Committing To An Independent Judiciary

“The principle of complete independence of the judiciary from the executive is the foundation of many things in our island life…The Judge has not only to do justice between man and man. He also – and this is one of the most important functions considered incomprehensible in some large parts of the world – has to do justice between the citizens and the State.”– Winston Churchill[1]Even a despot like Churchill understood the requirement of the complete independence of the judiciary from executive...

Domiciliary Requirement’s Place In Rajya Sabha’s Constitutional Identity

The sounding of the bugle for elections to India’s Upper House in central parliament (Rajya Sabha) proffers a solemn occasion to consider (or rather reconsider) the constitutional waters of Indian bicameralism. Fifty-nine members from seventeen Indian states/provinces shall be elected today to the upper chamber of Indian ‘temple of democracy’ Maneuvering beyond transient concerns of power politics, this article endeavours to extrapolate the larger constitutional and systemic issues plaguing...

In Defence Of The Offensive

While many detractors of the AAP sneered at Kejriwal’s “backtracking” for apologizing to politicians Nitin Gadkari, Kapil Sibal and Bikram Singh Majithia in the criminal defamation complaints filed against him, few realize that this was a political masterstroke on his part. As Atishi Marlena notes in her piece, this was Kejriwal’s way of getting the cases out of the way to focus on real work. Criminal defamation complaints as intimidation tactics are common in politics and against the media....

The Politics Of Judicial Appointments

“It is perfectly possible to pervert the Constitution, without changing its form, by merely changing the form of the administration and to make it inconsistent [with] and oppose to the spirit of the Constitution.” -Dr BR AmbedkarTwo remarkable judges delivered judgments which were path-breaking, but both paid the price for courage under the fire of the Executive. One of the judges was transferred to the Madras High Court. The second judge is now being objected to by the government to be brought...

Analyzing The Foreign Lawyers/Law Firms Entry Ban Judgment

The Supreme Court, speaking through Justice AK Goel and Justice UU Lalit, recently held that foreign law firms/lawyers are not permitted to practice the profession of law in India. The bench decided civil appeals challenging two orders: one by the Madras High Court which had held that foreign law firms or foreign lawyers cannot practice the profession of law in India either on the litigation or non-litigation side, unless they fulfill the requirement of the Advocates Act, 1961 and the Bar...

NEROs WE ARE

When speech is the duty, it is a sin to be silent. The hottest place in hell is reserved for such sinners, it is said. We may not be able to reserve the cosiest part of heaven for ourselves, but try we must dereserve the hottest spot in hell. Let me try.I do read a lot about the "misfortune" of Justice K.M. Joseph. I also hear about the "embarrassment" of Ms. Indu Malhotra, the first woman recommended for Judgeship directly to the Supreme Court.I am not at all on the "misfortune" of Justice...

Access To Legal Aid In India : An Unfulfilled Promise ?

Why Legal Aid?Access to legal services continues to be a challenge for a substantial segment of the Indian population due to geographical, resource and infrastructure constraints. Since legal representation is costly and out of reach for the disadvantaged, the need for legal aid arises. The problem has been compounded by the failure to mainstream legal-aid services, particularly for the marginalized sections at the panchayat levels. Marginalised communities, especially rural and tribal...

Why Madras HC’s Observations on Sweepers/Cleaners/Scavengers are Disturbing

Indian judiciary has been instrumental in expansion of the rights of people. In this spirit, while dealing with a case involving the issues concerned with the marginalized sections of our society, a judge should always keep at the back of his/her mind the constitutional goal of an egalitarian social order. It is in this background that we must look at and scrutinize a judgment delivered by Madras High Court in Mahalakshmi v. State of Tamil Nadu (10 January, 2018).The case concerned with a plea...

Ban On Entry Of Women In Sabarimala Temple - Just Another Case Of An Age Old Prejudice Against Women

It is a good eighty-two years since the benevolent Temple Entry Proclamation of 1936 which allowed all castes to enter temples in the erstwhile State of Travancore. And it is unfortunate that today when the world is celebrating International Women’s Day, in India we are still debating on whether women should be allowed to enter places of worship where Gods dwell. We are contemplating on the purity of a woman and of her body, all because she menstruates. And this happens to be in God’s own...

Safeguard People’s Right To Health: An Open Letter To CJI & Judges Of Supreme Court

Dear Honourable Chief Justice of India and his brother judges,I am writing you this letter seeking the urgent intervention of the Honourable Supreme Court of India to protect the right to health under Article 21 of the Constitution of India. As a guardian of the fundamental rights, I believe that the Supreme Court should not wait for a petition to intervene in the gross violation of the right to health to millions of Indian citizens. The Honourable Supreme Court has made such intervention in the...

Moratorium To Guarantor's Assets vis-à-vis Interests Of The Secured Creditors

A question that is repeatedly arising after the enactment of Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) is as to whether the security of guarantee (Personal or Corporate) is no longer a preferred security or convenient security for the secured creditors? The latest judgement of the Honourable National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) in the case of State Bank of India Vs V Ramakrishnan and Veesons Energy Limited[1] (28th February Order) is a direct contradiction of its own orders in the earlier...

Linking Aadhaar To Direct Recruitment Violates Right To Equal Opportunity Clause Of Constitution: Punjab & Haryana HC [Read Order]

In a significant development in the matter of Unique Identification (UID)/Aadhaar numbers, the Punjab & Haryana High Court has passed an order saying, “Linking Aadhaar Number to direct recruitment should not prima facie be a mandatory condition as it by result in violation of equal opportunity clause in Article 16(1) of the Constitution of India and deny easy access to applying online for jobs”. It observed that if “some other method” is devised, citizens “will be confronted with denial of...