A. Criminal Procedure Code, 1973—Section 125—Maintenance—Legally wedded wife—Petitioner No.1's marriage annulled under Section 11 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 for contravening Section 5(i)—Held, term 'wife' under Section 125 Cr.P.C. includes only legally wedded wife, and a woman whose marriage is null and void due to an earlier surviving marriage is not entitled to maintenance under this provision—Live-in relationships—Presumption of marriage for maintenance eligibility requires cohabitation for a reasonably long period—Petitioner No.1 having cohabited with Respondent No.1 for a mere three months, held, she does not qualify for maintenance under live-in relationship principles either. [Paras 10, 11, 12, 14, 15, 16, 17] B. Criminal Procedure Code, 1973—Section 125...

A. Land Acquisition Act, 1894—Section 6 Proviso—Limitation for Declaration—Lapse of Acquisition—A declaration under Section 6 must be issued within the statutory period of one year from the date of publication of the notification under Section 4, as mandated by the proviso to Section 6—A declaration issued beyond the prescribed period is void, resulting in the acquisition proceedings lapsing by operation of law—Such statutory lapse cannot be cured or revived by any subsequent judicial order. [Paras 44, 45, 50] B. Land Acquisition Act, 1894—Section 4—Power of High Court under Article 226—Shifting of Notification Date—The power to direct that the effective date of a notification under Section 4 be shifted or treated differently, in order to balance competing equities where acqui...

A. Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorised Occupants) Act, 1971—Section 15—Bar of Civil Court's Jurisdiction—Where the property in question answers the definition of "public premises" under the Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorised Occupants) Act, 1971, Section 15 expressly bars the jurisdiction of civil courts to entertain suits or proceedings relating to eviction of occupants, removal of unauthorised constructions, or recovery of rent or damages, as such matters fall within the exclusive jurisdiction of the authorities constituted under the Act. [Paras 5–7, 9, 10] B. Public Premises Act, 1971 vis-à-vis Rent Control Legislation—Overriding Effect—The Supreme Court has consistently held, including in Ashoka Marketing Ltd. v. Punjab National Bank and Vita case, that the Publi...

A. Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996—Section 9—Interim measures for securing assets pending arbitration—Held, where the petitioner establishes a strong prima facie case, the balance of convenience lies in its favour, and denial of protection would result in irreparable prejudice through diminution or dissipation of the respondent's assets, the Court may grant appropriate interim measures under Section 9—In such circumstances, directions requiring the respondent to secure the claim by depositing the disputed amount or furnishing a bank guarantee, coupled with restraint against alienation or encumbrance of assets except in the ordinary course of business, are justified to safeguard the efficacy of the arbitral process. (Paras 8, 45-49) B. Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996—Sections 9 and 17&mdas...

A. Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996—Ss.9, 7 & 16—Composite Family Settlement—Arbitration Clause—Agreements executed contemporaneously as part of a single family settlement constitute an integrated transaction and cannot be construed in isolation—Prima facie, the arbitration clause contained in the parent settlement agreement governs disputes arising from interconnected agreements, warranting interim protection pending arbitral adjudication. B. Family Settlement—Construction of Contemporaneous Documents—Multiple documents forming part of a family business arrangement must be interpreted holistically—Trademark, branding, and territorial rights constituted an integral component of the family settlement and were not intended to exist independently of the overall framework. C. Tra...

A. Constitution of India, 1950—Article 226—Maharashtra Protection of Interest of Depositors (in Financial Establishments) Act, 1999—Clubbing of criminal cases for joint trial—A prayer for joint trial of multiple criminal cases pending before different Special MPID Courts must be considered by balancing the convenience of the accused with the interests and welfare of depositors and victims—Where two cases arising from FIRs registered at the same city involve common transactions and parties, they may be clubbed and tried together; however, a case arising from a distinct FIR registered elsewhere may continue before the competent court having territorial jurisdiction, particularly where transfer would cause substantial hardship to senior citizen investors—An undertaking by the accused to bear travel and mea...

A. Court Fees Act, 1859 (Bombay)—Section 46—Court Fee Exemption for Women—The exemption from payment of court fees available to women under the Government Notification dated 1-10-1994 is confined to specified categories, namely maintenance, matrimonial property disputes, violence, and divorce. Succession and partition suits do not qualify unless they fall within the notified categories. (Paras 10, 15, 18, 20–23) B. Court Fees Act, 1859 (Bombay)—Section 46—Violence—Scope of Exemption—The exemption on the ground of violence is attracted only where violence constitutes the foundation or an inseparable part of the cause of action. Mere allegations of physical, financial, or economic violence in a suit of a different nature are insufficient to claim exemption from court fees. (Paras 25–2...

A. Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996—Section 9—Post-Award Interim Relief—Grant of interim protection after an arbitral award requires the unsuccessful party to establish exceptional circumstances warranting departure from the award. Mere pendency of a challenge or an arguable case is insufficient; relief is justified only where refusal would cause irreparable prejudice despite a successful challenge. (Paras 42, 65) B. Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996—Sections 9 & 36(3)—Consent Terms—Suppression of Material Facts—Non-disclosure of material consent terms governing the continuation and expiry of a bank guarantee, coupled with delay in seeking relief, disentitles a party to equitable and discretionary relief under Section 9, particularly where such terms were negotiated by commercial...

A. Civil Procedure Code, 1908—Order VIII Rule 6A—Counter-Claim—A defendant may raise a counter-claim in respect of any right or claim accruing before or after institution of the suit, provided it arises before filing the written statement, with the object of avoiding multiplicity of proceedings and enabling complete adjudication of disputes in a single suit. (Paras 23–26) B. Civil Procedure Code, 1908—Order VIII Rule 6A—Belated Counter-Claim—No absolute time limit exists for filing a counter-claim before framing of issues. The Court may permit a delayed counter-claim after considering the explanation for delay, prejudice to the opposite party, stage of the proceedings, and the ends of justice. (Paras 19, 25, 30) C. Civil Procedure Code, 1908—Order VIII Rule 6A—Judicial Discretion...

A. Civil Procedure Code, 1908—Section 100—Second Appeal—The jurisdiction of the High Court in a second appeal is confined to substantial questions of law arising from the judgment of the first appellate court. Findings of fact may be interfered with only where material evidence has been ignored, inadmissible evidence has been relied upon, or the findings are otherwise perverse. (Paras 10, 11, 13) B. Evidence Act, 1872—Sections 68, 72 & 90—Proof of Old Attested Documents—The presumption under Section 90 extends only to the genuineness of the execution of a document produced from proper custody after thirty years and does not prove its contents. Where attesting witnesses are alive and available, execution of an attested document must ordinarily be proved by examining them, and reliance on Section 9...