Referred to Larger Bench XXXVI: Principles of Natural Justice X

Chief Justice Sabyasachi Mukharji in Charan Lal Sahu v. Union of India, (1990) 1 SCC 613 felicitously described, “Principles of Natural Justice are fundamental… no man or no man’s right should be affected without an opportunity to ventilate his views… we are also conscious, justice is a psychological yearning.” This echoes what Lord Megarry said […]

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Illegal Gratification IV

Duality of Sir Amitabh in Shahenshah, (1998) as a Corrupt-Comic Police Officer and a Costumed Crime-Buster compelled many to wonder, what did Sir Amitabh do with his illegal gratifications? No matter what you answer, acceptance of those gratifications were without law. Court has not refrained from reconsidering a prior construction, if it proves to be […]

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Curative Jurisprudence

Registrar: “Curative Petitions filed were heard and disposed of in an Open Court. In this regard, Rule 2(1), Order XLVIII, S.C.R., 2O13 reads: Petitioner, in Curative Petition, shall aver specifically, grounds mentioned therein had been taken in Review Petition and it was dismissed by circulation. Since aforesaid Review Petitions were disposed of in an Open […]

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The Rules of The Game Principle X

Pt. Deendayal Upadhyaya Institute for Physically Handicapped called for appointment of Primary School Teachers and reserved a right to evaluate, review its process of selection at any stage. This one is a classic case of arbitrary action. While primary duty of Constitutional Courts remains control of power, including setting aside of illegal or arbitrary actions, such […]

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Deep Association of Money and Politics

The fear of reprisal and vindictiveness does not evaporate. The so-called protection exists only on paper. – Hon’ble Justice Sanjiv Khanna, Association for Democratic Reforms v. Union of India, [Writ Petition (Civil) No. 880 of 2017]. Constitution guarantees a right to informational privacy of political affiliation. Can such right be extended to contributions to political […]

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Accused No. 37, Mastermind Naidu

Case of State against Nara Chandrababu Naidu is, Naidu was a mastermind. Learned Senior Advocate, Mr. Mukul Rohtagi argued, since, at time of commission of offence, protective shield of Section 17A of The Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 was not in force, Naidu could not claim benefits thereof. I do not accept. It has been already observed by me, […]

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Adani Group of Companies

‘Acceptance of a Brief by a Lawyer’ in 2007 cannot be construed to reflect ‘bias’ or even a ‘likelihood of bias’ in 2023. There is an absence of proximity both in terms of time and subject matter. Writ Petitions filed before this Court raised concerns over precipitate decline in investor wealth and volatility in share […]

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The Nature of Judicial Power: Justice Dipankar Datta’s Definitive Dissent

It is essential to emphasize, while Afjal did not enumerate any material facts regarding ‘irreversible consequences’, High Courts or Supreme Court are well empowered to take judicial notice of consequences. – Hon’ble Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan, Afjal Ansari v. State of Uttar Pradesh, [Criminal Appeal No. 3838 of 2023]. Surya Kant J’s Judgment […]

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Referred to Larger Bench XXV Answered Again: Doctrine of Separability of Arbitration Agreement

Curative Petition (C) No. 44 of 2023 Review Petition (C) No. 704 of 2021 Civil Appeal No. 1599 of 2020 _____ Approach of Majority in N.N. Global 2 would render unstamped agreements void ab initio and not void. _____ We enter into contracts or agreements several times in our interactions with others. To hold an […]

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Referred to Larger Bench XXVIII Answered: Chloro Controls

Vladimir Nabokov and T.S. Elliot eulogized Ulysses as a divine work of art. Virginia Woolf and Aldous Huxley criticized Ulysses for being technical and boring. It is celebrated by some, reviled by many others. Yet, its legacy continues. The Doctrine of Group of Companies. It provides, an Arbitration Agreement which is entered into by a Company within a Group […]

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Minakshi Bala, (1994) 4 SCC 142

A case for interference has been made out. The symbol for Indian National Rupee symbol [₹] was not in existence when purported ‘Memorandum of Agreement of Tenancy’ was signed. Minakshi Bala v Sudhir Kumar, (1994) 4 SCC 142: “Court cannot usurp functions of a Trial Court to delve into and decide upon respective merits.” Court […]

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The Rules of The Game Principle IX

Himachal Pradesh Public Service Commission invited applications from eligible candidates against 8 vacancies for a post of Civil Judge (Junior Division) in Himachal Pradesh Judicial Service. Out of total 8 vacancies, 6 were ‘existing vacancies’ and 2 were ‘anticipated vacancies’. The purpose of a ‘waiting list’ is only to fill shortfall of ‘clear and anticipated […]

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The Rules of The Game Principle VIII

One issue in Bank of India v. Aarya K. Babu, (2019) 8 SCC 587 was, whether a particular educational qualification made eligible after issue of recruitment notification could have been considered for purposes of recruitment. Court held, if there is any change in qualification criteria after notification is issued but before completion of selection process, […]

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Section 50 of The NDPS Act

State of Punjab v. Baldev Singh, (1999) 6 SCC 172 stated, Section 50 will come into play only in case of personal searches and not of bags. State of Himachal Pradesh v. Pawan Kumar, (2005) 4 SCC 350 stated, a bag or briefcase under no circumstances can be treated as part of the body of […]

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