It was completely inappropriate for ex-CBI Chief Ranjit Sinha to meet accused in Coal Block Allocation case: SC seeks CVC’s assistance

A Supreme Court Bench comprising of Justice M.B. Lokur, Justice Kurian Joseph and Justice A.K. Sikri today issued a notice to the Central Vigilance Commission for assistance to ascertain whether ex-CBI Chief Ranjit Sinha’s meetings with the accused in the coal allocation scam had had any impact on the investigations and subsequent charge sheets or closure reports filed by the CBI.The...

SC restrains publication of politician’s photos on Government Ads [Read the Judgment]

A Supreme Court Bench comprising of Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice P.C. Ghose has restrained ruling parties from publishing photographs of political leaders or prominent persons in government-funded advertisements.The Court approved and adopted the following recommendations of the Madhav Menon Committee with regard to:(1) Publication of photographs of the Government functionaries and...

The unending uncertainty in the Death sentencing Policy of Indian Courts

A recent judgment of a CJI-led 3 Judges’ Bench decision in Purushottam Dashrath Borate & Anr v. State of Maharashtra has reopened the long-standing controversy on the capricious, uncertain, confused and arbitrary nature of death sentencing policy of Indian courts.Death or life imprisonment was the question that once again vexed the Court in Purushottam Dashrath Borate & Anr v. State...

Cabinet approves amendments to Child Labour (Prohibition & Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2012

The Union Cabinet today gave its approval to official amendments to the Child Labour (Prohibition & Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2012. The Child Labour (Prohibition & Regulation) Act (CLPR Act) 1986 bans employing children as labor in 18 occupations and 65 processes. The Act also regulates working condition of children in other occupations and processes. A person who is less than 14...

Government’s promise to bring back black money "worse than an illusion" and a "fraud on the nation", Ram Jethmalani tells Supreme Court

Ram Jethmalani, eminent jurist and senior advocate of the Supreme Court who had filed a public interest litigation in 2009 on the black money issue, told a Supreme Court bench headed by Chief Justice H L Dattu on Tuesday that the government is not interested in getting back the estimated Rs 70 lakh crore from tax havens.The 91-year-old senior advocate accused both the NDA government and...

Benefit of Probation of Offenders Act cannot be extended to Accused involved in Crimes against Women; SC [Read the Judgment]

Hearing a special leave petition filed by State of Rajasthan, the Supreme Court Bench consisting of Justices Pinaki Chandra Ghose and Uday Umesh Lalit has ruled that the benefit of Probation of Offenders Act cannot be extended to accused involved in crimes against women.The special leave petition came before the Court after the Rajasthan High Court had rejected the appeal of the State...

Supreme Court rejects Centre’s plea for referral of cases challenging #NJAC to larger bench

The Supreme Court today rejected the Centre's plea to decide as a preliminary issue, whether to refer the petitions challenging the new law on appointment of judges to the higher judiciary to a larger bench of nine or eleven judges, before hearing on the merits of the case."The prayer made by the AG for disposing off the issue with reference to need of revisiting two judgments rendered in...

Lok Sabha passes Black Money Bill , Jethmalani terms it totally worthless and is a kind of Amnesty Scheme

Lok Sabha passed the controversial Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets (Imposition of New Tax) Bill, 2015 yesterday.The salient features of the Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets (Imposition of Tax) Bill, 2015 are as under:-Scope – The Act will apply to all persons resident in India. Provisions of the Act will apply to both undisclosed foreign income and assets (including...

Supreme Court stays Justice Karnan’s order initiating contempt proceedings against Madras High Court CJ, Sanjay Kaul

The Supreme Court on Monday stayed an interim order passed by the Justice C.S. Karnan of the Madras High Court in a suo motu writ proceeding staying the administrative order of the Chief Justice of the Madras High Court with regard to selection of civil judges in the lower judiciary of the state of Tamil Nadu.Justice Karnan had stayed the selection proceeding after he raised objections against...

Former Tamil Nadu CM Jayalalithaa acquitted by Karnataka High Court in the Disproportionate Assets case

Former Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa and three of her associates were acquitted in the Disproportionate Assets case by a single judge of the Karnataka High Court on Monday morning. The Trial Court had convicted and sentenced Jayalalithaa and her 3 associates to four years in prison besides imposing a Rs 100 crore fine, on September 27 last year.Justice C R Kumaraswamy on Monday...

Marriage of daughter not a bar in being considered for govt. job on compassionate grounds after the death of her father while in service: Madras High Court

Affirming a Single Judge’s ruling that that marriage alone need not necessarily disentitle a woman from claiming a Government job, as marriage is not a disqualification, a Division Bench of the Madras High Court has held that married daughter of a government employee is entitled to be considered for the job on compassionate grounds after the death of her father while in service subject to...

AIBA seeks Presidential Reference on “controversial collegium and NJAC issues”

All India Bar Association has sought Presidential Reference on the “controversial collegium and NJAC issues as appointment of at least 125 Judges for various High Courts is hanging fire”.  In a representation to the President, AIBA Chairman and senior advocate Dr. Adish C. Aggarwala the President’s intervention to ensure that the ongoing hearing of the NJAC case before the Supreme...