S RATNAVEL PANDIAN

The case arose from a violent incident during a wedding procession on 17 November 1972 in which Ramesh Chand was shot dead and several others injured. The accused—Kashmiri Lal, Madan Lal, Babu Ram, Jagdish Singh Bedi and Prem Pal—were convicted by a Sessions Court for conspiracy to murder, murder, attempt to murder and…

The Directorate of Enforcement arrested Deepak Mahajan under Section 35 of the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act (FERA) and produced him before a magistrate, who ordered his judicial remand under Section 167(2) of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC). Mahajan challenged the magistrate's jurisdiction, relying on the earlier…

Durand Didier, a French national, was stopped by police in Goa after accelerating his motorcycle and falling without injury. A search of his bike and attached bag, witnessed by two pancha witnesses, uncovered brown sugar, ganja oil and opium concealed in various items. Samples sent to a chemical analyst confirmed the p…

The appellant, Madan Gopal Kakkad, sought to overturn a High Court judgment that convicted Naval Dubey, a medical graduate, only of outraging a woman's modesty under IPC s.354 and imposed a fine. The victim, an eight‑year‑old girl, testified that the accused stripped her, forced oral sex and slightly penetrated her vul…

The Karnataka Education Department’s 1981 order allowed temporary appointments of teachers in private aided colleges for up to three months, with a one‑day break in service and a fixed salary ten rupees less than that of regular teachers. The petitioners, temporary teachers who had served for years with periodic breaks…

The respondents were arrested for offences under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act and were denied bail, leading them to file writ and criminal miscellaneous petitions seeking bail under Section 167(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) on grounds of delayed charge‑sheet and illness. The D…

The Supreme Court examined a petition filed by H.S. Chowdhary, claiming to be a public‑interest litigant, seeking to quash a FIR and stop a letter rogatory to Switzerland in the Bofors scandal. The Court held that Chowdhary had no locus standi and that the petition did not fall within the definition of public‑interest …

The father (A1) and son (A2) were charged with murder, conspiracy and abetment of the death of A2's wife, who was found dead in their house. The trial court acquitted them for lack of evidence of a conspiracy and of a homicidal death. The High Court convicted them under Sections 302, 201 and 120‑B IPC, sentencing both …

The State of Uttar Pradesh appealed the acquittal of Dr. Ravindra Prakash Mittal, who was charged with murdering his second wife and attempting to conceal the crime by burning her body. The trial court had convicted him under Sections 302 and 201 of the IPC based on a chain of circumstantial evidence, but the Allahabad…

Smt. Chand Dhawan filed a criminal complaint alleging bigamy under Sections 494 and 109 IPC, claiming her husband Jawahar Lal had married another woman while their marriage subsisted. The Chief Judicial Magistrate took cognizance and issued summons against the husband, the second wife, and their parents. The husband mo…

The case concerned the interpretation of Rule 6(2) of the Madhya Pradesh State Industries (Gazetted) Service Recruitment Rules, 1985, which stipulates that the number of persons recruited by promotion or transfer shall not exceed the percentage shown in Schedule II. The Directorate of Industries had 57 Deputy Director …

The Enforcement Directorate seized Rs.4,28,713 in 1966 and recorded statements from appellants K.T.S. Mohammed and M. Jamal Mohammed under Section 39 of the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act (FERA). Both appellants later retracted those statements, claiming they were obtained under duress, and the Income‑Tax Officer reco…

Vashisht Narain Karwaria was detained under Section 3(3) of the National Security Act, 1980 after a police report described him as a hardened criminal with a gang and alleged many pending cases, although only one case was on record. The detaining authority relied on these extraneous statements, which were not part of t…

The appellant was caught on 12 November 1990 with two gold pellets without a permit and a detention order under Section 3(1) of the Conservation of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling Activities Act, 1974 was issued on 7 January 1991 but served only on 28 June 1991. The appellant challenged the order, arguing …

The petitioner, a medical student, applied for revaluation of his answer books under Poona University Ordinance 134A. After the first revaluation, a committee recommended cancelling the results, and the University Executive Council ordered a fresh, second revaluation conducted outside the state. The petitioner challeng…

The plaintiffs, heirs of the deceased Gulaba Singh, sued Surjit Kaur for possession of his property, claiming they were the nearest heirs under a will. Surjit Kaur counter‑claimed that she was Gulaba Singh's legally wedded wife under a Karewa form of marriage and that they lived as husband and wife. The trial court and…

