Criminal Law - Bribery – Demand and Acceptance – Conviction Restored - Accused, a Village Accountant, was caught in a trap accepting ₹500 as part of a ₹1500 bribe to process a mutation entry – Trial Court convicted, but High Court reversed on grounds of inconsistencies – Supreme Court held that minor discrepancies do not negate credible prosecution evidence – Conv...
Criminal Law - Appeal Against Acquittal – Appreciation of Evidence – Section 378(3) CrPC – Acquittal Upheld – The State challenged the acquittal of accused under Sections 307, 323, and 325 IPC read with Section 34 IPC – The High Court held that the trial court’s evaluation of evidence was plausible and well-reasoned – No perversity found warranting interfe...
Criminal Law - Juvenile Justice – Trial of Juvenile as Adult – Mandatory Two-Stage Assessment – Trial Held Invalid – Appellant, aged 17, was tried as an adult based solely on preliminary assessment by Juvenile Justice Board – Held: Under Sections 15 and 19 of the JJ Act, trial of juvenile as adult requires two distinct assessments – Children’s Court must c...
ESI Contributions – Principal Employer – Criminal Liability – Conviction Upheld - The appellant was convicted for failure to deposit ESI contributions deducted from employees' wages for the period from 01.02.2010 to 31.12.2010 – The Trial Court and the High Court found that the appellant acted as General Manager and had actual control over the factory – Held: The ...
Misuse of Court Process – Filing Second SLP After Dismissal of First – Abuse of Process – The petitioner filed a second Special Leave Petition against the same judgment already challenged and dismissed in the first SLP, without disclosure – The Court held it was a fraudulent misuse of judicial process and a deliberate concealment of facts by the petitioner and his counsel [...
Anticipatory Bail – Criminal History and Threat Allegations – Bail Upheld – Respondent No. 2, a person with multiple past FIRs, was granted anticipatory bail by the High Court in a case involving threats and abuses to the complainant – Appellant contended risk of repeat offences – Held: Offences were not heinous and were triable by Judicial Magistrate – No legal...
Criminal Law – Murder - Circumstantial Evidence – Death of Son Allegedly Caused by Father – Conviction Upheld – The Court dealt with whether the death of the son was homicidal or suicidal – Held: Gunshot residue found on the right hand of the accused, who was right-handed, and false statements made by him attempting to portray the death as a suicide by screwdriver wer...
Criminal Law – Quashing - Banking Dispute – Commercial Nature – One Time Settlement with Bank – Proceedings Quashed - Dispute between the appellants and Bank of Maharashtra was settled through a negotiated compromise, resulting in a "No Dues Certificate" and repayment exceeding principal loan amount – Held: Nature of dispute was civil/commercial, not crimina...
Criminal Law - Public Way – Unlawful Construction – Section 133 CrPC – Order for Removal Upheld - Petitioners challenged orders directing demolition of a wall built on public land used as a pathway – Held: Wall obstructed traditional public way; even partial obstruction warrants removal under Section 133 CrPC – Construction found unjustified and detrimental to public ...
Criminal Law - Sections 498-A and 306 IPC - Suicide – Abetment Not Proved – Acquittal Upheld – No Instigation or Active Role by Accused - The deceased allegedly committed suicide by self-immolation after claimed harassment by in-laws and husband – Court found no proximate evidence of instigation or mental cruelty triggering the act – Accused had been residing separate...