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Specific Relief Act, 1963 — Section 20 — Specific performance — Discretionary and equitable relief — Clean hands — Grant of specific performance is discretionary, not automatic even where a valid contract subsists; a plaintiff must approach the Court with clean hands. Where the plaintiff’s spouse lodged a criminal complaint seeking recovery of the advance paid, alleging the vendor fraudulently suppressed a subsisting injunction, while simultaneously maintaining a civil suit for specific performance, such conduct amounts to blowing “hot and cold” and disentitles the plaintiff to equitable relief. Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 (CrPC) — Section 299 — Absence of order — Effect on conviction — Where no order under S. 299 was ever passed at the stage the co-accused was tried (case having been split due to abscondence), the earlier deposition of a witness (since deceased) could not be relied upon to convict the accused apprehended and tried years later; identification by surviving eyewitnesses being doubtful and other witnesses having turned hostile, conviction based on such uncorroborated prior testimony unsustainable — appellant acquitted. Hindu female’s property devolves equally on husband and daughter separately; gift of undivided coparcenary share needs no co-owner’s consent. A. Hindu Succession Act, 1956 — Section 15(1)(a) — Devolution of Female Intestate’s Property — Properties of a Hindu female dying intestate devolve, in the absence of sons/daughters’ issue predeceasing her, upon her husband and daughter in equal shares under Section 15(1)(a); such undivided share in the husband’s hands does not partake the character of coparcenary property. Armed Forces — Air Force Order No. 33/2017 — Prior Permission for Civil Post — Mandatory Nature — Requirement of seeking prior permission before applying for a civil post, and subsequent grant of NOC, held mandatory and not merely procedural/directory, since AFO 33/2017 has necessary nexus with regulating premature discharge of Airmen and its object of maintaining operational preparedness of the Air Force. Consumer Protection Act, 2019 — Deficiency of Service — Maintenance Contractor’s Liability — Elevator Malfunction — Comprehensive maintenance contractor, being both manufacturer and repair contractor with exclusive technical knowledge of safety interlocks and brake mechanisms, held principally deficient in service for failing to act on its own identified remedy (voltage stabiliser) despite repeated notice of persistent malfunction over several months preceding fatal accident.

Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (NDPS) – Sections 8, 15, 42 and 52 – Non-production of contraband – Appeal against acquittal – If the seizure of the material is proved on record and is not even doubted or disputed the entire contraband material need not be placed before this Court.

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH  STATE OF RAJASTHAN — Appellant Vs. SAHI RAM — Respondent ( Before : Uday Umesh Lalit and Vineet Saran, JJ. ) Criminal Appeal No.…

Customs Act, 1962 – Sections 18 and 130E – Customs Tariff Act, 1975 – Section 16 – Customs Valuation (Determination of Price of Imported Goods) Rule, 1988 – Rules 9 and 9(1)(b) – Import activity – The value of the software and the concerned services were therefore rightly included and taken as part of the importation. Appeal dismissed.

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH  INDUSIND MEDIA AND COMMUNICATIONS LTD — Appellant Vs. COMMISSIONER OF CUSTOMS, NEW DELHI — Respondent ( Before : Uday Umesh Lalit and Vineet Saran,…

Penal Code, 1860 (IPC) – Sections 302, 323 and 324 – Murder – Appeal against conviction and sentence – accused should have known that hitting the deceased on the head with a sickle with great force causing fracture of the skull, is dangerous & would have imminently caused death. Appeal dismissed

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH  GURU @ GURUBARAN AND OTHERS — Appellant Vs. STATE REP. BY INSP. OF POLICE — Respondent ( Before : Deepak Gupta and Aniruddha Bose,…

Consumer Protection Act, 1986 – Section 2(1)(d), 2(1)(e), 2(1)(f), 2(1)(g) and 2(1)(o) – Validity of imposition of “composition fee” and “extension fee” – This Court hold that the determination of the dispute concerning the validity of the imposition of a statutory due arising out of a “deficiency in service”, can be undertaken by the consumer fora as per the provisions of the Act – HUDA vs. Sunita, (2005) 2 SCC 479, overruled.

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA FULL BENCH  PUNJAB URBAN PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY (NOW GLADA) — Appellant Vs. VIDYA CHETAL AND RAM SINGH — Respondent ( Before : N.V. Ramana, Mohan…

Ancestral Property—Karta of HUF executed sale deed of Co-parcenary Property in favour his second wife without any sale consideration—Such sale of HUF property was not for legal necessity or benefit to the estate-Sale deed executed by karta and further sale by his second wife to subsequent purchasers held to be null and void

2019(3) Law Herald (SC) 2054 : 2019 LawHerald.Org 1257 IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA Before Hon’ble Mr. Justice Uday Umesh Lalit Hon’ble Mrs. Justice Indu Malhotra Civil Appeal No.…

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