A Delhi court reserved its order on fresh bail pleas by Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam in the 2020 Delhi riots larger conspiracy case, with the verdict likely by Monday. ASJ Sameer Bajpai heard arguments from both sides. The duo cited nearly six years in custody without trial as grounds for bail, while the prosecution said relief could come only after the Supreme Court's embargo period lapses. The Supreme Court had earlier denied them bail while granting relief to five co-accu

The Orissa High Court, in Smt. Sunita Nayak v. Anup Kumar Tota, has held that refusal by an addressee to accept court notice — followed by affixture of the notice on the outer door or another conspicuous part of the house — amounts to valid and sufficient service. A Division Bench of Justice Manash Ranjan Pathak and Justice Sibo Sankar Mishra invoked Illustration (f) to Section 114 of the Evidence Act, Section 27 of the General Clauses Act, and Order V Rule 9(5) CPC, holding

The Supreme Court has held that an advocate cannot compromise on a client's behalf without express authorisation. A bench of Justices Sanjay Karol and N. Kotiswar Singh upheld the setting aside of a 1994 compromise decree in a partition suit, after the client's heirs said he never signed or authorised the settlement. The Court explained that Order XXIII Rule 3 CPC requires a compromise to be signed by the parties themselves, and lawyers cannot surrender substantive rights on

The Supreme Court quashed advocate Ajay Vijh's inclusion in the Indian Banks' Association's Caution List, ruling that banks cannot unilaterally declare lawyers professionally negligent — that power lies exclusively with Bar Councils under the Advocates Act, 1961. Using the case, the Court directed the Bar Council of India to conduct a full performance audit of disciplinary mechanisms at both the BCI and State Bar Council level, citing delays and inconsistent practices. It als

Senior Advocate Rebecca John criticised the Supreme Court's expansive interpretation of “terrorist act” under UAPA Section 15, warning it risks making political dissent prosecutable as terrorism. Speaking at an event marking Father Stan Swamy's fifth death anniversary, she said the judgment denying bail to Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam stretched a law meant for weapon-based violence. John also criticised UAPA's bail bar under Section 43D(5), calling prolonged pre-trial detent

The Supreme Court has ruled that a Magistrate's error in taking cognizance under the wrong statutory provision is a curable defect under Section 465 CrPC, not grounds to quash proceedings, provided the Magistrate otherwise had jurisdiction. A bench of Justices Sanjay Karol and Kotiswar Singh made the observation in a case involving a 2015 Bhuj civic body election dispute, upholding the State's argument over the appellant's claim of a jurisdictional error. The matter was reman

The Supreme Court has reiterated that a judgment can be declared per incuriam only in narrow circumstances: when its ratio conflicts with an earlier ruling of an equal or larger bench, or when it ignored a relevant statute or binding precedent central to the outcome. Justices Sanjay Karol and N.K. Singh clarified the doctrine is a limited exception to stare decisis, not a tool to bypass precedent simply because a later bench disagrees with its reasoning. Read full article Not

HYDERABAD — The Telangana State Legal Services Authority (TSLSA) successfully concluded the year’s second National Lok Adalat, settling an unprecedented 9,28,322 cases across 353 specialized benches. The single-day drive brought closure to 3,80,292 pre-litigation disputes and 5,48,030 pending court matters, resulting in an aggregate compensation payout of ₹422 crore to various litigants. Guided by High Court leadership, the forum resolved complex issues alongside routine comp

The Allahabad High Court has held that a woman cannot claim maintenance under Section 125 CrPC from a man she lived with, since her first marriage was never legally dissolved. In Madhu @ Aruna Bhajpai v. State of U.P., Justice Madan Pal Singh ruled that her earlier divorce petition was dismissed in default, so her first marriage subsisted, making the later marriage void under Section 11 of the Hindu Marriage Act. Distinguishing Badshah v. Urmila Badshah Godse (2014), the Cour

