The Supreme Court agreed to hear on Friday, instead of Wednesday, a batch of pleas alleging the use of Israeli spyware for surveillance of certain people in India, after taking note of the submissions of the solicitor-general that he would be busy arguing a money-laundering case in another court.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday asked stakeholders like the Centre, Niti Aayog, Finance Commission and the Reserve Bank of India, to brainstorm on the 'serious' issue of freebies announced during elections and put forth 'constructive suggestions' to tackle it, saying no political party will oppose such handouts or like to debate it in Parliament.
"We are confined to health issue. It is in the interest of the state also that the accused gets better treatment," the bench comprising Justices Surya Kant and A S Bopanna observed.
Terming as "serious" the promise of "irrational freebies" made by political parties during elections, the Supreme Court on Tuesday wondered why the Centre was hesitant about taking a stand on the issue.
The bench with a majority of 4:1 held that so far as Delhi is concerned, the central reservation policy regarding SC/ST would be applicable here.
The Uttar Pradesh government on Wednesday sought urgent listing of its plea against the Karnataka high court's decision to quash a notice issued to the then Twitter India Managing Director Manish Maheshwari seeking his personal appearance as part of the probe into a communally sensitive video uploaded by a user on the microblogging site.
The top court also asked the state governments of Punjab and Haryana to pursue the farmers for two weeks not to do stubble burning.
In the last ten years, 96 per cent of the sedition cases against 405 individuals pertained to making critical remarks against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, points out Ramesh Menon, author, Modi Demystified: The Making Of A Prime Minister.
Chief Justice of India (CJI) N V Ramana-led bench was irked over the increasing number of reports regarding delay in implementation of the orders passed by the top court and has recently taken suo motu cognisance of news reports of delay by Uttar Pradesh authorities in releasing 13 prisoners who were granted bail by it on July 8.
"We state that the most precious fundamental 'right to life' unconditionally embraces even an undertrial. The consideration made herein is keeping in view the peculiar facts and circumstances of this case.
The top court was hearing the plea of an organisation 'Lawyer's Voice' seeking a thorough investigation into the breach in Prime Minister Modi's security in Punjab and ensuring there is no such event in the future.
"Justice must not only be done, but also be seen to be done," the Supreme Court observed on Wednesday while declining the Centre's plea to allow it to appoint an expert committee to probe the allegations of use of spyware Pegasus for surveillance of certain people in India.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday asked Amazon and Future group to request the NCLAT to decide the plea challenging the revocation of sanction to the US e-commerce major for its deal with Future group's firm by the Competition Commission of India. The suggestion was made by a bench headed by Chief Justice N V Ramana while adjourning to March 9 the hearing on Amazon's appeal against the January 5 order of the Delhi high court staying the ongoing arbitration proceedings before an arbitral tribunal over Future Retail's Rs 24,500-crore merger deal with Reliance Retail. The bench, also comprising Justices A S Bopanna and Hima Kohli, deferred the hearing after brief arguments on being told that the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) is hearing another appeal of Amazon related to the merger deal.
A new bench of the Supreme Court will hear on Thursday the plea of social activist Teesta Setalvad.
The CJI also said the ancient Indian text "Nyayshastra" is "not a bit" inferior to Aristotle and the Persian system of logic, and "there is no reason why we should forsake, overlook, and not benefit from the geniuses of our ancestors".
The Supreme Court on Friday sought response from former Twitter managing director Manish Maheshwari on an appeal of the Uttar Pradesh government against the Karnataka high court's decision to quash a notice seeking his personal appearance as part of the probe into a communally sensitive video uploaded by a user on the microblogging site.
According to the cause list uploaded on the apex court website, a bench comprising Chief Justice N V Ramana and Justice Surya Kant would hear on August 5 three separate petitions seeking probe into the reports of alleged snooping by government agencies on eminent citizens, politicians and scribes by using Israeli spyware Pegasus.
'The attack prima facie constitutes an act of cyber-terrorism,' the petition stated, 'that has several grave political and security ramifications, especially considering that the devices of government ministers, senior political figures and Constitutional functionaries which may contain sensitive information have been targeted.'
The detenues are likely to be released on Saturday as some of them are lodged in prisons located outside the union territory in places like Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, they said.
A bench headed by Chief Justice N V Ramana said the Jharkhand high court would keep monitoring the probe.
The mercy petitions of three convicts -- Mukesh, Vinay and Akshay -- have already been dismissed by the President.
