Tag: Supreme Court of India

Supreme Court Backs Discom: Upholds Right to Encash Bank Guarantee in Delayed Solar Project
29Sep By The Legal ChamberNo Comments
Supreme Court

Supreme Court Backs Discom: Upholds Right to Encash Bank Guarantee in Delayed Solar Project

The Supreme Court held that the Power Purchase Agreement's explicit terms govern the parties' rights. The encashment of the performance bank guarantee was valid as the developer failed to seek an extension under the contractual mechanism or issue a mandatory Force Majeure notice. Regulatory commissions cannot rewrite the contractual risk allocation or grant remedies outside the agreed framework. Facts Of The Case: The dispute arose from a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) executed between Chamundeshwari Electricity Supply Company Ltd. (CESC) and Saisudhir Energy Pvt. Ltd. for a 10 MW solar power project. The PPA stipulated that the developer was to achieve the Commercial Operation Date (COD) within 12 months, preceded by fulfilling certain Conditions Precedent within 240 days. A critical pr...
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Supreme Court Says Long-Term Cohabitation Can Prove Valid Marriage for Inheritance Claims: Landmark Ruling
26Sep By The Legal ChamberNo Comments
Supreme Court

Supreme Court Says Long-Term Cohabitation Can Prove Valid Marriage for Inheritance Claims: Landmark Ruling

This Supreme Court judgment reinforces that under Section 50 of the Indian Evidence Act, the opinion of a person with special means of knowledge is relevant to prove a familial relationship. It upholds the legal presumption of a valid marriage from long-term cohabitation. The Court also affirmed that a party's failure to enter the witness box, when facts are within their exclusive knowledge, warrants an adverse inference under Section 114(g). Revenue records do not confer title but only have fiscal value. Facts Of The Case: The dispute centered on the inheritance rights to the properties of Dasabovi, who had died intestate. The plaintiffs, Venkatappa and Siddamma, claimed to be his legitimate children from his first wife, Bheemakka. They alleged that after their father married a second w...
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Supreme Court’s New Rule: Stray Dogs Can Be Returned to Streets After Sterilization
26Sep By The Legal ChamberNo Comments
Supreme Court

Supreme Court’s New Rule: Stray Dogs Can Be Returned to Streets After Sterilization

This Supreme Court order modifies its earlier directions on stray dog management, balancing fundamental rights under Article 21 (Right to Life) with the statutory Animal Birth Control (ABC) Rules, 2023. The Court clarified that sterilized and immunized dogs must be released back to their localities as per Rule 11(19) of the ABC Rules, while allowing permanent impounding only for rabid or aggressively dangerous dogs. It issued supplementary directives, including creating designated feeding zones, and expanded the case's scope to all states and union territories for a uniform national policy. Facts Of The Case: The Supreme Court's intervention was triggered by a suo motu cognizance of a news report titled “City Hounded by Strays, Kids Pay Price,” detailing the death of a six-year-o...
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Supreme Court Ensures Consumer Rights Are Enforced : No More Paper Decrees
26Sep By The Legal ChamberNo Comments
Supreme Court

Supreme Court Ensures Consumer Rights Are Enforced : No More Paper Decrees

This judgment addresses an anomaly in Section 25 of the Consumer Protection Act, 1986, as amended in 2002, which inadvertently limited enforcement to "interim orders" only. The Supreme Court applied purposive interpretation to read "any order" in place of "interim order," thereby allowing enforcement of final orders as decrees under CPC Order XXI for the period 2003–2020. It also clarified that appeals against execution orders lie only to the State Commission, with no further appeal. Facts Of The Case: The appellant, Palm Groves Cooperative Housing Society Ltd., comprising flat purchasers, filed a consumer complaint against the respondent builder, M/s Magar Girme and Gaikwad Associates, alleging deficient services and seeking execution of a conveyance deed for the common areas. The Distr...
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Explained: The Supreme Court’s Landmark Ruling on Sand Mining and Environmental Clearance
26Sep By The Legal ChamberNo Comments
Supreme Court

Explained: The Supreme Court’s Landmark Ruling on Sand Mining and Environmental Clearance