The Supreme Court has restored the POCSO case against a school headmistress in Arunachal Pradesh who allegedly ran her own inquiry instead of reporting an eight-year-old's sexual assault complaint. Justices Manoj Misra and K.V. Viswanathan held that “knowledge” under Section 19(1) includes credible information received directly from a victim, and private verification cannot substitute for mandatory reporting, which attracts liability under Section 21 if skipped. The Court res

The Supreme Court has ruled that a bank merger transferring tenancy rights to another entity, without the landlord's written consent, attracts eviction under Section 14(1)(b) of the Delhi Rent Control Act. Justices Sanjay Karol and Nongmeikapam Kotiswar Singh restored an eviction decree against PNB, holding that Hindustan Commercial Bank's 1986 amalgamation into PNB transferred tenancy and possession without the landlord's approval. The Court held the RBI-approved scheme coul

The Supreme Court has held that an officer’s mere presence when a superior accepted a bribe cannot prove criminal conspiracy. Justices Pankaj Mithal and Prasanna B. Varale dismissed UP’s appeals against the acquittal of three Central Excise officers in a 1995 case, upholding the Allahabad High Court’s finding that demand, acceptance and conspiracy were never proved. The Court cited withheld tape-recorded evidence and stressed conspiracy needs a “meeting of minds,” not mere su

A Special POCSO Court in Pune sentenced 65-year-old Bhimrao Prabhakar Kamble to death for raping and murdering a three-year-old girl in Nasrapur village on May 1, 2026. Judge S.R. Salunkhe called it “rarest of rare,” citing 18 injuries on the victim, no remorse, and prior assault allegations. Convicted June 25 after 55 witnesses testified, Kamble received three death sentences and three life terms. Special Public Prosecutor Ajay Misar led the case. CM Devendra Fadnavis called

The Telangana High Court has held that secretly recording a spouse's phone calls without consent breaches the right to privacy under Article 21 and is inadmissible in matrimonial proceedings. Justice Namavarapu Rajeshwar Rao dismissed a husband's revision petitions challenging a trial court's refusal to admit call recordings — which lacked the mandatory Section 65-B certificate — along with other documents in his cruelty-based divorce case. The Court also found the remaining

A Delhi court has sentenced former AAP councillor Tahir Hussain and four co-accused to life imprisonment for the 2020 murder of Intelligence Bureau staffer Ankit Sharma during the North-East Delhi riots. Judge Praveen Singh rejected the prosecution's demand for the death penalty, calling the killing brutal but not fitting the rarest-of-rare standard. Read Full Report More than five years after Intelligence Bureau staffer Ankit Sharma was killed during the 2020 North-East Delh

A Delhi court has granted bail to two Lucknow University law students arrested for disrupting Supreme Court proceedings on July 10. One of them had hurled abuses at the Chief Justice of India and thrown case papers in court, while allegedly using force against a security guard. Though granting relief, the magistrate strongly criticised their conduct, calling it unacceptable and undeserving of any leniency in tone. Read Full Report A Delhi court has released two law students o

An Odisha Special POCSO Court has sentenced a private tutor to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment for the aggravated sexual abuse of a minor boy, stating the act left the "child's dignity shattered." The convict abused his position of trust over a prolonged period, threatening the victim to ensure silence. The trauma came to light after the boy exhibited severe behavioral and emotional shifts. Alongside the custodial sentence, the court imposed a ₹50,000 fine and directed the

A Pune court on June 29 extended the police custody of Siya Goyal — fiancée of murder victim Ketan Agarwal — and her friend Chetan Chaudhary until July 3, as investigators seek to uncover the full truth behind a shocking fort-top killing. The duo, arrested for allegedly pushing Ketan into a deep gorge at Lohagad Fort on June 18, had already been remanded to seven-day custody on June 23. What was initially treated as an accidental fall soon unravelled into a premeditated murde

The Supreme Court on Monday declined urgent listing of a plea seeking a CBI-led SIT probe into alleged embezzlement of donations by the Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust. A bench of Justices M.M. Sundresh and Sheel Nagu questioned the urgency, asking “What’s the urgency?” and directed the matter be listed after summer vacation. Petitioners sought preservation of CCTV footage, bank records, and digital evidence, fearing tampering. Eight accused are currently in judicial