The Good And Bad : Read 35 Important Supreme Court Judgments Of 2018

The Year 2018 is about to end soon and it is time for a flashback into important happenings in the legal universe.The year 2018 saw two CJIs- Former CJI Dipak Misra and the Current CJI Ranjan Gogoi. The constitution benches headed by Justice Misra, during his last month as CJI, delivered most of the significant judgments of this year- Sabarimala, Aadhaar, Homosexuality, Adultery, etc. The year ended with Rafale judgment by CJI Gogoi headed bench, which generated diverse responses in political circles.Two provisions which criminalized Homosexuality and Adultery vanished from the penal statutes, when the Apex court ruled that both these acts are no longer criminal. The Supreme Court also recognised that to die with dignity is Fundamental Right by legalizing passive euthanasia. It also upheld Aadhaar program, though with riders. Dissents penned by Justice Chandrachud in Aadhaar and Bhima Koregaon cases, and that of Justice Indu Malhotra in Sabarimala case, got widely debated.It also turned to be a good year for Indian women. The Supreme Court allowed young women to enter Sabarimala, where they were not permitted for many centuries, in the name of custom and tradition. Justice Indu Malhotra became the first woman Judge to be elevated to Supreme Court directly from the Bar. It also witnessed the rarity of an all-women bench as Justice R Banumathi and Justice Indira Banerjee sat in Court No.12 on September 5 and 6.In the coming year, we might be able to witness the Supreme Court proceedings without actually going there, as a petition seeking live streaming of court proceedings was allowed by the Apex Court.Here is the List of 35 important Judgments delivered by the Supreme Court in 2018.SABARIMALADevotion Cannot Be Subjected To Gender Discrimination, Women Entry Allowed In Sabarimala By 4:1 Majority; Lone Woman In The Bench Dissents[Indian Young Lawyer’s Association & Ors. V. State of Kerala & Ors.]The Supreme Court delivered one of the most keenly awaited judgment in Sabarimala case. by a 4:1 majority, the Court has permitted entry of women of all age groups to the Sabarimala temple, holding that ‘devotion cannot be subjected to gender discrimination’. The lone woman in the bench, Justice Indu Malhotra, dissented.HOMOSEXUALITY 157-Year-Old Law Criminalizing Consensual Homo-Sexual Acts Between Adults Struck Down; Section 377 IPC Held Unconstitutional To That Extent [Navtej Singh Johar& Ors. V. Union of India]In a landmark Judgment Supreme Court of India struck down 157 year old law which criminalizes consensual homo sexual acts between adults. The Five Judge Bench declared Section 377 IPC unconstitutional, insofar as it criminalises consensual sexual acts of adults in private.AADHAARSections 33(2),47& 57 Of Aadhaar Act Struck Down; National Security Exception Gone; Private Entities Cannot Demand Aadhaar Data [Justice K. S. Puttuswamy (Retd.) and Anr V Union of India & Ors.]The judgment authored by Justice AK Sikri, which has concurrence of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justice AM Khanwilkar, read down some of the provisions of the Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Act 2016, struck down a few but significant ones (mainly Section 33(2), 47 and 57), and upheld the rest.ADULTERY ‘Husband Is Not The Master Of Wife’, 158 Year Old Adultery Law Under Section 497 IPC Struck Down [Joseph Shine V. Union of India]The Supreme Court struck down 158 year old Section 497 of the Indian Penal Code, which criminalizes adultery, as unconstitutional. The Court however clarified that adultery will be a ground for divorce. It was also stated that if an act of adultery leads the aggrieved spouse to suicide, the adulterous partner could be prosecuted for abetment of suicide under Section 306 of the IPC.EUTHANASIA Right To Die With Dignity A Fundamental Right, Passive Euthanasia And Living Will Allowed, Guidelines Issued[Common Cause (A Regd. Society) V. Union of India & Anr]Supreme Court of India held that right to die with dignity is a fundamental right. The Bench also held that passive euthanasia and a living will also legally valid. The Court issued detailed guidelines in this regard. The Bench also held that the right to live with dignity also includes the smoothening of the process of dying in case of a terminally ill patient or a person in Persistent vegetative state with no hope of recovery.SC/ST RESERVATION IN PROMOTIONSNo Need To Collect Quantifiable Data Of Backwardness To Give Reservation In Promotions For SC/STs- Nagraj Decision Clarified; Reference To Larger Bench Declined[Jarnail Singh v LachhmiNarain Gupta& Ors.]A Five Judge Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court held that the 2006 Judgment in Nagraj Case, relating to reservations for SC/ST in promotions, need not be referred for consideration of larger Bench.However, the judgment by Justice Nariman clarified that there is no requirement to collect quantifiable data of backwardness of SC/STs to provide reservation in...

The Good And Bad : Read 35 Important Supreme Court Judgments Of 2018

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