Today’s Legal Updates:

  1. The all India Association of Jurists, an association of lawyers based in Chennai, has filed a petition in the Supreme Court praying that the option given to lawyers / litigants to appear before the Supreme Court through a video conference should continue as “fair” after the Court resumes physical hearings.
  2. The Parliament must amend an amendment to section 11 of the Mediation Act, 1996 which stipulates a certain period within which a party may remove a court by applying for the appointment of a mediator, the Supreme Court said on Wednesday.
  3. Today The Enforcement Directorate (ED) told the Delhi High Court that it would not insist on the appearance of Mehbooba Mufti before it for now.
  4. Delhi Magistrate’s Court today sought a report on the situation in Delhi police over a petition seeking the registration of FIR against Bollywood actor Kangana Ranaut for inciting hatred in the Sikh community.
  5. The inhumane practice of hand fraud cannot continue and must be stopped immediately, the Madras High Court said on Wednesday.
  6. The Constitutional Bench of the Supreme Court on Wednesday convened a committee headed by former Bombay High Court judge, Justice RC Chavan to take immediate action to prosecute cases under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act.
  7. The application to vaccinate judges, lawyers and their staff before the COVID vaccine confirmed the unselfish stand of Bombay High Court Judge Dipankar Datta who said it would not be right for legitimate organizations to seek prominence in the presence of others at similar risk.
  8. The Delhi High Court has ruled that the date for nomination as Professor under the Career Advancement Scheme of the University Grants Commission (UGC) will be from the first date to satisfy the minimum qualifying period, not the interview date.
  9. Today The Delhi High Court adjourned a case involving the immunization of judges, lawyers and court staff when it found that an appeal had been filed with the High Court by one of the vaccine manufacturers, Bharat Biotech.
  10. Anand Teltumbde, accused of violence in Bhima Koregaon in 2018, was an active member of the banned political party, the Communist Party of India (Maoist), the National Investigation Agency (NIA) told a special court, challenging his bail application.
  11. The Supreme Court on Wednesday issued a notice to the Central Government requesting directions to allow eligible women to join the National Defense Academy (NDA) and the Indian Naval Academy (INA).
  12. The Delhi Magistrate’s Court today revoked the search warrant issued by Advocate Mehmood Pracha, whose office was recently raided by Delhi police.
  13. The Madras High Court recently ruled that Repatriates Cooperative Finance and Development Bank Limited (REPCO) is not a “bank” or “secure debtor” qualified to apply the provisions of the Securitization and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcing of Securities Interest (SARFAESI) Act, 2002.
  14. The Lucknow Bench of the High Court of Allahabad on Monday granted bail to a student activist arrested by Uttar Pradesh police for taking part in a protest against the Patriotic Amendment Act.
  15. The hearing before the Special Bench of the Supreme Court on Wednesday marked the heart-warming conversation between the two judges of the Bench, Justice DY Chandrachud and Justice Indu Malhotra.
  16. An interview held by the Indian Law Institute, Kerala and the Kerala Federation of Women Lawyers (KFWL) to mark International Women’s Day saw Telangana High Court Chief Justice Hima Kohli, Justice Anu Sivaraman of Kerala High Court and lawyer Gee Ramaseshan discussing legal issues with women.
  17. An investigation by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) under the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 (FEMA) does not allow for any further investigation by the Competition Commission of India (CCI) in violation of the Competition Act, CCI appeals to Karnataka Supreme Court Amazon-Flipkart Case.
  18. The Supreme Court reaffirmed on Tuesday that under the Negotiable Instruments Act (NI Act), the burden of proof proving that a check had not been issued for the issuance of any debt or debt in terms of Section 138 of the Act was with the respondent.
  19. The central government has told the Delhi High Court that its current policy of vaccinating the banned COVID-19 is based on the risk of exposure to citizens could be due to their type of work or their age or critical condition.
  20. The Karnataka High Court on Wednesday said on March 23, it would issue interim guidelines for the implementation of the Operational Guidelines for the Scheme of Shelter for Urban Homeless (SUH) under the National Urban Livelihoods Mission (NULM).