The Supreme Court examined a public interest litigation filed by H.S. Chowdhary under Article 51A challenging the Central Bureau of Investigation's request to issue a Letter Rogatory to Switzerland in the Bofors scandal. The Court held that the petitioner and intervening parties (Janata Dal, CPI(M), Indian Congress (So…

The Supreme Court dealt with a long‑running dispute concerning the absorption of about 5,000 stipendiary graduates employed under Karnataka's 1977 unemployment relief scheme into Group ‘C’ civil service posts. The Court had earlier ordered the State to fill 3,691 vacancies with these graduates and to create super‑numer…

The appellants, managers of an establishment exempted from the Employees' Provident Funds Scheme 1952 under Section 17, failed to make provident‑fund contributions to their own trust in 1974. The Provident Fund Inspector filed criminal complaints under Sections 14(1A), 14(2) and 14(2A) of the Employees' Provident Funds…

The Indian Aluminium Company imported aluminium raw material into its Thane factory and paid octroi at the normal rate because it did not file the mandatory Form 14 required for the concessional rate of 0.25%‑1.25% under the Maharashtra Municipalities (Octroi) Rules, 1968. After discovering the mistake, it sought a ref…

The husband filed a petition for divorce on the ground of cruelty under Section 13(1)(a) of the Hindu Marriage Act. The Matrimonial Court dismissed the petition, but the Bombay High Court Division Bench granted a decree of divorce. The wife appealed to the Supreme Court, contending that the High Court erred in treating…

The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) framed a scheme to remove foot‑path hawkers whose mushrooming presence was obstructing traffic and public amenities. The High Court, following Supreme Court precedents, approved the scheme with certain modifications. Four small traders, covered by the scheme, filed a suit in th…

The dispute concerned the promotion of Capt. K.C. Shukla to the post of Deputy Operations Manager in Indian Airlines, a position filled by a selection process prescribed in the corporation's Promotion and Recruitment Rules (50% Annual Confidential Reports and 50% interview, later reduced to 40%). The Delhi High Court h…

In the 1985 Madhya Pradesh Vidhan Sabha election for the Niwadi constituency, respondent No.1 Ramratan Chaturvedi was declared elected. The appellant, Lakshmi Narayan Nayak, filed an election petition alleging corrupt practices under Sections 123(2), (3) and (3A) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, specifica…

The State, represented by the CBI, appealed against a High Court order that barred the prosecution from examining a forensic document expert, S.K. Gupta, whose opinion linked a typewritten slip on a grenade parcel to a specific college typewriter. The issue centered on whether an expert's opinion on typescript falls wi…

The appellants were convicted for the murder of Bali and for causing injuries to his wife, based on the testimony of several eye‑witnesses and medical reports. The trial court sentenced them to life imprisonment under IPC s.302 read with s.34 and six months under s.323/34; the High Court reduced the murder charge to cu…

The appellant's premises were raided by Customs officials, leading to the seizure of gold, silver, and cash and the filing of two criminal complaints under the Customs Act, 1962 and the Gold Control Act, 1968. After the trial magistrate closed evidence, the prosecution sought, under Section 540 of the old Code (now Sec…

Chandra Mohan Tiwari and Ram Pal Singh Sengar were convicted of murder after the Madhya Pradesh High Court set aside a trial court acquittal. They appealed to the Supreme Court under Section 379 of the CrPC and Section 2(a) of the Supreme Court (Enlargement of Criminal Appellate Jurisdiction) Act, 1970, challenging the…

The appellant S.D. Soni was married to Varsha, who was found dead in their matrimonial home. The defence claimed suicide, citing a note (Exh. 80) and alleged poisoning, while the prosecution alleged homicide, pointing to internal injuries to the pancreas and spleen and a fabricated suicide note. The Court held that the…

The State of Haryana filed a special leave appeal after the Punjab and Haryana High Court quashed a First Information Report (FIR) that had been lodged on a complaint alleging that former Chief Minister Ch. Bhajan Lal had amassed wealth through corrupt means. The Supreme Court examined whether the allegations disclosed…

The dispute arose when the respondents, armed, attacked Partap Singh after a protest over burnt sugarcane damaging his wheat crop, leading to his death. The trial court convicted the respondents under section 302 IPC (murder) and sentenced them to life imprisonment. The High Court, however, acquitted them of murder, co…

K.M. Singh, a finance officer of the Association of Indian Universities, sued to declare that his resignation was obtained by fraud, coercion and duress. He offered that if two officials of the respondent took a special oath in a Gurudwara and a temple stating the resignation was not extracted under duress, the relevan…

