Consumer Disputes - Compensation for Delay in Delivery - Complaint against Kuwait Airways for delay in delivering consignments of handicraft goods - Appellant is an exporter who sent shipments to the USA - Goods were not delivered as per the schedule, causing significant delay - Appellant filed a complaint seeking compensation - NCDRC initially awarded compensation for loss of goods - Appeal led to reconsideration of delay in delivery - NCDRC awarded compensation for the delay in delivering the consignment - Appellant sought a larger compensation amount - The Court upheld NCDRC's decision on compensation - Onus on the airline to prove that the agent had no authority to give the delivery schedule - Carriage by Air Act provisions applied - Appellant's claim limited to the amount initially sought - Civil appeals dismissed. [Para 1-25]

Conspiracy and Supply of Poisonous Substance – Alcohol Poisoning Incident – Conviction of Sajeev (A10) and Roy (A11) under Sections 302, 307, 326 read with Section 120B of IPC, and Sections 55(a), (h), (i), and 57 (A)(1)(ii) of the Abkari Act – Incident involving alcohol poisoning resulting in deaths and severe injuries – Accused found guilty of mixing methyl alcohol with spirit for illicit sale. [Paras 1-4, 8, 22, 29-30, 34, 37, 48-49]

Evidence and Witness Testimonies – Reliance on testimonies of multiple witnesses and forensic evidence – PW11, PW18, PW23, PW24, PW26, PW27, PW44, and PW51’s testimonies pivotal in establishing the involvement of A10 and A11 in the conspiracy and act of poisoning – Forensic evidence confirming the use of methyl alcohol in cans supplied by A11. [Paras 18-21, 23-27, 32-34]

Criminal Conspiracy – Legal Principles Applied – Application of legal principles relating to criminal conspiracy – Conviction based on established agreement and joint responsibility of A10 and A11 with A1, the main conspirator – Accused found to have knowledge of the harmful nature of the substance supplied. [Paras 35-37]

Destruction of Evidence and False Records – A11’s attempt to destroy evidence and maintain false records – Burnt plastic materials and soil samples testing positive for methyl alcohol at A11’s residence – False transactions recorded in the firm RR Distributors’ register. [Paras 38-40]

Legal Provisions under Abkari Act – Conviction under Section 57A for mixing noxious substance with liquor – Accused held liable for the resultant grievous harm and deaths – Application of Section 55 for illegal transport, bottling, and sale of methyl alcohol. [Paras 42-43, 47]

Dismissal of Appeals – Appeals of A10 and A11 dismissed – Convictions upheld by Supreme Court – Bail of A11 cancelled and directed to surrender – Appeal of A10 abated due to his demise. [Paras 50-55]

Forfeiture of Properties under SAFEMA – Challenging the High Court's order upholding forfeiture under The Smugglers and Foreign Exchange Manipulators (Forfeiture of Property) Act, 1976 (SAFEMA) – Appeals in Civil Appeal No.5500 of 2011 and Criminal Appeal No.730 of 2014 dismissed – Provisions of SAFEMA applicable despite revocation of detention order under COFEPOSA. [Para 1, 2, 15, 23]

COFEPOSA Detention and Revocation – Relevance of revocation of detention order under Conservation of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling Activities Act, 1974 (COFEPOSA) in SAFEMA proceedings – Revocation of COFEPOSA detention not falling under specified exceptions in SAFEMA, hence forfeiture upheld. [Para 16, 21-23]

Legal Interpretation of SAFEMA – Applicability of SAFEMA provisions in cases where COFEPOSA detention orders are revoked – Exclusion clauses under Section 2(2)(b) of SAFEMA not applicable to the present case – SAFEMA proceedings independent of COFEPOSA detention order's subsequent revocation. [Para 17, 18, 21-23]

Dismissal of Criminal Complaint and Penalty Withdrawal – Irrelevance of dismissal of criminal complaint under Customs Act, 1962 and withdrawal of penalty in determining applicability of SAFEMA – Such proceedings independent of SAFEMA. [Para 13, 20]

High Court's Judgment – High Court's dismissal of appeals against forfeiture under SAFEMA upheld – Supreme Court finds no infirmity in the High Court's judgment – Appeals lack merit and are dismissed. [Para 23, 24]

Criminal Appeal – Challenge to judgment of High Court – Dismissal of appeal and confirmation of trial court's judgment – Conviction of appellant for offences under Sections 148, 302 read with Section 149, and Section 307 of the IPC – Appellant's co-accused Rameshwar deceased – Appeal of the appellant against his conviction – Rameshwar's appeal abated due to his death. [Para 1-5]

Witness Testimony – Evaluation of witness testimony – Categorization of witnesses as wholly reliable, wholly unreliable, or neither wholly reliable nor wholly unreliable – Need to separate the truth from falsehood in cases involving partly reliable witnesses – Importance of corroborative evidence. [Para 10-12]

Witnesses – Ocular testimony of PW.5-Ramkali and PW.6-Mulchand – Inconsistencies in their testimonies – Attribution of gunshot injuries to the appellant-Balaram – Discrepancy in their accounts – Conviction based on their unreliable testimony not sustainable. [Para 13-16]

Motive – Alleged motive of previous enmity – Doubtful nature of the motive – Previous enmity as a double-edged weapon – Possibility of false implication cannot be ruled out. [Para 17-19]

