A Continuing Offence

My Lord, What is a ‘Continuing Offence’? Deokaran Nenshi, (1972) 2 SCC 890 distinguished between continuing offences and offences committed once and for all. “A continuing offence is one which is susceptible of continuance and is distinguishable from one which is committed once and for all. It is one of those offences, which arises out […]

James, James Bond

Trivia 1: There is an irony in the name Franz Oberhauser. Franz, the half-brother of Bond, is the one who stays in the ‘other house’, the Oberhaus, the house other than Skyfall. Trivia 2: Growing up, what did Bond have for breakfast? Do we have a definitive scene of James Bond eating? He has ordered […]

Lawyer Profiles III: Hearing Concluded, Orders Reserved

NJAC Order, 20:11 Forget names in Order. I should ideally be congratulating 2, and politeness invites it. This post is reserved for Mr. Prateek Chadha! Some fine suggestions. I am sure I can see a bit of you in there.

Lawyer Profiles II: Repeal v. Omission

My Lord, Is there a Fundamental Distinction between a “Repeal” and an “Omission” in that in the case of a “Repeal” the Statute is obliterated from the very beginning whereas in the case of an “Omission” what gets omitted is only from the date of “Omission” and not before? No. We do not find any […]

Tape Records of Speeches

Tape records of speeches are “documents”, as defined by Section 3 of The Evidence Act, and stands on no different footing than photographs [See, Ziyauddin, (1976) 2 SCC 17]. They are admissible in evidence on satisfying the following conditions: (a) The voice of the person alleged to be speaking must be duly identified by the maker […]

A 70 Feet Long Cricket Match

Crime stories are good reads. At the centre of State of Rajasthan v. Daud Khan, [Criminal Appeal No. 126 of 2010] is Cricket [India v. Pakistan], held on 24th March, 2004 at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore. India won by 40 runs and thereby nailed the 5 match series 3-2. Javed Beg and Daud Khan had some […]

Substantial Severability v. Textual Divisibility

It is well settled, if a contract is in several parts, some of which are legal and enforceable and some are unenforceable, lawful parts can be enforced provided they are substantially severable and not merely textually divisible [Shin Satellite, (2006) 2 SCC 628]. Court must consider the question whether the parties could have agreed on […]

Divorce v. Judicial Separation

My Lord, Decree for Divorce v. Decree for Judicial Separation? “A 3-Judge Bench in Jeet Singh, (1993) 1 SCC 325 ruled that, a Decree or an Order for Judicial Separation permits the Parties to live apart. There would be no obligation for either Party to cohabit with the other; mutual rights and obligations arising out […]

A “Means and Includes” Definition III

It is well settled that a “means and includes” definition is exhaustive in nature and that there is no scope to read anything further into the said definition. Hon’ble Justice Nariman has yet again quoted P. Kasilingam v. PSG College of Technology, 1995 Supp (2) SCC 348 to re-establish the proposition [See, State Bank of […]

Compensatory Jurisprudence of Constitutional Courts I : Ram Lakhan Singh

Dr. Ram Lakhan Singh, an incumbent of Indian Forest Service (1969 Batch, U.P. Cadre), rendered services to Respondent State and Government of India in various positions for about 35 years till his retirement. The 2004 State Government got him arrested in a fake case. Dr. Singh spent 11 days in jail and fought a legal […]

Moral Misconduct of an Arbitrator I

Under Section 30(a) of The 1940 Arbitration Act, an Arbitral Award can be set side if the Arbitrator has “misconducted himself or the proceedings”. In K.P. Poulose, (1975) 2 SCC 236 it was held, “misconduct under Section 30(a) has not a connotation of moral lapse. It comprises legal misconduct which is complete if the Arbitrator on […]

Mesmeric Gambling Instinct

“It is a common case, lottery is a species of gambling. Gambling is considered as a pernicious vice by all civilized societies from time immemorial. Experience has shown, common forms of gambling are comparatively innocuous when placed in contrast with widespread pestilence of lotteries. The former are confined to a few persons and places. The […]

The Kesavananda Bench

Knowing the Judge, is the last refinement an Advocate can hope for. Gadbois Sir shall be remembered forever for his research on Judges of Supreme Court of India. What a book! I would not have realized… _____ The NJAC Judgment is still running its course and at this juncture of history it is difficult to […]

Disjunctive, Conjunctive I

“We are conscious of the principle that the word ‘or’ is normally disjunctive and ‘and’ is normally conjunctive. However, there may be circumstances where these words are to be read as vice-versa to give effect to manifest intention of Legislature as disclosed from the context. Of course, these two words normally ‘or’ and ‘and’ are […]

Condonation of Delay IV: 1186

“There is inordinate delay of 1186 days in filing the SLPs.” “There is gross delay of almost 3 1/2 years in challenging the Judgment rendered in the Writ Appeal and no explanation much less cogent explanation has been given by the Appellant.” “There is no reason to condone the delay.” – Hon’ble Justice C. Nagappan, […]

NJAC Judgment VI: The Dark Knight Rises

ON THE EVE OF THE 03.11.2015 HEARING Khehar J travelled further down the Sahara Road. Chelameswar J quoted Ruma Pal J on the Independence of Judiciary. Lokur J guarded the Fragile Bastion, redeemed Ray. Goel J showed down the Law Minister for Obvious Reasons. Joseph J mentioned the Strange Turn by Bhagwati J. Shamser Singh […]

A Subsequently Appointed Employee : A Necessary Party?

“What has been stated in paragraph 31 in the case of J.S. Yadav, (2011) 6 SCC 570 [as per B.S. Chauhan J.] does not even follow from the authorities referred to therein. We have explained the authority in J.S. Yadav and opined that it has to rest on its own facts keeping in view the declaratory […]

Section 15(2) of The Arbitration Act II

My Lord, Suppose a Family Dispute in which the Arbitration Clause clearly specifies a Grand Uncle of a Joint Family is the only person in whom all Members of the Family have confidence. In the case of resignation or death of such Grand Uncle, is it possible to say by necessary implication no other person […]

NJAC Judgment V: Kurian Joseph J

Hon’ble Justice Kurian Joseph has been in news: first, because of his tiff with CJI Dattu and second, for his contribution in Yakub Memon. Gold fish have no hiding place. And therefore, ‘briefest’ Judgment? “Historical, Textual, Structural, Prudential, Doctrinal, Episodic, Ethical” arguments aside, “there cannot be any legal sense of an issue, which does not […]

NJAC Judgment IV: Adarsh Kumar Goel J

It is indicative that the name I chose for this Blog is the keyword in the NJAC Judgment – “The Last Word”. In some pieces, I notice the avoidance of usage of the phrase. Don’t. It must be in our consciousness, at all points of time, that The Last Word belongs to the Chief Justice […]