The returned candidate Quamarul Islam contested the 1989 Karnataka Assembly election and was challenged by his rival S.K. Kanta on alleged corrupt practices under Sections 123(2), (3), (3A) and (4) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, including religious appeals and false statements. The High Court set aside …

Harpreet Kaur, the wife of Harvinder Singh, challenged the detention of her husband under the Maharashtra Prevention of Dangerous Activities of Slumlords, Bootleggers and Drug Offenders Act, 1981. The husband had been involved in bootlegging, threatened police, attempted to run them over, injured a pedestrian and escap…

Mahindra Engineering & Chemical Products Ltd manufactured tubular arc chamber housings from glass fabric, which in turn is made from mineral (glass) fibre. The issue was whether these housings were liable to duty under Central Excise Tariff Item 22F(4) ("Mineral fibres and yarn and manufacturers thereof") or under the …

P.U. Iqbal was detained under the Conservation of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling Activities Act, 1974 (COFEPOSA) by an order dated 21‑08‑1989. The order was executed only on 10‑08‑1990, creating a delay of almost one year. Iqbal filed a writ petition under Article 32 seeking habeas corpus, contending that…

Triveni Shankar Saxena, originally appointed as a temporary Lekhpal in 1953, later served as a Consolidator and Assistant Consolidation Officer for about 17 years before being terminated on 16 October 1971 without reason and with one month's salary in lieu of notice. He claimed he was on deputation, had a lien on his o…

The firm P.V. Mohammad Barmay Sons owned three vessels and, without Reserve Bank of India permission, purchased and fitted foreign engines, contravening Sections 5(1)(a) and (b) of the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act, 1947. A raid in 1974 led to a notice, show‑cause proceedings and a penalty of Rs 50,000 imposed under …

Four accused (Nos. 1, 3, 4 and 6) were originally convicted of murder under Section 302 read with Section 149 IPC for the killing of Mahendra Singh and Virendra Singh. On appeal, the Supreme Court examined the scope of Section 105 of the Indian Evidence Act, holding that the prosecution must prove the offence beyond re…

The appellant, K.P. Periannan, was the highest bidder for an arrack shop in an auction conducted under the Tamil Nadu Toddy and Arrack Shops (Disposals in Auction) Rules, 1981. His bid of Rs.6550 was deemed inadequate and the shop was re‑auctioned; a higher bid of Rs.6575 by Chellamuthu was provisionally accepted by th…

L.S. Pandey, a Head Constable of the Central Reserve Police Force, was charged with negligence after two under‑trial Burmese prisoners escaped from his custody. A departmental enquiry was held, cancelled, and a fresh enquiry was conducted, resulting in a finding of neglect of duty under Section 11(1) of the CRPF Act, 1…

Pritam Pal, a practising advocate, filed a writ petition for service benefits which was dismissed by the Madhya Pradesh High Court. Dissatisfied, he filed a contempt petition alleging libellous and scandalising remarks by two High Court judges who had dismissed his petition. The High Court took cognizance, held him gui…

Petitioners, comprising 16 MLAs and 3 MPs, filed a writ petition under Article 226 seeking a CBI investigation into alleged corruption by Minister Bhajan Lal and the setting aside of a magistrate's order of discharge. The High Court dismissed the petition without addressing the petitioners' locus standi, prompting a Sp…

The DIG of Police, S.A. Khan, filed a contempt petition seeking suo moto proceedings against Chief Minister Ch. Bhajan Lal, alleging that a press statement made by the latter interfered with pending corruption proceedings before the Supreme Court. The petition also contained interlocutory applications for punishment, s…

Deputy Inspector General of Police S.A. Khan was suspended by the Haryana Government on 5 July 1991, a suspension later confirmed by the Central Government under the All India Services (Discipline and Appeals) Rules, 1969. Khan alleged that the suspension was mala fide, intended to protect Chief Minister Bhajan Lal fro…

The Supreme Court examined a batch of writ petitions challenging the applicability of the admission scheme laid down in J.P. Unnikrishnan v. State of Andhra Pradesh to minority educational institutions (MEIs). Petitioners, claiming minority status, argued that the 50% government‑filled and 50% management‑filled seat al…

The President of India referred a matter under Article 317(1) of the Constitution to the Supreme Court, seeking an inquiry into allegations of misbehaviour against Shri M. Megha Chandra Singh, Chairman of the Manipur Public Service Commission, including tampering with examination papers and taking a bribe. While the re…

