Tag: fundamental rights

Supreme Court Shields Lawyers: Police Can’t Summon Advocates as Witness
17Jan By The Legal ChamberNo Comments
Supreme Court

Supreme Court Shields Lawyers: Police Can’t Summon Advocates as Witness

The Supreme Court ruled that investigating agencies cannot directly summon an Advocate to disclose privileged communications with a client under Section 132 of the Bhartiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA), 2023. Such a summons violates the attorney-client privilege and the accused's fundamental rights. Any exception must be explicitly justified, approved by a senior officer, and is subject to judicial review under Section 528 of the BNSS. Facts Of The Case: An FIR was registered at the Odhav Police Station in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023, and other statutes concerning a loan agreement dispute. Following the arrest of an accused, an Advocate filed a successful bail application before the Sessions Court. Subsequently, the Assistant C...
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From Paper Rights to Real Rights: Supreme Court Orders Sweeping Reforms for Transgender Community
4Jan By The Legal ChamberNo Comments
Supreme Court

From Paper Rights to Real Rights: Supreme Court Orders Sweeping Reforms for Transgender Community

This Supreme Court judgment affirms that the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019, read with Articles 14, 15, and 21 of the Constitution, imposes horizontal obligations on both State and private establishments to prevent discrimination against transgender persons. The Court underscores the State’s positive duty to ensure reasonable accommodation, effective grievance redressal, and substantive equality, holding that legislative and administrative inaction constitutes discriminatory omission. Facts Of The Case: The petitioner, Jane Kaushik, a transgender woman and trained teacher, faced alleged discrimination and termination from two private schools within a year. She was first appointed by the First School in November 2022 but was forced to resign after eight days, citin...
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Supreme Court Protects Religious Freedom: Quashes Multiple UP Conversion FIRs
2Jan By The Legal ChamberNo Comments
Supreme Court

Supreme Court Protects Religious Freedom: Quashes Multiple UP Conversion FIRs

This Supreme Court judgment quashed multiple FIRs under the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, 2021, holding that the unamended Section 4 restricted lodging of complaints only to aggrieved persons or their relatives. The Court found the subsequent FIRs were impermissible as they pertained to the same incident, violated the principle against multiplicity of proceedings, and were an abuse of process. Facts Of The Case: The case involves a batch of petitions and appeals concerning six FIRs registered under the Indian Penal Code and the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, 2021. The primary FIR (No. 224/2022) was lodged on 15.04.2022 at the instance of Himanshu Dixit, a Vice President of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, alleging mass reli...
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Supreme Court Forms Supervisory Committee to Monitor CBI Investigation in Stampede Case
28Dec By The Legal ChamberNo Comments
Supreme Court

Supreme Court Forms Supervisory Committee to Monitor CBI Investigation in Stampede Case

In the Special Leave Petitions concerning the Karur stampede, the Supreme Court exercised its extraordinary constitutional powers under Article 32. It ordered the transfer of investigation to the CBI, citing the necessity to ensure credibility, impartiality, and public confidence in the probe, which involves serious allegations and impacts fundamental rights. Facts Of The Case: This case stems from a tragic stampede on September 27, 2025, during a political rally organized by the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) in Karur, Tamil Nadu, resulting in 41 deaths and over 100 injuries. Multiple writ petitions were subsequently filed before the Madras High Court, primarily at its Madurai Bench, seeking a CBI investigation, compensation for victims, and the formulation of safety guidelines ...
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Supreme Court Allows Plea of Juvenility Raised Decades After Conviction in Murder Case
27Dec By The Legal ChamberNo Comments
Supreme Court

Supreme Court Allows Plea of Juvenility Raised Decades After Conviction in Murder Case

This Supreme Court judgment affirms that claims of juvenility under the Juvenile Justice Act, 2000 can be raised at any stage, even post-conviction. The Court held that a juvenile offender cannot be detained beyond the statutory maximum period prescribed under the Act, and such excess detention violates Article 21 of the Constitution. Facts Of The Case: The petitioner, born on 10th June 1969, was convicted for a murder allegedly committed on 2nd November 1981, when he was approximately 12 years and 5 months old. The trial court, in its 1984 order, recognized his juvenility under the Children Act, 1960 and directed his placement in a children's home instead of prison. Following a reversal of his acquittal by the Supreme Court in 2009, the petitioner absconded and was subsequently arrested...
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Supreme Court Allows Older Couples to Continue Surrogacy if Embryos Frozen Before 2022
27Dec By The Legal ChamberNo Comments
Supreme Court

