Judgments of 1987

The appellant, Yudhishter, had been in possession of a residential premises since 1962. The respondent landlord, Ashok Kumar, purchased the premises in 1971 and later filed an eviction petition in 1974 under the Haryana Urban (Control of Rent and Eviction) Act, 1973, claiming a bona‑fide requirement for his own occupat…

Three officers of the Punjab State Civil Service claimed that they were superseded in the 1978, 1979, 1980 and 1983 IAS promotion Select Lists because junior officers were included while they were omitted, and that the Selection Committee failed to record reasons for supersession, violating Articles 14 and 16 and princ…

Ambica Quarry Works and others held quarry leases for minor minerals that were granted before the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 came into force. After the Act, they applied for renewal of these leases under Rule 18 of the Gujarat Minor Mineral Rules, 1966, but the applications were rejected because the lands were cla…

The petitioner, a U.S. citizen, obtained a Michigan Circuit Court decree granting her sole custody of her son and limited visitation to the father, who was an Indian citizen. The father, exploiting his weekend visitation rights, abducted the child to India without court permission, violating the decree and prompting ar…

The Gujarat Government, under the Gujarat Sales Tax Act, 1969, issued a series of notifications granting tax exemption to new industries, the second of which promised a five‑year exemption prospectively. Bakul Oil Industries set up an oil mill and commissioned it on 17 May 1970, applied for an eligibility certificate u…

The Hyderabad Municipal Corporation assessed the land and buildings of the Hyderabad Race Club for general tax under Section 202 of the Hyderabad Municipal Corporation Act, 1955. The club claimed exemption, arguing that its use of the premises for horse racing and training constituted a "charitable purpose" within the …

The partners of Balasubramania Foundry and a workers' union were involved in multiple litigations that were eventually referred to a sole arbitrator under the Arbitration Act, 1940. The arbitrator issued an award on 3 April 1985, which was challenged by the petitioner, A. Rangaswamy, on grounds of alleged legal miscond…

General Electric Company (GEC) and Renusagar Power Company entered into a contract for equipment supply, which later gave rise to disputes referred to ICC arbitration. Renusagar filed a suit in the Bombay High Court seeking a declaration that the disputes were not arbitrable, while GEC applied for a stay of the suit un…

The case concerned inter‑se seniority between direct recruits and promotees in the Karnataka Administrative Service where the recruitment rules prescribed a two‑thirds promotion and one‑third direct recruitment quota. Because direct recruitment was not made timely, temporary promotions were given beyond the quota and l…

The appellant, a former ruler of Patadi, claimed that two temples he managed were private family property, not public trusts. The Deputy Charity Commissioner, under the Bombay Public Trusts Act, 1950, deemed them public temples and public religious trusts, a finding upheld by the Charity Commissioner and the Gujarat Hi…

M.L. Agarwal challenged the 1981 Lok Sabha election of Rajiv Gandhi alleging various corrupt practices. The High Court struck out the petition as vague, frivolous and lacking a cause of action under Order VI Rule 16 and rejected it under Order VII Rule 11. Agarwal appealed, contending that the court had no jurisdiction…

The brothers of a 14‑year‑old boy who was killed in a bus accident filed an application under Section 110‑A of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1939, seeking compensation as legal representatives of the deceased. The Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal awarded Rs 32,000 and the Gujarat High Court dismissed the transport corporation…

The appellant, a senior government officer, was prematurely retired under Rule 3 of the Punjab Civil Services (Premature Retirement) Rules, 1975. He challenged the order, arguing that the State had relied on remote adverse entries in his confidential reports and had ignored his representations against those entries, vi…

The petitioners filed a public‑interest writ seeking to restrain the West Bengal Government from leasing four acres of Begumbari land, part of the Alipore Zoological Garden, to the Taj Group for a five‑star hotel, alleging ecological harm to migratory birds and violation of natural‑justice principles. The Government ar…

The appellants' land was acquired for an Aviation Research Centre and the Collector initially awarded Rs 2,000 per acre as compensation. The Subordinate Judge enhanced it to Rs 15,000 per acre, but the Orissa High Court reduced the amount to Rs 7,500 per acre, reasoning that the State’s concessional sale of nearby indu…

The respondent, Manohar Lal, a Sub‑Inspector of Police, was compulsorily retired by an order dated 24 September 1975 issued by the Senior Superintendent of Police, Gurdaspur, under the Punjab Civil Services (Premature Retirement) Rules, 1975. He filed a suit seeking a declaration that the order was illegal, malafide an…

