Gujarat High Court Weekly Roundup: March 18 - March 24, 2024

Govindbhai Ramjibhai Savani Versus The State Of Gujarat & Ors 2024 Livelaw (Guj) 27

Union Of India & Ors. Versus Dilip Wagheshwari S/O Danabhai Wagheshwari 2024 Livelaw (Guj) 28

Jatinbhai Prafulbhai Kakkad Versus State of Gujarat & Anr. 2024 Livelaw (Guj) 29

Hitesh Prabhudas Lodhiya Versus State Of Gujarat 2024 Livelaw (Guj) 30

State Of Gujarat Versus Mitesh Dilipbhai Sejpal 2024 Livelaw (Guj) 31

Vinayakrao Shantilal Desai & Anr. Versus Na 2024 Livelaw (Guj) 32

Pradeep Nirankarnath Sharma Versus State Of Gujarat 2024 Livelaw (Guj) 33

Parakramsinh Hathubha @ Hathisinh Jadeja Vs State Of Gujarat 2024 Livelaw (Guj) 34

Daman Wine Merchant Association Through President Versus The State Of Gujarat & Ors 2024 Livelaw (Guj) 35

Judgements/Orders This Week

Gujarat High Court Pulls Up Centre For "Lethargic Attitude" In Pursuing Litigation, Rejects Delayed Petition With Rs 25K Cost

Case Title: Union Of India & Ors. Versus Dilip Wagheshwari S/O Danabhai Wagheshwari

LL Citation: 2024 Livelaw (Guj) 28

In a stern stance, the Gujarat High Court has rejected with Rs. 25,000 an Article 227 petition filed by the Union of India and its Officers with more than two years' delay.

Justice S Umesh A. Trivedi and Rajendra M Sareen remarked it is a "classic example of sheer lethargic attitude and total disregard of Court proceedings by the petitioners."

Gujarat High Court Grants Bail In Case Of Alleged Issuance Of Invoices Without Supply Of Goods Under CGST Act

Case Title: JATINBHAI PRAFULBHAI KAKKAD Versus STATE OF GUJARAT & ANR.

LL Citation: 2024 Livelaw (Guj) 29

The Gujarat High Court has granted bail for an individual implicated in a case related to an FIR filed under Sections 132(1)(b) and (1) of the Central Goods & Services Tax Act, 2017. The case revolves around the purported issuance of GST invoices without actual delivery of goods, allegedly resulting in a significant financial loss to the government treasury.

Justice Divyesh A Joshi presiding over the matter, passed the Order granting bail in an application is filed under Section 439 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, for regular bail in connection with an FIR registered with the Directorate General of GST Intelligence, Rajkot of the offence punishable under Sections 132(1)(b) and (1) of the Central Goods & Services Tax Act, 2017.

Gujarat High Court Grants Bail To Co-Accused In Rs. 700 Crore GST Scam Case Involving Tax Amount Of 35 Crores

Case Title: State Of Gujarat Versus Mitesh Dilipbhai Sejpal

LL Citation: 2024 Livelaw (Guj) 31

The Gujarat High Court has dismissed a petition filed by the State against the order granting regular bail to an accused in a multi-crore scam case.

The ruling came in a Criminal Miscellaneous Application filed under Section 439(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, whereby the petitioner State prayed to quash and set aside the order dated 11.11.2021, passed by the District and Sessions Judge, Junagadh, in a Criminal Misc. Application, whereby, the Session Judge had granted regular bail to the respondent – original accused.

Gujarat High Court Grants Bail in Rs. 1466 Crore Alleged GST Scam Case

Case Title: Hitesh Prabhudas Lodhiya Versus State Of Gujarat

LL Citation: 2024 Livelaw (Guj) 30

The Gujarat High Court has granted bail to a man in a case involving an alleged GST scam amounting to Rs. 1466 crores.

This ruling came following an application filed by the accused under Section 439 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, for regular bail in connection with a case registered with the Directorate General of GST Intelligence, Rajkot.

Manager Appointed Under Mental Health Act Cannot Execute 'Will' To Alienate Properties Of Person Of Unsound Mind: Gujarat High Court

Case Title: Vinayakrao Shantilal Desai & Anr. Versus Na

LL Citation: 2024 Livelaw (Guj) 32

In a recent ruling, the Gujarat High Court has dismissed an appeal, affirming that a Will is an instrument of free will that cannot be executed by a manager on behalf of a mentally ill person.

