Biological Diversity Act, 2002 (BD Act). Though BD Act contained provisions depicting the three pillars of Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) which are conservation of biological diversity; the sustainable use of the components of biological diversity; and the fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of the utilization of genetic...