Sham Lal, a statutory tenant, was sued for eviction under Section 13 of the East Punjab Urban Rent Restriction Act, 1949 for alleged non‑payment of rent. The summons returnable date was 26‑06‑1969, on which the tenant appeared and sought an adjournment; the written statement and tender of arrears were filed on 02‑07‑19…

The Kerala High Court had recommended a panel of five advocates for direct recruitment as District Judges and the Governor, acting on the Council of Ministers' advice, initially decided to appoint them but later withdrew the decision citing lack of representation of certain communities. The High Court issued a writ of …

The Union of India appealed against a Delhi High Court judgment that quashed notifications fixing maximum prices of bulk drugs and retail prices of formulations under the Drugs (Prices Control) Order, 1979, on the ground that the government had failed to observe natural justice. The Court examined whether price fixatio…

The assessee, T.I. & M. Sales Ltd., was assessed as a representative assessee for ten non‑resident companies and the Revenue claimed a "business connection" under Section 9 of the Income‑Tax Act, 1961, making the Indian company an agent under Section 163(1)(b). The assessee contended that no such connection existed, re…

The JAI MAHAVIR Co‑operative Housing Society expelled a founding member, Panchal Keshavlal Narbheram, and the expulsion was approved by the Registrar under Section 36 of the Gujarat Co‑operative Societies Act, 1961. Panchal filed a petition under Section 96(1) to set aside the resolution; the Registrar referred the dis…

Ramesh Laxman Pardeshi and others were convicted of murder (s.302 IPC) for stabbing Sheroo Lala after a heated verbal exchange near Badshah's hand‑cart. The appellant argued that the stabbing was done in the heat of passion, provoked by vulgar words, without pre‑meditation or intention to cause death, and that the appr…

The State of Bihar challenged Ashok Industries for not paying market fees under the Bihar Agricultural Produce Markets Act, 1960, as amended in 1982. The amendment introduced two Explanations: one to the definition of "sale" in Section 2(P)(i) and another to the charging provision in Section 27, creating a conflict ove…

A complaint was filed against K. Ch. Prasad, an officer of a nationalised bank, under IPC sections 120(b), 467 and 471. The appellant objected that the prosecution could not proceed without prior sanction under CrPC section 197, arguing that he was a public servant whose removal required government sanction. The Metrop…

Twenty‑five accused were tried for dacoity and murder under Section 396 of the IPC. Eye‑witnesses claimed to have identified the accused in lantern light, and the prosecution evidence was attributed to different accused. The Sessions Judge discarded the prosecution evidence and acquitted all accused. The State of Bihar…

The petitioners challenged the constitutional validity of the Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985, particularly the exclusion of High Court jurisdiction under Articles 226 and 227 and the qualifications for appointing the Chairman, Vice‑Chairman and members of the Tribunal. The Court held that while Parliament may creat…

The Supreme Court examined two Special Leave Petitions arising from a writ petition that alleged tampering of MD (Gynaecology) examination grade sheets to favour the daughter of the then Chief Minister of Maharashtra. The trial judge had held that the tampering was done by Dr. Rawal at the behest of the Chief Minister …

The landlord filed an eviction suit under the Kerala Buildings (Lease & Rent Control) Act, 1965 claiming bona‑fide personal need. The Rent Control Court dismissed the petition, the Subordinate Judge (appellate authority) confirmed the dismissal, and a revision before the District Judge was also rejected. The landlord t…

The petitioners, including the society Common Cause, challenged provisions of the Central Civil Services (Commutation of Pension) Rules, 1981, arguing that the rule fixing a 15‑year period after retirement before the commuted portion of pension is restored is arbitrary in view of increased life expectancy and that defe…

The Bharat Barrel Company gave a closure notice effective 1 November 1971, but terminated the services of its workmen on 30 October 1971 under a standing order amid violent unrest. The first Industrial Tribunal (IT No. 325 of 1971) held that the workers were validly discharged before the closure and therefore were not …

Premier Tyres Ltd. challenged a Customs, Excise and Gold Control Appellate Tribunal order on the sequence of applying three Central Excise notifications granting duty exemptions. The dispute centered on whether the 1977 notification (exempting duty equal to that paid on inputs) should be applied before or after the 197…

