NAVIN SINHA

The Supreme Court examined two second appeals filed under Section 100 of the CPC concerning a suit for declaration of title and possession of a property. The High Court had entertained the appeals despite the absence of a substantial question of law, and had allowed the respondent's claim to possession while dismissing…

Gurjit Singh was convicted under Section 498-A IPC for dowry-related cruelty after his wife, Jaswinder Kaur, committed suicide within seven years of marriage. The High Court also convicted him under Section 306 IPC, invoking the presumption of abetment under Section 113-A of the Evidence Act. On appeal, the Supreme Cou…

The appellant, Mohd. Inam, challenged a vacancy declaration made by the Rent Control and Eviction Officer under Section 12(1)(b) of the Uttar Pradesh Urban Buildings (Regulation of Letting, Rent and Eviction) Act, 1972, alleging that only his family members occupied the premises and therefore the vacancy provision was …

The State of Haryana issued a notification on 5 May 2017 identifying "remote/difficult" areas for granting weightage in NEET PG admissions under Regulation 9(IV) of the Post‑Graduate Medical Education Regulations, 2000. The High Court set aside the notification, holding it was based on an arbitrary and hasty process, a…

The State of Karnataka implemented the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) scheme by upgrading certain primary schools to higher primary schools with an 8th standard. An Office Memorandum dated 7 April 2010 introduced clause 13 allowing teachers to apply for mutual transfers, subject to mutual consent and matching cadre and su…

M/s Granules India Ltd imported 96 tonnes of acetic anhydride in 1993 under an advance licence issued before 19 May 1992 and claimed exemption from customs duty under Notifications 203/1992 and 204/1992. The exemption was withdrawn by Notification 183/1993 dated 25 November 1993, but a clarificatory Notification 105/19…

The complainant alleged that a property inherited from her father was fraudulently transferred to her brother through a forged will and deed, and that the brother subsequently executed a lease to accused No.4, who sub‑leased it to HPCL. The complaint also implicated several other parties, but the High Court quashed the…

The dispute concerned two ancestral lands in Goa, "M" and "B", originally owned by the grandfather of brothers Suriaji and Gones. A 1915 sale deed conveyed portions of the lands to Suriaji, with an accompanying 1919 settlement deed stating that Suriaji had paid half the price on behalf of Gones and would transfer Gones…

The case concerned a claim by Smt. Sureshwati that her services as a clerk/assistant teacher in a private school turned government‑aided were illegally retrenched on 8 March 2006 without a disciplinary enquiry. The school contended that she had abandoned her post in July 1997 after marriage and had not been in continuo…

The appellant was appointed Junior Accounts Clerk on 21‑12‑1990 after a selection process conducted by a committee under the 1985 Rules and after calling names from the Employment Exchange. The promotion of a senior officer (Shiv Kumar Rai) was later cancelled, leading to the termination of the appellant's appointment,…

The deceased, a housewife and her minor daughter, were passengers in a horse‑cart that was struck by a bus, resulting in their deaths. The Motor Accident Claims Tribunal awarded compensation but deducted 50% on the ground of contributory negligence, a deduction the High Court upheld. On appeal, the Supreme Court held t…

The Supreme Court, hearing United Biotech Private Ltd's application, modified its earlier judgment dated 29 November 2017 concerning the interpretation of the Trade and Merchandise Marks Act, 1958. The order substituted specific wording in paragraphs 13, 14 and 37 to correctly refer to the parties and the civil appeals…

The claimant suffered severe injuries in a motor accident in 1999 and filed a claim under Section 166(1)(a) of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. The Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal awarded only Rs.1,00,000, which the claimant appealed; he died in 2015 of causes unrelated to the accident, and his daughter was substituted as…

The respondent, Raj Kumar Anand, a Trained Graduate Teacher, was granted Assured Career Progression (ACP) and placed in an upgraded pay scale effective 10 August 2006 by an order dated 25 April 2008. After the 6th Central Pay Commission’s rules (Central Civil Service (Revised Pay) Rules, 2008) came into force on 29 Aug…

The State of Madhya Pradesh appealed against a Division Bench order that had directed the issuance of an appointment order to Bunty, who had applied for the post of police constable. Bunty had cleared the recruitment tests, but the Screening Committee denied his appointment on the ground that he was involved in a crimi…

The respondent, a teacher appointed on probation at a privately managed primary school, sought approval of her appointment and later challenged her suspension and termination, which were effected without a departmental enquiry. The High Court initially dismissed her writ on the ground that the private school was not a …

The petitioners challenged Rule 5A(3) of the Bihar Civil Service (Judicial Branch) Recruitment Rules, 1955, which limited the number of candidates called for the final written examination to 10% of those who appeared in the preliminary test. They argued that the rule violated the Supreme Court's decision in Malik Mazha…

The Tamil Nadu Medical Officers’ Association challenged the amendment to Regulation 9(4) and (8) of the Post‑Graduate Medical Education Regulations, 2000, which allowed reservation of 50% of state‑quota seats for in‑service medical officers. The petitioners argued that such reservation exceeded the legislative competen…

