Supreme Court Rejects NHAI Plea To Prospectively Apply 2019 Judgment Allowing Solatium & Interest For National Highway Land Acquisitions

The Supreme Court today dismissed plea(s) filed by NHAI seeking a clarification that the Court's 2019 ruling in Union of India v. Tarsem Singh on grant of solatium and interest to landowners shall apply prospectively.A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan rendered the decision, stating,"Granting such clarification would nullify the very relief that Tarsem Singh intended to...

'One-Sided Forfeiture Clause In Apartment Buyer Agreements Unfair Trade Practice' : Supreme Court Rejects Builder's Appeal

In a major relief to homebuyers, the Supreme Court (Feb. 3) ruled that earnest money forfeited upon flat booking cancellation must be reasonable and not excessive enough to be considered a penalty under Section 74 of the Contract Act, 1872. The Court criticized real-estate developers for including one-sided, excessive forfeiture clauses in builder-buyer agreements, deeming them "unfair...

'Each Judge Has 15K-20K Matters' : Supreme Court Expresses Concern At Allahabad HC Case Pendency; Stresses On Need To Fill Vacancies

"The High Court has a sanctioned strength of 160 Judges but unfortunately is working today with a strength of 84 Judges."

S. 74 Contract Act | Forfeiture Of Earnest Money Permissible If It's Not Excessive Amounting To Penalty : Supreme Court

The Supreme Court today (Feb. 3) clarified that forfeiting a reasonable earnest money deposit in a contract does not constitute a penalty under Section 74 of the Contract Act, 1872. “It can be seen that this Court has held that if the forfeiture of earnest money under a contract is reasonable, then it does not fall within Section 74 of the Indian Contract Act, 1872, inasmuch as, such...

Laws Intended To Protect Women From Cruelty & Dowry Harassment Shouldn't Be Misused To Settle Personal Scores : Supreme Court

The Supreme Court recently, while quashing a case involving allegations of cruelty and dowry said that criminal law should not be used as a tool for harassment. It added that courts must be cautious while dealing with such cases to prevent misuse of the law. While the provisions are intended to protect women from cruelty and dowry harassment, they should not be used to settle personal scores...

Supreme Court Reiterates Narrow Scope Of Interference Under Section 37 Arbitration Act

The Supreme Court reiterated that in appeal under Section 37 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, the Court has a narrower scope to review the arbitral award if the award has already been upheld under Section 34 (application for setting aside arbitral awards). Reliance was placed on the recent decision in Larsen Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Company vs Union of India, wherein the...

Supreme Court Weekly Round-up: January 27, 2025 To February 02, 2025

Nominal IndexCitationsHarshit Harish Jain & Anr. v. State of Maharashtra & Ors. 2025 LiveLaw (SC) 110Surendra G. Shankar & Anr v. Esque Finamark Pvt. Ltd & Ors., Civil Appeal No. 928 of 2025 2025 LiveLaw (SC) 111Satender Kumar Antil v. CBI 2025 LiveLaw (SC) 112Ramesh Baghel v. State of Chhattisgarh and Ors., SLP(C) No. 1399/2025 2025 LiveLaw (SC) 113Maulvi Syed Shad Kazmi @...

Supreme Court Allows All Disabled Candidates To Take Scribe In Exams Without Meeting Benchmark Disabilities

The Supreme Court today(February 3) allowed a writ petition filed by a candidate suffering from Focal Hand Dystonia(a type of a writ's camp), seeking to avail the benefit of the scribe by relying on landmark Vikas Kumar v. UPSC (2021) in which it held that benchmark disability is not the precondition to obtaining a scribe. The Court has held that the facility of scribe and other...

S.156(3) CrPC v S.175(3) BNSS | BNSS Mandates Magistrate To Hear Police Officer On Refusal To Register FIR, Ensures Reasoned Order : Supreme Court

The Court noted that Section 175(3) ensured that the Magistrate passes a more reasoned order with judicial application of mind.

'Court Fee Refund Only If Case Settled Through ADR Mechanisms' : Supreme Court Rejects Refund Claim For Private Out-of-Court Settlement

The Supreme Court held that litigants who resolve their disputes privately outside of court are not entitled to a refund of court fees. The Court said that the refund of the court fees is permissible only “if the matter is referred to Arbitration, Conciliation, judicial settlement, including through Lok Adalat or mediation for settlement and the case is decided in terms of such a...

'Once Arrest Is Found Illegal, Duty Of Court To Release Accused On Bail' : Supreme Court Rejects ED Appeal

The Supreme Court recently declared the arrest by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) as illegal and unconstitutional because the agency failed to secure the presence of the arrestee before the magistrate within 24 hours of the arrest. The arrestee was detained on 5th March 2022 at 11 AM at IGI Airport, Delhi by the Immigration Bureau in view of the Look Out Circular issued by the ED, however,...

Supreme Court Annual Digest 2024: Service Law

SERVICE LAWS - SUPREME COURT ANNUAL DIGEST 2024AdministrationConstitution of India - Article 16(1), 16(4) and 335 - Efficiency of Administration - Article 335 does not limit sub-classification; rather, it reinforces the importance of inclusion and equality in public services in line with Article 16(1). State of Punjab v. Davinder Singh, 2024 LiveLaw (SC) 538In public law proceedings, when it...