Abdul Latif Abdul Wahab Sheikh was acquitted of murder but was immediately placed under preventive detention under the Gujarat Prevention of Anti Social Activities Act, 1985. No Advisory Board existed at the time, and the statutory requirement to refer the case to the Board within three weeks was not met. The first det…

The Board of Trustees of the Port of Bombay (the Port Trust) sought recovery of demurrage charges from Jai Hind Oil Mills Company, which had imported propylene consignments that were detained by Customs pending duty disputes. The Bombay High Court, in writ proceedings where the Port Trust was not a party, directed Cust…

The appellants, dealers under the Andhra Pradesh General Sales Tax Act, 1957, contended that the sales tax component collected from buyers—whether shown separately in the bill or collected via debit notes—should not be counted in their "turnover" for computing sales tax liability, arguing that the tax is not part of th…

Alimenta S.A. and the National Agricultural Co-operative Marketing Federation of India Ltd (NAFED) entered into two supply contracts for groundnut kernels, each referring to the terms of a standard FOSFA-20 contract that contained an arbitration clause. Disputes arose and Alimenta sought arbitration, while NAFED filed …

Om Prakash was a tenant of a premises in Meerut Cantonment, leased for a dal and oil mill. After the landlords purchased the building, they sued for eviction under Section 14(c) of the U.P. Cantonment Rent Control Act, 1952, alleging that the tenant had made a partition wall and a tin shed that materially altered the a…

The petitioners, railway employees, were dismissed or removed for participating in a strike without any enquiry. They filed writ petitions, which were transferred to the Supreme Court and ultimately dismissed. The petitioners then filed review petitions alleging that they were denied a chance to argue the merits, that …

The case concerned Assistant Engineers in Uttar Pradesh who had been substantively appointed to temporary posts before the 1969 and 1971 amendments of the U.P. Service of Engineers Rules. They claimed that the amendments, which made seniority dependent on appointment to substantive vacancies, violated Articles 14 and 1…

Dr. D.C. Saxena was appointed Chairman of the Haryana Board of School Education for a two‑year term, with the appointment letter stating that the terms and conditions would be notified later. The State Government later issued a notice that his tenure could be curtailed at any time and subsequently ordered his removal a…

The decree‑holder, who had purchased a mortgaged property at a court auction, filed an application under Order XXI Rule 95 CPC for delivery of possession more than a year after the sale was confirmed. The judgment‑debtors opposed, arguing that the application was barred by the one‑year limitation in Article 134 of the …

The Joint Director of Mines Safety issued a notice under Sections 17 and 22 of the Mines Act, 1952, requiring Tandur & Nayandgj Stone Quarries (P) Ltd. to appoint a qualified manager after an inspection revealed that the open‑cast mine employed more than 50 persons in a day. The quarry filed a writ petition, and the An…

Ram Sarup Gupta purchased a property that had been occupied by Bishun Narain Inter College and its associated school under a license granted by the former owner, Raja Ram Kumar Bhargava. The school had constructed permanent buildings on the land and incurred expenses, claiming the license was irrevocable under Section …

The appellant, a tenant, had taken agricultural land on lease for the cultivation of chillies, tobacco, sugarcane, groundnuts and other crops. The landlord claimed that the lease was for sugarcane alone, invoking Section 43A(b) of the Bombay Tenancy Agricultural Lands Act, 1948, which exempts such leases from the tenan…

The appeal concerned whether, under Order 73 of the Civil Procedure Code, the monies earmarked for rateable distribution become the property of the decree‑holder as soon as the executing court issues its distribution order, irrespective of actual payment, and whether the State can assert a statutory priority thereafter…

The Supreme Court entertained a Special Leave Petition under Article 136 filed by Rakesh Saxena, a low‑ranking trader in the Foreign Exchange Division of a bank, against charges filed by the CBI. The Court noted that the alleged offences were said to have occurred more than six years earlier and that the trial would be…

The New Delhi Municipal Committee (NDMC) treated its non‑technical (ministerial) staff as a unified cadre, but granted higher Shiv Shankar Committee (SS) pay scales and ex‑gratia payments only to those posted in its electricity wing, citing the pattern followed by the Delhi Electricity Supply Undertaking (DESU). Staff …

