Civil Law - Electricity Act - Jurisdiction of CERC – Powers under Section 79 – Regulatory Order Valid – Held: CERC has dual functions of regulation and adjudication – Even in absence of regulations under Section 178, CERC is empowered to regulate tariff matters between parties under Section 79 – Grant of liberty to claim compensation falls within such regulatory scope...
Road Safety – Public Interest Litigation (PIL) – National Highways – Implementation of Control of National Highways Act, 2002 – Directions issued to remove unauthorised occupation from National Highways and establish enforcement mechanisms – Court found the absence of dedicated inspection teams and grievance redressal portals violated statutory mandates – Held: ...
Civil Procedure – Dismiss in Default – Order 9 Rule 8 CPC – Meaning of ‘Hearing’ – Suit dismissed on 08.12.2003 due to non-appearance of plaintiffs though the date was fixed only for defendants to file written statement – Held: Such a date is not a ‘date of hearing’ as per CPC – Dismissal for default under Order IX Rule 8 improper –...
Civil Writ – Constitutional Law - Public Authority – Meaning under Article 12 – Air Force School Not a “State” – The Supreme Court held that the Air Force School, though administered by the Indian Air Force Educational and Cultural Society and staffed by IAF personnel, did not satisfy the test of pervasive control by the State – The school is financially a...
Taxation Law - Customs – Duty Drawback – Circular No. 35/2010-Cus. – Clarificatory Nature – Retrospective Application – Dispute over denial of 1% AIR duty drawback to exporters of Soyabean Meal who availed Central Excise rebate – Supreme Court held that CBEC Circular No. 35/2010-Cus. was clarificatory in nature and must apply retrospectively – Circular did...
Service Law - Judicial Service – Probation Termination – Stigmatic Discharge Not Sustainable – The appellant, a probationer in Rajasthan Judicial Service, was discharged based on an inquiry alleging misconduct including non-disclosure of past employment and simultaneous academic degrees – The Court held that the allegations predated judicial service and were not grave enoug...
Civil Law - Proof of Will – Section 63 of Succession Act and Section 68 of Evidence Act – Failure to Comply – Will Disbelieved – Trial court found that attesting witness Ram Sagar Mishra failed to establish due execution – Signatures of testator shaky, testator was 84 years old and ill – Trial court’s reasoning upheld by High Court – Registered natur...
Tenancy Law - Tenancy Dispute – Determination of Status of Occupants – Defendants Held to Be Trespassers – The plaintiff sought recovery of possession on the ground that the defendants were not legal tenants – The original tenant, Manilal Damodardas, was an individual, and no tenancy was ever created in the name of the partnership firm claimed by defendants – Rent rec...
Service Law – Environmental Law – Performance Appraisal Reports – Directions for Appraisal of IFS Officers – Impugned G.O. dated 29th June 2024 issued by the Government of Madhya Pradesh prescribed IAS officers as reporting/reviewing authorities for Indian Forest Service officers – Challenged for violating Supreme Court’s previous orders and established rules &n...
Service Law – Armed Forces – Territorial Army Promotion – Grading Disparity and COAS Discretion – Appellant denied promotion to Colonel despite being eligible and having service of 22 years – Five Selection Boards from 2000 to 2003 graded him as ‘Z’ (unfit), while a co-candidate initially graded ‘Z’ was upgraded to ‘B’ by COAS and p...