National Judicial Appointments Commission Bill ratified by 16 states

The National Judicial Appointments Commission Bill, 2014 that was passed by the Parliament in August 2014 has been ratified by 16 states till date. The Constitution of India also mandates that a Constitutional Amendment Bill has to be ratified by at least half the number of states in the country. The said bill, having been ratified by 16 out of 29 states has cleared that...

Appointments through NJAC soon, says Union Law Minister

The National Judicial Commission is all set to come in action as 16 states have ratified the 121st Constitutional Amendment Bill, passed by the Parliament in August. The Parliament had also passed the National Judicial Appointments Bill, 2014.Speaking informally to the media while attending a function in Mangalore, the Union Minister said that the Rajya Sabha Secretariat receives...

Delhi High Court dismisses PIL to bring back Netaji’s ashes and declare his birthday as “Freedom Fighter’s Day”

A Delhi High Court bench comprising of Chief Justice G. Rohini and Justice P.S. Teji dismissed a Public Interest Litigation filed by a social worker, Mr. Sharad Tiwari seeking to bring back the ashes of Late Subhash Chandra Bose and to keep it in a public place “for paying tributes to the late leaders for the sacrifices made by him in the freedom struggle of the nation.”He also prayed...

IPR Think Tank submits first draft of National IPR Policy

The first draft by the Think Tank on Intellectual Property Rights set up by Commerce and Industry Ministry has been uploaded by the Ministry today. The Think Tank is chaired by Justice Prabha Sridevan, and consists of 5 other members.Raving about the importance of an IP Policy, the draft envisions, "An India where Intellectual Property led growth in creativity and innovation is encouraged for...

Correct defective policies to prevent crimes on wheels: CIC to Transport Dept.

Central Information Commissioner, Prof. M. Sridhar Acharyulu has directed the Transport Department to submit a report as to how, who and on what basis was the accused in the Uber Taxi rape case, given this permit, give reasons for his not having a driving license and for not taking his past conduct into account. The public authority was also directed to inform the Commission as to what steps...

Full Bench of Kerala High Court upholds Writ Petition against Private management; takes note of statutory obligation involved

A Kerala High Court Bench comprising of Ag. Chief Justice Mr. Ashok Bhushan, Justice A.M. Shaffique and Justice A.K. Jayasankaran Nambiar, in an order delivered on 18th December, 2014, has held that a Writ Petition is maintainable even against a private management if there is violation of statutory obligation.Considering the various judgments on this point, the Court observed, "In view of...

Justice B.N. Srikrishna and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley to work jointly on financial reforms

Justice B.N. Srikrishna, who had headed the Financial Sector Legislative Reforms Commission (FSLRC), will now work hand in hand with Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in an attempt to finalize a Uniform Indian Financial Code (IFC), which seeks to put in place a new regulatory framework for Indian financial markets. The Code will replace a mass of laws and rules concerning the country’s...

Delhi High Court Exempts Medical Reimbursement of Supreme Court Judges From RTI [Read the Judgment]

The Delhi High court on December 19 held that reimbursement of medical expenses of the Supreme Court Judges (whether serving or retired) has been exempted from the Right to Information (RTI) Act 2005.The court said that this information does not serve any public interest and Central Information Commission (CIC) was in error to direct Central Public Information Officer of Supreme Court (CPIO)...

SC condemns "Bench hunting" or "forum shopping" for filing successive bail applications [Read the Judgment]

Observing that the Judge, who has declined to entertain the prayer for grant of bail, if available, should hear the second bail application or the successive bail applications, a Supreme Court Bench comprising of Justice Dipak Misra and Justice U.U. Lalit criticized the practice of "Bench hunting" or "forum shopping".The Bench observed, "Needless to say, unless such principle is adhered to,...

Order of recovery of excessive payment made to employees would be impermissible in law if the mistake is detected after 5 years or if it is from Group C or D employees or from retired employees: SC [Read the Judgment]

Quashing an order of recovery of excessive payments made to employees, a Supreme Court bench comprising of Justice J.S. Khehar and Justice Arun Kumar Mishra has held that, if the mistake of making a wrongful payment is detected within five years, it would be open to the employer to recover the same, but if the payment is made for a period in excess of five years, even though it would be open...

MP Judge Harassment Allegations: SC orders divesting of administrative and supervisory control vested in the accused HC Judge; orders reinstatement of investigation process [Read the Judgment]

Quashing the inquiry initiated by the MP High Court into the sexual harassment accusations by a woman Judge against a sitting High Court Judge, a Supreme Court Bench comprising of Justice J.S. Khehar and Justice Arun Mishra directed the Chief Justice of the High Court to divest the accused Judge of the administrative and supervisory control vested in him, in order to ensure that the...

No sanction required to prosecute a Retired Public servant under Prevention of Corruption Act, but it is necessary to prosecute him under Penal Code; SC [Read the Judgment]

The appeal before the Supreme Court was heard and the court held that the point of law with reference to public servants who had retired was clear that sanction to prosecute the public servant for the offences under the Prevention Of Corruption Act is not required but the sanction is required to prosecute for offences under Indian Penal Code.In the present case the public servants namely...