S.C. Tewari, a Section Officer of the Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission (UPPSC), was suspended, found guilty in a departmental enquiry and dismissed. He appealed to the State Government under Regulation 20 of the UPPSC (Conditions of Service) Regulations, 1937. The State Government set aside the dismissal, direct…

The Supreme Court considered a writ petition challenging the detention of Shital Kumar under section 3(1) of the Conservation of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling Activities Act, 1974 (COFEPOSA). The petition raised three main points: (i) whether the period of parole granted earlier should be counted towards…

Utkal Contractors & Joinery Pvt. Ltd. and others had licences to collect, purchase and sell sal seeds from Government forests in Orissa, with a stipulation to set up solvent extraction units. The State of Orissa issued a notification under the Orissa Forest Produce (Control of Trade) Act, 1981 in 1982, claiming the Act…

The respondent, P.L. Kelkar, was directly recruited by the U.P. State Electricity Board as an Assistant Engineer in 1964 and was granted nine advance increments because of his prior experience, whereas other engineers received only two. The Board framed the Service of Engineers (Integration and Seniority) Regulations, …

M.A. Chowdhary, a staff artist of All India Radio, was employed under a contract that allowed termination on six months' notice. A government order later stipulated that staff artists could serve up to the age of 55, and a clause was added to his agreement reflecting this. In October 1970, he received a notice of termi…

The Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board (the Board) refused consent to Modi Distillery's discharge of trade effluents into the Kali River because its application was incomplete and the unit lacked proper treatment facilities. After repeated notices, the Board lodged a complaint under section 44 of the Water (Preventi…

The case concerned a deed of settlement executed by Rami Reddy, a coparcener in a Mitakshara joint Hindu family, which conveyed his entire undivided interest in the coparcenary to his brother Veera Reddy while reserving a life interest for himself. After the deaths of both brothers, the widow of Rami Reddy sought parti…

Binod Mills, a textile undertaking in Ujjain, was declared a relief undertaking under the Madhya Pradesh Sahayata Upkram (Vishesh Upbandh) Adhiniyam, 1978, with protection until 15‑Nov‑1987. The respondent obtained an ex‑parte decree for a monetary sum in the Bombay High Court and had it transferred to the District Jud…

Indian Metals and Ferro Alloys Ltd., a power‑intensive ferro‑alloy manufacturer with four furnaces, had been permitted by the Orissa State Electricity Board to club the electricity allocations of its units for efficient operation. The State Government, invoking Section 22B of the Indian Electricity Act, later denied cl…

The appellant, Helper Girdhb... (a tenant), was sued for unlawful subletting of premises leased for cloth manufacturing. He claimed the premises were used by a genuine partnership (Bharat Neon Signs) of which he was a partner, and therefore no subletting occurred. The trial court found subletting and decreed possession…

Shakuntala, a monthly tenant of a premises for an ice‑cream business, was alleged by the landlord to have made permanent alterations, caused waste and changed the use of the property, violating sections 12 and 13 of the Bombay Rents, Hotels & Lodging House Rates Control Act, 1947. The landlord gave a notice to quit in …

The New Okhla Development Area Authority (NOIDA), constituted under the Uttar Pradesh Industrial Area Development Act, 1976, announced LIG‑EWS and MIG housing schemes and later reserved a percentage of houses for various categories, including land‑acquired persons, entrepreneurs, NOIDA employees, central government emp…

The tenant, B.P. Khemka Pvt. Ltd., was sued for eviction on the ground of rent default. While the suit was pending, the West Bengal Premises Tenancy (Amendment) Ordinance 1967 introduced Section 17(2A) allowing tenants in default to pay arrears in instalments, and Section 5 gave it retrospective effect to all pending s…

Dipak Kumar Biswas, a permanent government auditor, resigned to take up a lecturer post in a private aided college in Meghalaya, relying on the principal's assurance that the Director of Public Instruction's approval was a formality. After five months his appointment was terminated because the Director had not given pr…

The Supreme Court considered a suit under Section 202 of the U.P. Zamindari Abolition and Land Reforms Act, 1951 for possession of land on payment of a mortgage money. The mortgage in question was a usufructuary mortgage of an occupancy holding executed in 1869 when the Recovery of Rents (Bengal) Act, 1859 was in force…

The appellant, A. Viswanathan, challenged the State Transport Appellate Tribunal’s order that set aside his temporary stage‑carriage permit on the Pondicherry‑Madras route and granted it to another party. The Court examined whether a Regional Transport Authority could repeatedly issue temporary permits under section 62…

