Murder and Attempt to Murder – Sections 302 and 307 IPC: The appellant was initially sentenced to death for the murder and life imprisonment for the rape of the deceased. The High Court modified the sentence of death to life imprisonment, taking into account the age of the appellant and the circumstances of the case. The Supreme Court upheld the conviction and the modified sentence​​.

Eye-Witness Testimony – Credibility: The conviction was based primarily on the testimony of an eye-witness, who was employed by the appellant under compulsion. The Supreme Court found no reason to disbelieve the testimony of the eye-witness, who provided a detailed account of the incident and whose statements were corroborated by other evidence​​.

Medical Evidence – Corroboration of Prosecution Case: The medical evidence, including the post-mortem report, corroborated the prosecution's case. The injuries noted by the doctor were consistent with the testimony of the eye-witness, supporting the conclusion that the deceased died of asphyxia due to throttling​​.

Remission and Commutation – Executive Power: The Supreme Court emphasized that while the executive has the power to grant remission under Articles 72 and 161 of the Constitution, this power must be exercised cautiously, especially in cases involving heinous crimes. The appellant's argument for release after 14 years of imprisonment was rejected​​.

Decision: The appeal was dismissed. The Supreme Court upheld the High Court's decision to commute the death sentence to life imprisonment, maintaining the rigorous imprisonment for the offense of rape along with the fine imposed. The Court reiterated the need for careful consideration of remission in cases of serious offenses​​.

Scheduled Tribe Status – Certificate Requirement: The Public Service Commission of West Bengal was justified in considering the respondent's application as a general candidate for recruitment to the West Bengal Judicial Service Examination 2007 due to the non-production of the requisite ST certificate from a competent authority as mandated by the West Bengal Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Identification) Act 1994. The guidelines laid down in Kumari Madhuri Patil's case were found inapplicable in this context​​.

Recruitment Procedure – Compliance with Notification: The notification for the examination explicitly required candidates claiming to be from SC/ST/BC to produce a certificate from a competent authority. The respondent failed to comply with this requirement, which led to his classification as a general category candidate. The Supreme Court upheld the Commission's decision and emphasized the importance of adhering to the specific conditions stipulated in the notification​​.

Remedial Actions – Prospective Application: The respondent's subsequent production of the required certificate in the 2010 examination was acknowledged, and it was noted that he would be considered for appointment as a judicial officer in the West Bengal Judicial Service based on this later compliance​​.

Decision: The appeal was allowed. The Supreme Court set aside the High Court's judgment, upholding the Commission's decision to treat the respondent as a general category candidate for the 2007 examination due to the lack of a valid ST certificate from the competent authority at that time. No costs were imposed​​.

Compensation – Provident Fund, Pension, and Insurance – Not Deductible: Benefits such as provident fund, pension, and insurance are deferred payments based on contributions made by the employee and are thus not related to the accidental death governed by the Motor Vehicles Act. These benefits are not deductible as "pecuniary advantages" in compensation calculations​​.

Compassionate Appointment – Not a Pecuniary Advantage: The salary received from compassionate appointment does not fall under "pecuniary advantage" as it is a service condition benefit and not directly linked to the accident causing death. Therefore, it should not be deducted from the compensation under the Motor Vehicles Act​​.

Income Tax Deduction – Required for Salary: For salaried individuals, income tax must be deducted from their gross salary to determine the actual income for compensation calculation. This is consistent with the principle that compensation should be calculated based on net income after taxes​​.

Just Compensation – Consideration of Future Prospects: The compensation awarded must take into account future income prospects and advancements. In this case, a 100% increase was justified, reflecting the deceased's potential career progression and salary revisions over time​​.

Decision: The appeal was allowed. The Supreme Court modified the compensation to Rs. 2,973,000, inclusive of future prospects, consortium, and funeral expenses. The compensation awarded by the Tribunal and the High Court was revised to ensure just and fair compensation to the dependents​​.

Unlawful Assembly – Section 141 IPC: The expression "other offence" in Section 141 'third' IPC includes all offenses punishable under the IPC, not limited to minor offenses like mischief or criminal trespass. This interpretation aligns with Section 40(1) IPC, which defines "offense" as any act punishable under the IPC [Paras 36-46].

Credibility of Injured Witnesses – High Weight: Injured witnesses' testimonies hold significant weight and cannot be discarded solely because of their relationship with the deceased. The evidence of injured eye-witnesses is reliable when corroborated by medical evidence and other circumstances [Paras 24-25].

Delay in FIR Reporting – No Prejudice: The delay in forwarding the express report to the Magistrate did not vitiate the prosecution case. The delay must be shown to have caused prejudice to the accused, which was not established in this case [Paras 16-20].

Communal Tension – Not Proven: The argument of prevailing communal tension as a defense was unsupported by substantial evidence. The suggestion of communal tension was found to be a desperate attempt to deflect from the established facts of the case [Paras 21-23].

Decision: The appeals were dismissed. The convictions and sentences under Sections 302/149, 307/149, 147, and 148 IPC were upheld. The Court found no merit in the arguments regarding the delay in FIR reporting, credibility of witnesses, and the alleged communal tension [Paras 47].

Criminal Procedure – Section 389 CrPC – Suspension of Sentence and Bail: The petitioners' applications for suspension of conviction and sentence, as well as interim bail, are pending before the Delhi High Court. The main concern is whether the broadcast of a dramatized version of the case would prejudice their pending appeal [Paras 7, 8].

Freedom of Speech vs. Fair Trial: The Court considered whether the proposed broadcast would create a biased environment affecting the petitioners' right to a fair trial. It was argued that since the trial had concluded and the judgment was in the public domain, no further bias could arise from the broadcast [Paras 11-16].

