Headnote:

Land Acquisition Act, 1894 - Appeal - Cross Objections - Consideration of - Appellants challenging compensation granted for acquisition of their lands by Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority - High Court confirming compensation determined by District Judge - Appellants contending that their cross objections were not considered by High Court - Supreme Court held that cross objections have same status as regular appeal and must be considered in full - High Court under obligation to apply its mind to all issues raised, record findings supported by reasons, and consider cross objections - Impugned order failing to consider cross objections - Matter remanded back to High Court for fresh adjudication on grounds raised in cross objections - Appeals allowed to that extent. (Para No. 12-22)

Trend of initiating mala fide criminal proceedings against financial institutions/lenders and their officers to obstruct debt recovery or coerce settlement - Petitioners allowed to challenge FIRs and ECIR in respective High Courts. (Para 2)

Supreme Court observes the potential detrimental impact of bypassing statutory remedies and using criminal law to target financial institutions. (Para 3)

Previously stayed criminal proceedings in three FIRs found to be an abuse of the criminal process and a case of forum shopping. (Para 4)

Additional FIR filed with overlapping facts - Petitioners challenge FIRs and ECIR, permitted to approach High Courts for redressal. (Para 5)

High Courts directed to expeditiously decide the petitions, not exceeding six months from their presentation. (Para 6)

DGPs instructed to examine petitioners' contentions regarding FIRs and take appropriate measures within one month. (Para 7)

Interim order staying proceedings in three FIRs continues until final disposal of respective petitions. (Para 8)

No coercive steps to be taken against petitioners until disposal of the further FIR and ECIR - Petitioners can seek a stay of proceedings. (Para 9)

Interim protection applicable only to petitioner financial institution and its officers, representatives, and managers. (Para 9)

All legal contentions preserved for High Court's consideration and decision based on their merits and in accordance with the law. (Para 10)

All petitions, including contempt petition and pending applications, disposed of by the Supreme Court. (Para 11)

Conditional Sale Deed - Assignment of right to repurchase - Personal or assignable nature - Interpretation of document - Whether the right to repurchase contained in a sale deed can be assigned by the vendor or if it is personal and cannot be transferred - Consideration of relevant clauses in the sale deed - Applicability of previous judicial decisions - Held, the right to repurchase is not personal unless explicitly stated in the document, and can be assigned unless the terms of the contract indicate otherwise - No implied prohibition against assignment or transfer should be inferred - Assignment of obligations, however, requires the consent of the other party. [Para 15, 16]

Gift Deed - Transfer of right to repurchase - Consideration money involved - Validity - Whether the assignment of a right to repurchase in a gift deed can be considered a gift - Consideration of the executor's intent and the conditions attached to the assignment - Held, the transfer of the right to repurchase can be considered an assignment and need not be categorized as a gift solely due to the involvement of consideration money. [Para 23]

Enforceability of contract - Specific performance - Relief sought - Multiple reliefs claimed in the suit - Whether specific performance and tenancy claims can be simultaneously sought - Held, multiple reliefs can be claimed in a suit, but the nature of the claims and their compatibility must be considered. [Para 14]

Assignment of contractual rights - Assignability - Rights not of personal nature - Consent of the other party - Whether contractual rights can be assigned without the consent of the other party - Distinction between assignment of rights and obligations - Held, contractual rights are generally assignable unless the contract is personal in nature or the rights are incapable of assignment under the law or an agreement between the parties - Assignment of obligations requires the consent of the other party. [Para 20]

Construction of documents - Implied terms - Prohibition against assignment or transfer - Whether an implied prohibition against assignment or transfer can be read into a document - Necessity of clear indications in the document - Applicability of Section 15(b) of the Specific Relief Act - Held, unless the contents of the document and evidence clearly indicate a prohibition, no implied prohibition against assignment or transfer should be inferred - Section 15(b) of the Specific Relief Act allows for the assignment of benefits unless the contract is personal in nature. [Para 17]

Insurance Law - Health insurance policy - Renewal - Reimbursement of medical expenses - Non-disclosure of pre-existing condition - Claim for reimbursement of medical expenses incurred by the appellant for his wife's ovarian cancer treatment - Insurance company repudiated the claim on the grounds of non-disclosure of pre-existing rheumatic heart disease - District Forum directed reimbursement and renewal of the policy - State Commission upheld the order - National Commission set aside the direction for policy renewal while upholding the reimbursement - Whether renewal of policy can be refused based on non-disclosure of pre-existing condition - Held, once the insurance company accepted the claim for expenses incurred during the valid policy period, it cannot refuse renewal based on non-disclosure - Renewal of policy from the date of expiry directed - Appellant entitled to reimbursement of expenses incurred. (Para 26, 27, 29)

Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority guidelines - Renewal of health insurance policies - Refusal of renewal - Fraud, moral hazard, or misrepresentation - Non-disclosure of pre-existing condition - Insurance company relied on IRDA guidelines to refuse renewal based on non-disclosure of pre-existing rheumatic heart disease - Held, the guidelines cannot be used to refuse renewal after accepting the claim for expenses incurred during the valid policy period - Refusal to renew policy based on non-disclosure not justified. (Para 25, 26)

Precedent - Distinction - Previous court orders relied upon by insurance company - Concealment of pre-existing condition - Different illnesses - Held, distinction in this case as the claim for expenses incurred was already accepted by the insurance company and repudiation set aside - Insurance company cannot raise the same defense to deny renewal. (Para 28)

Headnotes:

Relationship of employer and employee - Proof required for claiming compensation under the Employees' Compensation Act, 1923 (1923 Act) - Failure to establish master and servant relationship - Claim for compensation dismissed. (Para 12 and 14)

Delay in filing application - Knowledge of alternative option to claim compensation - Delay of 9 years - Fatal to consideration of claim - Condonation of delay denied. (Para 15)

Intent of claimants - Failure to claim compensation against vehicle owner in earlier proceedings - Intention to claim compensation from offending vehicle - No sufficient cause for delay. (Para 13)

Competence of a Child Witness (Para 7) – Under Section 118 of the Evidence Act, a child witness is competent to depose unless the court finds that the child is incapable of understanding questions or giving rational answers due to tender age – The court must ascertain the child’s ability to understand questions and the duty to speak the truth.