The landlord leased a shop‑cum‑flat to a tenant in 1963 and two adjoining flats in 1967. The tenant sub‑let those two flats to a sub‑tenant before the East Punjab Urban Rent Restriction Act, 1949 came into force in Chandigarh on 4‑Nov‑1972. After a compromise, the Rent Controller ordered eviction of the sub‑tenant for …

The petitioners, owners of multiple cycle rickshaws, challenged Bye-law No.3(1) of the Cycle‑Rickshaw Bye‑laws, 1960, which limited the issuance of licences to a single licence per person and only to those who themselves operated the rickshaw. They argued that the bye‑law exceeded the powers granted under Section 481(1…

The contractor Lakshmichand & Balchand entered into two road‑repair contracts with the State of Andhra Pradesh. An arbitrator awarded the contractor Rs.99 lakhs, but the civil court set aside the award and the High Court allowed only Rs.16 lakhs. In execution proceedings the State claimed a set‑off of Rs.22.91 lakhs: R…

The petitioner, an Indian contractor, performed maintenance work for the Algerian Embassy in 1976 and claimed unpaid dues of about Rs.27,000. He sought permission under Section 86(4)(aa) of the Code of Civil Procedure to sue the Embassy, but the Central Government refused on vague "political grounds." The Supreme Court…

Mauji Ram Gupta owned a two‑storey house; the ground floor was occupied by him and the first floor became vacant. He applied for release of the vacant floor under s.16 of the U.P. Urban Buildings (Regulation of Letting, Rent and Eviction) Act, 1972, but the application was rejected and the floor was allotted to various…

The petitioners, officers of the Central Bank of India appointed after the 1969 nationalisation, challenged their forced retirement at age 58 under Rule 3 of the Bank's Rules for Age of Retirement, arguing that having two different retirement ages (60 for pre‑July 19, 1969 officers and 58 for post‑July 19, 1969 officer…

The case concerned the constitutional validity of Regulation 19(2) of the Life Insurance Corporation of India (Staff) Regulations, 1960, as amended in 1977, which required employees appointed on or after 1 September 1956 and belonging to Class I or II to retire at age 58, with a provision for retirement at 50 in the co…

The estate of the late Raja Nilkanth Narayan Singh was vested in the State of Bihar under the Bihar Land Reforms Act, 1950. While some mines were being worked under leases and royalties were paid, the successors-in-interest filed a writ petition seeking compensation for coal-bearing areas that had not been exploited at…

The Supreme Court clarified the procedure for appointing members of Administrative Tribunals under the Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985. It held that recruitment to the Central Administrative Tribunal must be overseen by a High‑Powered Selection Committee headed by a sitting Supreme Court judge nominated by the Chief…

The appellant, Gaya Prasad, sued for specific performance of a 1958 agreement to sell a house that had been exempted from sale under Section 24 of the U.P. Encumbered Estates Act, 1934. The respondent‑landlord had earlier obtained an exemption for the house and a mortgage on the property had been extinguished by a mone…

Madhukar Lapalikar, an evicted tenant and a Central Government employee, was allotted a house in Nagpur in 1960 under clause 24A of the Central Provinces and Berar Letting of House and Rent Control Order, 1949, as an evictee. After retiring in May 1978, a respondent applied under clause 25 of the same Order to evict hi…

The case concerned a government servant, S.P. Jain, who was ordered to vacate his government‑allotted quarters and sought immediate possession of the first floor of his own house in Meerut cantonment, which was let to K.M. Gupta. Jain filed an eviction petition under sections 24B and 24C of the U.P. Urban Buildings (Re…

Om Prakash was detained under Section 3(1) of the COFEPOSA Act for allegedly possessing contraband goods. At the Advisory Board hearing he sought to examine five witnesses present to rebut the allegation, but the Board refused and allowed only affidavits, which could not be produced. The Board’s report was forwarded to…

The landlord, I.M. Lal, obtained permission under Section 21 of the Delhi Rent Control Act, 1958, to let his newly built premises to Ramesh Khanna for a two‑year residential tenancy, after stating that he did not require the premises for that period. When the tenant refused to vacate after two years, the landlord sough…

Cemindia Co. Ltd., an engineering contractor engaged in the building and construction industry, operated a workshop solely for repairing its own equipment. Under the Employees' Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952, and Notification No. GSR 1398, the Regional Provident Fund Commissioner directed the co…

