LEGAL NEWS 09.03.2009

SC refuses plea for CBI investigation against 10 CPI(m) leaders
http://www.indlawnews.com/Newsdisplay.aspx?a8139531-4bb3-4da2-b588-e7624df6de55
3/7/2009
The Supreme Court dismissed a PIL seeking CBI investigation against top 10 CPI(M) leaders including party General Secretary Prakash Karat and his wife Brinda Karat for amassing assets worth over Rs 200 cr.A bench comprising Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan and Justices Markandey Katju and P Sathasivam declined to entertain the writ petition filed by one Joydeep Mukherjee, an advocate saying that no fundamental right of the petitioner has been violated and therefore, the writ petition under Article 32 of the Constitution, was not maintainable.The petition was filed a few days before Dr Manmohan Singh sought fresh vote of confidence in Lok Sabha following the withdrawal of support by the Left parties on the issue of Indo-US nuke deal.It alleged that party had about 7,000 full-time workers and it was paying remuneration of Rs 32,00 each per month to them.The petitioner had also alleged that the party leaders were misusing their official status to acquire assets beyond their known sources of income.UNI




CJ-designate meets agitating lawyers
http://www.hindu.com/2009/03/09/stories/2009030957170100.htm
Shyam Ranganathan
He turns down their offer to attend welcome address
Asks lawyers to resume regular work first
CHENNAI: Chief Justice-designate of the Madras High Court H.L. Gokhale reportedly turned down the lawyers’ offer to attend the welcome address following his swearing-in on Monday, asking them to first resume regular work, according to the Joint Action Committee of Advocates, who met him on Sunday.
“We said that we were ready to consider attending the welcome address, but Mr. Justice Gokhale said that he would rather see us attend the welcome address after we started working. So we will not attend the welcome address, but some representatives will attend his swearing-in ceremony,” R.C. Paul Kanagaraj of the Madras High Court Advocates Association told The Hindu.
At a meeting with them, Mr. Justice Gokhale asked the lawyers to adopt “legal measures” to protest against violence and resume work.
However, the lawyers said they were not in the “proper mental state” to work now.
They would consider Mr. Justice Gokhale’s suggestions to resume work, at a general body meeting either on Monday or Wednesday, he said.
Show-cause notices
As to the lawyers who had defied the Association’s decision to boycott work, he said they would be identified and showcause notices would be issued soon.
Karunanidhi’s view
Meanwhile, Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi said it was “extremely regrettable” that even after Justice Srikrishna’s report was submitted, the lawyers had not made up their minds whether to accept it or not.
He said that the report had pointed out the mistakes of both the lawyers and the police and appealed for unity, adding that “heeding [Justice Srikrishna’s] advice will be good for both sides and also for the country.”
Recalling his letter to the acting Chief Justice volunteering to meet him though he was in hospital, the Chief Minister said that he came forward to take responsibility even before the demand was made by others. Mr. Karunanidhi said he was not taking sides but would stand by justice to ensure peace.
Reservation Bill
The Chief Minister noted that the women’s reservation bill had not been passed during the current Parliament’s tenure for various reasons. On the occasion of International Women’s Day, he would appeal to Congress President Sonia Gandhi to pass the legislation at least during the course of the next Parliament, in which “the government would be based again on her direction only.”
Meanwhile, police on Sunday discussed security arrangements on High Court campus.




