Tag: legal tags

Justice Delayed is Justice Denied: Supreme Court Orders Strict Timelines for Pronouncing Judgments
29Sep By The Legal ChamberNo Comments
Supreme Court

Justice Delayed is Justice Denied: Supreme Court Orders Strict Timelines for Pronouncing Judgments

This Supreme Court judgment reiterates the legal imperative for timely pronouncement of reserved judgments to uphold the right to speedy justice. The Supreme Court directed all High Courts to strictly adhere to the guidelines established in Anil Rai v. State of Bihar, mandating a monitoring mechanism by the Registrar General and the Chief Justice to ensure judgments are delivered within three months of being reserved. Facts Of The Case: The appellant, the de-facto complainant in the case, challenged interim orders from the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad concerning a long-pending criminal appeal filed by respondent no. 2 in 2008. The core grievance was the inordinate delay in the High Court's disposal of this criminal appeal. The appeal had initially been heard at length by a Div...
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Supreme Court’s Balancing Act in Telangana Job Case :Legitimate Expectation vs. Employer’s Right
25Sep By The Legal ChamberNo Comments
Supreme Court

Supreme Court’s Balancing Act in Telangana Job Case :Legitimate Expectation vs. Employer’s Right

This Supreme Court judgment reaffirms that candidates in a select list possess no vested right to appointment. An employer's decision to cancel a recruitment process is valid if based on bona fide reasons like administrative changes (e.g., state bifurcation) and altered requirements. The Court's role is limited to examining the decision-making process, not substituting its own view on the sufficiency of accommodations like age relaxation offered to affected candidates. Facts Of The Case: The erstwhile Transmission Corporation of Andhra Pradesh (AP-Transco) initiated a recruitment process in 2011-2012 for 339 Sub-Engineer posts across the composite state. This process was delayed due to litigation challenging the marks weightage given to in-service candidates. While the legal challe...
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Supreme Court Denies Specific Performance Over Tainted Agreement: Readiness to Pay Not Enough
23Sep By The Legal ChamberNo Comments
Supreme Court

Supreme Court Denies Specific Performance Over Tainted Agreement: Readiness to Pay Not Enough

The Supreme Court upheld the denial of specific performance, ruling that a material alteration in the sale agreement—visibly apparent from the use of different ink for a property's description—vitiated the contract. Courts are not always obligated to seek expert opinion under Section 73 of the Evidence Act when such an alteration is plainly discernible upon a mere perusal of the document itself. Facts Of The Case: The plaintiff-appellant, Syed Basheer Ahmed, entered into a sale agreement dated July 15, 1984, with the first defendant for the purchase of two properties: Item No. 1 (owned by the first defendant) and Item No. 2 (owned by a third party). The total agreed consideration was Rs. 56,000/-, with an advance of Rs. 1,000/- paid. The agreement stipulated that the sale deed was to be ...
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Supreme Court Rules :You Can’t Be Guilty of Handling Stolen Goods If There Was No Theft
20Sep By The Legal ChamberNo Comments
Supreme Court

Supreme Court Rules :You Can’t Be Guilty of Handling Stolen Goods If There Was No Theft

The Supreme Court acquitted the appellant, ruling that a conviction under Section 411 IPC for dishonestly receiving stolen property is legally unsustainable once the accused stands acquitted of the primary offence of theft under Section 379 IPC. The Court further held that the burden of proof lies entirely on the prosecution and cannot be reversed onto the accused. Facts Of The Case: The case originated from the disappearance and suspected murder of M. Narsalah on December 22, 2005, after he traveled to Warangal to collect outstanding business dues of approximately ₹2.92 lakh. When his phone was switched off, his cousin filed a missing person's report. The prosecution alleged that Narsalah's former employer and business rival, Accused-Moulana, murdered him, stole the cash, and enlisted t...
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Supreme Court: Civil Courts Can Hear Cases If Land is Declared Non-Agricultural During Trial
20Sep By The Legal ChamberNo Comments
Supreme Court

Supreme Court: Civil Courts Can Hear Cases If Land is Declared Non-Agricultural During Trial

The Supreme Court held that jurisdiction is determined by the nature of the land at the time of adjudication, not filing. A subsequent declaration of land as non-agricultural under the UPZALR Act during pending proceedings validates a civil court's jurisdiction, and appeals are a continuation of the original suit. Facts Of The Case: In 1970, the appellant-landlord and the predecessor of respondents 1-3 entered a registered tenancy agreement for a piece of land to establish an Indian Oil petrol pump at a monthly rent of ₹150. The tenant defaulted on rent payments from July 1972, prompting the landlord to file a suit for eviction and arrears of rent in 1974 in the Civil Court. The tenants contested the Civil Court's jurisdiction, claiming the land was agricultural and thus only the Revenue...
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Divorce Final, But Alimony Increased: Supreme Court Orders Doctor to Pay Engineer-Turned-Lawyer ₹50 Lakhs
18Sep By The Legal ChamberNo Comments
Supreme Court

