Can Revisional Authority Under Maharashtra Rent Act Condone Delay Beyond 90 Days? Bombay High Court Refers To Larger Bench

The Bombay High Court has referred to a Larger Bench the question whether the Revisional Authority under Section 44 of the Maharashtra Rent Control Act, 1999 has the power to condone delay in a revision application filed by a landlord beyond the prescribed period of 90 days. The Court observed that the issue assumes significance particularly in cases involving special categories of...

Free Education For Children Of Rape Survivors, Police Sensitization: Jharkhand High Court Issues Directions On Handling Sexual Offence Cases

The Jharkhand High Court issued a slew of directions with respect to treatment of rape survivors as well as various issues concerning the handling of sexual assault cases including free education for children of rape survivors till Class XII and providing scholarships to meritorious students who get selected in premier government institutes like IITs, NITs, AIIMs or IIMs etc.The court in...

Filing Of Petition By Prosecutrix Seeking Quashing Of Rape FIR Cannot Dilute Seriousness Of Allegations At Bail Stage: J&K&L High Court

The High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh has held that the filing of a petition under Section 482 Cr.P.C. by the prosecutrix seeking quashment of an FIR alleging offences under Sections 376 and 506 IPC cannot, at the stage of consideration of bail, dilute the seriousness of the allegations levelled against the accused.The Court observed that the circumstances under which such a...

Parties Can Engage Private Expert In Commercial Suits But Admissibility Of Expert Report Subject To Proof At Trial: AP High Court

The Andhra Pradesh High Court has held that parties in civil and commercial disputes may rely on reports prepared by privately engaged experts, however the admissibility and evidentiary value of such reports would be tested during trial.A Division Bench of Justice Ravi Nath Tilhari and Justice Balaji Medamalli dismissed a civil revision petition filed by ISGEC Heavy Engineering Limited, which...

Putting Hand Inside Minor Girl's Pant Amounts To 'Sexual Assault' U/S 7 Of POCSO Act: Orissa High Court

The Orissa High Court has held that the act of an accused putting his hand inside the pant of a minor girl/victim, even without proof of inserting finger into her vagina, amounts to 'sexual assault' within the ambit of Section 7 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 ('the POCSO Act').Affirming the conviction and order of sentence recorded by the trial Court, a Single...

O XII R 6 CPC | No Decree On Admissions Unless Defendant's Pleadings Contain Unequivocal Admissions; J&K&L High Court

The High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh has held that unless the admissions made by a defendant in its pleadings or otherwise are clear, categorical and unequivocal, a court cannot proceed to pass a decree under Order XII Rule 6 of the Code of Civil Procedure. The Court further clarified that even where certain facts stand admitted, the court retains discretion to require the...

AP High Court Quashes Atrocity FIR, Says Private Monetary Dispute Can't Be Camouflaged As Caste‑Based Offences In Absence Of Ingredients

The Andhra Pradesh High Court has quashed criminal proceedings against a man accused of caste-based abuse under the SC/ST Act and insulting a woman's modesty, holding that the allegations did not disclose the essential ingredients of the offences alleged. The Court noted that the complaint did not allege that the purported caste-based insults were made "within public view" as required under...

Bombay High Court Refuses To Quash MCOCA Case Against 2 Developers Accused Of Conspiring With Gangster Ravi Pujari To Commit Extortion

The Bombay High Court on Tuesday (June 9) refused to quash a Chargesheet under MCOCA filed against two developers accused of hatching a criminal conspiracy with gangster Ravi Pujari for threatening a fellow developer and extorting money from him over a pending litigation regarding a land parcel in city's posh Powai area. A division bench of Justice Ajay Gadkari and Justice Ranjitsinha...

Threats Against Justice Gautam Patel's Family : Bar Bodies File PIL In High Court Seeking SIT Probe

Days after condemning the threats and attacks on the family members of former Bombay High Court judge Justice Gautam Patel over his judgment deciding the spiritual leader of the Dawoodi Bohra Community, the Bombay Bar Association (BBA) has filed a PIL seeking court's intervention and directions for safety of the judge and his family. Reportedly, Justice Patel and his family have been...

Professionally Active Wife's Plea Of Inability To Travel Doesn't Inspire Confidence: P&H High Court Declines Transfer Of Divorce Case

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has dismissed a transfer petition filed by a wife seeking transfer of a divorce case instituted by her husband from Amritsar to Hoshiarpur, holding that no sufficient ground or genuine hardship was made out to warrant such transfer.Justice Nidhi Gupta said, "Moreover, from the material placed on record, including photographs annexed by respondent No.1,...

Can Prisoners Be Granted Ordinary Or Emergency Leave During Pendency Of Criminal Appeal? 5-Judge Bench Of Madras High Court To Decide

The five judge bench of the Madras High Court is set to decide whether a prisoner can be given ordinary or emergency leave during the pendency of his criminal appeal. The bench of Chief Justice SA Dharmadhikari, Justice CV Karthikeyan, Justice AD Jagadish Chandira, Justice M Nirmal Kumar and Justice Sunder Mohan will be deciding on the following questions of law: Whether leave...

Karnataka High Court Flags Security Concern Over 'Mushrooming Homestays', Reserves Order On Plea Against FIR Over US Woman's Alleged Rape

The Karnataka High Court on Wednesday (June 10) orally flagged the security risk concerning the "mushrooming of homestays" across the state, remarking that no one no longer knows where these accommodations are and what was happening there. The court was hearing a plea moved by a homestay owner challenging an FIR lodged over the allegation that a US national was raped at his homestay. The...