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Constitution of India, 1950 — Article 21 — Right to Life and Healthy Environment — Environmental Degradation: Pollution of Jojari, Bandi, and Luni Rivers in Rajasthan due to untreated industrial effluents and municipal sewage threatens the lives of 2 million people and the ecosystem — This constitutes a gross dereliction of constitutional duty and a direct constitutional injury — The right to a healthy environment, including pollution-free water and air, is an indispensable facet of the right to life under Article 21, reinforced by Articles 48A and 51A(g) — Judicial intervention is warranted when environmental degradation strikes at the foundation of these guarantees. (Paras 3, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 28) Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 — Section 11(6), Section 11(12)(a), Section 2(1)(f), Section 2(2) — Applicability of Part I, including Section 11, to International Commercial Arbitration (ICA) — Dispute arising from a Buyer and Seller Agreement (BSA) where Respondent No. 1 is foreign company (incorporated in Benin) — BSA stipulates arbitration “will take place in Benin” and is governed by laws of Benin — Held: Dispute is an ICA under Section 2(1)(f) — Under Section 2(2), Part I of the Act applies only where the place of arbitration is in India — Designation of Benin as the place of arbitration, coupled with choice of Benin law as governing/curial law, unequivocally establishes Benin as the juridical seat — Indian Courts lack jurisdiction under Section 11 to appoint an arbitrator for a foreign-seated arbitration — Petition seeking appointment of an arbitrator in India is fundamentally misconceived and legally untenable. (Paras 2, 23, 24, 25, 26, 30) Government Contracts and Tenders — Letter of Intent (LoI) — Legal Nature — An LoI is ordinarily a precursor to a contract, indicating intent to enter into a future agreement, but does not itself create a concluded contract or vested, enforceable rights unless the necessary preconditions are satisfied — A bidder’s commercial expectation that a contract will follow an LoI is not a juridical entitlement — If the LoI explicitly stipulates conditions precedent (like compatibility testing, live demonstration, and cost disclosure) before execution of an agreement/final award letter, the LoI remains provisional and conditional until such prerequisites are met. (Paras 12, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19 Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (IBC) — Section 7 — Application by Financial Creditor — Rejection for technical defects — Affidavit Verification — Whether an application under Section 7 of the IBC, verified later than the date of the supporting affidavit, is liable to be rejected at the threshold — Mere filing of a ‘defective’ affidavit (e.g., dated before application verification) does not render the Section 7 application non est and liable to be rejected; such a defect is curable and not fundamental. (Paras 1, 17) Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 (CrPC) — Section 482 — Inherent powers of High Court — Quashing of criminal proceedings — Scope — Principles for quashing FIR or complaint under Section 482 CrPC, including where allegations, taken at face value, do not constitute any offence, or where the proceeding is manifestly attended with mala fide or maliciously instituted with an ulterior motive (referring to State of Haryana vs. Bhajan Lal) — High Court error in refusing to quash proceedings despite clear absence of ingredients for the alleged offences. (Paras 12, 17, 25, 26, 27)

Constitution of India, 1950 — Article 21 — Right to Life and Healthy Environment — Environmental Degradation: Pollution of Jojari, Bandi, and Luni Rivers in Rajasthan due to untreated industrial effluents and municipal sewage threatens the lives of 2 million people and the ecosystem — This constitutes a gross dereliction of constitutional duty and a direct constitutional injury — The right to a healthy environment, including pollution-free water and air, is an indispensable facet of the right to life under Article 21, reinforced by Articles 48A and 51A(g) — Judicial intervention is warranted when environmental degradation strikes at the foundation of these guarantees. (Paras 3, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 28)

Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 — Section 11(6), Section 11(12)(a), Section 2(1)(f), Section 2(2) — Applicability of Part I, including Section 11, to International Commercial Arbitration (ICA) — Dispute arising from a Buyer and Seller Agreement (BSA) where Respondent No. 1 is foreign company (incorporated in Benin) — BSA stipulates arbitration “will take place in Benin” and is governed by laws of Benin — Held: Dispute is an ICA under Section 2(1)(f) — Under Section 2(2), Part I of the Act applies only where the place of arbitration is in India — Designation of Benin as the place of arbitration, coupled with choice of Benin law as governing/curial law, unequivocally establishes Benin as the juridical seat — Indian Courts lack jurisdiction under Section 11 to appoint an arbitrator for a foreign-seated arbitration — Petition seeking appointment of an arbitrator in India is fundamentally misconceived and legally untenable. (Paras 2, 23, 24, 25, 26, 30)

Service Matters

Service Law—Appointment—Primacy of Consultation—Where a Selection Committee has been constituted, the consultation with other department is only a process of discussion which has to be taken into consideration while making recommendation by the Selection Committee—It cannot be said to have a primacy.

(2017) AIR(SCW) 5599 : (2017) AIR(SC) 5599 : (2018) 1 ApexCourtJudgments(SC) 259 : (2017) 4 ESC 804 : (2018) 1 JCR 294 : (2017) 11 JT 429 : (2017) 4LawHerald(SC) 3193 : (2018)…

Service Matters

Service Law—Selection-Minimum marks in viva-voce—Whether the introduction of the requirement of the minimum marks for interview, after the entire selection process (consisting of written examination and interview) was completed, would amount to changing the rules of the game after the game was played which is clearly impermissible—Matter referred to larger bench.

(2017) 4 ESC 818 : (2018) 1 JCR 306 : (2017) 4 LawHerald(SC) 3191 : (2017) 13 Scale 483 : (2018) 1 SCC 239 : (2018) 1 SCC(L&S) 23 : (2017) 4 SCT 792…

Agreement to Sell—Second Appeal—Plea relating to limitation and cancellation of agreement cannot be permitted to be raised, for the first time, in second appeal. Agreement to Sell—Agreement to sell in itself does not create any interest in the land nor does it amount to sale under Section 54 of the T.P. Act— It only enables the intending buyer to claim specific performance of such agreement on proving its terms—In other words, there lies a distinction between an agreement to sell, and sale.

(2018) 181 AIC 98 : (2018) AIR(SCW) 49 : (2018) AIR(SC) 49 : (2018) 126 ALR 469 : (2017) DNJ 1095 : (2017) 12 JT 38 : (2017) 4 LawHerald(SC) 3179 : (2018) 1…

Deceased was a lady aged 42 years and was working as agricultural labourer-­ Tribunal was wrong in taking income as Rs. 25/- per day and monthly income as Rs. 650/- -Deceased was taking care of her three children and was also maintaining her husband—Taking income from the agricultural labour work at Rs. 3000/- p.m. and Rs. 1,500/- per month for the household work the monthly income of the deceased assessed at Rs. 4,500/- p.m.

(2017) 4 ACC 707 : (2018) ACJ 538 : (2018) 181 AIC 27 : (2018) AIR(SCW) 204 : (2018) AIR(SC) 204 : (2017) 2 AnWR 674 : (2017) DNJ 1077…

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