Advocate John D'Souza drafted a will for his mother‑in‑law, Mrs Mary Raymond, and kept the original in his safe custody after issuing a receipt. After the testatrix died, the new lawyer and later the respondent, Edward Ani (the son‑in‑law and executor), wrote letters demanding the return of the will, but D'Souza failed…

The Supreme Court examined the Union of India's and CBI's challenge to a Delhi High Court order that quashed the FIR registered against W.N. Chadha in the Bofors scandal and set aside the letters rogatory issued to Swiss authorities. The Court held that the FIR disclosed a prima facie offence and that the High Court ha…

The appellant filed a complaint before the Chief Judicial Magistrate alleging that his brother‑in‑law, Darshan Singh, had contracted a second marriage while his first marriage to Jagjit Kaur was still subsisting, thereby committing bigamy under IPC s.494 and abetment under s.109. The magistrate, after recording stateme…

Abdus Salam was detained under the COFEPOSA Act after being caught with smuggled gold ingots in September 1987. A detention order was issued in May 1988 and he was arrested in August 1988. He challenged the detention on the grounds that the delay in passing the order, the delay in disposing his representation before th…

The State of Maharashtra appealed against a Bombay High Court Single Judge's ex‑parte order that stayed a trial judge’s permission for Dr. Budhikot Subharao to travel abroad and awarded him Rs.25,000 compensation, alleging that the State had acted in mala fides and engaged in sharp practice. The Supreme Court examined …

The appellant State of Maharashtra sought to uphold the conviction of Dr. Budhikota Subharao, an ex‑Naval Captain who had voluntarily retired in 1987, for alleged violations of the Official Secrets Act, 1923 and the Atomic Energy Act, 1962. The accused was arrested in May 1988 and material seized from his possession wa…

The State of Maharashtra charged Dr. Budhikota Subharao with leaking atomic energy secrets under the Atomic Energy Act and the Official Secrets Act. He was discharged because the State failed to obtain the sanction required under Section 197 of the Criminal Procedure Code. The accused then applied to have the charge sh…

The appellant, a retired engineer, claimed possession of an independent portion of a house that he and his son co‑owned. He filed criminal proceedings under Sections 107 and 145 of the Criminal Procedure Code and also a civil suit for an injunction. The Section 107 proceedings were dropped, and the Sub‑Divisional Magis…

The Karnataka Public Service Commission (KPSC) instructed candidates in its State Civil Service competitive exams to write their roll numbers only on the front page of the answer book. Several candidates wrote their roll numbers elsewhere in the answer books, leading the Commission to refuse evaluation of those answer …

The deceased, Smt. Kailash, was married to Sat Pal and allegedly subjected to harassment by her mother‑in‑law (Smt. Shanti) and another relative for not providing a scooter and television as dowry. She was found dead under unnatural circumstances within seven years of marriage, and the accused were charged under IPC se…

The State of West Bengal (Public Works Department) and National Builders disputed a claim arising from the construction of a 250‑bed hospital. Clause 25 of their contract appointed the Chief Engineer as sole arbitrator, who in turn nominated a Superintending Engineer. After 59 sittings the arbitrator refused to resign,…

The State Bank of India initiated disciplinary proceedings against its officer D.C. Aggarwal, whose inquiry officer recommended exoneration on minor charges. The bank forwarded the inquiry report to the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC), which found several charges proved and recommended a major penalty, including rem…

The appellant, a candidate for the Civil Services (Main) Examination 1990, challenged the second proviso to Rule 4 of the Civil Services Examination Rules before the Central Administrative Tribunal, alleging it violated Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution. The CAT allowed the appellant to appear in the Main examinat…

The Supreme Court examined the constitutional validity of the second proviso added to Rule 4 and the proviso to Rule 17 of the Civil Services Examination Rules, which restrict candidates allocated to IPS or Central Services Group A from re‑appearing in the next examination unless they resign. The petitioners argued tha…

The case concerned promotions in the Andhra Pradesh Panchayati Raj Engineering Service from Junior Engineer to Assistant Engineer. The Administrative Tribunal had held that such promotions should be based on a statewide seniority list, but the State Government argued that the Presidential Order of 1975, made under Arti…

The appellant was convicted of raping and murdering a five‑year‑old girl based solely on circumstantial evidence, including the alleged last sighting of the girl with the accused, his purported false explanation, the claim that he pointed out the body’s location, and alleged blood‑stains and genital abrasions. The tria…

