A. Constitution of India—Articles 14, 39(d) and 318—Uttarakhand Public Service Commission (Conditions of Service) Regulations, 2004—Regulation 7(1) and (2)—Salary of retired Government servant appointed as Chairman or Member of Public Service Commission—Deduction of previous service pension—Validity—Regulation 7(2) authorising Governor to keep service pension wholly or partly in abeyance or reduce prescribed pay by pension amount, constitutionally valid—Principle of “pay minus pension” applicable to retired Government servants appointed as Chairman or Member of State Public Service Commission—Deduction does not violate Article 14 or principle of equal pay for equal work. (Paras 5-7.3, 13-14)B. Constitution of India—Article 318, Proviso—Conditions of service of Chairman and Members of Public Service Commission—P...
A. Constitution of India—Article 246—Seventh Schedule, List II, Entry 54—Legislative competence—Sales tax surcharge—Additional tax calculated as percentage of sales tax payable is an enhancement of sales tax and remains a tax on sale or purchase of goods—Measure of tax does not determine its subject or character—Such levy does not become a tax on tax or income merely because it is computed with reference to tax payable or cannot be passed on to purchaser. (Paras 83-94)B. Constitution of India—Seventh Schedule, List II, Entry 54—Orissa Sales Tax Act, 1947—Section 5-A—Punjab General Sales Tax Act, 1948—Section 5(1-C)—Surcharge—Constitutional validity—S. Kodar v. State of Kerala upheld additional sales tax calculated as percentage of tax payable by dealers exceeding prescribed turnover—Principle reaffirmed in ...
A. Maharashtra Village Panchayats Act, 1959—Section 14(1)(j-1)—Disqualification from contesting Panchayat election—Two-child norm—Constitutional validity—Changed demographic circumstances—Provision disqualifying a person from contesting or holding Panchayat office on the ground of having more than two children was founded upon the perceived need to control population growth—India's Total Fertility Rate having declined from approximately 3.0 in 2003 to 1.9, below the replacement level of 2.1, the demographic assumptions underlying such restrictions have materially changed—Population control laws based upon fear of population explosion have lost their original rationale and warrant constitutional reconsideration—Matter referred to larger Bench for reconsideration of Javed v. State of Haryana. (Paras 2-4, 8-12, 20-30, 65-66...
A. Indian Penal Code, 1860—Sections 302, 498A and 304B read with Section 34—Murder—Death of wife within seven years of marriage—Circumstantial evidence—Deceased died homicidally by throttling inside matrimonial home within nine months of marriage—Medical evidence established asphyxia due to throttling and ruled out the defence plea of accidental death caused by epileptic seizure during sexual intercourse—False explanation offered by husband, who was in the exclusive company of deceased at the time of occurrence, constituted an additional incriminating link completing the chain of circumstances and establishing his guilt under Section 302 IPC. (Paras 34-40)B. Indian Evidence Act, 1872—Section 106—Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023—Corresponding provision—Offence committed inside matrimonial home—Burden of explanation...
A. Indian Penal Code, 1860—Sections 143, 148, 302, 323, 341 read with Section 149—Murder—Appeal against acquittal—Scope of appellate interference—Appellate Court has full power to review, reappreciate and reconsider the evidence upon which acquittal is founded—However, where two reasonable conclusions are possible on the evidence, acquittal should not be disturbed—Interference is justified where the judgment of acquittal is perverse, wholly unreasonable or unsustainable in law—Trial Court having discarded crucial eyewitness evidence and adopted reasoning contrary to the record, High Court rightly reversed acquittal and convicted the accused. (Paras 19-21)B. Indian Penal Code, 1860—Sections 302 and 149—Murder—Direct evidence—Motive—Related and injured eyewitnesses—Evidentiary value—Where direct eyewitness evid...
A. Indian Penal Code, 1860—Sections 306, 107—Abetment of suicide—Instigation—Held, conviction under Section 306 requires proof beyond reasonable doubt of intentional instigation or abetment having a proximate causal connection with the suicide—Letters containing abusive, derogatory and threatening expressions, coupled with appeals for reconciliation and withdrawal of pending matrimonial proceedings, did not constitute instigation under Section 107, particularly when the deceased had been living separately and pursuing litigation for more than two years—Prosecution failed to establish that the appellant’s conduct instigated the deceased to commit suicide; conviction and sentence set aside and appellant acquitted. (Paras 25-30)B. Indian Evidence Act, 1872—Sections 45, 67—Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973—Sections 293, 313...
