Calcutta High Court
Retention Of Property By State After Lease Expiry Violates Article 300A: Calcutta High Court Upholds Eviction, Imposes 50K Cost
The Calcutta High Court has held that the State cannot continue to occupy private property once the lease has expired and the requisition order has been quashed, observing that such continued occupation would amount to an illegal deprivation of property.The Court further imposed personal costs of ₹50,000 on the Director of the concerned State Directorate for resisting compliance with...
Calcutta High Court Sets Aside Bank Employee's Dismissal For Alleged ₹38 Lakh Pension Fraud, Says Authority's Findings Based On No Evidence
The Calcutta High Court has set aside the dismissal of a bank employee accused of involvement in an alleged pension account fraud of ₹38.67 lakh, holding that the disciplinary authority's finding of misappropriation was based on no evidence and mere conjectures.Justice Partha Sarathi Chatterjee observed that even in a departmental proceeding, the conclusion of guilt must be supported by...
Calcutta High Court Issues Notice On PIL Against Non-Disbursal Of Maternity Benefits Under 'PM Matru Vandana Yojana'
The Calcutta High Court has sought responses from the Union and the State of West Bengal on a Public Interest Litigation alleging large-scale non-disbursal of maternity benefits under the Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (PMMVY) in the State.A division bench comprising Chief Justice Sujoy Paul and Justice Ajay Kumar Gupta observed that the petition raised “arguable points” and directed...
Calcutta High Court Directs Designated Senior Advocates To Be Added As Parties In Plea Challenging Senior Designations
The Calcutta High Court has directed the petitioner challenging the designation of Senior Advocates by a notification dated November 26, 2024, to implead all the advocates who were granted the designation as party respondents in the writ petition.Justice Krishna Rao passed the direction while hearing a writ petition filed by Samarjit Roychowdhury questioning the notification through which...
Unused Acquired Land Cannot Be Reclaimed Once It Vests In State; Subsequent Purchasers Have No Title: Calcutta High Court
The Calcutta High Court recently held that once land is acquired and vests in the State free from all encumbrances, it cannot be returned to the erstwhile owners or subsequent purchasers even if the land remains unutilised.The Court also reiterated that subsequent purchasers have no right to challenge land acquisition proceedings and mutation entries in revenue records do not confer...
Court Cannot Consider Documents Beyond Plaint While Deciding Order VII Rule 11 CPC Plea: Calcutta High Court
The Calcutta High Court has held that while deciding an application for rejection of plaint under Order VII Rule 11 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, the court can examine only the averments contained in the plaint and documents relied upon or annexed thereto, and cannot rely on extraneous materials produced by the defendant.A Division Bench of Justice Sabyasachi Bhattacharyya and...
Baseless Allegations Of Husband's Affair, Attempt To Kill Child Amount To Mental Cruelty: Calcutta High Court Grants Divorce
The Calcutta High Court has held that reckless and unsubstantiated allegations made by a spouse against the other in pleadings, including accusations of illicit affairs and serious criminal acts without supporting evidence, amount to mental cruelty and can justify dissolution of marriage.A Division Bench of Justice Sabyasachi Bhattacharyya and Justice Supratim Bhattacharya made the...
Delay In FIR Not Fatal In Motor Accident Claims As Families First Rush Victims To Hospital: Calcutta High Court
The Calcutta High Court has observed that delay in lodging an FIR in motor accident cases cannot be treated as fatal, noting that in Indian society the immediate priority of family members is to rush the injured to hospital rather than approach the police.Justice Biswaroop Chowdhury made the observation while partly allowing an appeal filed by National Insurance Company Limited against...
Child Witness Who Saw Father Kill Mother Through Window Reliable: Calcutta High Court Upholds Life Sentence
The Calcutta High Court has upheld the life imprisonment of a man convicted for murdering his pregnant wife, holding that the testimony of their minor son, who witnessed the crime, was trustworthy and remained unimpeached in cross-examination.A division bench of Justice Rajasekhar Mantha and Justice Rai Chattopadhyay dismissed the appeal filed by the accused and affirmed his conviction...
Voluntary Transfer Causes Loss Of Seniority, Not Past Service For Promotion Eligibility: Calcutta High Court
The Calcutta High Court has held that a member of the Railway Protection Force who seeks transfer on request or through mutual exchange loses seniority at the transferred place, but such transfer does not wipe out the employee's past service for determining eligibility for promotion.A Division Bench comprising Justice Madhuresh Prasad and Justice Prasenjit Biswas dismissed an intra-court...
Land Dispute Given Colour Of SC/ST Act To Wreak Vengeance: Calcutta High Court Quashes Case Against Two Accused
The Calcutta High Court has quashed criminal proceedings against two accused in a case involving allegations under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, holding that the dispute between the parties primarily arose out of a long-standing civil land dispute and appeared to have been given a colour of criminality as a retaliatory measure.Justice...
Bail Order Must Bear Magistrate's Full Signature; Mere Initials Undermine Judicial Solemnity: Calcutta High Court
The Calcutta High Court has set aside a bail order passed by a Magistrate after finding that the order sheet bore only the initials of the presiding officer instead of a full and legible signature, holding that such authentication is contrary to the mandatory requirements governing the recording of judicial orders.Justice Uday Kumar observed that a judicial order, being a public document,...