The Supreme Court has ruled that mere swear words, profanities, and vulgar expletives, however offensive, do not amount to obscenity under Section 294 of the Indian Penal Code. The court clarified that for an utterance to be considered obscene, it must be lascivious, appeal to prurient interests, and have the tendency to deprave and corrupt minds. This ruling came while hearing a plea challenging a high court order confirming a conviction under IPC Section 294.
'A rigid or overly broad interpretation could lead to a chilling effect on investments and growth in sectors traditionally driven by private initiative.' 'Entrepreneurs may fear that their assets could be arbitrarily appropriated by the State under the guise of serving the 'common good' without sufficient legal safeguards.' 'The judgment thus supports a more nuanced view, one that balances individual property rights with public welfare objectives.'
The Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) has appealed to the Supreme Court against a Delhi High Court order that permits wrestler Vinesh Phogat to participate in the selection trials for the Asian Games 2026.
The Supreme Court has been informed that the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau's final draft report on the June 2025 Air India flight AI-171 crash in Ahmedabad will be submitted in October. The court is hearing petitions seeking an independent probe into the accident, which claimed 260 lives.
Observing that right to speedy trial is also a "valuable right" of a victim, the Supreme Court on Monday set aside an order of the Allahabad high court which had kept in abeyance the trial in a murder case.
A panel set up by Lok Sabha Speaker to probe allegations of discovery of cash at the official premises of Justice Yashwant Varma has concluded that the charges of unexplained cash, disturbing evidence and evasive explanation against him "are proved".
Following the Supreme Court's clean chit in the coal block allocation case, Congress leader Sonia Gandhi has lauded former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's integrity and accountability, drawing a sharp contrast with the Narendra Modi government's operational style and alleged misuse of investigative agencies.
'Nobody expected it to become a landmark judgment.' 'Because the Supreme Court has expanded the definition of family and included single parents, same sex parents, etc, the scope of looking at families has enhanced.'
The Supreme Court has agreed to hear a plea from Uttar Pradesh police challenging a Bombay High Court ruling that absolved BrahMos Aerospace engineer Nishant Agarwal of major espionage charges under the Official Secrets Act. Agarwal was previously sentenced to life imprisonment by a Nagpur district court for spying for Pakistan's ISI, despite the High Court finding he only illegally stored sensitive data.
The Supreme Court has directed the Reserve Bank of India to prepare a standard operating procedure (SOP) within four weeks to deal with bank accounts linked to cyber frauds, including mule accounts. This directive is part of a broader effort to strengthen responses to cyber-enabled financial frauds, with the court also urging states and UTs to adopt and operationalise grievance redressal and money restoration modules.
The Supreme Court has asked the Rajasthan government for an update on the health of self-styled godman Asaram, who is seeking interim bail on medical grounds. The court expressed concern about his well-being, stating "We don't want any untoward thing to happen." Asaram's counsel claims he is a high-risk patient, while the Solicitor General noted he was recently seen walking in Ayodhya and Kashi Vishwanath. The apex court is hearing his plea challenging the Rajasthan High Court's decision to uphold his conviction and life sentence for the rape of a minor.
'Tariff action relating to the excess-capacity investigation will be even more susceptible to judicial overturn.'
Former Tehelka editor-in-chief Tarun Tejpal has been convicted and sentenced to ten years in jail by the Bombay High Court in a 2013 rape case, overturning a trial court's acquittal and criticising its 'perverse' reasoning.
The Supreme Court has informed the Centre that it will closely monitor the steps taken to curb NEET examination paper leaks, emphasising that 'ad hocism has caused trouble for years' and demanding a comprehensive overhaul of the examination process.
The NCERT Class 8 social science textbook has undergone significant revisions, including a tweaked narrative on the 1947 Partition, the inclusion of VD Savarkar's demand for Swaraj, and the removal of references to Adolf Hitler and Nazi ideology. These changes follow a Supreme Court intervention regarding controversial content on the judiciary.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday came down heavily on the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) for not granting permanent commission to a female officer, saying "we will not allow women officers to be humiliated".
The Supreme Court has sought the Centre's response on a petition challenging the constitutional validity of polygamy among Muslims, arguing it violates fundamental rights and creates legal asymmetry by exempting Muslim men from bigamy laws applicable to other citizens.
The Congress on Sunday launched a scathing attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party over the alleged theft of donations at the Ram temple in Ayodhya, saying not everyone in the BJP is a "chhanda chor" but all the "chhanda chors" are in the ruling party.
Former India captain Sunil Chhetri has publicly appealed to the Tata Group to reverse its decision to withdraw Indian Super League club Jamshedpur FC.
