Today’s Legal Updates

Monday, 24th January 2022

Legal Awareness :- National Girl Child Day

Gender discrimination and abuses, injustice against girls is a serious stigma in India and is a serious problem in India that is deep-rooted. A multifold approach is needed to ensure that state has those laws to bring justice in society, it also requires adequate budgetary allocation for girls education, health, well-being, and collective responsibility of social organisations to speak out that girls are not less than boys.

The struggle of a girl child begins even before the day she is conceived. Female infants are still found dumped in the trash, while unborn foetuses continue to be snuffed in the womb. She is ‘lucky’ if she is allowed to be born. Even after birth, the girl child faces discrimination and oppression. She is not provided with proper nutrition compared to her male siblings, her education is not given much importance, she is often expected to stay at home and do household work. A girl child in India is often seen as a liability, a ‘burden’ to pass on. After marriage, the trials faced by women do not end as she continues to face oppression and even violence in her marital home. The unwanted girl child is India’s greatest shame. Given the prevailing influence of patriarchal values, right from their birth, far too many girls bear the brunt of gender inequality and gender stereotypes.

5 Laws & Policies that Safeguard & Strengthen India’s Girl Child

  1. The Law Prohibits the Marriage of Minors
    • The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act of 2006 gives relief to the Child entering the marriage, it also punishes adults who enter into perform Conduct or direct Child Marriages.
    • It Includes both Civil & Criminal prohibitions to prevent Child marriage & protect Children’s rights.
  2. Right to free & mandatory Schooling till 14 years
    • Under the Right of Children to Free & Compulsory Education Act 2009, all Children between the ages of 6-14 years have the rights to elementary education in a neighborhood school.
  3. All Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques that help in sex selection are Banned by Law.
    • Pre- Natal Diagnostic Techniques (Regulation & Prevention of Misuse) Act, Prohibits tha medical personnel from Conducting or helping anyone Conduct sex selection.
    • All Medical equipment regarding pregnancies shall be sold only to registered clinics.
  4. Buying & Selling of minor Girls for Prostitution is a punishable offence.
    • Sec 372 & 373 of punishes those Involved in the buying & selling of minor Girls. The punishment in this case can range from 5 to 10 years of Imprisonment.
    • Also sec 363A of the IPC punishes kidnapping a minor for the purpose of begging.
  5. Law Protects Girls trapped in Brothels for Prostitution.
    • Juvenile Justice Act includes special provisions for protection, treatment & rehabilitation of girls under 18 years old. It protects girls trapped in brothels for Child Prostitution & protects any person engaged in an immoral, drunken or depraved life.

