Airing Service Grievances On Social Media While In Uniform Is Serious Misconduct: Delhi High Court Upholds Removal Of Air Force Personnel

The Delhi High Court has upheld the removal of an Indian Air Force airman from service for uploading a social media video while in uniform, holding that public airing of service-related grievances by uniformed personnel amounts to serious misconduct prejudicial to military discipline.A division bench of Justices Anil Kshetarpal and Amit Mahajan dismissed a writ petition filed by a...

Delhi High Court Orders Aadhaar QR Verification To Speed Up Prisoners Release, Flags Delay In Accepting Bail Bonds

The Delhi High Court has observed that delay in accepting bail bonds defeat the very purpose of bail orders, while directing all Jail Superintendents across the national capital to use Aadhaar QR code-based verification to expedite release of prisoners.A division bench comprising Justice Prathiba M. Singh and Justice Amit Mahajan was dealing with a suo motu petition initiated over delays...

Presence Of Police Officer During Recording Of Section 164 CrPC Confession Renders It Inadmissible: Gauhati High Court

The Gauhati High Court has held that confessions recorded by a Judicial Magistrate under Section 164 CrPC in the presence of a police officer cannot be said to be voluntary and cannot be relied upon as substantive admissible evidence for recording conviction against the accused.A Division Bench of Justice Michael Zothankhuma and Justice Sanjeev Kumar Sharma observed, “In the present case,...

Courts Must Show "Heightened Vigilance" When Young Brides Die Suspiciously: Delhi High Court Denies Bail In Dowry Death Case

The Delhi High Court has observed that courts must exercise “heightened vigilance” while considering bail in cases where young brides die under suspicious circumstances within a short span of marriage.Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma thus denied bail to a mother-in-law accused in a dowry death case involving a minor husband.The Court noted that both the deceased and her husband were minors at...

Criminal Court Cannot Hand Over Immovable Property Under Police Act; Possession Must Be Decided By Civil Court: Calcutta High Court

The Calcutta High Court has held that criminal courts cannot adjudicate interim possessory rights over immovable property while exercising powers under the Police Act, 1861, observing that disputes concerning title, succession and possession fall exclusively within the domain of civil courts.Justice Kausik Chanda set aside orders of the Chief Judicial Magistrate and the appellate court which...

Andhra Pradesh High Court Upholds Removal Of Ambedkar Statue Installed Overnight Without Permission

The Andhra Pradesh High Court has upheld directions for removal and shifting of Dr BR Ambedkar's statue allegedly installed without permission, obstructing a village road. It held that the installation was made despite cancellation of an earlier Gram Sabha resolution and during subsistence of Section 145 Cr.P.C. proceedings initiated to maintain public order. Section 145 Cr.P.C. deals...

MP High Court Revives Sheopur Municipal President Election Petition, Slams State For Taking Contradictory Stand On Gazette Notification

The Madhya Pradesh High Court has restored an election petition challenging the election of the President of the Sheopur Municipal Council and strongly criticised the State Government and the elected President for taking contradictory legal stands and delaying the proceedings. The bench of Justice Ashish Shroti set aside the order of the First District Judge, which had earlier dismissed...

Calcutta High Court Quashes Case Against Car Driver For Allegedly Killing Stray Dog, Says Mere Accident Cannot Attract Criminal Offence

The Calcutta High Court has quashed criminal proceedings against a man accused of deliberately running over and killing a stray dog, holding that the materials on record failed to establish the “mens rea” or criminal intent necessary to attract offences under Sections 428 and 429 IPC and Section 11(1)(a) of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960.Justice Dr. Justice Ajoy...

Excluding Divorced Daughter From Family Pension Violates Article 14: Madhya Pradesh High Court

The Madhya Pradesh High Court has held that a divorced daughter cannot be excluded from the definition of family under the MP Civil Services Pension Rules, 1976 and therefore denying family pension benefits to them would amount to discrimination and violate Article 14 of the Constitution of India. The bench of Justice Vishal Dhagat held, "if divorce daughters are not included within definition...

POCSO Act | Complete Penetration Or Rupture Of Hymen Not Necessary To Prove Penetrative Sexual Assault: Gauhati High Court Reiterates

The Gauhati High Court has upheld the conviction of a man under Section 6 of the POCSO Act, observing that penetrative sexual assault does not necessarily require complete penetration or rupture of hymen, and that the victim's testimony in the present case was sufficient to sustain the conviction.The Court was hearing a criminal appeal filed by one Satish Ray, challenging his conviction...

Yogesh Goudar Murder: CBI Opposes In Karnataka HC Suspension Of Convicted Ex-Cop's Sentence, Says S.389(3) CrPC Doesn't Apply Once Appeal Filed

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Tuesday (May 26) opposed the suspension of sentence sought by former police inspector Channakeshava B. Tingarikar, convicted for manipulating evidence and protecting the real perpetrators in the Yogesh Goudar murder case.Arguing before the Karnataka High Court, CBI submitted that the relief of bail under Section 389(3) CrPC applies only at the...

Right Of Appeal Under Karnataka Police Act Can't Be Defeated By Immediate Enforcement Of Externment Order: High Court

The Karnataka High Court on Tuesday [May 26] stayed an externment order passed under the Karnataka Police Act, 1963, against a person allegedly involved in illegal cricket betting, holding that the order cannot be implemented on the same day it is issued, as the statute provides a 30-day window to file an appeal under Section 59 of the Act.The single-judge bench of Justice Lalitha...