High Courts Weekly Round-Up

• Recapitulated that the Employees Compensation Act, 1923 (the Act) is a social security legislation providing speedy and efficient machinery for determination and payment of compensation to the employees.
• Reiterated that the court does not have the jurisdiction to go into issues relating to appreciation of evidence under an application filed under Section 482 of CrPC and that whether the accused had the intention to marry the victim based on which the victim gave her consent for sexual intercourse is a subject matter of evidence.
• A Full bench of the High Court held that the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal can, on satisfaction of genuineness of activities of a Trust, pass an order directing the Commissioner of Income Tax to grant registration to such Trust under Section 12AA of the Income Tax Act, 1961, while hearing an appeal under Section 254(1) of the Act and it need not remand the case back to the Commissioner.
• Allowed compromise in a non-compoundable offence and held that it may not be necessary in every criminal offence to mete out punishment.

Bombay High Court

• Disposing of a PIL against gambling and police inaction in registering FIRs, the Aurangabad bench of the High Court invoked the biblical concept of fight between man's conscience and the devil to show that gambling was a social problem whose solution was in enlightening the conscience of the society while also emphasising on law enforcement the need for police to maintain vigil.
• Held that even if the accused pleads guilty, Courts are not empowered to impose a sentence below the minimum sentence prescribed in the given act passed by the Legislature and allowed an appeal filed by the State government seeking enhancement of the fine amount of Rs.1200 imposed on one Yalappa Khot, for employing a 12 year old boy for weaving in his factory.
• Reserved judgment in the public interest litigations filed against the Tree Authority's resolution to remove 2646 trees at Aarey Colony in order to build a car shed for Mumbai Metro.
• A division bench of High Court comprising Chief Justice Govind Mathur and Justice Vivek Varma assembled, despite the national holiday on account of Gandhi Jayanti, to hear a habeas corpus petition filed on behalf of a missing soldier.Treating a letter addressed to Chief Justice Mathur as a habeas corpus petition, the bench sought appearance Command Officer, Military Police, Police Station Cantt, Bareilly in the missing persons' case of Rajat Singh, Sepoy.
• Taking notice of the complaint by a court staff that an advocate had issued threats and used derogatory language against him, the High Court asked the advocate to show cause why he must not be debarred from entering the court premises, pending disposal of notice.
• Dismissed all petitions and PILs challenging the Tree Authority's decision to cut 2646 trees at Aarey. The decision has come as a disappointment to thousands who protested against BMC's move to cut trees at Aarey, often referred to as Mumbai's lungs.
• Partly allowed a petition filed by Forest Development Corporation of Maharashtra and decided to cut 60% back wages of Prakash Yashwantakar, a former employee of FDCM who was dismissed from service for absenteeism and for exerting pressure on the management through certain politicians.
• The High Court in its judgement allowing cutting of trees at Aarey Colony compared environmentalists to David and the development work (Metro Car Shed) as industrial 'Goliath'.
• A special bench of the High Court refused to stay the judgment of the High Court pronounced dismissing all petitions challenging cutting of trees at Aarey Colony for the Metro Car Shed project.

Chhattisgarh High Court

• Reiterated that a revision petition cannot be entertained where an appeal lies and held that revision against acquittal order filed by a victim is not maintainable.
• Restricted the State government from enhancing the extent of reservation given to OBCs as a challenge to the validity of the previously introduced enhancement is already pending before the court.

Delhi High Court

• Issued notice to Enforcement Directorate in a bail application filed by DK Shivakumar in a money laundering case.
• Passed an ex-parte interim order directing Facebook, Instagram and Google to take down posts containing sexual harassment accusations against leading Indian contemporary artist, Subodh Gupta.
• Accepted 9 out of the 15 corrections pointed out in the answer-key of the Delhi Judicial Services examination and have noted that the same has caused substantial prejudice to the Petitioners.
• Held that a Minority aided institution's right to administer does not include right to 'mal-administer'. Regulatory authority can intervene in the decisions taken by such institutions of they rules laid down for their governance are not followed.
• Held that issuance of public notice doesn't require any enabling statutory provision. The court also went to hold that not composite institutions to not have an absolute right to offer all the courses enumerated under Regulation 9 of NCTE Regulations.

Karnataka High Court

• Dismissed a petition filled by a rape victim seeking compensation under the victim compensation scheme, as she turned hostile during the trial and the accused was acquitted.
• Set aside a family court order which refused delivery expenses to a woman from her estranged husband saying, "It is her first delivery, it is the duty of the (woman's) parents to bear the expenses as per customs in all communities."
• In a temporary relief to former Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy the High Court granted him exemption from personally appearing before a special court for four weeks in relation to an alleged land denotification case, done for peculiar gains.
• A Sessions Court judge cannot decide whether an offence committed by a juveline is henious and he cannot proceed with the trial. The power to decide this is only with a Juvenile Justice Board, said the High Court, while setting aside the order of a sessions court and directing the sessions court to refer the matter to the Juvenile Justice Board.

Kerala High Court

• The High Court handed over the investigation of murders of two Youth Congress workers - Kripesh (19) and Sharat Lal (24) - to the Central Bureau of Investigation from the state police. The single bench of Justice B Sudheendra Kumar ordered the CBI probe allowing the petition filed by the parents of the slain youth, who were killed at Periya in Kasargod district on the night of February 17, 2019.
• Sought the views of the Central Government on a plea to ban messaging platform 'Telegram'.

Madras High Court

• The High Court allowed the Tamil Nadu and Central governments to erect banners to welcome Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping for their informal meet here next week.

Meghalaya High Court

• Issued notices in a habeas corpus petition, filed on behalf of a 5 months old, breast feeding infant. The petition was moved by the mother of the infant, Tahera Haq, who alleged that her husband and father of the child, Arif Hussain Mir, had taken away the child to Jammu & Kashmir and she sought restoration of the child's custody.

Punjab & Haryana High Court

• In suo moto proceedings against misuse of cycle-tracks/ pedestrian paths in southern sectors of Chandigarh, the High Court passed a series of directions enlisting necessary measures to curb the same.
• Taking suo motu cognizance of news items published in the 'Sunday Tribune' on, September 29, with regards continuing practice of manual scavenging, the High Court issued detailed "mandatory directions" to eliminate the twin evils of insanitary latrines and manual scavenging.