Writ Petition solely praying for refund of money against the State is not maintainable: Delhi HC [Read Judgment]

Delhi High Court, refusing to entertain a writ petition by a Hotel fined with an amount of 41 Lakhs for non-compliance of statutory provisions of Environment Law for a period of more than twenty years, held that a writ petition solely praying for refund of money against the State is not maintainable.The petitioner contended that, under the threat of imminent closure and penal actions,it...

Marriage between Christian and Hindu performed as per Hindu rites not invalid for purposes of claiming maintenance: Punjab & Haryana HC [Read Judgment]

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has observed that, a marriage between a Christian and a Hindu performed as per the Hindu rites with the full consent of both parties cannot be said to be invalid for purposes of claiming maintenance under Section 125 of Criminal Procedure Code.Justice Anita Chaudry also observed that no provisions of Hindu Marriage Act renders a marriage between a Hindu and...

Terminating Pregnancy of Rape Victims: Amend the Law to avoid Prosecution of Doctors: Punjab & Haryana HC [Read Judgment]

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has requested authorities of AIIMS, New Delhi to reassess the possibility of termination of pregnancy of a rape victim whose gestation period of pregnancy has exceeded 24 weeks. Justice Paramjeet Singh Dhaliwal also advised the Central Government to consider making amendments to the Medical Termination Of Pregnancy Act, 1971 and clarify in so many words to...

Compensation awarded by MACT not ‘income’ and cannot be subjected to TDS and Income Tax: Madras HC [Read Judgment]

In a very significant judgment, the Madras High Court has held that the compensation awarded by the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal (MACT) to accident victims cannot be subjected to TDS and Income Tax since the compensation and the interest awarded therein does not fall under the term 'income' as defined under the Income Tax Act, 1961.Referring to a Himachal Pradesh High Court judgment wherein...

Kerala High Court decides to disengage services of 52 temporary Munsiff- Magistrates [Read Order]

The Full Court meeting of the Kerala High Court, which met on 01/03/16 has decided to disengage the services of 52 officers employed as temporary Munsiff- Magistrates across various revenue districts, of the State.These persons were appointed as temporary Munsiff-Magistrates, in the Kerala Judicial Service, in accordance with a Government order issued on 10/09/15.Pursuant to the decision of...

If prosecution suppresses the genesis and origin of occurrence of crime, accused are entitled to get benefit of doubt: SC [Read Judgment]

The Supreme Court in Bhagwan Sahai vs. State of Rajasthan has restated that if the prosecution has suppressed the genesis and origin of the occurrence of crime, the accused are entitled to get benefit of doubt.Setting aside the judgment of the High Court which had found the accused guilty under section 308/34 of the IPC, Division Bench comprising of Justices Dipak Misra and Shiva Kirti...

Law student’s PIL makes Rajasthan Govt. seriously think about constituting Police Accountability Committees

Thanks to a Public Interest Litigation filed by a wannabe lawyer, seeking proper implementation of Police Act and constitution of Police accountability committee, the Government of Rajasthan has now started looking at the matter seriously.Dharma Raj Chandel, a Law student had filed a Public Interest Litigation in the High Court seeking constitution of independent and separate agency, namely...

Adoptive mother cannot be deprived of the custody of her child without following due process of law: Delhi HC [Read Judgment]

Terming the action by Child Welfare Committee, in forcibly taking a child from the custody of adoptive mother, as “extremely unusual and dangerous”, the Delhi High Court said that an adoptive mother cannot be deprived of the custody of her child without following due process of law.The petitioner had filed a Habeas Corpus petition in Delhi High Court alleging that CWC, through an...

Delhi HC issues Notice on Students’ PIL to quash appointment of Assistant Professor, JNU alleging plagiarism [Read Petition]

A Public Interest Litigation has been filed before the Delhi High Court seeking to quash the appointment of an Assistant professor, at School of Language, Literature and Cultural Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi who has been alleged of having committed plagiarism.The petition had been jointly filed by one Mr Arshad Parvez, a First Division Graduate in B. A. (Hons.) Turkish...

Exchange of terrorist screening information Arrangement between India and USA signed

An Arrangement between the authorized governmental agencies of the Government of India and the Government of the United States of America (USA) for exchange of terrorist screening information was signed here today. The Arrangement was signed by the Union Home Secretary, Shri Rajiv Mehrishi and Mr. Richard Verma, Ambassador of the United States of America to India.As per this Arrangement,...

Delhi HC relief to MBBS aspirant who was denied admission due to her 80% disability [Read Judgment]

In a relief to an MBBS aspirant, who was declared not eligible for admission to MBBS due to her 80% disability, the Delhi High Court has directed the University not to deny admission to her on the ground of disability, if she is successful in a future NEET examination.Sanjana Sinha, when she was seventeen, had underwent amputation of her left leg, and got an artificial leg/prosthetic limb...

NGT directs Art of Living to pay Rs. 4.75 crore within a week; rejects plea to submit a bank guarantee in lieu thereof

The National Green Tribunal on Tuesday rejected the plea filed by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar’s Art of Living Foundation and directed it to pay Rs. 4.75 crores as fine for the ‘World Culture Festival’ held on the banks of river Yamuna.The NGT Bench led by Chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar refused to accept the Foundation’s plea that the money they owed be treated as a Bank Guarantee and...