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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.

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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