The petitioner, Elizabeth Antony, lodged a caveat to oppose the grant of probate of a will claimed to have been executed by the deceased Mary Aline Browne, alleging that the will was fictitious and that she had a caveatable interest arising from a trust, a gift deed and a later will of Zoe Enid Browne. The Subordinate …

A batch of West Bengal Civil Service (Executive) officers filed a writ petition under Article 226 seeking seniority rules. The Calcutta High Court ordered the State to frame such rules and later stayed its own judgment for eight weeks, allowing the State to fill vacancies. The State appealed, and the Supreme Court inte…

The Supreme Court considered a batch of writ petitions and appeals challenging the constitutional validity of the Terrorist Affected Areas (Special Courts) Act, 1984, the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act, 1985, and the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act, 1987 (TADA), along with a c…

Captain Virender Kumar, an Army officer injured in 1975, filed a contempt petition seeking enforcement of a 1986 Supreme Court order that deemed him discharged as of 21 February 1981 and directed payment of all arrears and retirement benefits. He argued that, under Rule 18 of the Army Rules, 1950, he could not be disch…

D.C. Agarwal, a Deputy General Manager of State Bank of India, was subjected to a departmental inquiry that reduced his rank by three grades, an order later set aside by the High Court and upheld by the Supreme Court. The Bank was directed to consider him for promotion, but as he approached the superannuation age of 58…

This landmark judgment concerns the scope of Article 356 of the Constitution of India, which empowers the President to impose President's Rule in states upon failure of constitutional machinery. The case consolidated challenges to proclamations dissolving legislative assemblies in Karnataka, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Madhya…

The State of Haryana appealed against High Court orders directing it to consider premature release of two convicts whose death sentences had been commuted to life imprisonment. The convicts were sentenced before the 1978 amendment introducing Section 433A of the CrPC, which mandates a minimum of 14 years’ actual impris…

The appellant Jagmal Singh Yadav was elected to the Rajasthan Legislative Assembly, but his election was set aside by the High Court on the ground that he had committed a corrupt practice under section 123(4) of the Representation of the People Act by causing a defamatory news item to be published against the responden…

The State of U.P. appealed against a High Court order that set aside the conviction of respondents for violating a Section 145 order because the complaint was filed by a successor magistrate rather than the magistrate who originally issued the order. The Supreme Court examined the meaning of "public servant concerned" …

The petitioners, foreign nationals arrested for allegedly smuggling gold biscuits, were denied bail and subsequently detained under Section 3(1) of the Conservation of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling Activities Act, 1974 (COFEPOSA). They challenged the detention, arguing that there was no compelling necess…

The Supreme Court was asked to resolve the impasse over admission and fee structures in private professional colleges after the Government of India had permitted admission of foreign students up to 50% of seats. The Court held that, in view of the J.P. Unnikrishnan judgment, such permission could not be enforced for th…

The appellant and two others were convicted of murder under Section 302 read with Section 34 IPC and of concealing evidence under Section 201 read with Section 34 IPC. The High Court set aside the murder convictions, confirmed the conviction under Section 201 for the appellant, and enhanced his sentence from three to s…

The petitioner, a directly recruited accountant of Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation, was served a charge sheet and his services were terminated by a simple notice before the conclusion of a disciplinary enquiry. The Supreme Court examined whether the termination was a genuine exercise of power under Reg…

The appellants, owners of hotels and restaurants in Kerala, were granted FL‑3 foreign liquor licences under Rule 13(3) of the Kerala Foreign Liquor Rules, 1974, for the financial year 1992‑93. A government order dated 9 November 1992 cancelled all such licences for that year, and the licences were withdrawn. After the …

The appellant, a former civil engineer of the erstwhile State of Junagadh, was compulsorily retired in 1961 and later deemed to have served until 1964 following a Supreme Court order. After his retirement, the Gujarat Government reduced his pension and gratuity by 50% under a show‑cause notice, invoking Rules 188 and 1…

In the 1990 Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly election from Chachiot, Motiram was declared elected. The election was challenged on the ground that the nomination of another candidate, Karam Singh, had been improperly rejected because he was alleged to hold an office of profit as Chairman of the Himachal Pradesh Kha…

Jai Prakash was convicted of murder for stabbing Champat Rai with a kirpan after an altercation at the house of Agya Devi, the deceased's wife, with whom the appellant allegedly had an illicit relationship. The sole eyewitness, the deceased's brother, testified that the appellant, after a verbal exchange, deliberately …