How to file PILs and Writ Petitions
http://supari.org/pil-writ/
By Dr.Leo.Rebello ⋅ March 9, 2009 ⋅
The reasons why the Court should convert it into suo motu writ petition. Usually the petitions from senior citizens, handicapped persons, widows, orphans and those in jail or anyone writing on their behalf are taken note of. Letter may be delivered in duplicate personally (insist on acknowledgement) or sent through courier or registered post AD.
PIL/WP can also be easily registered under article 226 of the Constitution of India in any High Court. The emphasis is on Public Interest. It should not be private interest made to sound like public interest. Here are three examples :
1.. The authorities cordoning off a busy road at Prabhadevi creating a bottle neck there to protect the Siddhi Vinayak temple from the possible terrorist attack and other such knee-jerk solutions is NOT in public interest. Hence, a PIL can easily be taken up for violations of several provisions of law.
But no one dare take this issue up, because it will be seen through communal goggles even by the judges.
2.. Someone recently took up a PIL against Shahrukh Khan developing his extra space behind his so-called heritage bungalow at Bandra. That was certainly not in public interest and hence even the Supreme Court rejected the said petition.
3.. Sheriff of Mumbai saying that the Race Course be developed is certainly in public interest and this should be taken up. But if the said matter were to come up before judges who are interested in racing (gambling) they may not be favourably inclined and public interest would be cast aside and private interest of select super rich will be protected. As Harold Laski said in Grammar of Politics : “Judges do not give judgments, they only give decisions; they only decide which of the two sides argued better”.
To file a PIL, earlier there was a nominal fee of Rs.50. Now I think it is Rs.200 or Rs.250. You do NOT need a lawyer to draft or argue your case, if you can think, write and argue yourself straight. Sometimes locus standi is asked to be explained. That can be cooly answered by quoting Article 51(A) of the Constitution of India, which underlines 10 Fundamental Duties of a Citizen, as long as there is no axe to grind on the part of a person working in public interest. Also under section 32 of the Advocates Act anyone can represent a person in need. You need not engage an advocate. Taking advantage of that section, I have gone knocking at every court in Bombay (on behalf of those who are extremely needy), something which even many lawyers may not have done. Needless to say I have won every time.
Suo Motu - means if the court is convinced it acts on its own to correct the grave wrong, under its inherent jurisdiction. One can write an accurate, brief and clear letter to the Chief Justice and other Judges, and send the same through the Registrar General with a copy to the Advocate General of Maharashtra if it is the Bombay High Court.
My two page letter against MHADA was converted into suo motu Writ Petition in the early eighties. What I had compressed in 2 pages, later on had become 80 pages with attachment of documents etc. And I won the same. I argued the case myself eventhough at that time I had no experience. My another WP was on Ganpati pandal in the middle of the main road at Kandivali East. It was admitted for expedited hearing. But the papers were lost in the court and so many dirty tricks were played, by the Shiv Sena corporator, to defeat me. But I followed it up for 14 years and ultimately won, arguing myself, inspite of threats to liquidate me etc.
There is also a short cut — at the beginning of the Court, morning and afternoon, there is a “mention time”. Ram can draft a letter, take two copies of that letter and impress upon the court during the “mention time” why the said matter be treated as a suo motu. The bench will then advise him accordingly. I got one such WP admitted in a BARC scientist’s matter.
For suo motu writ petitions there is no fee.





DU don is both selector and candidate
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Cities/DU-don-is-both-selector-and-candidate/articleshow/4242707.cms
9 Mar 2009, 0051 hrs IST, Manash Pratim Gohain, TNN
NEW DELHI: Ever heard of an examiner who is also an examinee? Well, see it in the Delhi University. A reader in DU's chemistry department, who was a member of the selection committee for appointments to various posts, was also one of the candidates under evaluation! Predictably, the faculty member, M Kidwai, made it to the final list of candidates found eligible for the post of professor. The matter came to light when a writ petition was filed in the Delhi High Court alleging irregularities in the selection process. DU has already stayed the appointment of two candidates following the petition but no decision has so far been taken on Kidwai. In March last year, DU invited applicants for six professor posts in the chemistry department. After the university received 33 applications, a screening committee was appointed to shortlist the candidates. The document signed by all 10 members of the committee (a copy of which is with TOI) recommending the guidelines for selection also includes Kidwai's signature. This newspaper also has a copy of the list of shortlisted candidates for professor's post - Kidwai's name tops the list. Nine of the applications for professor's positions were from internal candidates. Kidwai, however, denied any irregularities in the arrangement. ''The case is subjudice and I won't comment on it. All I can say is that these are all wrong allegations,'' he said. The head of the chemistry department, and also the chairman of the screening committee, V S Parmar, too declined to comment. ''I am not a party in this case and I would not like to comment,'' he said. Faculty members, meanwhile, are demanding that the entire selection process be scrapped and starteded afresh. Said a reader of the department, ''There are candidates who have been considered for the post despite not satisfying the criterion, and then Kidwai himself being a candidate was allowed to be a member of the committee to set the guidelines and shortlist applicants. There is no doubt about his academic credentials, but his name in the screening committee as well as in the candidates list creates serious doubts.'' Meanwhile, DU told the Delhi High Court on March 3 that it won't appoint two of the six selected candidates following a writ petition highlighting anomalies in the selection procedure. On its part, the court has stayed the appointment of all six department professors, interviews for which were conducted in November 10, 2008. Speaking to TOI, M A Sikandar, deputy registrar, legal cell, DU, said: ''The final verdict is pending, but the candidature of two candidates have been cancelled by the university. Even the Executive Council of the university in its last meeting didn't approved the appointments.'' The two readers, Shrikant Kukreti and Rama Kant, against whose appointment the writ petition was filed, allegedly didn't meet the guidelines for selection. While Kukreti had just six publications to his name as against a requirement of at least 10 publications between 2003 and 2008, Kant has supervised one PhD while the criterion demands a minimum of two. manash.gohain@timesgroup.com