Under the Odisha state premature release policy, prisoners whose death sentences were commuted to life imprisonment become eligible for remission after completing 25 years in prison, subject to recommendations by the Odisha State Sentence Review Board and approval by the state government. Dara Singh has now spent more than 26 years in prison.
Justice Atul Sreedharan of the Allahabad High Court has made strong observations on systemic corruption in India, suggesting the death penalty for offences under the Prevention of Corruption Act. He criticised the alleged embezzlement of donations at the Ram temple and the Uttar Pradesh government's "bulldozer actions," highlighting the normalisation of corruption and the state's complicity in unauthorised constructions.
Jamshedpur FC players have released an emotional video appealing to owners Tata Group to reverse their decision to shut down the Indian Super League club.
The US senate last week passed a bill that would allow Washington to impose tariffs on major buyers of Russian energy.
The Supreme Court has ruled that the determination of citizenship status in India must adhere to a fair, lawful, and reasoned process, setting aside Gauhati High Court verdicts that had affirmed orders declaring some individuals as foreigners. The court stressed that constitutional protections of equality, life, and personal liberty apply to every person within India's territory.
Seventeen Indian sportspersons, including World Cup winning chess player Divya Deshmukh, decathlete Tejaswin Shankar, and shuttler Gayatri Gopichand, have been named for the prestigious Arjuna Award for 2025.
The Delhi High Court has upheld the Equestrian Federation of India's (EFI) selection process for the Asian Games dressage team, dismissing petitions from riders Anush Agarwalla and Sudipti Hajela. The court found no arbitrariness or procedural impropriety, reinforcing the principle that judicial interference in expert selection bodies is limited. Challenges regarding Minimum Eligibility Requirements (MERs), criteria interpretation, and bias were all rejected.
The Indian government has sought explanations from WhatsApp, Telegram, and Signal regarding their username features, citing serious concerns about potential impersonation and cybercrime. IT Secretary S Krishnan highlighted the risks, leading to notices being served to these platforms, with WhatsApp specifically asked to pause its rollout of the feature.
'It was a disaster on his part to give an oral remark which allowed ascertainment of the religious character of places of worship.' 'This disrupted the social harmony of the country.'
Chief Justice of India Surya Kant stated that the Supreme Court views technology as an aid to human reasoning, not a replacement, and emphasised developing "Swadeshi Jurisprudence" tailored to India's unique conditions. He highlighted efforts to create an indigenous AI ecosystem for the judiciary and stressed that AI cannot substitute human judgment, empathy, or ethical discernment.
Google has challenged a Delhi High Court single-judge bench ruling that held it liable for trademark infringement by allowing competitors to bid on and use the 'Hindware' trademark as keywords in its Google Ads programme. Google argues that keyword bidding promotes competition and is a globally accepted norm, citing previous rulings that allowed the practice. The tech giant contends that the Trade Marks Act does not distinguish between coined and generic words for such infringements.
The Centre on Tuesday told the Supreme Court that it has constituted a high-powered committee headed by the director general of health services (DGHS) to formulate a mechanism for conducting a comprehensive audit of the existing system of admission through the NEET-PG examination.
Three Indian-origin men have been found guilty of first-degree murder in Canada in connection with the killing of a couple in Abbotsford in May 2022. The British Columbia Supreme Court ruled that the men played a willing and integral role in the couple's murder, which was financially motivated.
The Allahabad High Court dismissed a mother's habeas corpus petition, asserting that a father, as the natural guardian of a Hindu minor, cannot be deemed to illegally detain the child unless a court order is violated.
The All India Football Federation (AIFF) will hold a Special General Body Meeting to amend its constitution in line with the National Sports Governance Act and discuss the new commercial partner for the Indian Super League.
In a significant verdict, the Supreme Court on Friday said the mere absence of a train ticket on the body of a deceased passenger cannot be a ground to deny compensation to the victim's family in a railway-accident case.
The Supreme Court of India has strongly condemned the disclosure of a rape victim's identity and directed all high courts to ensure the anonymity of survivors and their families in court orders, citing the deep stigma associated with such offences and existing legal provisions.
A special NIA court in Mumbai has denied poet-activist Varavara Rao's request to permanently relocate to Hyderabad, citing a lack of authority to modify bail conditions set by the Supreme Court in the Elgar Parishad-Maoist links case.
The population is gripped by anxiety against arbitrariness and the cruelty of a state that sells its actions as minimum government, asserts Aakar Patel.
The CBI has filed a chargesheet against Shubhkamna Buildtech Pvt Ltd and its directors, its sixth in the Supreme Court-directed probe into the builder-banker nexus case, officials said Friday.
'They talked bad about our leaders. They said India was a dead economy. They were not sensitive to the Indian psyche.'
