High Courts Weekly Round-Up

Allahabad High CourtA petition filed under Section 482 of CrPC by the accused challenging an order of Magistrate directing reinvestigation by police was dismissed by the Allahabad High Court on the principle that accused has no right of hearing during investigation. The Court held that investigation cannot be regarded as a proceeding pending against the accused so as to invoke Section 482.The High Court ruled that land acquired under the National Highways Act, 1956 cannot be restored to its former owners despite its non-utilisation. The order was passed by a bench comprising Justice Amreshwar Pratap Sahi and Justice Bachchoo Lal.Bombay High CourtThe Bombay High Court recently held that the amended definition of rape under the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013, cannot be made applicable retrospectively and changed the conviction of an accused from rape to attempt to rape.The High Court recently granted divorce to an estranged couple who had been living separately for over two decades, opining that the marriage between the two was nothing but fiction.The High Court recently came to the rescue of Advocate Mahendra Kachawale, whose registration with the Bar Council of India was at first suspended and then kept pending even though Kachawale had obtained another degree from ILS, Pune. A division bench of Justice BP Dharmadhikari and Justice SV Kotwal directed BCI to look into Kachawale’s application for re-registration and take “a suitable decision upon the application for enrollment within further period of one week”.“Freedom of speech and expression guaranteed by the Constitution of India, coupled with the freedom of religion, both of which are subjected to reasonable restriction ensure that there is no suppression of dissent, discussion or debate. They have to be free and meaningful,” said the Bombay High Court while directing the Central Bureau of Investigation and Maharashtra CID to make sincere efforts to trace the accused in the murders of anti-superstition crusader Narendra Dabholkar and CPI member Govind Pansare.The High Court on Thursday directed the Centre to file its reply to a petition filed by the Reserve Bank of India challenging an order by the Chief Information Commission (CIC) directing the RBI to disclose names of wilful defaulters and foreign donors on the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA) watchlist.The High Court recently dismissed an election petition filed by Sanjay Nirupam, president of the Mumbai Regional Congress Committee. In the petition filed under Section 100(1)(d)(i) and Section 100(1)(d)(iv) of the People’s Representation Act, 1950, Nirupam had prayed for BJP MP Gopal Shetty’s election in 2014 from the Mumbai North constituency to be declared null and void.Calcutta High CourtThe Calcutta High Court sought to know from the High Court Administration whether the Supreme Court or any high court has ever appointed any member of the District bar, not practicing in the high court, as a Senior Advocate.The High Court recently imposed costs of Rs. 2 lakhs on a practicing advocate for approaching it with a half-baked, vague petition on sexual harassment of men and those belonging to the third gender. A bench comprising Chief Justice Debasish Kar Gupta and Justice Shampa Sarkar opined that the petitioner, high court advocate Shiladitya Barma, had approached the court “for the purpose of publicity and such an attempt at the cost of consumption of the time of the Court should be stopped in limine at the bottom of the door”.Delhi High CourtThe Delhi High Court ruled that a revision petition is not maintainable against an appeal in enforcement proceedings in a consumer dispute.The High Court held that a parent can seek eviction of his children and legal heirs from any type of property, on grounds of non-maintenance and ill-treatment.The High Court stayed the Centre’s notification by which building and construction projects with 20,000 to 50,000 sqm built-up area and industrial sheds, educational institutions etc., of 20,000 to 1,50,000 sqm built-up area were kept out of the regulatory regime of the Environment Protection Act and the powers of the Centre to ensure compliance with specified environmental conditions were delegated to local bodies such as municipalities, development authorities, district panchayats etc.The High Court, on Tuesday, reiterated that proceedings under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985 stand vitiated if the same person acts as the Investigating Officer (IO) and the complainant. The judgment was passed by Justice C. Hari Shankar.The High Court on Tuesday sentenced a man to 15 years imprisonment for raping a mentally challenged 12 year old girl. Justice Anu Malhotra also directed the concerned superintendent of jail to consider, if feasible, providing the convict with appropriate correctional courses through meditational therapy, educational opportunities, vocational training, counselling, psychometric tests, a post release...

High Courts Weekly Round-Up

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