A. Code of Civil Procedure, 1908—Sections 13, 14—Foreign matrimonial decree—Recognition and enforceability—Held, foreign divorce decree is not automatically conclusive in India and must satisfy the conditions under Section 13 CPC—Jurisdiction assumed by foreign Court and ground of divorce must ordinarily conform to the matrimonial law governing the parties—Decree dissolving Hindu marriage on the ground of irretrievable breakdown, not recognised under the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, cannot be recognised in India merely because it has been made absolute by a foreign Court. (Paras 16-23)B. Hindu Marriage Act, 1955—Section 13—Indian Penal Code, 1860—Section 494—Bigamy—Foreign divorce decree—Held, husband who failed to obtain dissolution of his Hindu marriage before Indian Courts could not circumvent Indian matrimonial la...
A. Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973—Section 482—Quashing of criminal proceedings—Inherent powers—Held, inherent jurisdiction may be exercised to prevent abuse of process of Court and secure ends of justice where allegations, even if accepted in entirety, do not prima facie constitute an offence—Legitimate prosecution must not be stifled, but an accused cannot be compelled to face criminal proceedings when the basic ingredients of the alleged offences are absent. (Paras 34-36)B. Indian Penal Code, 1860—Section 304-B—Evidence Act, 1872—Section 113-B—Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961—Sections 2, 3, 4—Dowry death—Soon before death—Held, prosecution must establish unnatural death within seven years of marriage and cruelty or harassment for or in connection with dowry demand soon before death—Only upon establishing these f...
A. Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973—Section 482—Quashing of FIR—Inherent powers—Held, High Court may exercise inherent jurisdiction to prevent abuse of process of Court and secure ends of justice where allegations, even if accepted in entirety, do not prima facie constitute an offence—While legitimate prosecution must not be stifled, an accused cannot be compelled to face criminal trial when essential ingredients of alleged offences are absent. (Paras 34-36)B. Indian Penal Code, 1860—Section 304-B—Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961—Sections 2, 3, 4—Dowry death—Soon before death—Held, prosecution must establish unnatural death within seven years of marriage, cruelty or harassment by husband or his relative, and a proximate connection with dowry demand soon before death—Only after these foundational ingredients are establis...
A. Constitution of India—Articles 21, 23 and 32—Bonded labour—Identification, release and rehabilitation—Held, the State’s constitutional obligation does not end with rescue and release of bonded labourers but extends to timely financial assistance, meaningful rehabilitation and protection against re-exploitation—Identification, release and rehabilitation are interconnected stages of a continuing constitutional responsibility—Mere release without adequate rehabilitation fails to secure human dignity. (Paras 12-18)B. Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, 1976—Sections 4-6, 10-14—Rehabilitation Scheme—Inter-State rescue and rehabilitation—Held, entitlement to rehabilitation assistance cannot depend upon differences in administrative practices or jurisdictional arrangements between States—Uniform procedures, prescribe...
A. Code of Civil Procedure, 1908—Section 100—Second appeal—Substantial question of law—Concurrent findings of fact—Held, High Court cannot interfere with concurrent findings of fact merely because another view of the evidence is possible. Interference is warranted only where findings are perverse, based on no evidence or affected by an error of law. Where the findings of the Courts below are supported by the evidence on record, no ground for interference is made out. (Paras 20-21)B. Code of Civil Procedure, 1908—Partition—Oral partition—Family arrangement—Proof—Held, a genuine family arrangement may be oral and is not invalid merely because it is not reduced to writing. However, the party asserting such arrangement must establish its existence and the specific allotment claimed. Appellant's failure to prove oral partit...
A. Code of Civil Procedure, 1908—Order 39, Rule 2-A—Disobedience of injunction—Proof of breach—Evidence of third parties—Held, where the petitioner-company had examined its authorised signatory and two witnesses and the documentary evidence established that the respondents had sent emails to various authorities containing the alleged defamatory statements, the application could not be rejected merely for non-examination of the persons or authorities to whom such emails were addressed. The contents of the emails were self-explanatory and the trial Court’s insistence on independent evidence from the recipients was erroneous. (Paras 20-22)B. Code of Civil Procedure, 1908—Order 39, Rule 2-A—Proceedings for breach of injunction—Appreciation of evidence—Remand—Held, rejection of an application for breach of injunction on t...
A. Indian Penal Code, 1860—Section 395—Dacoity—Identification of accused—Held, where the incident allegedly involved 20 to 22 persons, who entered the house at 1.30 a.m. with their faces covered, during rainfall and absence of electricity, identification of the appellants in the light of a kerosene lamp required careful scrutiny. Mere familiarity of the witnesses with the appellants could not remove the doubt arising from the circumstances of identification. (Para 12)B. Indian Penal Code, 1860—Sections 395, 337, 342 read with Section 34—Appreciation of evidence—Interested witnesses—Previous enmity—Held, evidence of related witnesses cannot be discarded merely on account of relationship; however, admitted partition disputes, pending civil and criminal proceedings and previous complaints between the parties were relevant c...
