Kerala HC Disposes Of Its Oldest Case [Read Judgment]

Kerala High Court, on Wednesday, disposed of its oldest case, which was 33 years old. The proceedings in the case, in fact, spanned over more than a century.The Appeal before the Court had assailed a judgment passed by the District Court, Ernakulam, which had declared that the proposed notified lands could not be declared as reserve forests under the Travancore Forest Act (Act II) of 1068....

High Courts Weekly Round-Up

Bombay High CourtThe Bombay High Court recently dismissed a petition filed by one Mohammad Imran, who challenged the cancellation of his selection to the post of Civil Judge Junior Division and Judicial Magistrate First Class citing an unfavourable police verification report.Delhi High CourtThe Delhi High Court, on Wednesday, quashed a decision of the Central Board of Film Certification...

Hindu Daughter Can Claim Marriage Expenses From Father: Kerala HC [Read Judgment]

The Kerala High Court has held that an unmarried Hindu daughter has the legal right to claim from her father reasonable expenses for marriage. This is based on Section 20(3) of the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act, 1956, as per which a father has the legal obligation to maintain his unmarried daughter, whether legitimate or illegitimate. ‘Maintenance’, as defined in Section 3(b)(ii) of...

For Purpose Of SARFAESI Act, Addl DM/Addl CMM Has Judicial Powers Similar To That Of DM/ CMM: Bombay HC [Read Judgment]

In an important judgment, the Bombay High Court has held that for the purposes of Section 14 of the Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest (SARFAESI) Act, the District Magistrate or the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate is not a persona designata and the Additional District Magistrate or Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate has the same...

Facebook Allowing Users To 'Like' Things Won't Confer Jurisdiction In The State Where The Webpage Is Viewed: Delhi HC [Read Judgment]

The Delhi High Court has ruled that mere hosting of a webpage on Facebook would not confer jurisdiction in the State where such page is viewed."...it is clear that merely hosting a web page on Facebook would not be sufficient to confer jurisdiction on a Court where the defendant does not carry on business. Merely because Facebook is an interactive site and permits the users to offer comments...

Delhi HC Increases Salary Of Law Researchers From Rs. 25,000 To 35,000 [Read Order]

The Delhi High Court has enhanced the remuneration offered to Law Researchers from Rs. 25,000 to Rs. 35,000. The increase has been made effective from 1 August, 2017.The Rs. 10,000 jump makes it one of the highest paying Courts for Law Researchers in the country. While Judges are entitled to two Researchers each, Original Side Judges and the Chief Justice can appoint three. Researchers can...

Magistrate Has No Express Or Implied Power To Direct Accused To Give Voice Samples For Investigation Purposes: Kerala HC [Read Judgment]

The Kerala High Court has held that there is no express or implied power conferred by the statute to the magistrate to direct the accused to give voice samples for the purposes of investigation. The ruling was rendered by a division bench comprising Justice AM Shaffique and Justice P Somarajan. While rendering the ruling, the division bench overruled an earlier decision of a single bench...

Fodder Scam: CBI Judge Says Lalu Prasad And Others Experts On Fodder, So Can Help In Dairy [Read Judgment]

While sentencing former Bihar Chief Minister and RJD Chief Lalu Prasad Yadav and 15 others for the fodder scam on Saturday, the Special CBI Judge also recommended that the convicts be shifted to Hazaribagh Open Jail where they could serve in the dairy being run there.In the order sentencing the accused, CBI Court Judge Shivpal Singh suggested, "Convicted accused are expert to supply feed,...

Merge Existing Govt. Schools Instead Of Building New Ones Without Proper Infrastructure: Uttarakhand HC Advises State [Read Order]

The Uttarakhand High Court has recommended that the State Government may frame a scheme to merge existing Government schools, instead of establishing new schools without adequate infrastructure.Justice Rajiv Sharma observed, "The State is recommended to provide basic infrastructure in the existing schools instead of promoting/ mushrooming of new schools without...

Kerala HC: Private Orphanages Have To Register Under JJ Act; But Aren’t Required To Meet Standards Prescribed In Model Rules [Read Judgment]

In a writ petition filed by the Association of Orphanages and Charitable Institutions, the Kerala High Court has said that orphanages run by private individuals or organization without any support or aid from the government are required to obtain registration under the Juvenile Justice Act 2015. However, the court also clarified that such private orphanages functioning without state aid were...

What Are We Eating? PIL In Bombay HC Seeks Policy To Prohibit Use Of Pesticides, Chemicals In Fruits, Vegetables [Read Petition]

A Mumbai-based NGO, Citizen Circle for Social Welfare and Education, has filed a public interest litigation before the Bombay High Court seeking directions for prohibiting usage of excess amounts of pesticides by farmers, usage of chemicals by street vendors of fruits and vegetables for artificial ripening, usage of growth hormones and pig fat by poultry farmers etc.The PIL also seeks an...

Allahabad HC Restrains State From Taking Coercive Action Against UP Congress On Rs. 51 Lakh Notice [Read Order]

In a relief to the Congress Party, Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court, on Thursday, restrained the State and the Lucknow Municipal Corporation from taking any coercive steps against the party on a seizure notice issued by the civic body. The notice sought recovery of Rs. 51 lakh house tax dues on the headquarters of the state unit of the party in the city's Mall Avenue area.The...