Safeguarding Interests – Restrictions on Broadcast: The Court imposed restrictions on the broadcast, ensuring no direct similarity between the characters in the show and the petitioners, thus protecting their identity to some extent while allowing the broadcast to proceed [Paras 17].

Decision: The SLP was dismissed. The Court upheld the Division Bench’s decision to set aside the Single Judge’s order restraining the broadcast, with specific instructions to safeguard the petitioners' identities in the dramatized show [Para 18].

Territorial Jurisdiction – Authority of State Pollution Control Board: The Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) had the authority to allocate and re-allocate areas for waste management facilities under the 2008 Hazardous Waste Management Rules. The Court upheld the Board's jurisdiction to determine operational areas for such facilities, rejecting the petitioner's contention that the Board's power was limited to monitoring and supervising waste management activities [Paras 1-6].

High Court's Decision – No Error in Dismissal of Writ Petition: The High Court dismissed the petitioner's writ petition, which challenged the re-allocation of territorial jurisdictions for hazardous waste management. The Court found no error in the High Court's order, emphasizing that the petitioner's arguments lacked merit and failed to establish the MPCB's lack of authority [Paras 12-13].

Challenge to Orders – Scope and Limitations: The petitioner did not challenge the relevant orders of the MPCB dated December 11, 2008, and March 9, 2009, or the appellate authority's order dated January 29, 2011. The Court highlighted that the petitioner's failure to contest these orders at earlier stages weakened their case [Paras 13-14].

Decision: The special leave petitions were dismissed. The Supreme Court upheld the High Court's decision, affirming the validity of the MPCB's territorial allocations for hazardous waste management and finding no reason to interfere with the established jurisdiction and authority of the Board [Para 14].

FDI Policy – Validity and Authority: The Court upheld the validity of the FDI policy, noting that it is within the competence of the Central Government to formulate such policies. The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) is empowered to make policy pronouncements on FDI under the Allocation of Business Rules 1961. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) regulates foreign investment in India in accordance with the Government's policy [Paras 16-17].

State Government Discretion – Implementation of Policy: The impugned FDI policy is an enabling policy, allowing State Governments and Union Territories to decide whether to implement it based on local conditions. This flexibility ensures that local factors are considered in the application of the policy [Para 13].

Constitutional and Legal Scrutiny – Scope of Judicial Review: The Court reiterated that it does not interfere with government policies unless they are unconstitutional, contrary to statutory provisions, arbitrary, irrational, or an abuse of power. The Court found no such vices in the impugned FDI policy, which aims to enhance economic growth, market access, and employment potential [Paras 15-17].

Economic Rationale – Benefits of FDI in Multi-Brand Retail: The policy aims to benefit consumers by providing a greater choice of affordable products, removing intermediaries to facilitate better market access for producers, and generating employment. Studies by the World Bank and the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER) support the positive impact of organized retail on the economy and farmers [Paras 10-12].

Decision: The writ petition was dismissed with no order as to costs. The Court found no merit in the petitioner's arguments and upheld the government's authority and rationale in formulating the FDI policy [Para 17].

Simultaneous Proceedings – Civil and Criminal Cases: The Supreme Court emphasized that there is no hard and fast rule for staying civil proceedings pending the outcome of related criminal cases. The possibility of conflicting decisions in civil and criminal courts is not a relevant consideration. The primary factor is whether proceeding with both cases simultaneously would cause embarrassment to the accused [Paras 8-9].

Precedence of Criminal Proceedings: As per the precedent in M.S. Sheriff vs. State of Madras, criminal proceedings should generally be given precedence over civil suits to ensure swift justice. However, this is not an invariable rule and must be assessed based on the specifics of each case [Paras 8-9].

Civil Court Decisions Binding on Criminal Courts: The Court reiterated that decisions of civil courts are binding on criminal courts, but the converse is not true. This principle underscores the autonomy of civil proceedings from the outcomes of related criminal cases [Para 10].

Case Specifics – No Embarrassment to Defendants: In the present case, the defendants had already filed their written statements, and issues had been framed based on the pleadings. Therefore, there was no likelihood of embarrassment or prejudice to the defense in the criminal proceedings if the civil suit proceeded concurrently [Para 20].

Decision: The appeal was allowed. The Supreme Court set aside the High Court's order staying the civil suit proceedings. The civil suit was permitted to proceed independently of the criminal case [Para 21].

Murder – Section 302 IPC – Acquittal by High Court: The High Court reversed the conviction and acquitted the accused due to the absence of eye-witnesses and reliance on uncorroborated dying declarations, which contained material contradictions and discrepancies. The Supreme Court upheld this decision, emphasizing the need for corroboration and consistency in dying declarations to form a reliable basis for conviction [Paras 6, 9, 14, 21-22].

Evidentiary Value of Dying Declarations – Section 32(1) Evidence Act: The Court reiterated that the reliability of dying declarations depends on their voluntariness, consistency, and the mental fitness of the declarant at the time of making the statement. Multiple dying declarations must be consistent in material particulars to be considered reliable. In this case, the discrepancies between the declarations rendered them unreliable without corroboration [Para 18].

Legal Principles – Precedents: The judgment referenced multiple precedents, including M.S. Sheriff vs. State of Madras, K.G. Premshanker vs. Inspector of Police, and others, to underline the principle that criminal proceedings take precedence over civil suits and the importance of consistency in multiple dying declarations [Paras 8-10, 14-20].

Decision: The appeal was dismissed. The Supreme Court found no reason to interfere with the High Court's acquittal of the accused, as the prosecution's case was based on uncorroborated and inconsistent dying declarations [Para 22].