A. Indian Penal Code, 1860—Sections 498-A, 306, 107—Matrimonial cruelty—Abetment of suicide—Essential ingredients—Held, mere unnatural death of a married woman or existence of matrimonial differences is insufficient to establish abetment of suicide. Prosecution must establish that the deceased committed suicide and that the accused intentionally instigated or aided its commission, satisfying the ingredients of abetment under Section 107. In absence of evidence establishing the necessary ingredients, conviction under Section 306 cannot be sustained. (Paras 17-20)B. Indian Evidence Act, 1872—Dying declaration—Reliability—Voluntariness—Medical evidence—Held, a dying declaration can form the sole basis of conviction only when the Court is satisfied that it is voluntary, truthful and made in a fit state of mind. Surrounding...
A. Constitution of India—Article 30(1)—Minority educational institution—Right to appoint Principal—Held, the right to choose and appoint a qualified Principal or Headmaster is an essential facet of the right to administer an educational institution. The State cannot impose seniority-based promotion or departmental selection procedures upon a minority institution so as to impair its autonomy; regulatory requirements may prescribe qualifications and conditions of service but cannot destroy the substantive right of choice. (Paras 8-9, 18)B. Constitution of India—Article 30(1)—Goa School Education Act, 1984—Goa School Education Rules, 1986—Rules 78, 86, 86A—Appointment of Principal—Transfer from another State—Held, a minority institution is entitled to appoint a duly qualified candidate of its choice, even if transferred...
A. Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023—Section 483—Regular bail—Murder—Absence of specific overt act—Held, though the applicant’s house was allegedly used for bringing and assaulting the deceased, the charge-sheet material did not disclose any specific overt act of assault attributable to him. The allegations of assault were specifically directed against co-accused who had already been enlarged on bail; continued detention of the applicant pending trial was therefore not warranted. (Paras 9, 12)B. Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023—Section 483—Regular bail—Parity—Role of co-accused—Held, where co-accused against whom specific overt acts of assault were alleged had been granted bail, and no specific overt act of assault was attributed to the applicant, the applicant was entitled to bail on the principle of ...
A. Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881—Sections 118(a), 139—Dishonour of cheque—Statutory presumption—Legally enforceable debt—Held, admission of signature on the cheque raises the statutory presumption in favour of the holder regarding consideration and legally enforceable liability. Where the accused failed to rebut the presumption by raising a probable defence and did not lead any evidence, mere denial in the statement under Section 313 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 was insufficient to displace the presumption. (Paras 18-21)B. Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881—Section 138—Dishonour of cheque—Difference between loan amount and cheque amount—Interest liability—Held, mere difference between the original loan of Rs.2,50,000 and the cheque amount of Rs.5,89,000 did not disprove the legally recoverable liability whe...
A. Goa, Daman and Diu Mamlatdar's Court Act, 1966—Section 4—Obstruction of pathway—Traditional access—Encroachment—Held, where the petitioners alleged obstruction of their traditional access to their houses through the respondents’ property, the Mamlatdar’s finding of encroachment could not be sustained merely on a general inspection report which did not specify the nature and dimensions of the obstruction or contain a map depicting the encroachment. (Paras 2, 4)B. Goa, Daman and Diu Mamlatdar's Court Act, 1966—Section 4—Joint site inspection—Survey access—Fresh enquiry—Held, where the inspection report merely recorded construction of a shed up to the edge of the gutter obstructing the pathway, without specifying the dimensions of the obstruction, the matter required fresh joint inspection by the Surveyor attached ...
A. Code of Civil Procedure, 1908—Order 21, Rule 58—Claim petition—Attachment of property—Prior mortgage—Priority of secured creditor—Held, where the property was mortgaged in 2014, prior to its attachment in the respective money suits, the subsequent SARFAESI sale by the secured creditor transferred the mortgagor’s right, title and interest as existing on the date of mortgage. The auction purchaser acquired valid title notwithstanding the subsequent attachments, particularly when the SARFAESI sale remained unchallenged. (Paras 4, 8)B. Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest Act, 2002—Sale of mortgaged property—Auction purchaser—Excess sale consideration—Deposit in pending suit—Held, the auction purchaser, who was also the plaintiff in an earlier money suit against ...
A. Kerala Buildings (Lease and Rent Control) Act, 1965—Section 11(3)—Eviction—Bona fide need—Examination of co-landlord—Held, where the building was jointly let out by husband and wife and the bona fide requirement was for the occupation of one of the co-landlords, the need could be proved by either of them. Examination of the wife, who was herself a co-landlord and a party to the rental agreement, was sufficient; non-examination of the husband did not render the need doubtful, particularly when the reason for his non-examination was his stammering difficulty and health condition. (Paras 8-9)B. Kerala Buildings (Lease and Rent Control) Act, 1965—Section 11(3), first proviso—Eviction—Availability of another portion of building—Held, mere admission by the landlord's witness that the upper-floor rooms were lying vacant did ...