Divorce Final, But Alimony Increased: Supreme Court Orders Doctor to Pay Engineer-Turned-Lawyer ₹50 Lakhs

The Supreme Court enhanced permanent alimony from ₹15 to ₹50 lakhs, balancing the husband's capacity to pay against the wife's qualifications and potential to earn. The ruling underscores that alimony is not merely sustenance but must provide financial security commensurate with the marital standard of living. Facts Of The Case: The case involves an appeal by the wife, M.V. Leelavathi, against a Karnataka High Court order that upheld the dissolution of her marriage to Dr. C.R. Swamy on grounds of cruelty and confirmed a permanent alimony award of ₹15,00,000. The couple married in February 2009 and the marriage remained childless. The husband, a doctor, filed for divorce in 2011 alleging mental cruelty. The wife contested the petition and filed a counterclaim for restitution of conjugal r...
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Supreme Court Hostile Witness & Unproven Demand Lead to Acquittal in Landmark Corruption Appeal
17Sep By The Legal ChamberNo Comments
Supreme Court

Supreme Court Hostile Witness & Unproven Demand Lead to Acquittal in Landmark Corruption Appeal

The Supreme Court acquitted the accused, ruling that the mere recovery of tainted money is not conclusive proof of guilt under the Prevention of Corruption Act. The prosecution failed to prove the crucial element of demand beyond a reasonable doubt. The accused's plausible explanation under Section 313 CrPC was entitled to the benefit of doubt. Facts Of The Case: The case involved an appeal against the conviction of a Lower Division Clerk at the Passport Office, Thiruvananthapuram, under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988. The prosecution's case was that the accused demanded an additional ₹500 as a bribe from the complainant to expedite his passport application. After negotiation, an initial gratification of ₹200 was to be paid along with the official ₹1000 fee. The Cen...
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Supreme Court: 20-Year Life Sentence Means Release After 20 Years, No Remission Needed
16Sep By The Legal ChamberNo Comments
Supreme Court

Supreme Court: 20-Year Life Sentence Means Release After 20 Years, No Remission Needed

The Supreme Court ruled that a "life imprisonment" sentence specifying a fixed term of "actual imprisonment without remission" is a determinative sentence. Upon completing that fixed term, the convict is entitled to automatic release and need not apply for remission. Any detention beyond this period violates Article 21 of the Constitution. Facts Of The Case: Sukhdev Yadav was convicted for the 2002 murder of Nitish Katara, alongside Vikas and Vishal Yadav. In 2015, the Delhi High Court, while upholding his life sentence, specifically modified it to "life imprisonment which shall be 20 years of actual imprisonment without consideration of remission." This fixed-term sentence was later affirmed by the Supreme Court. Sukhdev Yadav completed this mandated 20-year period of actual inc...
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Complete Justice: Supreme Court Uses Special Powers to End Family Dispute, Quashes FIR After Settlement
16Sep By The Legal ChamberNo Comments
Supreme Court

Complete Justice: Supreme Court Uses Special Powers to End Family Dispute, Quashes FIR After Settlement

The Supreme Court, invoking its powers under Article 142 of the Constitution, quashed the criminal proceedings. It held that continuing prosecution after a mutual divorce and full settlement serves no legitimate purpose and amounts to an abuse of the process of law, especially in the absence of specific allegations. Facts Of The Case: The case originated from an FIR (No.67 of 2019) registered by the second respondent against her husband (appellant No.1) and in-laws (appellant Nos. 2 & 3) under Sections 323, 406, 498-A, and 506 of the IPC, alleging cruelty, criminal breach of trust, and criminal intimidation. The marriage, solemnized in March 2018, lasted approximately ten months before the wife left the matrimonial home. Subsequently, a chargesheet was filed in November 2019. However...
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Supreme Court Acquits Man: “Confession to Police” Cannot Be Used as Evidence
6Sep By The Legal ChamberNo Comments
Supreme Court

Supreme Court Acquits Man: “Confession to Police” Cannot Be Used as Evidence

The Supreme Court acquitted the accused, holding that a confessional FIR made to a police officer is wholly inadmissible as evidence under Section 25 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872. The prosecution failed to prove its case with legally admissible evidence, rendering the medical and other evidence insufficient for conviction. Facts Of The Case: The appellant, Narayan Yadav, himself lodged an FIR at Korba Kotwali Police Station on 27.09.2019, confessing to the murder of Ram Babu Sharma. In the FIR, he stated that a quarrel ensued at the deceased's residence after the latter made an obscene remark upon seeing a photograph of the appellant's girlfriend. In a fit of rage, the appellant claimed he picked up a vegetable knife and inflicted injuries on the deceased, later also hitting him with...
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