Accepting or giving bribe by foreign public officials punishable with jail term up to 7 years: 258th Report, Law Commission of India

Law Commission of India has released its 258th Report titled “Prevention of Bribery of Foreign Public Officials and Officials of Public International Organizations – A Study and Proposed Amendments”.The report makes accepting or giving bribe by foreign public officials a criminal offence entailing a jail term of up to seven years and makes active as well as passive bribery punishable....

SC reserves judgment in a batch of petitions challenging Kerala’s liquor policy

The Supreme Court on Thursday reserved judgment in a batch of petitions filed by several bar owners of Kerala as also the Bar Owners’ association challenging the Kerala government’s abkari policy limiting grant of bar licences to five star hotels alone.Mr. Mukul Rohatgi who had obtained permission from the Union Government to appear in the case advanced arguments on behalf of the...

Breaking; Law Commission of India suggests to make “Right to Childhood Care” a fundamental Right [Read the 259th Report]

Law Commission of India has released its 259th Report titled, “Early Childhood Development and Legal Entitlements”, highlighting the issues relating to the rights of children under the age of six years. The Commission took up the study on request of some of the representatives of Alliance for Right to Early Childhood Care & Development and Mobile Crèches, who met the Commission...

Supreme Court says public should not be asked to pay toll on NHs in bad shape; reduces the toll of a stretch by 20%

The Supreme Court today brought the pathetic condition of country’s several national highways into sharp focus by questioning the need for public to pay toll tax if the roads are full of potholes, broken and in poor shape.“Why should public pay toll tax if the condition of roads is bad and they are facing problems. Common man cannot be made to punish for the wrongs committed by...

After 17 long years, High Court acquits a man convicted of rape by Trial Court [Read the Judgment]

In August 1998, Trial Court held a teenager guilty of rape. In August 2015, Chhattisgarh High Court holds his conviction illegal and acquits him. Between the ‘Augusts’ of 1998 and 2015, his youthful years were irreversibly spoiled. Delay of Justice often hurts more than denial of it. ‘Justice delayed is Justice denied’ is an oft quoted saying, but apparently, delay in Justice seems to...

‘Procedure’ is meant only to facilitate the administration of justice and not to defeat the same: Supreme Court [Read the Judgment]

In a Judgment on a Civil Appeal [BanwariLal (d) VsBalbirSingh] which it pronounced today, the Supreme Court reiterated that ‘Procedure is meant only to facilitate the administration of justice and not to defeat the same.’ On sufficient cause, delay in bringing the legal representatives of the deceased party on record should be condoned. A Bench of Justices T.S.Takur and R. Bhanumathi,...

SC admits petition seeking implementation of code of Canon Law as personal law of Indian Christians

A Supreme Court bench comprising Justice A.R. Dave and Justice A.K. Goel has reportedly admitted a Writ Petition, demanding a direction to make orders of church and ecclesiastical courts legally binding. The Petition had been filed by Clarence Pais, who is the former president of a Catholic association in Karnataka state.Representing the Petitioner, Senior Advocate Soli Sorabjee prayed that...

Tripura HC reprimands police officers who arrested a Judicial officer accused of Drunken Driving, without following SC Guidelines, directs departmental action [Read the Judgment]

Tripura High Court today, in suo motu Writ petition, reprimanded the State Police officials who arrested a Judicial Officer accused of drunken, rash and negligent driving, for violating the procedures to be followed before such arrests.  A division bench comprising of Chief Justice Deepak Gupta and Justice S.C. Das held that the police officers have violated the law laid down by the Apex...

SC wonders if Gujarat Govt. can be asked to compensate 500 religious structures damaged during post-Godhra riots

Can a court direct the state to compensate or fund the restoration of places of worship damaged due to its alleged failure to maintain law and order? The Supreme Court on Wednesday began to hear a plea in which the Gujarat government has raised the question.The issue came into focus after the destruction of such structures during the 2002 Gujarat riots.The bench was hearing a petition filed...

Centre ‘wins’ legal battle against Ex-army man, who served the Country for 15 yrs, fighting for ‘disability pension’ in SC [Read the Judgment]

Amidst heated discussions with the Ex Serviceman on the issue of One Rank One Pension who are cornering it with protests and strike unto deaths, the Central Government today can comfort itself with that fact that it has won a Four-year legal battle with an Ex-Army man, as Supreme Court allowed the Centre’s appeal, quashing the Tribunal order which had entitled him to get disability...

SC suspends all proceedings against Italian Marines pending decision of ITLOS on Jurisdiction

The trial of two Italian Marines—Massimiliano Latorre and Salvatore Girone—accused of killing two fishermen off the Kerala coast on February 15, 2012 is not set to begin even after almost four years after the incident as it is yet to be decided which country has the right to conduct the proceedings.While the sensational incident occurred on February 15, 2012, the Supreme Court on...

Allahabad High Court examines scope of power of MAC Tribunal to ‘correct’ itself

The High court rejects plea of driver that the review he sought is only a correction of clerical mistake.The Allahabad High Court today, upheld the order of a Motor Accidents Claim Tribunal which held that it has no power to review its award on merits. Justice Manoj Kumar Gupta dismissed the petition under Article 227 of the Constitution, filed by the driver, against whom an order was passed...