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Allotment of Land — Irregularity — Public Interest Litigation — Demolition vs. Regularisation — The court must balance the wrong committed with the current reality and socio-economic consequences — Demolition of a fully operational commercial complex, involving significant investment, employment, and tax revenue, may not serve public interest if financial restitution is possible. All India Service (Death-cum-Retirement Benefits) Rules, 1958 — Rule 16(2A) — Voluntary Retirement — Acceptance by Central Government — Central Government has the ultimate authority to accept or reject a Voluntary Retirement (VRS) notice — It is not bound by the State Government’s recommendation and must apply its mind to all relevant facts and circumstances — This power is not unconstrained and is guided by DoPT Guidelines, requiring consideration of pending or contemplated disciplinary proceedings that could lead to a major penalty — The Central Government can accept a VRS request even if a major penalty is possible, but this requires a conscious and well-informed decision — Appeals allowed, order of Central Government rejecting VRS set aside, and matter remitted for fresh consideration. Environment Law — Illegal Sand Mining — Supreme Court’s directions for States to file compliance affidavits — Court expresses displeasure at Rajasthan’s lacklustre response and apathy in implementing directions affecting National Chambal Sanctuary — Rajasthan directed to ensure personal presence of senior officers with compliance reports — Court also directs Madhya Pradesh to address issue of unregistered vehicles. Casual Labourers (Grant of Temporary Status and Regularisation) Scheme, 1991 — Temporary status casual labourer — Entitlement to pensionary benefits — Held, entitled even in the absence of formal regularisation, provided eligibility criteria under Rule 10(1-B) of CCS (Temporary Service) Rules, 1965, are fulfilled. Hindu Succession Act, 1956 — Sections 8, 10, 19 — Property of a male Hindu dying intestate — Devolution of property — Heirs taking property as tenants-in-common and not joint tenants — Each heir having a definite and separate share — No presumption of coparcenary property.—-Section 8 — Property inherited by a son from his father — Son takes the property in his individual capacity and not as karta of his own Hindu Undivided Family — Descendants of the heir do not acquire rights in such property by birth.

Rape–Suicide–Dying declaration–There are several inconsistencies and contradictions–Eye-witnesses examined by the prosecution i.e. PWs 13 and 15 who happen to be the brother and the friend of the deceased did not support the prosecution version and resiled from their statement made during investigation–Acquittal upheld

    2009(1) LAW HERALD (SC) 629 IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA Before The Hon’ble Mr. Justice Arijit Pasayat The Hon’ble Mr. Justice Mukundakam Sharma Criminal Appeal No. 352…

Arbitrator–Appointment of –Former Chief Justice of India resigned as arbitrator stating that issues involved in arbitration were similar to issues involved in earlier award passed by him–New arbitration a retired Judge of High Court appointed as arbitrator–Petitioner alleged that since former CJI was appointed to arbitrate, this time also former CJI ought to have been appointed–Objection of petitioner cannot be sustained.

2009(1) LAW HERALD (SC) 626 IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA Before The Hon’ble Mr. Justice Tarun Chatterjee Arbitration Petition No. 7 of 2006 Balli Petrochemicals Limited. v. National Aluminium…

High Court was not justified in passing orders from time to time to secure presence of the officers. The officers of the State discharge public functions and duties. The orders are generally presumed to be passed in good faith unless proved otherwise. The officers pass orders as a custodian of public money. Therefore, merely because an order has been passed, it does not warrant their personal presence. The summoning of officers to the court to attend proceedings, impinges upon the functioning of the officers and eventually it is the public at large who suffer on account of their absence from the duties assigned to them. The practice of summoning officers to court is not proper and does not serve the purpose of administration of justice

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH SHRI N.K. JANU, DEPUTY DIRECTOR SOCIAL FORESTARY DIVISION, AGRA AND OTHERS — Appellant Vs. LAKSHMI CHANDRA — Respondent ( Before : Sanjay Kishan Kaul…

Trial court, committed a patent error in discarding the dying declaration and the other material evidence, discussed hereinabove. Therefore, the interference by the High Court in the appeal against the acquittal of the appellant and recording the finding of his conviction for the offence under Section 302 of the IPC, on consideration of the evidence, is justified.

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH VIJAY MOHAN SINGH — Appellant Vs. STATE OF KARNATAKA — Respondent ( Before : L. Nageswara Rao and M.R. Shah, JJ. ) Criminal Appeal…

Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 (CrPC) – Section 386 – Power of the Appellate Court – Section 386 then enumerates powers of the Appellate Court which inter alia includes the power to “reverse the finding and sentence and acquit or discharge the accused, or order him to be re-tried by a Court of competent jurisdiction subordinate to such Appellate Court or committed for trial”. The powers of Appellate Court are equally wide. The High Court in the present case was exercising powers both under Chapters XXVIII and XXIX of the Code. If the power can go to the extent of ordering a complete re-trial, the exercise of power to a lesser extent namely ordering de novo examination of twelve witnesses with further directions as the High Court has imposed in the present matter, was certainly within the powers of the High Court. There is, thus, no infraction or jurisdictional error on the part of the High Court.

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH ATMA RAM AND OTHER — Appellant Vs. STATE OF RAJASTHAN — Respondent ( Before : Uday Umesh Lalit and Indu Malhotra, JJ. ) Criminal…

Dabhol Power Corporation Limited case—— HELD In view of the long delay and in view of the fact that due to non-availability of many persons involved, no useful purpose would be served in continuing with the judicial commission of inquiry, we close the petition in the peculiar facts and circumstances of the case.

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA FULL BENCH CENTER OF INDIAN TRADE UNIONS, A FEDERATION OF REGISTERED TRADE UNIONS — Appellant Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA — Respondent ( Before : Ranjan Gogoi,…

Film Bhobishyoter Bhoot.-Constitution of India, 1950 – Articles 14,19(1)(a), 19(1)(g) and 21 – Police are not in a free society the self-appointed guardians of public morality. The uniformed authority of their force is subject to the rule of law.– When the ability to portray art in any form is subject to extra constitutional authority, there is a grave danger that fundamental human freedoms will be imperiled by a cloud of opacity and arbitrary state behaviour.

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA FULL BENCH INDIBILITY CREATIVE PVT LTD AND OTHERS — Appellant Vs. GOVT OF WEST BENGAL AND OTHERS — Respondent ( Before : Dr Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud…

Civil Procedure Code, 1908 (CPC) – Section 11 – Res judicata contained in Section 11 of the Code, which has also application to the labour/industrial proceedings – State had no jurisdiction to make a reference(s) to the Labour Court under Section 10 of the ID Act to re-examine the question of age reduction made by the appellant(PSU). A fortiori, the Labour Court had no jurisdiction to entertain the reference(s) to adjudicate the question(s) referred in the reference(s).

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA DIVISION BENCH CHAIRMAN AND MANAGING DIRECTOR, THE FERTILIZERS AND CHEMICALS TRANVANCORE LTD. AND ANOTHER — Appellant Vs. GENERAL SECRETARY FACT EMPLOYEES ASSOCIATION AND OTHERS — Respondent…

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