The Supreme Court questioned Justice Yashwant Varma's conduct regarding an in-house inquiry panel report that found him guilty of misconduct in a cash discovery row. The court raised concerns about his delayed challenge to the inquiry and the implications of the panel's recommendations.
Legal experts have lauded Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna's decision to make public crucial documents related to a controversy surrounding the alleged discovery of cash from Delhi High Court judge Yashwant Varma's residence. They also welcomed the formation of an in-house committee to further investigate the matter. While some expressed concerns about the incident's impact on the judiciary's image, others emphasized the need for transparency and a fair inquiry. The Supreme Court released the inquiry report by Delhi High Court Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya, which included photos and videos of the alleged cash discovery. Justice Varma has denied the allegations, calling them a "conspiracy to frame and malign him."
The 'Toshkhana' (treasury) of the Banke Bihari temple in Mathura, locked since 1971, was opened for inspection under the supervision of a Supreme Court-appointed committee. The inventory included copper coins, stones, silver and golden sticks.
The family court awarded her a maintenance of Rs 5,000 per month. The husband them moved the high court over the family court's decision.
The ASI on Wednesday urged the court not to make its report public for at least four more weeks.
Justice Surya Kant, on his first day as Chief Justice of India, established a new procedural norm requiring written requests for urgent case listings, with oral requests reserved for extraordinary circumstances. He also addressed various cases, including those related to extrajudicial killings and the removal of a lawyer from a government post.
The ASI had on Wednesday urged the court not to make its Gyanvapi complex survey report public for at least four more weeks, citing the December 19 judgment of the Allahabad high court.
A vacation bench of Justices Vineet Saran and BR Gavai said that the directions of high court passed on May 17 shall not be treated as directives but an advice to Uttar Pradesh government.
The Allahabad high court on Friday stayed the arrest of Samajwadi Party MP Ziaur Rahman Barq in connection with violence in Uttar Pradesh's Sambhal district during a survey of a Mughal-era mosque.
In a significant verdict, the Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld the validity of land acquisition for the integrated development of the Yamuna Expressway and its adjoining areas in Gautam Budh Nagar, Uttar Pradesh.
The court said the modalities of the survey will be discussed at the next hearing on December 18.
The Archeological Survey of India (ASI) on Wednesday urged a Varanasi court not to make its Gyanvapi mosque complex survey report public for at least four more weeks, according to the lawyer for the Hindu side.
The woman judicial officer, in her two-page letter, sought the CJI's permission to end her life following the abuse and harassment she had faced in her career during her posting in Barabanki.
The Allahabad high court on Friday directed the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to clean the premises of Jama Masjid in Sambhal but did not pass an order for whitewashing of the mosque.
The Supreme Court of India reprimanded Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for his remarks about Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, calling them "irresponsible." The court stayed criminal proceedings against Gandhi in a case filed in Uttar Pradesh for his comments but warned him against making such statements in the future. The court also asked Gandhi's lawyer if he was aware that even Mahatma Gandhi used terms like "your faithful servant" in his communications with the British.
"If the marriage is not a valid marriage, according to the law applicable to the parties, it is not a marriage in the eyes of law. The 'Saptapadi' ceremony under the Hindu Law is one of the essential ingredients to constitute a valid marriage but the said evidence is lacking in the present case," the court said in a recent order.
Criticising the high court verdict on partition of disputed land at Ayodhya and terming it 'strange', the apex court said that the partition of disputed land had "opened a litany of litigation.".
The estranged wife and family members of a deceased engineer, who accused them of harassment in his suicide note, have filed anticipatory bail pleas in the Allahabad High Court. The move follows a summons issued by Bengaluru City Police to the engineer's wife, asking her to appear within three days. The engineer died by suicide in Bengaluru on Monday, allegedly due to harassment by his wife and her family. A case of abetment to suicide has been filed against them.
The high court had passed the order on May 23 while hearing the bail plea of the man accused of raping the woman on the false promise of marriage.
Freedom of speech is subject to reasonable restrictions and it does not include the freedom to make defamatory statements against any person or the Indian Army, the Allahabad High Court has said, rejecting Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's plea to quash summons against him for alleged derogatory remarks during his Bharat Jodo Yatra in 2022.
Justice Dinesh Pathak, allowing a writ petition filed by M/s Marion Biotech Private Limited, observed that he was surprised that Indian authorities are "trying to validate their proceedings" based on the judgement of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Uzbekistan.
The temple is said to be situated in close vicinity of Teele Wali Masjid at Laxman Teela.
The Supreme Court expressed deep regret that the actual perpetrator of the Nithari killings was not established despite a prolonged investigation, while acquitting Surendra Koli in the last Nithari murder case.
The collegium, also comprising Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Sanjiv Khanna, met on Thursday and its decision was uploaded on the apex court website.
It also clarified that any attempt by Ashish Mishra or his family to influence witnesses and try to delay the trial may lead to the cancellation of his bail.
A CBI official in New Delhi said the team was waiting for the judgment copy and would take a call on next steps after studying it.
Observing secularism means to 'live and let live', the Supreme Court on Tuesday said regulating madrasas was in the national interest as several hundred years of the nation's composite culture could not be wished away by creating silos for minorities.
The Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed jailed former MP and alleged gangster Atiq Ahmad's plea seeking protection during his custody with the Uttar Pradesh police in the Umesh Pal murder case.
Justice Renu Agarwal made the observation while rejecting a Hindu-Muslim couple's plea for police protection.
The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad high court on Thursday extended its order for maintaining status quo at the disputed Ramjanmbhoomi-Babri Masjid site in Ayodhya till August 31.The earlier status quo order was set to expire on May 31.While a special appeal against the high court verdict on the issue is pending before the Supreme Court, an application was moved by the Faizabad commissioner, seeking an extension of the status quo before the special high court bench.
The three-judge panel headed by Chief Justice Sheel Nagu of the Punjab and Haryana High Court conducted the inquiry for 10 days, examined 55 witnesses and visited the scene of the accidental fire that started at around 11.35 pm on March 14 at the official residence Justice Varma, then a sitting judge of the Delhi High Court and now in the Allahabad High Court.
"A wise exercise of judicial authority, both on and off the Bench, is what sustains the credibility and legitimacy of the judiciary and the confidence which society has in its Judges," the CJI wrote.
Some of his directives had the Supreme Court judges disclose their assets whereas the row over the discovery of cash from a sitting judge's official residence paved way for inquiry.
"Let there be status quo as regards the subject premises for a period of 10 days. List after one week," the bench said.
The applicant allegedly indulged in a conspiracy with the officers of the Noida Development Authority funnelled several crores of rupees from the public fund released for the construction of a cricket stadium with a pavilion building at Integrated sports complex at Noida.
The senior most among the five judges, whose names were officially announced by the Centre on Saturday, is Justice Mithal whose parent cadre is the Allahabad high court.
The Supreme Court on Friday directed a Sambhal trial court to temporarily halt proceedings in the case over the Mughal-era Shahi Jama Masjid and its survey at Chandausi while directing the UP government to maintain peace and harmony in the violence-hit town.
The order was passed by Justice Ram Manohar Narayan Mishra on a revision petition filed by two persons who moved the court, challenging the order of a Special Judge of Kasganj by which the court had summoned them under Section 376 of IPC apart from other sections.
A court in Antwerp on Friday cleared the extradition of fugitive diamantaire Mehul Choksi, noting that his arrest by the Belgian authorities on India's request was valid, officials in the know of the development said.
The top court granted the relief to the accused noting that he was in custody since May 21, 2023, and the charge sheet has been submitted on July 19, 2023.