This Supreme Court judgement reaffirms that a valid District Survey Report (DSR), prepared under the EIA Notification, 2016, is mandatory for granting environmental clearance for sand mining. The Supreme Court held that a DSR is legally untenable without a scientific replenishment study, as it forms the foundational basis for determining sustainable extraction limits and ensuring ecological balance. Facts Of The Case: The case originated from the grant of an Environmental Clearance (EC) for sand mining in three blocks on the Shaliganga Nallah in Jammu & Kashmir. The project proponent, contracted by the National Highway Authority of India for a Srinagar ring road, applied for the EC. Initially, the J&K Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC) rejected the proposal in January 2022, citing ...
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Supreme Court Backs Landowners: Slum Authority Can’t Acquire Land Without Notice
26Sep By The Legal ChamberNo Comments
Supreme Court

Supreme Court Backs Landowners: Slum Authority Can’t Acquire Land Without Notice

The Supreme Court affirmed the landowner's preferential right to redevelop a Slum Rehabilitation Area under the Maharashtra Slum Areas Act, 1971. It held that the Slum Rehabilitation Authority must issue a specific notice inviting the owner to submit a redevelopment scheme before any acquisition under Section 14 can be initiated. The 2018 Amendment to the Act did not dilute this mandatory requirement, and acquisition proceedings commenced without such notice were declared illegal. Facts Of The Case: The case concerns a plot of land in Bandra, Mumbai, owned by the Basilica of Our Lady of the Mount (Church Trust). A portion of this land had been encroached by hutments since the 1930s and was declared a slum area in 1978. The slum dwellers formed the Shri Kadeshwari Cooperative Housing Soci...
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Supreme Court Clarifies Slum Laws: Landlords Get First Right to Redevelop Their Property
26Sep By The Legal ChamberNo Comments
Supreme Court

Supreme Court Clarifies Slum Laws: Landlords Get First Right to Redevelop Their Property

This Supreme Court judgement affirms that landowners possess a preferential right to redevelop their property declared as a Slum Rehabilitation Area under the Maharashtra Slum Areas Act, 1971. The Court held that the Slum Rehabilitation Authority must formally invite the landowner to submit a rehabilitation scheme. The power of the State to acquire the land under Section 14 of the Act is subject to this preferential right and cannot be exercised before this right is legally extinguished. Facts Of The Case: The case concerned a land dispute in Mumbai, where Indian Cork Mills Private Limited (ICM) was the owner of a plot that had been encroached upon by slum dwellers. A portion of the land was declared a slum area in 1979, and later, in 2011, the entire plot was declared a Slum Reh...
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Supreme Court’s Ruling on Curing Defects in Petition Affidavits :Simplifying Election Laws
26Sep By The Legal ChamberNo Comments
Supreme Court

Supreme Court’s Ruling on Curing Defects in Petition Affidavits :Simplifying Election Laws

This Supreme Court judgment clarifies that non-compliance with the affidavit requirement under Section 83(1)(c) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, is not automatically fatal. Following the precedent in G.M. Siddeshwar, the Supreme Court held that 'substantial compliance' with Form 25 suffices, and defects are generally curable. The matter was remanded to the High Court to determine if the affidavit in question substantially complied with the statutory requirements and whether the defects could be rectified. Facts Of The Case: The case arose from the General Elections to the Odisha Legislative Assembly for the 07-Jharsuguda Constituency, held in 2024. The appellant, Tankadhar Tripathy, was declared the elected candidate, winning by a margin of 1,333 votes. The respondent, Dipa...
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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 Slashes NGT’s ₹50 Crore Fine, Rules Turnover Can’t Dictate Environmental Penalty
25Sep By The Legal ChamberNo Comments
Supreme Court

Supreme Court Slashes NGT’s ₹50 Crore Fine, Rules Turnover Can’t Dictate Environmental Penalty

In this judgment, the Supreme Court curtailed the National Green Tribunal's (NGT) powers, ruling that environmental compensation cannot be arbitrarily linked to a polluter's turnover, lacking a direct nexus to the actual damage. It also held that the NGT lacks jurisdiction to direct investigations by the Enforcement Directorate under the PMLA, affirming that such actions require a scheduled offence to be registered. The Court emphasized that penalties must be determined based on established methodologies and legal principles, not rhetoric. Facts Of The Case: The case originated from a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by Adil Ansari before the National Green Tribunal (NGT) in 2019 against M/s C.L. Gupta Export Ltd. The allegations were that the company, an exporter of handicraft ite...
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