High Court
HC Rule Barring Special Appeal Yields To Natural Justice; Appeal Maintainable Against Non-Speaking Single Judge Order: Allahabad High Court
The Allahabad High Court has held that a special appeal is maintainable against a non-speaking order passed by a Single Judge, notwithstanding the bar contained in the Allahabad High Court Rules, 1952. It held that the requirement to record reasons is a facet of natural justice, and that the bar created by Rule 5 must yield to it.Rule 5 of Chapter VIII of the Rules, 1952 bars a special...
Kerala High Court Upholds Aadhar-Based Authentication For Online Tatkal Tickets, Asks IRCTC To Also Consider PAN As Alternative
The Kerala High Court has upheld the Aadhaar-based OTP authentication for online tatkal ticket booking in trains on IRCTC platform. [2026 LiveLaw (Ker) 393]The Court, however, asked the IRCTC to consider whether an option can be provided to users to choose between PAN card and Aadhar-based OTP authentication.The Division Bench of Chief Justice Soumen Sen and Justice Syam Kumar V.M....
Contract Doesn't Become “Statutory” Merely Because One Party Is An Instrumentality Of State: Allahabad High Court
The Allahabad High Court has held that a contract does not become a “statutory contract” merely because one of the contracting parties is an instrumentality of the State falling within Article 12 of the Constitution of India. It held that where a party's rights arise only from a purely commercial contract, that does not bar the State entity from floating a tender for competition venture,...
Can't Interfere With Tenancy Proceedings Under Article 227 Supervisory Jurisdiction When Statutory Remedy Available: AP High Court
The Andhra Pradesh High Court declined to interfere with pending tenancy proceedings under Article 227 of the Constitution, holding that its supervisory jurisdiction cannot ordinarily be invoked where an effective alternative remedy exists. [2026 LiveLaw (AP) 143]It further held that questions requiring factual adjudication, such as whether the relationship between landlord and tenant...
Co-Operative Bank Performing Public Functions Amenable To Writ Jurisdiction Despite Not Being 'State' Under Article 12: J&K&L High Court
Expanding the contours of judicial review under Article 226 of the Constitution, the High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh has held that the maintainability of a writ petition no longer depends solely upon whether the respondent is a 'State' under Article 12.The Court Observing that the touchstone for invoking Article 226 is the presence of a public law element, not the formal status...
Split Verdict On 'Bulldozer Justice': Allahabad High Court Judges Differ On 2-Year Ban On Razing Houses Of Accused Post-FIR
In a significant development concerning the demolition action across the state, a division bench of the Allahabad High Court today delivered a split verdict on whether the State can be barred from taking any action to demolish the house of an accused for a period of two years from the date of registration of an FIR. While Justice Atul Sreedharan observed that a 2-year hiatus must be put...
PITNDPS Act | Unexplained Delay In Acting On Police Dossier Makes Preventive Detention A "Mockery": J&K&L High Court
The High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh has quashed the preventive detention of a man booked under the Prevention of Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (PIT-NDPS) Act, 1988, holding that the authorities' unexplained delay of more than four months in acting upon the police dossier destroyed the very basis of the detention.Observing that preventive detention...
Chhattisgarh High Court Quashes Dismissal Of Teacher On Allegations Of Objectionable Whatsapp Message To Girl Student
The Chhattisgarh High Court has held that an authority cannot dispense with the inquiry contemplated under Article 311(2) of the Constitution by merely recording its satisfaction. The Court held that where recourse is taken to Article 311(2)(b), the authority must record reasons in writing for dispensing with the inquiry, and in the absence of such reasons, the order of dismissal cannot...
J&K Reservation Act Is Complete Code; Statutory Appeal & Revision Must Be Exhausted Before Invoking Article 226: High Court
The High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh has held that the Jammu and Kashmir Reservation Act, 2004, read with the Jammu and Kashmir Reservation Rules, 2005, constitutes a complete statutory code providing remedies of appeal and revision against orders relating to the issuance, rejection or cancellation of category certificates.Holding that such statutory remedies must ordinarily...