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National Highways Act, 1956 — Amendments and compensation provisions — Section 3-J introduced in 1997 removed applicability of Land Acquisition Act, 1894 (1894 Act) provisions for solatium and interest — Overturned by various High Courts, including reading down Sections 3-G and 3-J to grant solatium and interest — Subsequently, Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 (2013 Act) and its amended provisions extended to NH Act — Court clarified that landowners acquired lands under NH Act between 1997 and 2015 are entitled to solatium and interest — Review Petition filed by NHAI arguing financial burden was underestimated rejected, but clarification on delayed claims issued. Civil Procedure Code, 1908 (CPC) — Order 21 Rule 102 — Applicability — Provision contemplates a situation where a judgment debtor transfers property after institution of suit to a person who then obstructs execution — Not applicable where respondents derived title from independent registered sale deeds, not from the judgment debtor. Land Acquisition Act, 1894 — Section 28-A — Re-determination of compensation — Second application for re-determination based on High Court award maintainable even after accepting compensation based on Reference Court award — Principle of merger means appellate court’s award supersedes earlier award, entitling landowners to benefit from higher compensation — Object of Section 28-A is to ensure equality in compensation among similarly placed landowners. Electricity Act, 2003 — Section 61, 86 — Tariff determination and Generation Based Incentive (GBI) — State Electricity Regulatory Commission (SERC) has exclusive power to determine tariff — Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) introduced GBI to incentivise renewable energy generation — GBI is intended to be over and above the tariff fixed by SERC — SERC must consider GBI while determining tariff, but not necessarily deduct it — SERC’s power to determine tariff includes considering incentives — Parliament’s allocation of funds for GBI does not prevent SERC from considering it in tariff — SERC must exercise its power harmoniously with other stakeholders to achieve policy objectives. Contract Law — Award of Tender — Judicial Review — High Court should exercise restraint when reviewing tender evaluation processes, especially in technical matters, unless there is clear evidence of mala fide, arbitrariness, or irrationality — A marginal difference in scores, as seen in this case, does not automatically warrant interference, especially when the owner has the right to accept or reject bids and the contract is already underway.

Evidence Act, 1872 – Section 106 – Burden of proof – in a case based on circumstantial evidence, whenever an incriminating question is posed to the accused and he or she either evades response, or offers a response which is not true, then such a response in itself becomes an additional link in the chain of events.

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA FULL BENCH SABITRI SAMANTARAY — Appellant Vs. STATE OF ODISHA — Respondent ( Before : N.V. Ramana, CJI, Krishna Murari and Hima Kohli, JJ. ) Criminal…

Section 24(2) providing for a deemed lapse of proceedings are applicable in case authorities have failed due to their inaction to take possession and pay compensation for five years or more before the 2013 Act came into force – HELD The period of subsistence of interim orders passed by court has to be excluded

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISON BENCH AGRA DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY, AGRA — Appellant Vs. ANEK SINGH AND OTHERS — Respondent ( Before : M.R. Shah and B.V. Nagarathna, JJ. ) Civil…

Provisions of Section 24(2) providing for a deemed lapse of proceedings are applicable in case authorities have failed due to their inaction to take possession and pay compensation for five years or more before the 2013 Act came into force – HELD The period of subsistence of interim orders passed by court has to be excluded

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISON BENCH AYODHYA FAIZABAD DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY AND ANOTHER — Appellant Vs. RAM NEWAJ AND OTHERS — Respondent ( Before : M.R. Shah and B.V. Nagarathna, JJ.…

Consumer – Vehicle Stolen – refused to settle the claim on non ­submission of the duplicate certified copy of certificate of registration, which the appellant could not produce due to the circumstances beyond his control – Insurance Company directed to pay Rs.12 lakhs insurance along with interest @7 per cent from the date of submitting the claim.

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISON BENCH GURMEL SINGH — Appellant Vs. BRANCH MANAGER, NATIONAL INSURANCE CO. LIMITED — Respondent ( Before : M.R. Shah and B.V. Nagarathna, JJ. ) Civil…

Service Matters

Central Civil Services (Fixation of Pay of Re-employed Pensioners) Order, 1986 – Para 8 – The reference to the last drawn pay in the armed forces is only to ensure that the pay computed in the civil post in the manner envisaged in para 8 of CCS Order does not exceed the basic pay (including the deferred pay but excluding other emoluments) last drawn by the personnel in the armed forces.

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISON BENCH UNION OF INDIA — Appellant Vs. ANIL PRASAD — Respondent ( Before : M.R. Shah and B.V. Nagarathna, JJ. ) Civil Appeal No. 4073…

Death sentence Confirmed – Kidnapping, Rape and murder of Mentally challenged Seven-and-a-half-year-old girl – Even the alternative of awarding the sentence of imprisonment for whole of the natural life with no remission does not appear justified in view of the nature of crimes committed by the appellant and looking to his incorrigible conduct.

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA FULL BENCH MANOJ PRATAP SINGH — Appellant Vs. THE STATE OF RAJASTHAN — Respondent ( Before : A.M. Khanwilkar, Dinesh Maheshwari and C.T. Ravikumar, JJ. )…

Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act, 1999 – Section 2(1)(e) – Organised crime – Actual use of violence is not always a sine qua non for an activity falling within the mischief of organised crime, when undertaken by an individual singly or jointly as part of organised crime syndicate or on behalf of such syndicate

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISON BENCH ABHISHEK — Appellant Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA AND OTHERS — Respondent ( Before : Dinesh Maheshwari and Aniruddha Bose, JJ. ) Criminal Appeal No.…

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