US e-commerce major Amazon told the Supreme Court on Tuesday that the talks with the Future Group to resolve the dispute over Future Retail's merger deal with Reliance Retail have failed and sought intervention to ensure that the stores of FRL are not taken over. A bench headed by Chief Justice N V Ramana, on March 3, had acceded to Amazon's request and granted 10 days to it for exploring the possibility of resolving the dispute through dialogue with the Future Group. The bench, also comprising justices A S Bopanna and Hima Kohli, is hearing Amazon's appeal against the January 5 order of the Delhi high court, which stayed the arbitration proceedings before the arbitral tribunal over Future Retail's merger deal with Reliance Retail. "It often happens that sometimes, we hope very positively but in the end, it is not positive at all.
A special bench headed by Chief Justice N V Ramana, in an interim order uploaded Wednesday night, also directed the Commission for Air Quality Management in the NCR and Adjoining Areas to 'commission a scientific study of air quality based on available data of previous years bearing upon recorded levels of air pollution'.
Ashish Mishra 'Monu', son of Union Minister of State for Home Ajay Mishra 'Teni', was arrested on Saturday night after over 11 hours of questioning in connection with the Lakhimpur Kheri violence which left eight people, including four farmers, dead.
Bulldozers demolished several structures at Jahangirpuri on Wednesday amid a heavy paramilitary and police presence during the NDMC's anti-encroachment drive that was stopped within hours following a Supreme Court order.
A single judge bench of the high court, on February 10, had granted bail to Mishra who had spent four months in custody.
The Supreme Court Tuesday asked the Centre to apprise it about the views on the issue of protection of interest of citizens till the colonial-era penal law on sedition is reconsidered by an appropriate forum.
The Centre Monday urged the Supreme Court not to invest time in examining the constitutional validity of the penal law on sedition, saying it has decided to re-examine and re-consider the provision which can only be done before the competent forum.
"Orwellian" refers to a dystopian, totalitarian state which is destructive to the welfare of a free and open society.
'Don't want the government to set up a committee on its own'
Jaiswal is a 1985-batch Indian Police Service officer of Maharashtra cadre. He has also served as Maharashtra's director general of police in the past.
The Supreme Court Tuesday set aside three Delhi high court orders including the refusal to grant a stay on the final arbitral award which had restrained Future Retail Ltd from going ahead with its Rs 24,731 crore merger deal with Reliance Retail and ordered fresh adjudication. In a major relief to Future group, a bench headed by Chief Justice N V Ramana also set aside the high court's order of February 2 last year, by which it had directed Future Retail Ltd (FRL) to maintain status quo in relation to the merger deal. The March 18 order of the high court, upholding the EA's award and imposing a cost of Rs 20 lakh on it as well as its directors, has also been set aside.
A bench headed by Chief Justice NV Ramana took note of a report filed by the commission which informed it that a decision to lift the ban on certain industries has been taken.
The Supreme Court of India on Friday said it was satisfied with the report of the Juvenile Justice Committee of the Jammu and Kashmir high court which said that no minors were detained in jails in the erstwhile state post the abrogation of the provisions of Article 370. The apex court, after perusing the committee's report, said that four high court judges visited all the jails in J&K and they have clearly stated that no minors have been illegally detained there.
US e-commerce major Amazon Wednesday apprehended the "disappearance" of assets and sought an interim order from the Supreme Court to ensure the preservation of assets of Future Retail Ltd besides resumption of arbitration over FRL's merger deal with Reliance Retail. A bench comprising Chief Justice N V Ramana and Justices A S Bopanna and Hima Kohli took note of the allegations of the US firm that the "applecart was being upset" by its rivals and asked the Future group firms, FRL and Future Coupons Ltd (FCPL), to respond to the interim plea of Amazon seeking resumption of arbitration and preservation of assets and fixed the hearing on March 23. Amazon and Future group are engaged in multi-forum litigations on the issue of FRL's merger deal to the tune of Rs 24,500 crore with Reliance Retail Ltd after the US e-commerce giant dragged the latter to arbitration at the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC) in October 2020.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to list for hearing after Holi vacation the pleas challenging the Karnataka high court verdict which dismissed the petitions seeking permission to wear hijab inside the classroom saying it is not a part of the essential religious practice in Islamic faith.
A total of 326 cases were registered in the country under the controversial colonial era law of sedition between 2014 and 2019 in which just six persons were convicted.
A fresh plea was filed in the Supreme Court on Thursday challenging the Karnataka high court verdict which dismissed the petitions seeking permission to wear a hijab inside the classroom saying hijab is not a part of the essential religious practice in Islam.
Referring to a judgement, the top court asked authorities not to arrest mechanically in cases where the maximum sentence is up to seven years of jail term.
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