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Indian Air Force — Short Service Commission Officers (SSCOs) — Reinstatement and consideration for Permanent Commission (PC) — Dismissal of appeal challenging AFT order — Delay in approaching legal forum. Short Service Commission Women Officers (SSCWOs) — Eligibility for Permanent Commission (PC) and pensionary benefits — Applicability of Air Force Human Resource Policy — Refusal of benefits due to not meeting minimum average Annual Confidential Report (ACR) grading of 6.5 — Court’s refusal to grant benefits where minimum criteria not met and no demonstrated mitigating circumstances exist compared to other successful applicants. Air Force Act, 1950 — Short Service Commission Women Officers (SSCWOs) — Permanent Commission (PC) — Denial of PC — Assessment of performance and eligibility — HRP 01/2019 — Minimum Performance Criteria — ACR gradings — Mandatory In-Service Courses (MISCs) — Categorisation — Arbitrariness — Hurried implementation — Inadequate opportunity to meet criteria — Pregnancy — Deemed qualifying service for pension — One-time measure. Army Act, 1950 — Short Service Commission Officers (SSCOs) — Permanent Commission (PC) — Annual Vacancy Cap — The Supreme Court examined the annual cap of 250 vacancies for PC, finding it not to be an immutable rule and that it had been breached historically for exigencies of service and policy changes, thus it should not act as an absolute bar to corrective relief, especially when the method of assessment was found to be unfair. Service Law — Indian Navy — Short Service Commission Officers (SSCOs) — Grant of Permanent Commission (PC) — Assessment of suitability for PC — Whether casual grading of ACRs and “Not Recommended for PC” endorsements prejudiced officers’ chances of PC — Held yes, as officers were considered ineligible for PC at the time of their ACRs, leading to a distorted assessment of their inter se merit for PC — This circularity transformed past ineligibility into deemed unsuitability for career progression, creating an uneven playing field.
Service Matters

Constitution of India, 1950 – Article 142 – Uttar Pradesh Public Services (Reservation for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes) Act, 1994 – Section 3(1) – Appointment – Reservation – Power under Article 142 of the Constitution are plenary in nature, the same cannot be construed to mean that the power can be used to supplant the substantive law applicable to the case

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH ANUPAL SINGH AND OTHERS — Appellant Vs. STATE OF UTTAR PRADESH THROUGH PRINCIPAL SECRETARY, PERSONNEL DEPARTMENT AND OTHERS — Respondent ( Before : R.…

Kerala Land Reforms Act, 1963 – Section 81(1)(k) and 81(1)(q) – Expression of “commercial site” – Exemption of quarries by the Government under Section 81 (3) would not arise if quarries are covered by Section 81 (1) (q) of the Act. In other words, if quarries are commercial sites, the need for their exemption in public interest does not arise.

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH K.H. NAZAR — Appellant Vs. MATHEW K. JACOB AND OTHERS — Respondent ( Before : L. Nageswara Rao and Hemant Gupta, JJ. ) Civil…

Customs Act, 1962 – Sections 27 and 128 – Right to file refund claim- The claim for refund cannot be entertained unless the order of assessment or selfassessment is modified in accordance with law by taking recourse to the appropriate proceedings and it would not be within the ken of Section 27 to set aside the order of selfassessment and reassess the duty for making refund

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA FULL BENCH ITC LIMITED — Appellant Vs. COMMISSIONER OF CENTRAL EXCISE, KOLKATA IV — Respondent ( Before : Arun Mishra, Navin Sinha and Indira Banerjee, JJ.…

Punjab Value Added Tax Act, 2005 – Sections 62 and 62(5) – Validity of Section 62(5) of the Punjab Value Added Tax Act, 2005- HELD to be legal and valid and the condition of 25% of pre-deposit not to be onerous, harsh, unreasonable and violative of Article 14 of the Constitution of India.

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH M/S TECNIMONT PVT. LTD. (FORMERLY KNOWN AS TECNIMONT ICB PRIVATE LIMITED) — Appellant Vs. STATE OF PUNJAB AND OTHERS — Respondent ( Before :…

Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 – Section 34 – National Highways Act, 1956 – Section 3J – Land Acquisition Act, 1894 – Sections 23 and 28 – Constitution of India, 1950 – Article 14 – Solatium and interest – Provisions of the Land Acquisition Act relating to solatium and interest contained in Section 23(1A) and (2) and interest payable in terms of section 28 proviso will apply to acquisitions made under the National Highways Act.

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH UNION OF INDIA AND ANOTHER — Appellant Vs. TARSEM SINGH AND OTHERS — Respondent ( Before : R.F. Nariman and Surya Kant, JJ. )…

Finance Act, 2003 – Section 154 – Withdrawal of the exemption to the pan masala with tobacco and pan masala sans tobacco -This Court no hesitation to hold that the withdrawal of the exemption to the pan masala with tobacco and pan masala sans tobacco is in the larger public interest. As such, the doctrine of promissory estoppel could not have been invoked in the present matter. The State could not be compelled to continue the exemption, though it was satisfied that it was not in the public interest to do so.

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA FULL BENCH UNION OF INDIA AND OTHERS — Appellant Vs. M/S UNICORN INDUSTRIES — Respondent ( Before : Arun Mishra, M. R. Shah and B.R. Gavai,…

Service Matters

Army Rules, 1954 – Rule 13(3)(III)(v) – Discharge from service – Offences for which the red ink entries are awarded, cannot be said to be such gross mis­conduct which would make the appellant indiscipline and liable to be discharged from service and that too, after a period of long service rendered by him – Order of discharge is wholly unjustified and not sustainable at law – Appeal allowed.

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA FULL BENCH NARAIN SINGH — Appellant Vs. UNION OF INDIA AND OTHERS — Respondent ( Before : Arun Mishra, M. R. Shah and B. R. Gavai,…

Service Matters

Army Act, 1950 – Sections 3, 3(i), 8 and 9 – Disability pension- There has to be a relevant and reasonable causal connection, howsoever remote, between the incident resulting in such disability/death and military service for it to be attributable. This conditionality applies even when a person is posted and leave; notwithstanding both being considered as ‘duty’.

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH THE SECRETARY, GOVERNMENT OF INDIA AND OTHERS — Appellant Vs. DHARAMBIR SINGH — Respondent ( Before : L. Nageswara Rao and Hemant Gupta, JJ.…

Tamil Nadu Buildings (Lease and Rent Control) Act, 1960 – Sections 10(3)(a)(iii) and 14(1)(b) – Bonafide requirement – Nature of the requirement as stated by the landlord would be for running a garment shop .Mere non ­production of the approved plan or the documents to indicate financial capacity at this juncture cannot be held fatal in the instant facts

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH D. SASI KUMAR — Appellant Vs. SOUNDARARAJAN — Respondent ( Before : R. Banumathi and A.S. Bopanna, JJ. ) Civil Appeal Nos. 7546-7547 of…

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