The appellants Mathura Prashad and Binda Prashad were convicted under IPC s.302 read with s.34 for the murder of Keshav Singh. The prosecution’s case rested on a dying declaration in which the deceased wrote only the name "Guiab Chand" and on witness testimony that did not specifically identify the appellants. The Supr…

Sanjeev Kumar Aggarwal was detained under Section 3(1) of the Conservation of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling Activities Act while already in judicial custody on remand. He challenged the detention on the grounds that the detaining authority had not considered his existing custody, had not applied its mind…

Sardar Singh, a Jawan with ten years of service, was convicted by a summary court‑martial for carrying twelve bottles of liquor, seven of which exceeded his permitted allowance, while on leave. The court‑martial sentenced him to three months' rigorous imprisonment and dismissal from service. Singh appealed, alleging pr…

The case involved the murder of Hanumant Singh, allegedly over a dispute concerning gold ornaments, with Mahesh Chander and Mohinder Singh convicted on the basis of eye‑witness testimony. The appellants challenged the conviction, arguing that the FIR was delayed, the names of the accused were omitted, and the refusal t…

The appellants, Narendra Pratap Narain Singh and Puran Singh, were in charge of government agricultural seed stores and were charged under IPC sections 409, 467 and 471 for allegedly preparing forged bills and receiving payments for credit sales to village level workers, contrary to government circulars prohibiting suc…

Gazi Khan, detained under Section 3(1) of the Prevention of Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1989, filed a representation under Article 22(5) of the Constitution. The representation was disposed of after an unexplained delay of 27 days, including a 7‑day gap with no explanation for the…

Vishal Jeet filed a public‑interest writ petition under Article 32 seeking a CBI inquiry into police negligence, the forced prostitution, Devadasi and Jogini systems, and rehabilitation of victims. The Court observed that prostitution is a socio‑economic problem requiring preventive, not merely punitive, measures and t…

The petitioners, social workers who staged a peaceful dharna for school teachers, were arrested, convicted under Section 186 IPC and sentenced to one month’s imprisonment. After serving the sentence they were detained further and alleged that police handcuffed and paraded them in public without any written authority, v…

The State of Uttar Pradesh appealed to the Supreme Court against the High Court's order acquitting 24 of the 41 accused in a mass‑murder case that left 13 victims dead. The prosecution alleged a conspiracy by the accused to murder the victims during a sugar‑cane cutting, relying heavily on the testimony of several ocul…

The appellant sought a declaration that certain properties belonged to a joint family and that a trust over them was void. A receiver was appointed with an injunction restraining any "transfer" of the properties. Grindlays Bank, the original tenant of four flats, surrendered two flats to Tata Finlay, and the receiver l…

Mahesh Kumar Chauhan was detained under Section 3(1) of the Conservation of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling Activities Act, 1974. He filed a representation challenging his detention on 18‑21 August 1989, which was forwarded to the sponsoring authority on 25 August and the authority’s comments were received…

C.D. George, a licensed gold dealer, kept his showroom on the ground floor of a four‑storeyed building but stored gold ornaments on the third floor. He was charged under the Gold (Control) Act, 1968 for failing to maintain accounts (Sec. 55(3)) and for allegedly carrying on business in premises other than those specifi…

The appellant's 13.07‑acre coffee estate was auctioned under the Tamil Nadu Revenue Recovery Act, 1894, and purchased by the first respondent for Rs.12,225. Section 36 of the Act requires that the date and place of sale be published in the Gazette and that the balance of the sale consideration be deposited within 30 da…

Balbir Singh and Inderjit Singh, brothers, were charged with murder of their relative Onkar Singh under Sections 302 and 34 of the IPC. The Sessions Judge acquitted them, but the Punjab and Haryana High Court, on appeal by the State, convicted them and sentenced them to life imprisonment. The appellants appealed to the…

The Supreme Court examined a series of cases where the State of Punjab alleged that arrests, searches and seizures under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 (NDPS Act) were illegal because police officers failed to comply with certain statutory provisions. The Court held that the NDPS Act is not a …

The Union of India and an Additional Secretary appealed against a Gujarat High Court order that had quashed a detention order issued under Section 3(1) of the Conservation of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling Activities Act, 1974, against Vasanbharthi Jivanbharthi. The detenu challenged the detention on the …

The State of Andhra Pradesh filed a criminal appeal against the quashing of an FIR registered against IPS officer P.V. Pavithran under the Prevention of Corruption Act. The FIR was lodged on 8 March 1984, but the investigation report was filed only on 17 September 1987, leading the respondent to seek quashing of the FI…