SC Seeks Centre's View On PIL Seeking Ban On Hoisting Of "Pak Muslim League-Like" Flags In India [Read Petition]

The Supreme Court today sought the view of the Centre on a PIL filed by Syed Waseem Rizvi, Chairman of Uttar Pradesh Shia Central Waqf Board seeking a ban on hoisting of green flags with crescent and star, akin to that of Pakistan Muslim League atop buildings and religious places in the country."Obtain instructions", a bench of justices A K Sikri and Ashok Bhushan told ASG Tushar Mehta seeking...

UP Govt Set To Table Modified Bill To Restore Anticipatory Bail, SC Told

The State of Uttar Pradesh (UP) on Monday informed the Supreme Court that the Yogi Adityanath government has decided to bring a Bill in the Assembly seeking to restore the provision of anticipatory bail.The State said the provision would, however, be included in the Bill in a modified manner.Appearing for the UP government, advocate Aishwarya Bhati told the bench of Justices SA Bobde and LN...

Whether to Permit Women Entry to Sabarimala Temple or Not: SC Constitution Bench To Hear From Tomorrow

From tomorrow, the Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court will commence hearing on the matter relating to entry of women to Sabarimala temple. It was on October 13, 2017, that a three judges bench of CJI Dipak Misra, Justice R. Banumathi and Justice Ashok Bhushan referred the matter to Constitution Bench, raising the following issues : Whether the exclusionary practice which is based upon...

[Ayodhya] UP Govt. Can't Be An Interested Party; Dhavan Alleges “Breach Of Faith Of The Court” On ASG For Not Maintaining Neutrality [Read Written Submissions]

While hearing the Ayodhya matter on Friday, Senior Counsel Rajeev Dhavan, who is appearing for Sunni Waqf Board,  contended that the State of UP was maintaining a "non-neutral" stand in the issue.  He was responding to the objection made by ASG Thushar Mehta on behalf of UP Government to his request for reference of the matter to larger bench. The ASG had doubted the bonafides of seeking...

Lady Lawyer Allegedly Raped By Senior Lawyer In Saket Court, Accused Arrested, Bar Suspends His Membership

In an incident that has sent shock waves in the entire legal fraternity, a lady lawyer was allegedly raped by another advocate in his chamber in Saket district court complex yesterday evening.Advocate P K Lal, who is in his 50s, raped the lady lawyer, aged 32, after calling her to his chamber. Lal has been arrested on a complaint filed by the victim. Condemning the incident, advocate Dhir...

He Also Tried To Kill Himself; SC Modifies ‘30-Yr Life Term Without Remission’ Imposed On Man Accused Of Killing Wife To ‘Life Imprisonment Simpliciter’ [Read Order]

The Supreme Court modified a ‘thirty years life imprisonment without remission’ sentence imposed on a man accused of uxoricide (murder of one’s wife) to life imprisonment simpliciter taking into account that he also tried to kill himself after murdering his wife.The trial court had awarded death penalty to the husband and the high court, holding that it is not ‘rarest of rare’,...

Public Servant’s Retirement Due To Efflux Of Time Irrelevant While Determining His Criminal Liability In Corruption Cases: SC [Read Order]

The Supreme Court in Tarsem Lal Chandla v State of Himachal Pradesh has observed that merely because the accused-public servant retired from service due to efflux of time, it would not be a relevant consideration in determining the criminal liability particularly for an offence under the Prevention of Corruption Act.In this case, the High Court of Himachal Pradesh had reversed an order...

Annamalai University Can’t Devise Its Own Fee Structure For Medical/Engineering Professional Degree Courses: SC [Read Judgment]

‘Insofar as professional courses leading to degrees in Medicine and Engineering are concerned, the matter must be screened and assessed by Committee on Fixation of Fee and the submission that the University was entitled to fix fees on its own without the intervention of such Committee has to be rejected.’The Supreme Court in M Aamira Fathima v. Annamalai University, has held that...

Governments With Absolute Majority Have Always Tried To Control Judiciary: Justice Chelameswar

"Only a judge confident about his capacity can be truly independent", said Justice Chelameswar.Justice Chelameswar, retired Supreme Court judge, spoke on the topic “The Price of Independence” at the Conclave organized by Manorama News TV at Cochin on July 12. Describing the dynamics between power and independence, he said that the objective of the Constitution was to put a system of...

[Ayodhya-Day-8] Shia Waqf Board Ready To Surrender The Claim For Land; Demolition Of Babri Masjid An Act Of 'Hindu Taliban', Submits Rajeev Dhavan

Comparing the demolition of the Babri Masjid with the tearing down of the Bamiyan statues in Afghanistan by the Taliban, Senior Advocate Rajeev Dhavan commented, “What happened in 1992 can be called an act of the Hindu Taliban...it could not have been done, it should not have been done....no equities lie”.In the course of the hearing in the Ram Janmabhumi-Babri Masjid dispute before...

Proposed Surveillance On Social Media Intended At “Targeting Voices Critical Of The Government”: PIL In SC; Notice Issued [Read Petition]

If every single tweet or WhatsApp message is monitored, “we’ll be moving towards becoming a surveillance state”, Justice DY Chandrachud remarked on Friday, while agreeing to hear a PIL filed by Trinamool Congress MLA Mahua Moitra challenging the Union Information and Broadcasting Ministry’s proposal to monitor social media movements.The Bench, which also comprised of Chief Justice...

No Exclusive Right Over Use Of The Word ‘MALABAR’ For Product Sale, Holds SC [Read Judgment]

Parakh Vanijya Pvt. Ltd., which claims to have been using the mark ‘MALABAR’ for selling Biryani Rice from 2001, had charged Baroma Agro Products of infringement for using the word ‘MALABAR’ in conjunction with the mark ‘BAROMA’ to sell its Biryani Rice. The Supreme Court has upheld a Calcutta High Court order that held that Parakh Vanijya Private Limited cannot claim exclusive...