The appellant, a landlady, sued the respondent tenant for possession of a flat, arrears of rent and mesne profits of Rs.78,000 after the tenancy was terminated. The High Court, relying on the West Bengal Premises Tenancy Act, held that the tenant remained a lawful occupant and that the claim for mesne profits was unten…

In 1976, respondents Nos. 2‑5 discovered a treasure of gold, silver ornaments and cash while renovating a house and reported it to the Collector, who issued a notification under the Indian Treasure‑Trove Act, 1878. The Collector, believing the treasure was hidden within the statutory period, adjourned the hearing and a…

The State of Andhra Pradesh sought recovery of the excise‑duty component of the issue price for arrack that excise contractors failed to lift against their minimum guaranteed quantity. The contractors argued that excise duty, being a component of the issue price, could be severed and should not be payable on unlifted l…

The case concerned a long‑standing tenancy that began in 1932, where the rent was progressively increased from Rs.16 to Rs.60 in violation of the Bihar Buildings (Lease, Rent and Eviction) Control Act. After the landlord, who became the Karta of the joint family, served a notice of termination, the tenants were sued fo…

The dispute concerned the inheritance of immovable and movable property of a deceased father and was referred to arbitration. The arbitrator's award directed payment of sums and stipulated residence rights, but did not actually create or extinguish any right in the immovable property. The first respondent objected that…

The petitioners, about 300 catering cleaners employed by contractors on the Southern Railway, alleged that they were paid meagre wages and denied statutory benefits, and sought a writ of mandamus under Article 32 to compel the abolition of the contract‑labour system and their regularisation as railway employees. The Co…

The Supreme Court entertained several criminal miscellaneous petitions filed under Article 32 seeking clarification of the procedural safeguards it had earlier laid down for the adoption of Indian children by foreign and Indian parents. It directed that reasonable remuneration, ranging from Rs. 450 to Rs. 500 (and up t…

Chander Mohan gifted a house to his nephew Gian Chand in 1937 and later sued to cancel the gift. The dispute was referred to arbitration, resulting in a family settlement award that was accepted by the court, granting Chander Mohan a life‑time right of enjoyment, Gian Chand and the sons of Mohinder Mohan each one‑third…

The Krishna District Co‑operative Marketing Society (the petitioner) retrenched nine clerks, invoking the Andhra Pradesh Shops and Establishments Act, 1966. The employees (respondents) challenged the terminations, arguing that the retrenchment provisions of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 (particularly s.25F) applied…

The Supreme Court was asked to consider objections raised by several states to the implementation of a Court‑approved scheme that reserved 15% of MBBS/BDS seats for an All‑India Entrance Examination. The states sought a further deferment of the scheme, arguing lack of uniform syllabus, language barriers, and law‑and‑or…

The State of Uttar Pradesh assessed Central Sales Tax on coal transactions carried out by the respondent, Kasturi Lal Har Lal, who sold coal by endorsing railway receipts while the goods were moving from Bihar to Uttar Pradesh. The Sales Tax Officer in Lucknow held that the sales were inter‑State under section 3(b) of …

The respondents, subscribers to a Kuri (chit fund) in 1962, defaulted on instalment payments after receiving their prized amounts. Their bonds contained a clause that on default the entire balance would become immediately payable in a lump sum with 12% interest, without credit for any dividend. The trial court decreed …

Be​gum Subanu, a Muslim wife, filed a petition under Section 125 of the Criminal Procedure Code seeking maintenance for herself and her minor daughter after her husband, Abdul Gafoor, married a second wife. The lower courts dismissed her claim, holding that the husband's offer to take her back and maintain her negated …

Vincent Panikurlangara, an advocate and General Secretary of a public‑interest law service society, filed a writ petition under Article 32 seeking a total ban on the import, manufacture, sale and distribution of certain drugs that had been recommended for prohibition by the Drugs Consultative Committee, along with canc…

The appellant, East India Coal Co. Ltd., owned several coking coal mines that were nationalised under the Coking Coal Mines (Nationalisation) Act, 1972. Respondents Nos. 1 and 2, who were raising contractors and selling agents for the unworked mines, installed machinery and claimed they were owners entitled to a share …

