A. Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985—Section 50—Search of person—Compliance—Mandatory compliance of Section 50 requires that accused be clearly informed of his right to be searched before a Gazetted Officer or Magistrate—Only two options permissible—Giving any third option or recording vague consent vitiates search—Failure to obtain proper written waiver renders recovery doubtful and inadmissible—Non-compliance fatal to prosecution case. [Paras 22, 23] B. Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985—Section 20—Recovery—Appreciation of evidence—Conviction can be based on official witnesses, however, where material contradictions and discrepancies exist in their testimonies and no independent witness is associated despite availability,...

A. Penal Code, 1860—Sections 279, 304-A—Rash and negligent driving—Proof—“High speed” alone insufficient—To establish rashness or negligence, prosecution must prove specific negligent act—Mere allegation of driving at “high speed” is insufficient—“High speed” is a relative term and cannot by itself establish criminal negligence—No evidence regarding manner of driving or breach of duty—Conviction cannot be based on such vague assertions. [Paras 19–23] B. Evidence Act, 1872—Section 25; Criminal Trial—Confession to police—Admissibility—Confessional statement made by accused to police is inadmissible—FIR or statement given by accused containing confession cannot be used against him except to limited extent unde...

A. Constitution of India—Article 226—Judicial review—Transfer of employee—Scope of interference—Limited jurisdiction—Transfer being an incident of service, employee has no vested right to be posted at a particular place—Judicial review under Article 226 is limited to cases of mala fides, statutory violation or patent arbitrariness—Where transfer effected pursuant to policy and Supreme Court directions, and based on administrative exigencies and availability of vacancies, no interference warranted—Tribunal rightly declined interference. [Paras 16–18, 27–29] B. Service Law—Transfer policy—Medical grounds—Reasonable accommodation—Applicability of disability law—Requirement of proof—Claim for accommodation on medical grounds must sati...

A. Penal Code, 1860—Sections 363, 366-A, 376-AB, 506—Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012—Sections 6, 10—Conviction—Sustainability—Inconsistent and unreliable evidence—Benefit of doubt—Conviction for kidnapping and penetrative sexual assault set aside—Material contradictions between testimony of prosecutrix and FIR version—Victim’s version not consistent with mother’s account—Evidence not of sterling quality—Medical evidence does not support prosecution case—No injuries, no conclusive opinion of sexual assault—Prosecution failed to establish foundational facts—Conviction unsustainable—Accused entitled to benefit of doubt. [Paras 5, 6, 7, 9, 10] B. Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012—S...

A. Code of Civil Procedure, 1908—Order XII Rule 6—Decree on admission—Requirement of clear and unequivocal admission—A decree on admission can be passed only where the admission is clear, unambiguous, and leaves no room for doubt—Where the defendant’s written statement reproduces the plaintiff’s averments regarding outstanding rent but simultaneously denies non-payment and asserts timely payment, the pleadings disclose a dispute raising triable issues—In such circumstances, passing a decree on admission is unwarranted and the matter requires full trial. (Paras 14 to 18) B. Code of Civil Procedure, 1908—Order XII Rule 6—Reproduction of pleadings—Not an admission—Holistic reading of written statement—Mere reproduction of the plaintiff’s pleadings in the w...

A. Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996—Section 37—Appeal against order under Section 34—Scope of interference—Limited judicial review—While exercising jurisdiction under Section 37, the appellate court does not rehear the matter on merits or sit in appeal over findings of fact recorded by the arbitral tribunal—Interference is warranted only where the court under Section 34 has ignored settled parameters or where findings suffer from patent illegality, perversity, or manifest error—Legislative intent is to minimise judicial intervention and accord finality to arbitral awards—Where the learned Single Judge has applied the correct principles and the findings disclose no manifest error, appellate interference is unwarranted and the appeals are liable to be dismissed. (Paras 1 to 3, 25 to 28, ...

A. Indian Penal Code, 1860—Sections 341, 354 & 323—Conviction—Sustainability—Corroboration of victim’s testimony—Conviction under IPC for offences of wrongful restraint, causing hurt, and outraging modesty is sustainable where prosecution evidence, including the testimony of the victim, is cogent and duly corroborated—Unauthorized investigation under another statute does not vitiate conviction under IPC where evidence otherwise establishes guilt—Sentence imposed found reasonable and upheld. (Paras 13 to 29, 36 to 37) B. Indian Penal Code, 1860—Section 324—Hurt by dangerous weapon—Scope—Injury by teeth—Injury caused by human teeth cannot be construed as being inflicted by a “dangerous weapon or means” within the meaning of Section 324 IPC&mdash...

A. Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881—Section 138 read with Sections 118 & 139; Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973—Section 313—Presumptions—Cheque issuance admitted—Burden of proof—Where issuance of cheque and signature are admitted, presumptions arise under Sections 118 and 139 of the Act that the cheque was issued for consideration and in discharge of a legally enforceable debt or liability—The burden lies on the accused to rebut the presumption by cogent evidence—Mere denial in the statement under Section 313 CrPC is insufficient to discharge such burden. (Paras 21 to 23, 29) B. Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881—Section 138—Subsequent payment—Effect on offence—Payment made after the cause of action has arisen, including after issuance of legal notice, does not ex...

A. Indian Penal Code, 1860—Sections 341, 352, 506; Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989—Section 3(1)(x)—Appeal against acquittal—Scope of interference—Double presumption of innocence—In an appeal against acquittal, the High Court cannot interfere unless the judgment suffers from patent perversity, is based on misreading or omission of material evidence, or results in manifest miscarriage of justice—After acquittal, the accused enjoys a double presumption of innocence—Where the view taken by the Trial Court is a reasonable and possible view, the same is not liable to be interfered with merely because another view is possible. (Paras 12, 13, 30 to 32) B. Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973—Section 437A [Corresponding to Section 481 of the Bharatiya ...

A. Indian Penal Code, 1860—Sections 341 & 323 read with Section 34—Constitution of India—Article 21—Quashing of FIR—Right to speedy trial—Inordinate delay—The right to a speedy trial is a fundamental right guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution—Where proceedings remain pending for over 14 years for offences punishable only with a nominal fine not exceeding Rs.100/-, such delay amounts to a travesty of justice—Continuation of such proceedings would be unjustified, and the FIR along with consequential proceedings is liable to be quashed on the ground of unreasonable delay. (Paras 10, 11, 13) B. Himachal Pradesh Panchayati Raj Act, 1994—Section 33—Jurisdiction of Gram Panchayat—Minor offences—Delay in proceedings—Under Section 33 of the Himach...