Supreme Court Allows Older Couples to Continue Surrogacy if Embryos Frozen Before 2022

The Supreme Court held that the age restrictions under Section 4(iii)(c)(I) of the Surrogacy (Regulation) Act, 2021, do not apply retrospectively. Intending couples who had commenced the surrogacy process—specifically by creating and freezing embryos—before the Act's enforcement retain their vested right to continue the procedure, irrespective of subsequently exceeding the statutory age limits. Facts Of The Case: The case consolidates three petitions concerning age restrictions for intending couples under the Surrogacy (Regulation) Act, 2021. In the first, a couple married in 2019 began IVF treatment in 2020 but were advised to use surrogacy due to the wife’s medical history. Their embryos were frozen in January 2021, but the process was stalled by the pandemic before the Act, with its a...
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Supreme Court Quashes Chhattisgarh’s Tender Rule, Upholds “Level Playing Field” for Businesses
29Nov By The Legal ChamberNo Comments
Supreme Court

Supreme Court Quashes Chhattisgarh’s Tender Rule, Upholds “Level Playing Field” for Businesses

The Supreme Court struck down a tender condition requiring prior supply experience within Chhattisgarh as violative of Articles 14 and 19(1)(g) of the Constitution. The condition was held arbitrary for creating an artificial barrier, restricting competition, and offending the doctrine of a level playing field without a rational nexus to the tender's object. Facts Of The Case: The appellant, Vinishma Technologies Pvt. Ltd., a company with experience supplying Sports Kits to various other states, challenged specific eligibility conditions in three tender notices issued by the State of Chhattisgarh for the supply of Sports Kits to government schools. The company was aggrieved by condition no. 4, which required bidders to have supplied sports goods worth at least Rs. 6.00 crores to Sta...
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Supreme Court Upholds Level Playing Field, Strikes Down Arbitrary Tender Clause
27Nov By The Legal ChamberNo Comments
Supreme Court

Supreme Court Upholds Level Playing Field, Strikes Down Arbitrary Tender Clause

The Supreme Court struck down a tender condition requiring prior supply experience within Chhattisgarh as violative of Articles 14 and 19(1)(g) of the Constitution. The condition was held arbitrary for creating an artificial barrier, restricting competition, and offending the doctrine of a level playing field without a rational nexus to the tender's object. Facts Of The Case: The appellant, Vinishma Technologies Pvt. Ltd., a company with experience supplying Sports Kits to several other states, challenged specific eligibility conditions in three tender notices issued by the State of Chhattisgarh for the supply of Sports Kits to government schools. The company was aggrieved by condition no. 4, which required bidders to have supplied sports goods worth at least Rs. 6.00 crores to state gov...
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No Complete Freeze on Waqf Law, Says Supreme Court: Caps Non-Muslim Members on Boards
4Nov By The Legal ChamberNo Comments
Supreme Court

No Complete Freeze on Waqf Law, Says Supreme Court: Caps Non-Muslim Members on Boards

In an interim order, the Supreme Court declined to stay the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, upholding the legislative presumption of constitutionality. However, it partially stayed specific provisions, including the "five-year practice of Islam" requirement and certain clauses related to government property inquiries, deeming them prima facie arbitrary pending a final constitutional validity hearing. Facts Of The Case: A batch of writ petitions challenged the constitutional validity of the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, before the Supreme Court. The petitioners, arguing on behalf of Muslim community interests, contended that the amendments violated fundamental rights under Articles 14, 15, 19, 21, 25, 26, and 300A of the Constitution. Key challenges were mounted against provisions that de-recog...
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Supreme Court Slams Special Treatment, Orders Joint Trial for All Accused in Nuh Violence Case
4Nov By The Legal ChamberNo Comments
Supreme Court

Supreme Court Slams Special Treatment, Orders Joint Trial for All Accused in Nuh Violence Case

The Supreme Court held that segregating the trial of an accused solely based on their status as an MLA is legally unsustainable. Such an order violates the statutory scheme for joint trials under Sections 218-223 CrPC when offences arise from the same transaction and common evidence. It also infringes upon the fundamental rights to equality under Article 14 and a fair trial under Article 21 of the Constitution. The direction for a separate charge sheet was also quashed as it exceeds the court's jurisdiction. Facts Of The Case: The case originated from two FIRs (Nos. 149 and 150 of 2023) registered at Police Station Nagina, District Nuh, concerning large-scale communal violence that occurred on July 31, 2023. The appellant, Mamman Khan, a sitting Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) f...
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