Corroboration of Child Witness (Para 8) – Corroboration of a child witness’s testimony is not a rule but a measure of caution – The court must scrutinize the evidence of a child witness carefully, considering the possibility of tutoring – The judge’s preliminary examination of the child witness is crucial to ensure competence.

Inadequate Preliminary Examination (Para 9) – Preliminary examination of the child witness in this case found to be inadequate – Judge asked only a few questions – Judge must assess the child’s ability to understand questions, give rational answers, and comprehend the duty to speak the truth.

Non-Examination of Crucial Witnesses (Para 14) – Prosecution’s failure to examine crucial witnesses, such as the milkman to whom the child witness disclosed the incident, raised doubts about the witness’s credibility – Absence of such witnesses leads to adverse inferences against the prosecution.

Unreliable Testimony and Lack of Corroboration (Para 16) – Scrutinizing the evidence revealed contradictions and improvements in the child witness’s statements, rendering his testimony unreliable – Lack of corroboration further diminished confidence in the witness’s account – Deficiencies in the prosecution’s case added to the doubts.

Acquittal  (Para 17) – Considering the unreliability of the child witness’s testimony and deficiencies in the prosecution’s case, the appeal was allowed, and the appellant acquitted of all charges.

Recruitment process - Equivalence of qualifications - Diploma in Art & Craft from Kurukshetra University and Diploma in Art & Craft from Haryana Industrial Training Department - Review petitions filed challenging the finding of non-equivalence of qualifications - Government of Haryana willing to accept Diploma from Kurukshetra University as an equivalent qualification - Kurukshetra University certifying equivalence of courses - Supreme Court allows review petitions. [Para 10, Para 11]

Government's decision - Conversion of posts - Government converts 178 posts of TGT Art to the post of Art & Craft Teacher (Diminishing Cadre) to accommodate candidates with Diplomas from Kurukshetra University who were included in the selection list. [Para 11]

Appointments - Merit ranking - Appointments to be made against notified vacant posts - Merit ranking from the selection list to be strictly followed - Appointments not to affect previous appointees or their seniority. Timelines - Completion of process - Authorities directed to complete the process within two months from the date of the judgment. [Para 12]

Raw Petroleum Coke (RPC) - Import and Allocation - Concerns raised by the Environment Pollution Control Authority (EPCA) regarding the highly polluting nature of calcined petroleum coke (CPC) - EPCA recommends allowing import of pet coke for use as feedstock, not as fuel - Exemptions given to industries should not negate efforts to control pet coke usage to prevent pollution caused by fugitive emissions - EPCA's recommendations for the calciner industry - EPCA's report and guidelines for regulation and monitoring of imported pet coke - Consent to Operate (CTO) issued by Pollution Control Boards specifying import quantities and usage conditions - Prohibition on import of pet coke for trading purposes - Only registered industrial units with valid consent allowed to directly import pet coke for own use - Import capacity estimation based on figures provided by the industry. (Para 19)

Capacity Estimation and Consent to Operate (CTO) - CTO issued by Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board (APPCB) recording total capacity of the unit - Capacity mentioned in the CTO as the basis for import allocation - Appellant's claim of increased capacity after court's order - Documents and reports submitted by appellant to support increased capacity claim - Court rejecting appellant's claim for clarification - APPCB's certification of installed capacity as of a specific date - Government's consistent position that capacity added after court's order would not be considered for allocation - Public notice specifying requirement of State Pollution Control Board certificate indicating unit's capacity as of a specific date. (Para 20-26)

Interpretation of Public Notice - Distinction between certificate and consent to operate - No change in allocation method through the public notice - Emphasis on CTO as the material document considered previously - APPCB's clarification of installed capacity as of a specific date not changing the allocation criteria - Court's acceptance of Division Bench's reasoning - Clearance from the court required for any increase in capacity to be considered for allocation. (Para 27-29)

Criminal Law – Sentencing – Proportionality – Uniform Sentencing Standard – Disparity in Sentences – Conviction for causing fatal injuries – Conversion of conviction from Section 302 IPC to Section 304 Part II IPC – Appropriateness of sentences undergone by accused persons – Role of each accused practically indistinguishable – Principle of proportionality guiding sentencing process – Previous judgments emphasizing appropriate and proportionate punishments based on the nature of the offense, circumstances of its commission, and relevant factors – Gravity of the offense to be considered in sentencing – Sentences imposed by High Court exhibiting wide disparity and lack of rationale – Sentencing found to be flawed and arbitrary – Appropriate sentence to be five years rigorous imprisonment – Sentences of accused already serving longer than five years left undisturbed – Remaining accused sentenced to undergo five years rigorous imprisonment.

Decision: The appeals are partly allowed. Sentences of some accused modified, and sentences of others upheld. Appropriate sentence for remaining accused is five years rigorous imprisonment. Principle of proportionality should guide the sentencing process.