"Dangerous Situation"- Deployment Of Armed Forces Urgent In HC And District Courts: Jammu And Kashmir HC

"Urgent steps need to be taken to ensure security of all Courts in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir and the Union Territory of Ladakh. Equally imperative is the assurance of free access to courts of all citizens at all times"

Lily Thomas- India's First 'Public Interest Lawyer'

The passing of Lily Thomas brings to the close a wonderful legal career of a most interesting advocate. The last time we met was earlier this year when she wanted to intervene in the Babri case to bring peace to the issue. I did not know that when we spoke in the corridor it would be the last time I would see her in this life time. Born in Kottayam in l927, she lived in Trivandrum, and after graduating in law joined the Madras Bar in l955 and finished her LLM in Madras University and gave...

The Supreme Court's IBC Judgment And The Continuing Problems With "Manifest Arbitrariness"

Last month, the Supreme Court delivered a much-awaited opinion in Committee of Creditors of Essar Steel v Satish Kumar Gupta ("Essar"). While clarifying the law on several aspects of the Insolvency & Bankruptcy Code, 2016 ("Code"), the Supreme Court held that a mandatory time-period of 330 days as fixed under the Code for completion of the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process ("CIRP") was manifestly arbitrary. While the decision on this point may be welcomed by several practitioners...

[Live Updates] : Rajya Sabha Debate On Citizenship Amendment Bill

Watch this space for live updates from the Rajya Sabha discussion on Citizenship Amendment Bill...

Hindu Marriage Act - Consent Of First Wife Will Not Make Second Marriage Legal: Patna HC [Read Judgment]

A division bench of the High Court of Patna comprising Justices Hemant Kumar Srivastava and Prabhat Kumar Singh has held that the consent of the first wife does not give right to a man to solemnize second marriage during the lifetime of first wife. The appellant was working as Assistant Sub Inspector in Central Reserve Police Force (C.R.P.F) at Imphal and had solemnized his...

In Memory Of A Firebrand : ASG Pinky Anand's Tribute To Adv.Lily Thomas

Lily Thomas was a rainbow of pioneering. We mourn her loss as one of the tallest pillars of the legal institution. Born in Kottayam, Kerala, she obtained her degree of law from Madras University where she was the first woman to complete LLM course. She was deeply committed to improving the rule of law by her crusade through petitions and considered this the responsibility of every lawyer. Even at her age she continued to appear in court and worked for 8-10 hours every day. She stood out as a...

CAB: A Bill That Robs India's Conscience And Secularity

To our amazement and disbelief, the lower house of the Indian Parliament has passed the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2019 with a provision to exclude Muslim refugees (persecuted or otherwise) from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan in granting citizenship of India. If the Bill is passed by the Rajya Sabha, the upper house, we will be set to witness as how religious affiliation of an individual is not only deciding his/her civic identity in a secular State but also all the rights that...

[Live Updates] MJ Akbar's Defamation Case Against Journalist Priya Ramani

Hearing on criminal defamation case against Priya Ramani begins before ACMM Vishal Pahuja. Today, journalist and author Ghazala Wahab will be giving her statements before the court....

Encounter: Can Hyderabad Police Prove Their Claim?

Whether Hyderabad Police ready to prove they killed four accused in self-defence? Will any police register murder case against the 'accused' police? Only if the encounter killing is proved to be essential for killing, the police officers involved has to be considered as not accused, if not there should be a case registered and investigated, as per the guidelines and the rule of law today. If the claim of Hyderabad police is based on untruthful statements, it is difficult to believe...

SC Order In Dileep Case: Some Pertinent Questions

Seminal question which arose for consideration by the apex court in the appeal preferred with special leave against the Order of a single judge of the High Court of Kerala in P.Gopalakrishnan @Dileep Vs. State of Kerala and another was whether the contents of a memory card/ pen- drive would qualify as a document covered by Sec.3 of the Evidence Act and defined under Sec. 29 of the Penal Code; and, if so, whether furnishing a cloned copy of such memory card/ pen-drive produced with...

An Advocate Cannot Be Criminally Liable For Negligence In Performing Professional Services: Chhattisgarh HC [Read Judgment]

While quashing criminal proceedings against an Advocate, the Chhattisgarh High Court reiterated that negligence in performing professional services cannot attract criminal liability. "It is true that the petitioner could have exhibited more and greater professional care and competence, yet in failure to exercise the same, she could not have been held criminally liable," Justice Sanjay...

Electoral Bonds: Majority Of Political Parties Fail To Honour SC Deadline In Submitting Details to ECI [Read List]

As the controversy around Electoral Bonds continues to gather steam, the political parties have given a go-by to the Supreme Court's deadline for submitting details to electoral bonds including the particulars of the donors to the Election Commission of India (ECI). An RTI response has revealed that nearly all 97 political parties including the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the...