The Supreme Court on Tuesday deprecated criticism of electronic voting machines (EVMs) and calls for reverting to ballot papers, saying the electoral process in India is a "humongous task" and attempts should not be made to "bring down the system".
The Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) case over which the Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot accorded sanction for investigation against Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has its origins more than three decades ago.
The three-member probe commission headed by rtd Justice Mukul Mudgal, who had been appointed by the Supreme Court to look into IPL VI fiasco, interrogated tainted cricketer S Sreesanth and IPL CEO Sundar Raman among others in Mumbai.
A group of villagers in Maharashtra's Malshiras assembly segment, who had insisted on a "re-election" with ballot papers, have relented after police intervention. The villagers, who claimed the NCP (SP) candidate, Uttam Jankar, had polled less votes in their village than the BJP candidate, Ram Satpute, had planned to hold their own "repoll" on December 3. However, police warned them of legal action, and Jankar, along with police officials, had a meeting with the villagers, who ultimately decided to drop their plan. Despite this, they plan to continue their protest by other means.
The judgment will impact a sizeable number of people in the state, according to a lawyer involved in the matter.
In his report, Justice Liberhan said the senior police officers were at hand to ensure that their men toed the line and that the demolition of the disputed structure was allowed to go ahead with "military precision as orchestrated by the leaders present at the spot and carried out by their henchmen."
Batting for a fresh look at the reservation policy, Supreme Court judge Justice Pankaj Mithal on Thursday referred to a 1961 letter by Jawahar Lal Nehru in which the former prime minister lamented the habit of giving reservations and privileges to any caste or group.
Jan Suraaj founder Prashant Kishor has begun a fast unto death in Patna, demanding the cancellation of a recent examination held by the Bihar Public Service Commission (BPSC). Kishor's hunger strike comes after he gave a 48-hour ultimatum to the Nitish Kumar government to act on the demand, raised by aggrieved candidates who allege the exam was rigged. The administration has declared the hunger strike illegal as it is not the designated site for protests.
The chief minister had challenged the approval given by Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot for an investigation against him in the alleged irregularities in the allotment of 14 sites to his wife by the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) in a prime locality.
Wangchuk, who has been camping at Ladakh Bhawan in the national capital, is yet to be approached by a central government representative, a group member said.
He also said that the BJP's defeat in Faizabad seat of Ayodhya, where the Ram temple has been built, shows the wisdom of voters.
He said the "switch" to the Sharad Pawar-led outfit has started in the form of ex-corporators, referring to the resignation of Ajit Pawar-led NCP's Pimpri-Chinchwad unit chief Ajit Gavhane and two former corporators.
US prosecutors' case against Gautam Adani and others may stumble on the extraterritorial application of American law.
The top court issued notice to the Election Commission on the PIL filed by author, activist and motivational speaker Shiv Khera.
The National Commission noted that if the policyholder wanted reinstatement, he should have made a written request and should have also cleared the premium till that date, but no such request had been made.
The then Uttar Pradesh chief secretary, Durga Shankar Mishra, in an order dated June 26 and issued to all the district magistrates of the state, cited a letter from the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights dated June 7.
Justices Arif S Doctor and Somasekhar Sundaresan held there was nothing in the MCC that would interfere with the Board's ongoing activities.
Declaring that women cannot be left out, the Supreme Court on Monday told the Centre to ensure that women are granted permanent commission in the Indian Coast Guard and said the court will do it if the government doesn't.
The Madras high court has expressed displeasure over the manner in which the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) conducted the probe into the 2018 Tuticorin police firing against anti-Sterlite protestors in which 13 persons were killed.
The court also directed the Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar-led NCP faction to publish a disclaimer in newspapers, including Marathi ones, that the issue of allocation of "clock" symbol was pending in court.
The State Bank of India, which unsuccessfully sought extension of time till June 30 to disclose the details of electoral bonds, on Monday faced searching questions from the Supreme Court which wanted to know about the steps taken to comply with the directions it had issued while scrapping the controversial scheme of anonymous political funding on February 15.