The Supreme Court examined an appeal by Deputy Superintendent of Police S.K. Viswambaran (appellant) who sought expunction of adverse remarks made against him by the Kerala High Court in an order relating to petitions filed by two police officers (respondents). The High Court, while considering the respondents' request…

Dr. R.S. Gupta claimed that two sums (Rs.1,50,000 and Rs.67,560½) were valid gifts to his sons and grandsons, effected by instructing a non‑banking firm (Messrs Tika Ram & Sons) to debit his account and credit the donees' accounts. The firm had only Rs.4,000 cash and no overdraft facility. The Revenue argued that witho…

British India Corp Ltd entered into an agreement with Charles Walker & Co. to obtain technical know‑how, use certain trademarks and receive specialised tanning processes. Paragraph 7 of that agreement required the company to appoint Textile & General Supplies, a nominee of Charles Walker, as its distributor in India an…

The appellant, a dealer, was assessed for the 1975-76 year on 7 February 1979. A notice under Section 21 of the Uttar Pradesh Sales Tax Act, 1948, was issued and an order dated 18 January 1980 declared no further tax liability, effectively reopening the assessment. The appellant filed a rectification application under …

The appellant, B.R. Mehta, had been a tenant of a house in Kalkaji since 1968. In 1978 his wife, a government teacher, was allotted a separate government quarter, which she later vacated and rejoined the family home. The landlord sought eviction of the appellant under Section 14(1)(h) of the Delhi Rent Control Act, cla…

The State of Orissa appealed the acquittal of Bhagaban Barik, who had struck a man with a lathi on the head, causing death. Barik claimed he acted in private defence of his property, believing the deceased to be a thief, and invoked section 79 of the IPC as a defence of mistake of fact. The Supreme Court examined wheth…

The case concerned a notice issued under Section 6 of the Smugglers and Foreign Exchange Manipulators (Forfeiture of Property) Act, 1976 (SAFEMA) against Manoharlal Narang, who was a brother of Ramlal Narang, whose detention under COFEPOSA had been challenged. The Supreme Court examined whether a relative could raise f…

The petitioner, owner of a stage‑carriage bus, claimed that the insurer should indemnify him up to Rs 75,000 under Section 95(2)(b)(ii)(2) of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1939, arguing that the per‑passenger limit in sub‑clause (ii)(4) was inapplicable. The Supreme Court examined the pre‑1982 wording of Section 95(2)(b), wh…

Dr. Saroj Kumar Das, a medical practitioner residing in Ghana, sued tenant Arjun Prasad Jogani for possession of the second‑floor rear portion of 248 C.I.T. Road, Calcutta, claiming a genuine requirement for personal use and no alternative accommodation. The trial court and the Additional District Judge granted evictio…

Balram Gupta, a permanent clerk with over 20 years of service, gave notice of voluntary retirement effective 31 March 1981 under Rule 48‑A of the Central Civil Services (Pension) Rules, 1972. He later withdrew the notice on 31 January 1981, citing personal requests from staff, but the government refused permission to w…

The State Bank of India merged its Grade‑I and Grade‑II officers into a new Junior Management Grade effective 1 October 1979 under an order made under s.43 of the State Bank of India Act. Probationary and trainee officers appointed on 30‑31 October 1979 claimed seniority over the erstwhile Grade‑II officers, arguing th…

The partnership firm of Rai Bahadur Seth Shreeram Durgaprasad exported manganese ore between 1952 and 1958 but failed to repatriate the full foreign‑exchange proceeds, contravening Section 12(2) of the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act, 1947. The Director of Enforcement initiated adjudication proceedings under Section 23…

The case concerned the suspension of IAS officer E.S. Reddi under the Andhra Pradesh Civil Services Rules, which he challenged on the ground of arbitrariness under Article 14 of the Constitution, alleging that similarly situated officers were merely transferred. The Division Bench of the Andhra Pradesh High Court rever…

Four men were tried for murder and attempt to cause hurt under Sections 302, 34 and 323, 34 of the IPC. The Sessions Court acquitted them, finding the delay in reporting, lack of motive, and the unreliability of two eyewitnesses (PW2 and PW6) sufficient to raise doubt. The Punjab and Haryana High Court set aside the ac…

The owner of a truck left the engine running and handed control to a cleaner, an unlicensed person, who interfered and caused an accident. The owner was held vicariously liable for damages, and the insurer sought to rely on an exclusion clause that barred liability when an unlicensed driver was at the wheel, invoking S…