Today Legal Updates :-

  1. Today a  petition has been filed before the Delhi High Court seeking a direction to all the civil and military authorities to act under the superintendence of the Special Protection Group (SPG) when called upon, to ensure security of the Prime Minister and their family members.  (Ashish Kumar v Union of India and Anr)
  2. Today the Karkardooma Courts, Delhi framed Sedition and other charges, including those under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAP), against Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) student Sharjeel Imam while rejecting his bail plea in a Delhi Riots case. (State v. Sharjeel Imam)
  3. Today Senior Advocate Rebecca John told the Delhi High Court that she had received a lot of hate over the last few days for her stand on the issue of marital rape.  (RIT Foundation v Union of India)
    • “Under the structure of penal code, all offences are distinct although they may have some overlapping issues. Therefore, to argue that a woman has remedy under other acts or sections is not a tenable argument. They exist but for distinct and other offences. Section 375 is separate and there is no reason why 498A can be used as a substitute for 375. It can be used in addition but not as a substitute… My limited argument is that there can be base offences and aggravated. Some elements may be common. To say a wife has efficacious other remedies is the argument I cannot agree with. They exist in very very different spaces,” 
    • “It is now a settled position of law that international conventions and laws can be read into our domestic law. India’s obligations under the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women also require and provide for Exception 2 to Section 375 to be struck down,”
  4. Today Actress Kangana Ranaut has moved a Mumbai Sessions Court challenging the order of the Magistrate dismissing her plea seeking transfer of extortion complaint against lyricist Javed Akhtar to another competent Magistrate.
  5. Today advocate Prashant Bhushan told the Supreme Court, the Tripura government’s affidavit in the case seeking probe into the violence and hate crimes that took place in Tripura last October is replete with whataboutery.  (Ehtesham Hashmi vs. Union of India)
  6. Today the Allahabad High Court observed that Caste system is a deep rooted menace which our society has not been able to get rid of even 75 years after obtaining independence.  (Sanni Singh v. State of Uttar Pradesh)
  7. Today the Calcutta High Court dismissed a petition seeking directions to the Central government to allow West Bengal’s tableau of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose for the Republic Day parade at New Delhi parade this year.  (Rama Prasad Sarkar v Union of India)
  8. Today the Supreme Court granted bail to Mohd Enamul Haque, the prime accused in a multi-crore cattle smuggling case in which he was charged under several sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act.  (Md Enamul Haque v. CBI)
  9. Today the Delhi High Court pulled up a family court judge for dismissing a divorce petition when the parties before it sought adjournment on the ground that they were in the process of negotiation.  (Commodore Pavan Chauhan v Anusha Chauhan)
  10. Today the Supreme Court refused to pass any directions on a plea by Kerala government seeking extension of deadline for completing trial against Malayalam cine actor Dileep in the actress abduction and sexual assault case.  (P Gopalakrishnan @ Dileep v. State of Kerala)
  11. Today the Bombay High Court directed the Maharashtra government to submit a status report on whether the State websites have been updated with the latest versions of all State laws and rules and whether they are being updated on real time basis.  (Mumbai Grahak Panchayat and Another. v. State of Maharashtra & Ors.)
  12. Today the Supreme Court stayed a Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) direction to the adjudicating officer of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to appear before it.  (Securities Exchange Board of India vs Yatin Pandya HUF)
  13. It was reported in the media that the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security has made it mandatory for air passengers to limit their hand baggage to one bag. The first circular by the BCAS, dated February 24, 2000, states that the dimensions of the cabin baggage should not exceed 115 centimetres and this is limited to one per passenger.
    • however, excludes the following items:-
      • lady’s handbag
      • a rug or blanket
      • an overcoat or wrap
      • a camera or pair of binoculars
      • infant feed
      • reasonable reading material carried in-hand
      • an umbrella or walking stick
      • duty-free purchases
      • collapsible wheelchairs, braces or crutches provided the passenger is dependent on these.
    • Another circular dated May 11, 2000 added laptops to this list of exemptions.
    • The 2022 letter, therefore, even as it calls the matter sensitive, only seeks the enforcement of the rules as per the 2000 circulars. The CISF merely calls upon the BCAS to make passengers aware of and comply with ‘one handbag’ per person rule, with the exemptions as stated.
  14. Today the Calcutta High Court held that an Additional District Judge, Fast Track Court is not subordinate to District Court so far as judicial function is concerned and such Fast Track Court is competent to hear matter under Guardian and Wards Act of 1890 without any general or special order from the High Court to that effect.  (Tamailka Bose v. Mukut Bose)
  15. Today the Allahabad High Court ha observed that a Magistrate has the power to ‘monitor’ investigation under Section 156(3) of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) and a person who is aggrieved by police probe can move Magistrate for monitoring the probe.  (Satyaprakash v. State of Uttar Pradesh and Other)
  16. Many Advocates-on-Record (AoRs) practicing before the Supreme Court of India received an automated call this morning from an anonymous number warning that the Kashmir flag will be raised in Delhi on Republic Day, The call which claimed to be from Mujahideen said that the Supreme Court is as much responsible for the abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution as the Modi government.
  17. Today the Karnataka High Court granted bail in a rape case after observing that the relationship between the accused and the complainant appeared to be consensual prima facie.  (Manoj Kumar M R v. State of Karnataka and Ors)
  18. Today the Rajasthan High Court has decided to continue the functioning of all Subordinate courts including the Special Courts and Tribunals through virtual mode till January 29, 2022.
  19. It is not often that a court hearing begins with the judge wondering out loud whether he should wish the lawyers appearing before him ‘good morning’ or ‘good night’ but that is what transpired before the Bench of Justice Devan Ramachandran of Kerala High Court today as he held a late night sitting in an admiralty suit.  (Grace Young International Co.Ltd represented by power of attorney holder TX Harry v Owners and Parties interested in the vessel MV Ocean Rose)
  20. Today the Bombay High Court observed that Getting compensation is the right of kin of COVID-19 victims and the same should not be denied merely because the claim was filed physically and not via web portal.
  21. Today Metropolitan Magistrate court Mumbai discharged Bollywood actor Shilpa Shetty in a case of obscenity filed against her after Hollywood actor Richard Gere had publicly kissed her at a promotional event in Rajasthan in 2007.
  22. Today the Supreme Court came down heavily on the Patna High Court for granting bail to a history-sheeter murder accused without citing reasons for the same.  (Sunil Kumar v. State of Bihar and anr)

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