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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.

Estoppel–Concession–If one party abuses the concession then it is always open to the other party to revoke such concession but if one party avails the benefit and is acting on the same representation made by the other party then the other party who has granted the said benefit cannot revoke the same under the garb of public interest.

2008(1) LAW HERALD (SC) 304 IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA Before The Hon’ble Mr. Justice A.K. Mathur The Hon’ble Mr. Justice Markandey Katju Civil Appeal Nos. 1215-1216 of 2001…

Cause of Action–It means a right to sue–It consists of material facts which are imperative for the plaintiff to allege and prove to succeed in the suit. Cause of Action–Agreement clause provides that a suit would lie in a court within the local limits of whose jurisdiction the cause of action has arisen, wholly or partly–Contention that as the agreement was executed in Hong Kong and hence suit could have been filed only in that country–Contention rejected. Costs–Imposition of the costs is the discretion of the Court concerned.

2008(1) LAW HERALD (SC) 288 IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA Before The Hon’ble Mr. Justice C.K. Thakker The Hon’ble Mr. Justice Altamas Kabir Civil Appeal No. 5751 of 2007…

Medical Jurisprudence–By no norms a dead body would be skeletalized within a period of 3-4 days–it shall in ordinary course take at least few weeks. Murder–Acquittal–Police found a human skeleton–No DNA test conducted and investigating officer could not decipher as to whether dead body is of male or female. Disclosure Statement–Recovery of a weapon at instance of accused which has no nexus with cause of death of deceased in inadmissible in evidence.

2008(1) LAW HERALD (SC) 280 IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA Before The Hon’ble Mr. Justice S.B. Sinha The Hon’ble Mr. Justice Harjit Singh Bedi Criminal Appeal No. 620 of…

Service Matters

Industry–Law Department is not an industry within the meaning of Section 2(s) of the I.D. Act. Precedent–Reliance on the decision without looking into the factual background of the case before it, is clearly impermissible. Precedent–The enunciation of the reason or principle on which a question before a Court has been decided is alone binding as a precedent. Precedent–Judgments of Courts–Judges interpret statutes, they do not interpret judgments–They interpret words of statutes, their words are not to be interpreted as statutes.

2008(1) LAW HERALD (SC) 275 IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA Before The Hon’ble Mr. Justice Arijit Pasayat The Hon’ble Mr. Justice P. Sathasivam Civil Appeal No. 3021 of 2006…

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