Landowners Accepting Compensation For Partial Acquisition Cannot Later Seek Entire Property’s Acquisition Under Section 94 RFCTLARR Act: Patna High Court Retrospective Maintenance Under Section 125 CrPC Must Be Commensurate With Husband's Salary In Respective Years: Madhya Pradesh High Court Injunction Order Paying 'Lip-Service' To Cardinal Tests Without Addressing Allegations Of Fraud Is Unsustainable: Calcutta High Court Land Loser Appointments: Railways Not In Contempt For Requiring Physical Tests & Matriculation Qualifications, Rules Calcutta High Court Mere Presence Or Post-Incident Help Not Sufficient To Prove Common Intention Under Section 34 IPC: Allahabad High Court Election Petition Against Municipal President Maintainable Within 30 Days Of Election Meeting Despite Absence Of Gazette Notification: Madhya Pradesh High Court Husband Cannot Be Convicted For Wife’s Death Merely Because They Lived Under Same Roof Without Proof Of His Presence: Allahabad High Court Prosecution Case Demolished If Physical Layout In IO’s Sketch Map Contradicts Witness Testimony: Calcutta High Court Suppression Of Facts Not Fatal If Not Material To Merits; State Cannot Benefit From Its Own Failure To Implement Orders: Supreme Court Nature Of Property And Limitation In Partition Suits Are Mixed Questions Of Law & Fact, Cannot Be Decided Under Order VII Rule 11 CPC: Telangana High Court Landlord Residing In Same Building Entitled To Eviction For Nuisance By Tenant's Patrons; No Need To Examine Independent Witnesses: Bombay High Court "Shocking Administrative Apathy": Supreme Court Summons Rajasthan Top Brass Over Failure To Curb Illegal Sand Mining In Chambal Sanctuary CISF Personnel Making Unsubstantiated Sexual Harassment Allegations Against Colleagues Can Be Removed From Service: Delhi High Court Decree On Admission Under Order XII Rule 6 CPC Can Be Based On Statements Made In Criminal Proceedings: Supreme Court Writ Petition Challenging Labour Tribunal Award Maintainable Even Against Privatized Air India: Delhi High Court Bar Council Of India Seeks Mamata Banerjee's Enrolment Details After Former WB CM Appears In Calcutta HC In Advocate's Robes

"CRIMINAL LAW" Digest

Bail – Murder Case – Section 483 BNSS – Prolonged Custody – Grant of Bail – Petitioner sought regular bail in FIR alleging murder by firearm pursuant to criminal conspiracy – Prosecution case based primarily on two eye-witnesses – One eye-witness (PW-6) turned hostile and did not support prosecution even after cross-examination – Other eye-witness (P...

Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 – Section 138 & Section 141 – Quashing of Summoning Order – Parallel Remedies – Forum Shopping – Petitioners challenged summoning orders by invoking inherent jurisdiction of High Court while having already filed criminal revision before Sessions Court – Suppression of pendency of revision held to lack bona fides – Law r...

Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 – Sanction for Prosecution – Validity – Application of Mind – Sanction granted under Sections 19(1)(b) & (c) PC Act to prosecute public servant for alleged disproportionate assets challenged – Held: Sanction is not an idle formality and must disclose due application of mind to all relevant material – Mechanical sanction ign...

Limitation – Condonation of Delay – Criminal Revision – Delay of 168 Days – Application by State Instrumentality – Applicant sought condonation on grounds of administrative lapses, non-availability of staff, late receipt of file and multiple legal opinions – No cogent, credible or plausible explanation furnished for prolonged delay – Bald assertions withou...

Criminal Law – Appeal Against Conviction – Appreciation of Evidence – Benefit of Doubt – Five accused convicted by Trial Court for offences under Sections 342, 365, 376(f) & (g) and 506 IPC – High Court reappreciated entire evidence in appeal – Held: Prosecution failed to prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt – Conviction unsustainable [Paras 21–25...

Bail – Murder and allied offences – Sections 191, 103, 329 BNS – Accused sought bail under Section 483 BNSS – Prosecution alleged brutal group assault resulting in death – Offences punishable with death or life imprisonment – Held: Gravity of offence alone not decisive for denial of bail when similarly placed co-accused have been enlarged on bail [Paras 3–...

Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 – Section 138 – Dishonour of Cheque – Concurrent Conviction – Revisional Interference Declined – Petitioner convicted by Trial Court and conviction affirmed by Appellate Court for dishonour of cheque of Rs. 6,00,000/- – Revision under Section 482 CrPC challenging legality and propriety of concurrent findings – Held: No perv...

Criminal Law - Money Laundering – Discharge under Section 227 CrPC – Scheduled Offence – Section 467 IPC included as scheduled offence w.e.f. 01.06.2009 – Accused discharged by Special PMLA Court on ground that alleged predicate offence was committed prior to inclusion of Section 467 IPC in Schedule – Held: Approach erroneous – Offence under Section 3 PMLA is in...

POCSO Act, 2012 – Cross-Examination of Child Victim – Forfeiture of Right – Appellants repeatedly sought adjournments on personal grounds of counsel despite presence of child victim on several dates – Trial Court closed further cross-examination after sufficient opportunity – Held: No illegality or violation of fair trial; forfeiture justified to protect child from re...

NDPS Act – Regular Bail – Recovery of Heroin – Section 37 Rigours – Petition under Section 483 BNSS seeking regular bail in FIR for offences under Sections 21, 22, 27-A and 29 NDPS Act – Recovery of 258 grams of heroin attributed to petitioner, which is more than non-commercial quantity – Held: Rigours of Section 37 NDPS Act squarely attracted and bail can be gr...