Panel for pre-1993 system of appointing judges
http://www.hindu.com/2009/03/09/stories/2009030951540700.htm
Ignatius Pereira
It is a better option as it is in consonance with the provisions of the Constitution
Appointment will be initiated by Chief Justice of India
President bound to accept recommendation
KOLLAM: E.M. Sudarsan Natchiappan, MP and Chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee for Law and Justice, said the committee was of the opinion that when the question of complaints against judges was being addressed, the question of appointment of judges should also be addressed appropriately.
He was delivering the keynote address at the third State conference of the Indian Lawyers Congress here on Sunday. Dr. Natchiappan said there was also consensus in the Standing Committee that the pre-1993 system of appointing High Court and Supreme Court judges as the better option as it was in consonance with the provisions of the Constitution. He said the committee favoured the restoration of the pre-1993 situation.
In that situation, both the President (executive) and the judiciary were involved in the consultative process to appoint the judges. But an “interpretation of that Constitutional provision by the Supreme Court in 1993 led to a situation where the executive’s decision in the appointment of judges has been totally negated.”
The interpretation was that the process of appointment of judges of the Supreme Court and the High Courts will be initiated by the Chief Justice of India through a collegium consisting of himself and four of the senior most judges of the Supreme Court. This, in effect, means that the President or executive is bound to accept the recommendation of the collegium.
Empowered committee
He said that along with the National Judicial Council (NJC) proposed in the Judges (Inquiry) Bill 2006 there should also be an Empowered Committee which could initially screen the names for the appointment of judges and refer them to the NJC for final recommendations. The Empowered Committee can also screen the complaints against judges too.
The Parliamentary Standing Committee has also recommended that the suggested Empowered Committee be represented by the executive, legislature and judiciary plus one member from the Bar.
He said the Standing Committee was of the opinion that the “1993 appointment of High Court and Supreme Court judges should be in the hand of the people.”




Satyam scam: Raju brothers sent to CBI custody
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Satyam-scam-Raju-brothers-in-CBI-custody/articleshow/4245548.cms
9 Mar 2009, 1622 hrs IST, PTI
HYDERABAD: A local court on Monday sent Satyam's former chairman B Ramalinga Raju, his brother Rama Raju and three others to CBI custody for seven days from Tuesday. Besides the Raju brothers, the CBI would be quizzing Satyam's former CFO Vadlamani Srinivas and audit house Price Waterhouse's partners S Gopalakrishnan and Talluri Srinivas in connection with the Rs 7,800 crore accounting fraud at Satyam Computer. The court also dismissed the bail petitions of Gopalakrishnan and Srinivas.




