Calcutta High Court
Calcutta High Court Grants Bail To Chemist In NDPS Case, Says Mere Seizure Of Codeine Cough Syrup Cannot Justify Prolonged Custody
The Calcutta High Court has granted bail to a senior citizen and licensed medical shop owner arrested under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act after recovery of codeine-based cough syrup and Tramadol capsules from his store, holding that mere seizure of such medicines, without material showing illegal procurement, illegal sale, or violation of any statutory ceiling on storage,...
No Writ Can Compel Police To Register FIR In Property Disputes; Remedy Under BNSS Must Be Exhausted: Calcutta High Court
The Calcutta High Court has reiterated that a writ of mandamus cannot be issued directing the police to register an FIR or initiate criminal proceedings, particularly in cases arising out of private land or property disputes, holding that aggrieved persons must first avail statutory remedies provided under criminal law before invoking writ jurisdiction.A Division Bench comprising Chief...
Civic Authority Can't Retrospectively Revalue Property Or Fasten Past Tax Dues On Auction Buyer: Calcutta High Court
The Calcutta High Court has held that municipal authorities cannot retrospectively revalue property or saddle an auction purchaser with property tax dues relating to a period when the purchaser was not the owner, particularly when the property formed part of liquidation proceedings.Allowing a writ petition against the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), Justice Rai Chattopadhyay ruled...
NCDRC Orders Can't Be Challenged Under Article 226 In Private Consumer Disputes, Article 227 Proper Remedy: Calcutta High Court
The Calcutta High Court has clarified that orders passed by the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) cannot be routinely challenged through a writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution when the dispute is purely between private parties, holding that the proper remedy in such cases lies under Article 227.Justice Om Narayan Rai ruled that although NCDRC orders...
Stipendiary Graduate Trainees Not 'Employees' Under EPF Act; PF Demand Unsustainable: Calcutta High Court
The Calcutta High Court has held that graduate trainees receiving only stipends cannot automatically be treated as “employees” for the purpose of provident fund contributions. At the same time, the Court upheld PF liability in respect of security personnel and fire-fighting staff directly engaged and paid by the principal establishment, observing that their wages clearly attracted...
'Mere Breach Of Promise To Marry After 5-Year Relationship Does Not Amount To Rape': Calcutta High Court Quashes Case Against Man
Holding that a prolonged consensual relationship between two adults cannot later be converted into a rape prosecution merely because the relationship soured or marriage did not materialise, the High Court at Calcutta has quashed criminal proceedings under Sections 417, 376, 313 and 506 IPC against a man accused of sexual assault and forced abortion on the pretext of marriage. The Court...
Pension Under Employer's Superannuation Trust Is 'Wages'; Resignation Doesn't Defeat Earned Pension Rights: Calcutta High Court
The High Court at Calcutta has held that pension payable under an employer's superannuation trust can fall within the definition of “wages” under the Payment of Wages Act, and that employees who resign after completing the prescribed years of qualifying service cannot be denied pension merely because they did not retire on superannuation. A Division Bench of Justices Lanusungkum Jamir and...
Senior Entitled To Stepping Up Of Pay If Junior In Same Cadre & Pay Scale Draws Higher Salary: Calcutta HC
A Division Bench of the Calcutta High Court comprising Chief Justice Sujoy Paul and Justice Partha Sarathi Sen held that a senior government employee is entitled to stepping up of pay at par with a junior if both are in the same cadre, same post, and same pay scale, and the junior is drawing higher pay, and earlier higher pay in an ex-cadre post cannot justify permanent...
'Not Every Insult To SC/ST Member Is Atrocity': Calcutta High Court Quashes Case, Says Workplace Disputes Cannot Be Criminalised
The Calcutta High Court has held that professional disagreements, administrative disputes or alleged workplace humiliation cannot automatically attract offences under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act unless there is clear, caste-based insult or intimidation in public view. Quashing criminal proceedings against a Sanskrit professor, the Court observed...
Calcutta High Court Sets Aside Rejection Of Life Convict's Premature Release; Says Trial Court's Opinion U/S 432 CrPC Must Be Reasoned
The Calcutta High Court has held that while the State Government must obtain the opinion of the presiding judge of the convicting or confirming court before deciding a life convict's application for remission or premature release under Section 432(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, such opinion must be reasoned, informed and based on relevant factors, and cannot be mechanically accepted...
'Seizure Witness Turning Hostile, Conflicting Test Reports Create Doubt': Calcutta HC Acquits Man In 25-Yr-Old Mustard Oil Adulteration Case
The Calcutta High Court has set aside the conviction of a mustard oil mill co-owner in a decades-old food adulteration case, holding that doubtful seizure proceedings and inconsistent laboratory reports strike at the root of the prosecution's case and make conviction unsafe. The Court reiterated that when material discrepancies arise in expert evidence and seizure is not properly proved,...
'Quashing Power Must Be Used Sparingly After Charges Framed': Calcutta High Court Refuses To Halt Trial In Outraging Modesty Case
The Calcutta High Court has refused to quash criminal proceedings against a man accused of stalking, assault, attempting to outrage a woman's modesty and criminal intimidation, observing that once charges have been framed and trial has progressed, the High Court must exercise its inherent powers under Section 482 CrPC with extreme caution and only in the “rarest of rare cases.” The Court...