Constitutional Law

Prison Guard's Removal Can't Be Upheld Based On Unverified Video Of Meeting Under-Trial's Family While Escorting Him: Chhattisgarh High Court
The Chhattisgarh High Court has held that findings recorded in a departmental enquiry cannot be sustained where they are founded on a social media video whose source, authenticity and manner of proof have not been established. [2026 LiveLaw (Chh) 99]The respondent-prison guard had been charged with roaming with the family members of an undertrial prisoner at a restaurant while escorting...

MSHRC Takes Suo Motu Notice Of Pune Police Tying Accused To Vehicle Bonnet, Parading Them; Issues Notices To Top Officials
Observing that the Pune Police's style of working was like a 'Jungle Raj', the Maharashtra State Human Rights Commission (MSHRC) on Monday (August 3) initiated suo motu proceedings against the Police for allegedly tying three young boys on the bonnet of their vehicle, parading them on the streets of the city and further allowing private individuals to assault the boys with fists, batons etc....

Gujarat High Court Refuses To Review Order Rejecting Disclosure Of Somnath Temple ASI Survey Documents
The Gujarat High Court refused to review its order dismissing a plea seeking disclosure of archaeological survey report, ground penetrating radar (GPR) survey, maps, structural analysis, photographs, videography and all the related documents concerning the Somnath Temple site. [2026 LiveLaw (Guj) 210]For context, the court had in June dismissed a PIL seeking such disclosure with Rs. 2 Lakh...

Allahabad High Court Calls For Crowd Behaviour Science To Prevent Stampedes At Mathura-Vrindavan Religious Gatherings
The Allahabad High Court has held that the right to life under Article 21 of the Constitution casts a positive obligation on the State to create and maintain conditions in which lives are not lost to preventable disasters. It held that institutionalising the science of crowd behaviour in academia, administration and policy is a constitutional imperative.The Court was hearing a writ...

Reservation For Women, Persons With Disabilities Not Mandatory In Allotment Of Akshaya Centres: Kerala High Court
The Kerala High Court recently held that the government need not provide reservation to women or differently-abled persons while allotting Akshaya Centres as there are no legal provisions mandating the same. [2026 LiveLaw (Ker) 419]Justice Bechu Kurian Thomas reasoned that allotment of Akshaya Centres is a contractual arrangement and since no government employment is provided, there is no...

Foreigners Can't Invoke Article 226 To Protect Unauthorized Possession Of Government Land: Chhattisgarh High Court
The Chhattisgarh High Court has held that foreigners cannot invoke the writ jurisdiction under Article 226 of the Constitution to protect unauthorized possession of Government land, reiterating that the fundamental rights available to foreigners are confined to Article 21. [2026 LiveLaw (Chh) 95] The Court further observed that where Government land has been lawfully allotted for a...

Once Posts Merge Into One Cadre, State Can't Prescribe Different Pay Scales Based On Pre-Merger Status: Allahabad High Court
The Allahabad High Court has held that once the State Government merges two posts into a single cadre with retrospective effect, it cannot thereafter prescribe two different pay scales for members of that unified cadre on the basis of the post each of them held before the merger. It held that such a classification answers to no difference in qualifications, duties or responsibilities and...

Chhattisgarh High Court Allows 25-Week Pregnancy Termination For Minor Rape Survivor, Says Sonography Report Not Conclusive
The Chhattisgarh High Court has held that the gestational age reflected in a sonography report cannot be treated as conclusive for denying medical termination of pregnancy where doing so would result in violation of a rape survivor's fundamental rights. The Court observed that sonographic assessment of gestational age is only an estimate carrying a recognised margin of error and...

Parents' Salary Income From Private Sector Must Be Considered To Decide If A Person Falls Under Non-Creamy Layer: Kerala High Court
The Kerala High Court on Wednesday (July 29) held that salary income of the parents must be included while deciding whether a person falls under Creamy Layer or not for the purpose of reservation in professional colleges. [2026 LiveLaw (Ker) 408]Justice Bechu Kurian Thomas dismissed two writ petitions filed by KEAM and NEET aspirants praying for a declaration that they fall under the...

Senior Citizens Act | Asking Daughter To Shift To Second Floor So Elderly Parents Can Occupy Ground Floor Not Eviction: Madras High Court
The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court upheld an order directing a daughter and her husband to shift from the ground floor of their house to the second floor, enabling the elderly parents to occupy the ground floor on account of their advanced age. [2026 LiveLaw (Mad) 355]Justice M. Dhandapani held that the order by the appellate authority did not evict the petitioners, but merely...

No Limitation Period For Filing Writ Petition U/Article 226, But Inordinate Delay Can Be Fatal: Allahabad High Court
The Allahabad High Court on Tuesday reiterated that although no limitation period is prescribed for filing a writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution, an inordinate delay in approaching the Court can be fatal. Observing that the extraordinary writ jurisdiction must be invoked within a reasonable time, the Court dismissed a petition challenging a 2023 order passed by...