Judicial custody for Nanjil Sampath
http://www.hindu.com/2009/03/09/stories/2009030958280400.htm
Tirupur: Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam propaganda secretary Nanjil Sampath was on Sunday remanded to judicial custody till March 20. He was lodged in Central Prison in Coimbatore. Mr. Sampath was brought to Avinashi after he was arrested in Chennai on Saturday night in connection with cases registered against him by Tirupur North police for making provocative speech in support of LTTE here on March 1.The party’s general secretary, Vaiko, said the arrest was aimed at blunting the party’s campaign for the Lok Sabha polls. — Staff Reporter




SHRC suggests changes in dress regulation for remand prisoners
http://www.hindu.com/2009/03/09/stories/2009030958340400.htm
K.T. Sangameswaran
Government should make suitable amendments to the rules
A remand prisoner had hanged himself using his dhoti
Bench wonders why remand prisoners are allowed to wear dhoti
CHENNAI: The State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) has recommended to the government to consider amending relevant rules under the Prisons Act dealing with dress regulation for remand prisoners.
The Commission Bench comprising Chairperson Justice A.S.Venkatachalamoorthy and Member K. Mariappan, made the suggestion while passing orders on a complaint regarding the death of a remand prisoner in the Central Prison, Tiruchi, in September 2006.
In her complaint, B. Kamatchi of Vellapallam in Vedaranyam taluk said her husband, Boopathy, was taken into custody on the allegation that he murdered his father and a case was registered by the Thalaignayiru police station. Boopathy was lodged in the Central Prison, Tiruchi.
She said her husband died under suspicious circumstances. The jail authorities suppressed the fact and informed her that he died of heart attack. She alleged that the death occurred due to torture by the jail authorities.
The SHRC’s Investigation Wing in its report said the final opinion given by the forensic surgeon was that Boopathy ‘died of hanging.’
The Bench said documents would clearly show that the complainant’s case that her husband died due to violence by prison officials could not be true.
As per the statement of the then Additional Superintendent of the prison Nagappan, Boopathy committed suicide by using his dhoti. Referring to rules governing dress for remand prisoners, the Bench observed that such prisoners were allowed to wear their own clothes.
When the authorities were careful enough to see that the accused in police lock-up and convicts were not be given an opportunity to make use of their long clothes to commit suicide, it was not known as to why remand prisoners were allowed to wear clothes such as lungi, dhoti or saree. Hence the government should examine this and make suitable amendments.
The SHRC said the State government should pay Rs.50,000 as compensation to Ms. Kamatchi.
The Director-General of Prison should consider initiating departmental action against Syed Ayoob, grade-I constable, Central Prison, Tiruchi, for misrepresenting before the Prison Medical Officer the cause of Boopathy’s death.




Women should be aware of their rights, says judge
http://www.hindu.com/2009/03/09/stories/2009030953680300.htm
Staff Reporter
‘Domestic violence against women condemnable’
BAPATLA: Violence against women continues unabated as most of the victims do not have any awareness on women’s rights, and some of them subject themselves to harassment at home, Junior Civil Judge M. Sobha Rani said at a meeting held to mark the World’s Women’s Day organised here by the Vivek Service Society.
Stating that domestic violence against women should be condemned by everyone, she called upon women to gain understanding on their rights and seek legal counsel from advocates and protection from law enforcing agencies.
She also complimented the Vivek society for organising such awareness programmes.
Tehsildar K. Rajyalakshmi said that women should fight injustice at home before approaching external agencies. A physician Ch. Usha said that violence against women starts from the time they are given birth and care should be taken to groom boys to behave in a responsible manner towards girls. Another physician Jayaprada too spoke on violence against women.
Reader in Commerce, Arts and Science College, and member of National Environmental Council P.C. Saibabu said that men and women should come together to counter domestic violence.
Significance
Society secretary A. Muralikrishna said that over 40,000 women had been getting assistance from their organisation through 17, 000 self-help groups.
He earlier explained about the significance of Women’s Day through a power point presentation.
Later, a candlelight rally was taken out from Anjaneya Swamy temple to the tehsildar’s office.
KHAMMAM: The changing role of women in society and the greater responsibilities shouldered by them were stressed by speakers at the Women’s Day celebrations organised by the Vasavi Vanita Club here on Sunday.
Film actors Kavita and Kinnera, who were guests of honour, turned out to be an attraction at the celebrations.
CPI leader and MLC Puvvada Nageswara Rao said in his address that discrimination existed in certain fields and it should be addressed.
Khammam municipal chairperson Afroze Sameena said that women had proved that they were second to none in all walks of life.
They proved to be better in discharging greater responsibilities.
Ms. Kavita said that the girl child should be given equal importance in the family.