A division bench of Chief Justice Sunita Agarwal And Justice Aniruddha P. Mayee observed, “On a conjoint reading of section 59 of the Indian Succession Act and Explanation 4 attached to it, as also section 54 read with sections 57, 58 and 59 of the M.H. Act, we are also of the considered opinion that the execution of 'Will' by the manager of the property of a mentally ill person, namely, Ms. Shraddhaben in the instant case, was an act without any authority of law.”

'You Have No Rights': In Saturday Night Hearing, Gujarat HC Pulls Up Land Grabber Seeking Time To 'Lift' Encroachment Using Modern Tech

Case Title: Govindbhai Ramjibhai Savani Versus The State Of Gujarat & Ors

LL Citation: 2024 Livelaw (Guj) 27

In a special Saturday hearing held at 9:30 PM, the Gujarat High Court pulled up an applicant involved in land grabbing for moving an urgent application seeking extension of time to "lift" the encroachments using hydronic lifting technology from government land.

Presiding over the matter, Justice Nirzar S Desai said that in cases of pressing urgency Courts are open even at midnight "but for land grabbers don't think that merely by showing the urgency court will grant indulgence. This mindset carried by the people who encroach upon government land must be thrown out of their mind."

Gujarat High Court Rejects Bail Plea Of Former IAS Officer Pradeep Sharma In Illegal Land Allotment Case

Case Title: Pradeep Nirankarnath Sharma Versus State Of Gujarat

LL Citation: 2024 Livelaw (Guj) 33

The Gujarat High Court on Wednesday rejected the regular bail plea of retired IAS officer Pradeep Sharma in connection to a 2023 case lodged at Bhuj in Kutch, in which Sharma is accused of corruption and criminal breach of trust for alleged illegal allotment of government land for monetary benefits as the then-collector of Kutch district.

The court expressed reluctance to favor Sharma, citing numerous FIRs registered against him for similar offenses during his tenure in a high government position.

Merely Asking Someone To Retract Statement Would Not Amount To Provoking Them To Commit Suicide: Gujarat High Court

Case Title: Parakramsinh Hathubha @ Hathisinh Jadeja Vs State Of Gujarat

LL Citation: 2024 Livelaw (Guj) 34

The Gujarat High Court has held that that merely asking an individual to retract their statement by filing another affidavit cannot be considered as instigating, inciting, or provoking the deceased to commit suicide.

Justice Divyesh A Joshi observed, “Merely the accused asked the deceased to retract his version by filing another affidavit, would not in any manner be considered as an act to instigate, incite or provoking the deceased to commit suicide and if there was any threats and/or pressure upon the deceased to do a particular act, he could have taken appropriate recourse. The contents of the FIR indicate that the accused alleged to have goaded the deceased to make an affidavit denying his signature in a particular document, but had never intended or instigated the deceased to commit suicide.”

Gujarat High Court Dismisses PIL Filed By Daman Wine Merchant Association Seeking To Ban Coercive Measures Against Wine Shop Owners By Police

Case Title: Daman Wine Merchant Association Through President Versus The State Of Gujarat & Ors

LL Citation: 2024 Livelaw (Guj) 35

The Gujarat High Court on Tuesday dismissed a PIL filed by an association of liquor merchants from the Union territory of Daman seeking its intervention in stopping Gujarat police's action against them under Gujarat's prohibition laws when liquor sold by them is caught in Gujarat.

The division bench comprising Chief Justice Sunita Agarwal and Justice Aniruddha Mayeeobserved, “We fail to understand as to why the Wine Shop owners, who are not doing any business in the State of Gujarat would be implicated for selling liquor and the cases under the Gujarat prohibition Act, 1949, would be registered against them. For the above, as also for the fact that the present petition in the nature of PIL has been filed in the name of an Association, whose legal status has not been disclosed in the writ petition, we dismiss the writ petition being misconceived.”

Other Developments

Gujarat High Court Declines Suo Motu Action Against Mob Which Attacked Foreign Students At Gujarat University Campus During Namaz

The Gujarat High Court today refused to take suo motu cognizance of an incident where five foreign students of Gujarat University were allegedly attacked by a mob while praying on the university campus.

Chief Justice Sunita Agarwal declined the request, stating, “the police will look into it, that is not a matter of PIL. Every matter is not a matter of PIL. Let the police take note of this. Every incident in the city is not a matter of PIL.”

Man Blocked Out Of Google Account Over Allegedly 'Explicit' Childhood Photos Moves High Court, Says Company's Redressal Mechanism Handled Only By AI

The Gujarat High Court has issued notice to Google India and others on a man's plea claiming that his email account is blocked for backing up allegedly "explicit child abuse" content on Google Photos.

Neel Shukla, a computer engineer, said Google failed to inform him of the objectionable photos but he suspects that action is taken over a photo showing him being bathed by his grandmother when he was two years old.