Category: LEGAL NEWS

Thirteen high courts in the country will get new Chief Justices (CJs) as the Supreme Court collegium headed by CJI N V Ramana has recommended to the Centre eight names, including acting Calcutta High Court CJ, Justice Rajesh Bindal, for elevation and transfer of five sitting CJs to other high courts. The collegium’s decisions, reported earlier by PTI, were uploaded on the apex court’s website on Tuesday. Besides Justice Bindal, who would now become the Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court if the Centre assents to the recommendation, there…

A special PMLA court here, while taking cognisance of a charge sheet filed against former policeman Sachin Waze and others in an alleged money laundering case, has said the money trail prima facie indicates that former Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh received Rs 4.7 crore from Waze and his aide Kundan Shinde. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) earlier this month filed its charge sheet against Waze, Deshmukh’s private secretary (an additional collector-rank officer) Sanjeev Palande, personal assistant Shinde and 11 others in the case. Special judge M G Deshpande took cognisance…

The Bombay High Court on Thursday held as non-maintainable a petition filed by former Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh, seeking to quash the two preliminary inquiries initiated against him by the Maharashtra government. A division bench of Justices S S Shinde and N J Jamadar while dismissing the plea said the reliefs sought by Singh can be adjudicated by the Central Administrative Tribunal as it is a service matter. The bench said if the petitioner (Singh) approaches the appropriate forum, then the same shall be heard and decided without…

The Delhi High Court Monday extended the stay on Rs 25,000 costs imposed on the police by a trial court which had called the investigation in a case related to north-east Delhi riots “callous and farcical”. Justice Subramonium Prasad was informed by the Additional Solicitor General (ASG) S V Raju, representing Delhi Police, that they have not received the reply of complainant Mohammad Nasir in the matter. As advocate Jatin Bhatt, appearing for Nasir, said he has filed the reply on Monday, the court said it was not on record…

The Delhi High Court Friday sought CBI’s reply on bail application of former Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh’s lawyer Anand Daga in connection with a corruption case. Justice Yogesh Khanna issued notice on the plea and listed it for further hearing on September 27. Daga was arrested for allegedly trying to subvert the Bombay High Court-directed preliminary enquiry against Deshmukh. Lawyer Tanveer Ahmed Mir appeared for Daga before the high court. On September 8, a Special CBI court here had rejected Daga’s bail application, saying that the investigation was still…

 A magistrate would not be the competent authority for extension of time to complete investigation in cases under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, the Supreme Court has said. A bench headed by Justice U U Lalit said the only competent authority to consider such request would be the Special Courts set up under National Investigation Agency Act. “So far as all offences under the UAPA are concerned, the Magistrate’s jurisdiction to extend time under the first proviso in Section 43-D (2)(b) is nonexistent. “Consequently, in so far as Extension of…

The court was hearing a plea by Foundation for Independent Journalism, which runs The Wire, and its three journalists. The Supreme Court today said it does not want freedom of press to be muzzled or stifled but it cannot create a separate avenue for journalists to approach it directly for setting aside FIRs lodged against them. The top court stated this while hearing a plea filed by Foundation for Independent Journalism, which runs digital news portal The Wire, and its three journalists seeking that three FIRs lodged against them in…

 The Supreme Court Tuesday granted more time to the Centre to decide on filing a further response to a batch of pleas seeking an independent probe into the alleged snooping of certain people in India through the use of Israeli spyware Pegasus and slated the matter for further hearing on September 13. A three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice N V Ramana had issued a notice to the Centre on the pleas on August 17, while making it clear that it did not want the government to disclose anything which…