The land was acquired by the State in 1959 under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 and possession was taken in 1975. Subsequent resolutions sought to reconvey portions of the land to R. Hanumaiah, but the Supreme Court held in 2005 that once possession is taken, Section 48 cannot be used to de‑acquire or reconvey the land…

Dr. Tonmoy Mondal, a medical officer in West Bengal Health Services, applied for voluntary retirement under Rule 75(aaa) of the West Bengal Service Rules, 1971. The State declined his request on the ground of public interest, a decision later quashed by the West Bengal Administrative Tribunal. The High Court initially …

The appellant, Raja Ram, claimed that his elderly father, aged over 80, was physically infirm and that the respondents, who cared for him, exercised undue influence to obtain a sale deed in their favour in 1970. The plaintiff alleged that the father's age, cataract, and limited mobility rendered him incapable of free c…

DIG K.P.S. Raghuvanshi challenged the Departmental Promotion Committee (DPC) recommendation for his promotion to Inspector General of the Indian Coast Guard, alleging that the DPC was conducted under the newly issued Coast Guard Order (CGO) 02/09, which altered the Annual Confidential Report (ACR) criteria, and that th…

The appellants were charged under Section 493 of the IPC and Sections 3 and 4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act for allegedly demanding dowry and for deceitful cohabitation. The complainant filed an FIR after a purported compromise between the parties, and the High Court dismissed the appellants' petition under Section 482 …

The Kerala State Coastal Zone Management Authority (KSCZMA) appealed against a Kerala High Court order that had allowed writ petitions challenging a show‑cause notice issued to builders who had constructed structures on the backwaters of Ernakulam. The builders had obtained permits from the local panchayat (later upgra…

The appellant, Kalu alias Laxminarayan, was convicted under Section 302 IPC for the death of his wife, who was found strangulated inside their home. The trial and High Courts held the death homicidal, though the High Court initially described it as hanging. The Supreme Court examined the forensic findings, the presence…

The State, represented by the CBI, appealed against the High Court's acquittal of two police officers, accused No.2 (Inspector) and accused No.5 (Constable), who were convicted for a custodial death under Section 304 Part II read with Section 34 of the IPC. The trial court had rejected the defendants' alibi, noting ser…

The petitioner, a landlord, sought to resume four acres of land from tenants under the Mysore Land Reforms Act, 1961. A compromise deed dated 02‑03‑1970, recorded before the Munsiff/Tribunal, indicated that the respondents had already handed over possession of the land to the petitioner. The High Court held the petitio…

The plaintiffs, villagers, sued to declare that a 72‑bigha parcel recorded as ‘Charnoi’ (common grazing land) vested in the State under the Madhya Bharat Zamindari Abolition Act, 1951, and could not be claimed by the ex‑Zamindar’s heirs. The ex‑Zamindar’s father had earlier obtained a Bhumiswami title under Section 5(f…

The Cochin Port Trust sought to recover ground rent and demurrage for containers that remained unclaimed by consignees after customs clearance, arguing that the steamer agents should not be liable beyond the 75‑day limit set by the Tariff Authority. The Supreme Court examined whether the passage of title, endorsement o…

The Visakhapatnam Port Trust floated a tender for wooden sleepers, which M/s Padia Timber Co. (P) Ltd. responded to with a conditional offer that inspection would be at its depot. The Trust accepted the offer but imposed an additional condition that final inspection be at its showroom, which Padia rejected, leading to …

The appellants, including Fainul Khan, were convicted under IPC sections 302/149, 323/149 and 147 for participating in an unlawful assembly that resulted in the murder of a deceased and injuries to two eyewitnesses. They challenged the conviction on three grounds: the charge under section 147 was framed against only fo…

Ravi Setia filed a suit for specific performance of a sale agreement dated 10‑11‑1989, seeking execution of the sale deed on 30‑04‑1990. The trial court held that the plaintiff was ready and willing to perform, relying solely on a certificate from the Sub‑Registrar that he was present on the said date, despite the defe…

The appellants, manufacturers of the insecticide Trizophos 40% EC, were charged with misbranding after laboratory analysis showed the active ingredient was only 34.70%. Samples were taken on 10 February 2011, sent to the Insecticide Testing Laboratory, Ludhiana, and the first analysis report was received on 14 March 20…

M/s Cheminova India Ltd, a pesticide manufacturer, and its former Managing Director were charged under the Insecticides Act, 1968 for misbranding insecticide products after laboratory tests showed lower active ingredient than labeled. The State of Punjab filed a complaint alleging offences under sections 3(k)(i), 17, 1…

The appellant's husband owned a Hyundai car insured for Rs.5,00,000, which met with a fatal accident. The insurer denied the claim, alleging that the driver’s licence was fake and could not be verified with the licensing authority. The consumer forums allowed the claim, but the insurer appealed, contending a breach of …

The plaintiff, Matadin, filed a suit in 1990 claiming adverse possession of land based on Khasra entries from 1960‑61, asserting continuous possession for over 30 years. The original owners had sold the land to Urmila Devi on 11‑Oct‑1972, and her name appears in the Khasra in blue ink for subsequent years, while the pl…