Former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy has strongly refuted allegations of bribery by the Adani Group for solar power purchases during his government. He claimed his name was not mentioned in a US court's indictment and that meetings with Adani Group chairman Gautam Adani were not unusual for a chief minister. Reddy said the power supply agreement was between the state's DISCOMs and SECI, with no third-party involvement. He also defended the deal, calling it 'historic' and highlighting the cost savings for the state. Meanwhile, former CM N Chandrababu Naidu has alleged irregularities in the deal and promised to act upon the alleged charges.
Justice J S Khehar will be sworn in on January 4 and will hold the tenure for over seven months till August 27, 2017.
The Bombay high court has said fugitive gangster Dawood Ibrahim has been declared a terrorist in his individual capacity under Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) and, hence, any association with him or his gang would not attract provisions of the stringent law.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge has called for tough decisions and unity within the party after the Congress suffered electoral defeats in Maharashtra and Haryana. In a meeting with top party leaders, Kharge highlighted the need to strengthen the organization from the grassroots, fix accountability, and address internal bickering. He also urged leaders to remain united and avoid public criticism of each other. The Congress chief expressed concern over the party's performance in state elections despite a strong showing in the Lok Sabha polls earlier this year. He acknowledged the need to learn from the setbacks and improve the party's strategy and communication to counter its rivals' propaganda.
"The voter turnout data for the first two phases of the ongoing 2024 Lok Sabha elections published by ECI on April 30 has been published after 11 days of the first phase of polling... on April 19 and four days after second phase of polling... on April 26.
The Supreme Court of India has said that mere harassment is not sufficient to hold someone guilty of the offence of abetting suicide, and there must be clear evidence of direct or indirect incitement.
Commissions of inquiry are potentially powerful instruments to fix responsibility on public functionaries, but everything possible has been done to blunt this instrument, says Dr Madhav Godbole, retired Union home secretary.
The move, a first in the country after the Supreme Court order, is intended to consolidate the BJP's Dalit outreach in Haryana.
The bench noted the high court did take note of this fact but explained it away by observing that since the other woman was a widow, "the make-up articles could not have belonged to her as there was no need for her to put on make-up, being a widow".
Chanting 'Justice for RG Kar' and 'Justice for our sister', hundreds of IT professionals took to the streets of Sector V in Salt Lake, the city's IT Hub, protesting against the rape and murder of a post-graduate trainee doctor at RG Kar Hospital.
None of Adani group portfolio companies, comprising 11 listed firms, have been accused of any wrongdoing, conglomerate's CFO Jugeshinder Robbie Singh said on founder and chairman Gautam Adani's indictment on bribery charges in the US. In a post on X, Singh said the group would make a detailed comment on the US indictment once it gets counsel approvals.
'Rahul Gandhi is raising the issue of a caste census though his party has been doing injustice on this front from the 1950s.'
At least 30 people were killed and 60 others injured in a pre-dawn stampede at the Sangam area of the Maha Kumbh early on Wednesday as crores of pilgrims jostled for space to take a holy dip on the occasion of one of the most auspicious days of Mauni Amavasya, officials said.
The delimitation commission will visit Jammu and Kashmir between July 6-9 and interact with political parties, public representatives and officials of the UT to gather 'first hand' information of the mega exercise to carve out new constituencies, the EC said.
The principal opposition party though appeared content securing 99 of the 543 seats in the 2024 national elections as against its all-time low of 44 in 2014 and then 52 in 2019.
A bench of Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice Manoj Misra said it will hear the matter on May 6.
The NGO challenges the validity of a provision of the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners Act, 2023.
The Delhi high court on Monday refused to quash the proceedings against Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and other Aam Aadmi Party leaders in a defamation case over their remarks about alleged deletion of the names of 30 lakh voters belonging to some communities from electoral rolls in the national capital.
The bench allowed the rejoinder affidavit to be filed by petitioners in two weeks thereafter and posted the matter for final hearing in January, 2025.