Decision – Appeal allowed – Conviction and sentence of the appellant quashed and set aside – Appellant acquitted of the charges – Directed to be set at liberty forthwith if not required in any other case. [Para 20]

Extra-Judicial Confession – Doubt over Confession’s Credibility – Extra-judicial confession to the brother and acquaintance of the deceased, raising questions on its believability, leading to its rejection. The improbability of an accused making a confession to close associates of the deceased. [Paras 6-7]

Inconsistency in Prosecution's Case – Mismatch in Weapons and Blood Group Evidence – Discrepancy between the weapon mentioned in the confession (stick) and the weapon recovered (axe). Blood group on appellant's clothes not matching the deceased's blood group, contradicting prosecution's claim. [Paras 8-9]

Acquittal of Appellant – Failure to Establish Guilt Beyond Reasonable Doubt – The prosecution's inability to conclusively prove the appellant's guilt, leading to acquittal and cancellation of bail bonds. [Paras 10-11]

Decision – Appeal allowed, impugned judgments set aside, appellant acquitted of the alleged offence, and bail bonds cancelled. [Para 12]

Criminal Appeal – Review Petition – Delay in filing the review petition condoned due to petitioner’s confinement – Review petition allowed, order dated 31.08.2018 recalled, and SLP(Crl.) no. 7528/2018 restored to its original number and file. Leave granted in SLP(Crl.) no. 7528/2018.

Criminal Procedure – Examination of trial Court records and evidence – Appellant’s conviction under Section 304B and Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 upheld – However, appellant’s punishment reduced from life imprisonment to imprisonment already undergone (ten years and nine months as of 03.10.2023) – Appellant fined Rs. 10,000, with three months of simple imprisonment in default. On payment of fine/default sentence, appellant to be released immediately, if not required in any other case.

Disposition – Appeal partly allowed – Sentences to run concurrently – Pending applications, if any, disposed of.

Criminal Appeal – Conviction and sentencing under Section 302 IPC – Appellant challenged the High Court's affirmation of conviction and life sentence for murder – Primary contention involved delay in FIR and absence of direct evidence linking appellant to administration of poison. [Para 1-5]

Delayed FIR – Examination of whether a one-year delay in FIR registration impacts the prosecution's case – FIR considered corroborative, not substantive evidence – Delay attributed to awaiting FSL report, not seen as fatal to the prosecution's case. [Para 8-18]

Dying Declaration – Reliability of the deceased's statements to family members as dying declarations questioned – The Court cautious about convicting solely based on such evidence without corroboration. [Para 22-24]

Murder by Poisoning – Prosecution’s failure to establish essential criteria for murder by poisoning – No clear motive, unclear if the deceased died of poison, no proof of poison in possession of accused, and no opportunity to administer poison established. [Para 20-26]

Acquittal of Accused – Supreme Court's rare intervention in reappreciating evidence due to significant infirmities in findings of lower courts – Appellant acquitted of all charges, bail bonds cancelled. [Para 27-28]

Criminal Procedure – Protest Petition Against Order Taking Cognizance – Inappropriateness of High Court’s Reference to Nupur Talwar Case – High Court erred in applying the principle of the Nupur Talwar case to the present matter, where the protest petition was against an order taking cognizance. The appellants successfully challenged the High Court’s judgment that incorrectly applied this principle. [Para 7-9]

Judicial Procedure – Cognizance of Offence – Limitation of Magistrate’s Power to Modify Previous Order – Learned Chief Judicial Magistrate exceeded his authority by entertaining a protest petition against his earlier order of taking cognizance, leading to an impermissible modification of that order. This oversight in legal understanding was not recognized by the High Court. [Para 10]

Decision – Setting Aside High Court and Chief Judicial Magistrate’s Orders – The Supreme Court set aside the High Court’s order dated 20^th March, 2023, and the Chief Judicial Magistrate’s order dated 3^rd November, 2009. The Supreme Court maintained the Chief Judicial Magistrate’s order dated 9^th April, 2009, taking cognizance against Gupteshwar Singh. The judgment clarifies that no adjudication was made on the appellants’ involvement in the crime and does not prevent future legal proceedings in accordance with law. [Para 11]

Employees’ Provident Fund Act Interpretation – Applicability of the Employees’ Provident Fund and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952, to an establishment engaged in manufacturing, assembling, and selling umbrellas – Central Government’s notification under clause (b) of sub-Section (3) of Section 1 of the 1952 Act includes ‘trading and commercial establishments’ – Establishment of appellant falls within the ambit of the said notification – Appeals dismissed. [Para 1-2, 8]

Applicability of Provident Fund Act – Distinction between clause (a) and (b) of sub-Section (3) of Section 1 of the 1952 Act – Clause (a) applies to factories engaged in industries specified in Schedule I, while clause (b) can extend to other establishments, including factories not covered in Schedule I, upon notification by the Central Government – Purposive interpretation affirms the inclusion of the appellant’s establishment under the Act. [Para 5-7]

Judicial Review – Concurrent findings by respondent, appellate authority, and Kerala High Court upheld – Appellant’s establishment conducting commercial activities falls under the category of ‘trading and commercial establishments’ as per the notification – No merit found in appellant’s contention – Appeals dismissed with no order as to costs. [Para 4, 9]

Time to Pay Liabilities – In consideration of the duration of legal proceedings since 2010, a grace period of three months granted to the appellant to fulfill any monetary liabilities as per the confirmed orders by the High Court. [Para 10]