Lawyers Appearing For Client In Courts Aren't 'Service Providers' As Per Consumer Protection Act, Says Amicus; Supreme Court Reserves Judgment

The Supreme Court on Thursday (February 29) reserved judgment on the issue whether advocates can be held liable under the Consumer Protection Act for deficiency of services. A Bench of Justices Bela Trivedi and Pankaj Mithal heard the matter. On the final day, Senior Advocate V Giri, the amicus curiae in the matter, addressed the bench.The issue, which is relevant for members of the...

'Serious Violations' : Supreme Court Dismisses Vedanta's Plea To Reopen Copper Smelting Unit In Tamil Nadu's Tuticorin

Citing 'repeated breaches' and 'serious violations' on the part of Vedanta, the Supreme Court on Thursday (February 29) refused to grant it permission to reopen its Sterlite copper smelting plant in Tamil Nadu's Tuticorin.A bench of Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra dismissed the special leave petition filed by Vedanta Limited against an August 2020...

'Distributor Not Agent, Independent Contractor': Supreme Court Elaborates Law On Agency

While deciding the question of cellular mobile service providers' liability to deduct tax at source under Section 194-H of the Income Tax Act, 1961, the Supreme Court recently summarized aspects that must be kept in mind by Courts while examining whether principal-agent relationship exists in particular case.The factors/aspects enunciated by the Bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and SVN...

HCs & SC Should Refrain From Fixing Time-Bound Schedules For Case Disposal In Other Courts Ordinarily: Supreme Court

In a momentous ruling, a Supreme Court constitution bench on Thursday (February 29) reversed its 2018 Asian Resurfacing judgment, firmly stating that directives mandating automatic expiration of interim orders after a set period cannot be issued by the apex court under Article 142 of the Constitution.The latest ruling was handed down on Thursday by a five-judge bench led by Chief Justice...

TDS Under S.194-H Income Tax Act Won't Apply To Business Transactions Where Assessee Is Not Responsible For Paying Income : Supreme Court

In a significant development, the Supreme Court recently held that under Section 194-H of the Income Tax Act, 1961, cellular mobile service providers are not liable to deduct tax at source on income/profit component in payments received by their franchisees/distributors from third parties/customers. “…we hold that the assessees would not be under a legal obligation to deduct tax...

Rule Disqualifying Candidate Having More Than 2 Children From Govt Job Doesn't Violate Constitution : Supreme Court

The Supreme Court upheld the decision of the Rajasthan Government to disqualify a candidate from applying to a police constable post for having more than two children.The Court held that Rule 24(4) of the Rajasthan Police Subordinate Service Rules, 1989, which provides that “no candidate shall be eligible for appointment to the service who has more than two children on or after 01.06.2002"...

No Automatic Vacation Of Stay Orders Of HCs On Civil & Criminal Trials : Supreme Court Overturns 'Asian Resurfacing' Judgment

In a significant ruling, the Supreme Court on Thursday (February 29) overturned its 2018 Asian Resurfacing judgment which mandated the interim orders passed by High Courts staying trials in civil and criminal cases will automatically expire after six months from the date of the order, unless expressly extended by the High Courts.The latest verdict, setting aside the earlier ruling, was handed...

Interim Order Restricting Zoos/Safaris Within Forests Will Operate Only Till Final Judgment Of Coordinate Bench, Clarifies Supreme Court

The interim order passed by a bench led by the Chief Justice of India restricting the establishment of zoos/safaris within forest areas will operate only till the final judgment on the very same issue is pronounced by another coordinate bench.It was on February 19 that a 3-judge bench led by CJI Chandrachud passed the interim order in a batch of writ petitions challenging the Forest...

Once Magistrate Seeks Report From Police Under S.202 CrPC, Summons To Accused Be Postponed Until Police Report Is Received: Supreme Court

The Supreme Court held that once the Magistrate has called for the police report under Section 202 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, then the magistrate couldn't issue a summon unless the report is submitted by the policeReversing the decision of the High Court which had refused to quash the summons issued by the Magistrate, the Supreme Court Bench of Justices Abhay S. Oka and Ujjal...

State Of TN Must Train Police Officers On Procedure To Obtain Certificate Under S.65B Indian Evidence Act : Supreme Court

Recently, the Supreme Court remarked that the state government (Tamil Nadu) should impart proper training to police officers on obtaining certificate for electronic evidence as stipulated under Section 65B of the Evidence Act. "Before we part with the judgment, we must note here that the PW-19, the Investigating Officer, was not aware of the procedure to be followed for obtaining a...

Mere Demand For Ransom After Kidnapping Won't Amount To S.364A IPC Offence If There's No Death Threat : Supreme Court

Recently, the Supreme Court acquitted an accused charged under Section 364A of the Indian Penal Code i.e., kidnapping for ransom, after finding that the prosecution failed to establish that there was an instant threat of death to the kidnapped from the accused. “Therefore, the ingredients of Section 364A of IPC were not proved by the prosecution inasmuch as the prosecution failed to...

State Is Not Doing Any Charity By Paying Compensation To Citizen Whose Land Was Acquired : Supreme Court

Recently, the Supreme Court held that the State cannot deprive the citizen of using the land for years and then paying compensation to show graciousness."Though, the Right to Property is no more a Fundamental Right, still it is recognized as a Constitutional Right under Article 300A of the Constitution of India. Depriving a citizen of his Constitutional Right to use the land for 20 years and...