Taking Environmental Law Seriously: An Indian Perspective

The present framework of environmental law in Indiaprimarily consists of legislations related to preventing water and air pollution (Water Prevention and Control of Pollution Act, 1974; Air Prevention and Control of Pollution Act, 1981), environmental protection (Environment Protection Act,1986), forest conservation (Forest Conservation Act, 1980) and biodiversity protection (Biological Diversity Act,2002). These laws areexpected to provide a strong legal framework for environmental protection....

India: A Cow Republic ?

Introduction Multiple developments have taken place on the front of institutional vigilantism to protect cows in India. The much-hyped decision of UP government to ban illegal slaughter houses followed by Jharkhand and other BJP ruled states to show a concern for cows; the wide coverage of Yogi Adityanath’s unfound love towards cows in national media; the Central government’s willingness to provide Aadhar like unique identity for cows to prevent their smuggling in the Supreme Court during the...

Crèche Is Not Kid’s Play: Bridging Gaps – Crèche Facility Under The Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Act, 2017

The Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Act 2017 (MB Amendment Act) came in force with effect from 1 April 2017. Effective July 1, 2017, the MB Amendment Act makes it mandatory for every establishment having fifty or more employees to provide for a crèche facility. Women employees are to be allowed four visits a day to the crèche, a welcome change guaranteeing working women an additional protected environment at their workplace. In the recent past, several employers have provided crèche facilities to...

All You Need To Know About Prosecution Sanction [Part-II]

E             SECTION 197(1) Cr.P.C DISSECTED AND DISMANTLED Prosecution sanction either by the Central Government or by the State Government under Section 197 Cr.P.C is a condition precedent for taking cognizance of an offence by a criminal court against a Judge, Magistrate or public servant only if – 1he is removable from his office eitheri)by the Government,ORii) with the sanction of the Government, AND 2 (a)i)he is employed in connection with the affairs of the Union ORii)he is employed in...

Reflections On Five Years Of The Copyright (Amendment) Act, 2012

It has been five years since the Copyright (Amendment) Act, 2012 that came into effect from 21st June, 2012 after the unanimous support of all political parties in passing the Copyright Bill, 2010 in the both houses of the parliament. These amendments to the Copyright Act, 1957 has been considered as the major step which brought the Act into conformity with the WIPO Copyright Treaty(WCT) and the WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty (WPPT) which together famously known as “WIPO Internet...

All You Need To Know About Prosecution Sanction [Part-I]

A    INTRODUCTION The object of Section 197 Cr.P.C is to save public servants from frivolous prosecution. The Section gives qualified protection and does not apply to all public servants and to all offences (vide Afzalur Rahman v. King Emperor AIR 1943 FC 18).  Prosecution launched without a valid sanction is a nullity (Basdeo Agarwalla V. Emperor AIR 1945 FC 16 approved in Yusofalli Mulla Noorbhoy V. King AIR 1949 PC 264). Trial without sanction amounts to trial without jurisdiction. (R.S....

Justice P. N. Bhagwati: A Tribute

On 16th June, 2017 Justice P. N. Bhagwati, former Chief Justice of India, passed away at the age of 95. He was a great judge and a great human being who is rightly considered as father of the Public Interest Litigation movement in the country. He became the 17th Chief Justice of India on 12 July 1985 and held this office till 20 December 1986. He was a great defender of human rights and dignity in the apex court of the country. He was a judge par excellence.Mr. P. N. Bhagwati was born on 21...

When Article 21 Is Reduced Into A Rope Of Sand

The Constitution of India in Article 21 guaranteed right to life and personal liberty. Supreme Court said if Government caused wrongful detention it is liable to pay compensation to that citizen. But the Government has no policy.Justice Bhagwati’s Jurisprudence A great Justice P N Bhagwati, who died on June 15, 2017 urged not to convert Article 21 a mere a rope of sand. And created a new jurisprudence  in Khatri’s [1981 SCC (1) 627] case, created the jurisdiction of payment of monetary...

On World Refugee Day, In Defence Of Rohingya Refugees In India

Walking down the streets of the Kelambakkam area in Chennai, one can surely get to see a cyclone relief centre, which is home to a few hundreds of refugees.A recent news piece vividly highlights that these “stateless” people should be duly deported as they pose a national threat to the country’s security. Often being regarded as the “most persecuted people”, Rohingya refugees are perhaps the most undesired section of population on the Earth.Rohingya refugees have been crossing the international...

Comparing The Pro Bono Models Of Law Firms Across Different Regions In The World

Every lawyer has an ethical responsibility to provide legal services to those who cannot afford it. Today, as the number of lawyers and law firms increase, the numbers of those who are in need of legal services, but do not have access to them has also risen. Several jurisdictions cast some form of legal responsibility on the lawyers to provide pro bono services. For instance American Bar Association Model Rule 6.1 provides that ‘every lawyer should aspire to render at least (mandatory) hours of...

Salute To Justice Bhagwati By Senior Advocate Shekhar Naphade

Justice Bhagwati passed away on 15th June 2017 at the ripe age of 96. Judges get elevated to the Supreme Court and in due course they retire, but a few remain permanently etched in our memory. Justice Bhagwati would be long remembered for his contribution to the development of law for the purpose of advancing the cause of justice. His Lordship imparted to dry letters of law a touch of humanism. He took judicial activism in the right direction. Even those who were apprehensive about the judicial...

20 Years Of Uphaar Cinema Verdict – Has Justice Been Delivered?

While social media is busy marking the 20th anniversary of Bollywood movie Border, especially trolling the epic character of Mathuradas, a fight for justice that began exactly 20 years ago, on June 13, 1997, when 59 lives were lost in a fire at Uphaar Cinema in South Delhi, still goes strong.The Uphaar Cinema fire tragedy, which occurred during a show of the movie Border, is a classic example of how the rich/ resourceful can play around with our ductile judicial system for so long.In the past 20...