Calcutta High Court
Calcutta High Court Cancels Bail Of POCSO Accused, Flags Trial Court's 'Mechanical' Grant Of Bail Once Chargesheet Was Filed
The Calcutta High Court has cancelled the bail granted to an accused booked for aggravated penetrative sexual assault on a 14-year-old girl, holding that a trial court cannot grant liberty in serious POCSO cases merely because the chargesheet has been filed. Setting aside the order of the Sessions Court, Justice Bivas Pattanayak observed that bail discretion must be exercised judiciously after considering the gravity of allegations, the vulnerability of the child victim, and the likelihood of...
Order XI Rule 1(5) CPC Gives Court Discretion To Accept Delayed Documents On Showing Reasonable Cause: Calcutta High Court
The Calcutta High Court has held that there is no absolute bar on production of additional documents in commercial suits beyond the timelines prescribed under the CPC, and courts retain discretion to permit late disclosure at any stage — even when the matter has reached the argument stage — provided the party shows “reasonable cause” for earlier non-disclosure. The Court clarified...
Calcutta High Court Grants Bail To 74-Yr-Old Ex-SSC Advisor In PMLA Case; Says Prolonged Custody Without Trial Offends Article 21
Granting relief to a 74-year-old former education administrator arrested in connection with the alleged West Bengal school recruitment scam, the Calcutta High Court has held that prolonged incarceration without commencement of trial cannot be justified merely because the case is registered under the stringent provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. Observing that...
2026 Bengal Assembly Polls: Calcutta High Court Declines To Interfere With Surveillance & Live Web-Streaming Tender Criteria
The Calcutta High Court has upheld the eligibility criteria prescribed in a tender issued by the Chief Electoral Officer, West Bengal, for providing a comprehensive surveillance and live web-streaming system for the 2026 Legislative Assembly elections, holding that courts cannot interfere with technical conditions of a tender unless they are demonstrably arbitrary, discriminatory, or mala...
Addition Of Text Above Signature On Receipt Raises 'Grave Suspicion': Calcutta High Court Refuses To Discharge Forgery Accused
The Calcutta High Court has refused to interfere with a Magistrate's order rejecting discharge of two accused persons in a criminal case alleging forgery and cheating arising out of a land transaction, holding that at the stage of framing charge, the court is only required to assess whether prima facie materials disclose a “grave suspicion” and not conduct a mini-trial. Dismissing...
'Private & Public Companies Must Be Treated Equally In Excise Licence Fee Exemptions': Calcutta High Court
The Calcutta High Court has held that the State cannot discriminate between private limited companies and public limited companies while granting exemption from excise licence fees for changes in management occurring in the usual course of business, observing that such unequal treatment violates Article 14 of the Constitution. The Court ruled that even though dealing in liquor is a...
'Lapses By Advocate, Defendant's Illness': Calcutta High Court Sets Aside Eviction Decree, Condones 496-Day Delay In Filing Appeal
The Calcutta High Court has held that the illness of a litigant coupled with laches on the part of the conducting advocate can constitute “sufficient cause” for condonation of delay under Section 5 of the Limitation Act, and that such applications need only be decided on the touchstone of preponderance of probabilities.Justice Biswaroop Chowdhury allowed a second appeal (SA 34 of 2019)...
'Serious Lapses In Identification & Recovery': Calcutta High Court Dismisses State Appeal Against Acquittal In 1982 Dacoity Case
The Calcutta High Court has refused to interfere with a decades-old acquittal in a 1982 dacoity case, holding that serious lapses in identification, doubtful recovery of stolen articles, and contradictions in seizure evidence fatally weakened the prosecution case.Justice Ananya Bandyopadhyay, while dismissing the State's appeal, observed that the prosecution failed to conclusively...
Calcutta High Court Enhances Amputee Accident Victim's Compensation, Says Loss Of Amenities & Future Medical Costs Must Be Considered
The Calcutta High Court has enhanced compensation to ₹6 lakh for a road accident victim who lost his right leg above the knee, holding that assessment of damages in motor accident claims cannot be confined to mere loss of employment and must account for lifelong disability, pain, future medical expenses, and loss of amenities.Justice Biswaroop Chowdhury observed that “damages do not only...
Calcutta High Court Directs SDO To Cancel Gram Panchayat Pradhan's Reservation Certificate Over False OBC Claim
The Calcutta High Court has held that once a competent authority concludes that a person does not belong to the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category, it is incumbent upon the authority to immediately proceed with the cancellation of the OBC certificate. The Court directed the Sub-Divisional Officer (SDO), Tamluk, to cancel the OBC certificate of an elected Gram Panchayat Pradhan within...
Omnibus Cruelty Allegations, Belated Medical Certificates Can't Justify Attempt-To-Homicide Charge Against In-Laws: Calcutta High Court
Holding that mere omnibus allegations and belated medical certificates cannot justify subjecting distant in-laws to a serious charge of attempt to culpable homicide, the Calcutta High Court partly allowed a criminal revision and discharged the mother-in-law and sister-in-law of a woman from prosecution under Section 308 IPC in a matrimonial cruelty case.Justice Chaitali Chatterjee Das...
'Gruesome Crime Alone Not Ground To Deny Bail': Calcutta High Court Grants Anticipatory Bail In 2021 Post-Poll Violence Case
The Calcutta High Court has granted anticipatory bail to an accused in a CBI-probed murder arising out of the 2021 post-poll violence, holding that even in cases involving grave allegations, pre-arrest protection must be decided on the “nature and quality of evidence prima facie available” and not merely on the seriousness of the offence. Justice Jay Sengupta observed that courts...