Contradictions, Confusions & Lighter Moments During Triple Talaq Hearing

The six-day hearing on triple talaq, which concluded on May 18, revolved mainly around the Constitutional safeguards enshrined in Articles 14 and 15 (gender equality and non-discrimination) at one end, protection to minorities guaranteed in Articles 25 and 26 at the other end, and the delicate balance between these two sets of fundamental rights.That each one of the senior lawyers, who addressed the Constitutional bench on behalf of their clients of different hues, divided broadly along the...

Recommendations Of The Law Commission Of India On Anticipatory Bail: A Lawyer’s Lament

The Law Commission of India has recently submitted its 268th report to the Government suggesting amendments to the provisions relating to bail in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973. The exercise, however, appears to be cosmetic and what was initially intended to be an attempt at a holistic legal engineering of the bail law has become only a piece meal and adhoc legal engineering.Inspired and influenced by the Bail Acts of UK, New Zealand, Australia and others countries the Government of India...

Testing Words To Find Their Utmost Power

We live in a time where most fields of human enquiry are mind-bogglingly complex.  Much of modern science is beyond the ken of an ordinary human being. It exists in the minds of a few brilliant scientists across the world, while the rest of us unquestioningly accept its conclusions. Increasingly, law as a discipline is moving in the same direction. Statutes keep getting longer and longer while judgments have become entirely unreadable.  For instance, once the 2016 amendments are cleared, Section...

Remembering Kirtee Kapoor (1971-2017)

All those who knew Kirtee Kapoor, personally and professionally, are yet to come to terms with the untimely, shocking and tragic end to his inspiring life. An Inlaks Scholar, Kirtee was one of the first of a new generation of lawyers trained in India to break the glass ceiling and become a Partner at one of the top international law firms.My journey of mentorship under Kirtee began while I was studying for Bachelors of Law (LLB) degree at Campus Law Center (University of Delhi) where he was my...

Supreme Court Says Aadhaar Act Keeps UID/Aadhaar Voluntary As Well

This observation is consistent with the unanimous resolution of West Bengal Assembly against Aadhaar. New recruit in defence and non-defence sectors, too, ought to make note of it and undertake immediate measures to protect future recruits from mandatory Aadhaar-enabled biometric attendance systems. All the 639 departments, where it was mandatory, must revise their orders to comply with the court’s order. The Supreme Court’s order on Friday with regard to not linking the unique identification...

FIPB: One Window, Infinite Possibilities

Finance Minister’s 2017 key budget proposals include a recommendation for scrapping the single window clearance body called Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB).  The underlying logic being that 90% of foreign direct investment (FDI) is under automatic route, the remaining 10% cases which are subject matter of approval should be decided by the respective ministries instead of routing them through FIPB.Before we delve into the Government’s decision to scrap FIPB, it would be pertinent to...

Applicability Of The Doctrine Of Legitimate Expectation In Contracts

IntroductionThe 'Doctrine of legitimate expectation' means an expectation of a benefit, relief or remedy that may ordinarily flow from a promise or established practice. Such expectations should not be based on the strength of sporadic, casual or random acts. Also, such expectations should not be unreasonable, illogical or invalid. Per contra expectations should be reasonable, logical and valid. However, this Doctrine is subject to the discretion of the Court. This doctrine has application in...

A Peep Into Justice Karnan’s Contempt Saga – III

The curious case of Justice Karnan’s contempt is still amusing everybody and the ‘ifs’ and ‘buts’ of the post conviction-sentence have been increasing day by day.In Part I of this series, I dealt with the conduct of Justice Karnan that led to his conviction (read here). In Part II, I attempted to answer a few questions of law raised by the whole saga (read here).In a quick flashback, Justice Karnan, who is a sitting judge of the Calcutta High Court, was found guilty by a 7-judge Supreme Court...

Freedom Of Intimidation

The epic judgment of the Madras High Court, penned by the inimitable Sanjay Kishan Kaul, the then Chief Justice of Madras High Court, in Perumal Murugan’s case, starts with a quote attributed to Voltaire:“I may not agree with what you say, but will defend to the death, your right to say it”.In India, there is no law guaranteeing freedom of the press or media. The general right to freedom of speech and expression granted under Article 19(1)(a) to any ordinary citizen is what shelters the Press...

Personal Laws And Supreme Indecision

In what appears to be a very impulsive decision, the Hon’ble Supreme Court decided to come to the rescue of Muslim women suffering under the yoke of triple talaq when it was brought to the “notice” of the Court about their suffering. The case that was being argued before the Supreme Court, when this decision was taken, had nothing to do with Muslim Personal Law. It was a matter pertaining to Hindu Law and a Hindu woman’s residual right to ancestral property. The Supreme Court proceeded to...

What’s In A Surname?

He asked me, “What’s your name?” I said, “Avani”. “No, your full name I mean”, he said. “Avani Bansal, but why, why does it matter?”, I asked.This set of introductory lines have repeated themselves in my life, far too often. I still can’t fully fathom why people always want to know the other person’s surname. Somehow, the name isn’t an identity good enough. While Shakespeare thought there is nothing in the name, when in Romeo and Juliet, Act II, Scene II, he wrote - What’s in a name? that which...

A Critical Take On ‘Right To Recall’

MP Varun Gandhi recently introduced a private Bill seeking amendment to the Representation of People Act, 1951. The amendment, among other things, sought for right to recall of elected representatives. It suggests conferring with the electorate an option of recall that can be initiated by any elector within a particular constituency through a recall petition signed by not less than one-fourth of total number of electors.Once the initial signatures are verified, the chief petition officer may...