  21. Lucknow’s lawyer, Syed Mohammad Haider Rizvi, made a submission to the State Information Commission and the UP Secretariat, seeking urgent reference to all State Departments to disseminate information on the health and freedom of individuals, within 48 hours.
  22. The Karnataka High Court recently dismissed a private complaint and recognition made by a trial court in Managluru in 2013, against the Airports Authority of India (AAI), Air India Ltd. (AI) and its air traffic controllers The crash of India Express 812 outside Mangaluru airport, on May 22, 2010, in which 158 passengers were killed.
  23. To the great relief of a married woman who did not comply with her wishes to a man chosen by her family, the bench of Judge Mukta Gupta of the Delhi High Court today issued a notice of the woman’s complaint and listened to Delhi police to ensure the full protection of the woman.
  24. The Patna High Court on Tuesday (09 March) formed a three-member Committee of Lady Advocates to visit the list of Educational Institutions to find out the true nature of the existence and operation of infrastructure to address the needs of female students at such institutions.
  25. On Monday, 9 March 2021, the Kerala High Court issued a notice to the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) against an objection to the application of the goods and services (GST) tax exempt importers.
  26. The lawyer, who wants to be a Regional Judge, has dismissed the Telangana High Court challenging the 2020 employment notice on the entrance to the judiciary, saying it was discriminatory, unconstitutional and contrary to the Telangana State Judicial (service & Cadre) Act, 2017.
  27. The Meghalaya High Court has ruled that an application under Section 482 of the Criminal Procedure Code before challenging the domestic violence Act is maintained.
  28. Rajya Sabha on Wednesday passed the Arbitration and Conciliation (Amendment) Bill, 2021 by a voice vote. The Bill was passed by Lok Sabha on February 12, 2201. He will replace the Ordinance announced on November 4, 2020.
  29. The Delhi High Court has taken strong note of an “alarming situation” of passengers not properly wearing masks in flights and issued guidelines to all domestic airlines and DGCA for strict compliance, including penal action for offenders and periodical checks of the aircraft.
  30. The Delhi High Court on Tuesday (09.03.21) sought a response from the Centre on a petition challenging the new IT (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, claiming it seeks to regulate online news portals by imposing government oversight and a vaguely worded ‘Code of Ethics’.
  31. Indian National Lok Dal supremo and former Chief Minister of Haryana, Om Prakash Chautala’s parole has been extended till Apr 12 by the Delhi High Court in the JBT teachers’ recruitment scam case. Chautala has been serving a 10-year sentence in the case in Delhi’s Tihar Jail since 2013.
  32. The Delhi High Court held that the promotion of a candidate would take effect from date of eligibility and not from the date of interview as per the Career Advancement Scheme (CAS) governed by the UGC Regulations.
  33. Advocate Mehmood Pracha has moved a Delhi Court against the second raid conducted by the Delhi Police’s Special Cell on 9th March 2021, calling the whole exercise as “completely illegal and unjustified”. Pracha has been representing many accused persons in the Delhi Riots conspiracy cases that broke out in February last year.
  34. A plea has been filed before the Supreme Court challenging the Kerala High Court’s order declaring that aided school teachers in Kerala are not entitled to contest in elections.
  35. The Delhi High Court on Tuesday (09th March) transferred to the Division Bench of Chief Justice D. N. Patel and Justice Jasmeet Singh, a plea seeking postponement of Delhi Higher Judicial Services Examination (Main), 2021 until the completion of the COVID-19 vaccination drive for lawyers.
  36. Stressing that the prisons in India continue to be rather medieval in their functioning, the Uttarakhand High Court last week observed that it is high time that Jails are transported from the Middle Ages to the Modern Age.
  37. A division bench of the Delhi High Court said that it was not inclined to issue notice on a plea seeking declaration of the Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations (PM CARES) Fund as an authority falling under the definition of “State” under Article 12 of the Constitution of India.

Legal Prudent Fraternity