POTA-type law if NDA comes to power: Venkaiah Naidu
http://www.hindu.com/2009/03/09/stories/2009030955100400.htm
Legislation will be enacted within 100 days, says BJP leader
HYDERABAD: The National Democratic Alliance (NDA), if voted to power, will enact legislations on the lines of the Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA) within 100 days and prohibition of religious conversions.
It would implement within 100 days the Supreme Court judgment awarding death term to Afzal Guru in the Parliament attack case, said senior BJP leader M. Venkaiah Naidu, while addressing the party’s Secunderabad Parliamentary convention here on Sunday.
He declared that the NDA would initiate the process of carving out Telangana in the first three months. It would ‘cleanse’ the education system to make it Indian-oriented. Arrangements would be made for pilgrims of Amarnath Yatra and land would be earmarked on a permanent basis (to build infrastructure).
The NDA would bring in a legislation prohibiting propagation of other religions near places of worship. It would implement the Ganga-Cauvery link scheme.
The BJP leader criticised the Centre for failing to ensure passage of the Women’s Reservation Bill despite the party’s support.
Grand alliance
He asserted that the grand alliance of the TDP, TRS and the Left had no credibility. The four allies lacked a common agenda and one did not know with whom the TRS would sail in the post-poll scenario. He challenged the Communists to declare that they would not join hands with the Congress after elections.
Ridicules freebies
Mr. Naidu ridiculed the TDP offer of colour TV sets to the poor and advised it to concentrate on providing basic needs, like water and housing.
State party president B. Dattatreya said the NDA alone could complete the Hyderabad Metro Rail project.




Narayana College faulted for death of student Consumer Notes
http://www.hindu.com/2009/03/09/stories/2009030958370500.htm
Staff Reporter
Ordered to pay 3.27 lakh compensation to victim’s parents
HYDERABAD: The Hyderabad District Forum-III lambasted Narayana Junior College for death of a student on its Tarnaka branch premises and ordered it to pay Rs. 3.27 lakh as compensation to her parents.
In its verdict, the Forum observed that immediate action by the college management would have averted the death of T. Sravanthi, a second year Intermediate student, who died due to ill-health in the college on December 18, 2007.
According to the case details, T.R. Anjaneyulu and T. Malathi, parents of Sravanthi were all of sudden asked to come to the college on December 18, 2007 and when they arrived, they were asked to go a nearest corporate hospital only to be told that their daughter was dead.
They were later informed by their daughter’s classmates that she fell ill at about 2 p.m. but was allegedly shifted to the hospital only after a couple of hours. The parents filed a criminal case against the college and also lodged a complaint with the District Forum-III, seeking Rs.20 lakh towards compensation.
They claimed that their daughter never had any health complaints and that she died on the college campus due to the “inattentive” care of the management. The college, however, refuted the parents’ argument.
They said enough care was taken to provide treatment to her and cited the post-mortem report which stated that she died due to ‘Acute Coronary Insufficiency’. As such there was no negligence on their part.
However, the Forum pointed out that Sravanthi was declared brought dead to the hospital at 5.45 p.m. Going by the evidence, it could be concluded that she had died on the college premises itself. It said the college should have maintained a full-time medical doctor on the campus as it was their responsibility to ensure safety of the students.




Case booked against Bata showroom management
http://www.hindu.com/2009/03/09/stories/2009030957720300.htm
Staff Reporter
HYDERABAD: The Abids police on Sunday booked a case against the Bata showroom management for obstructing government officials from discharging their duty.
A 10-member team led by Joint Labour Commissioner B. Ajay went to inspect the Bata showroom in Abids for functioning even on Sundays. But manager Syed Yousuf Irfan prevented them from entering the showroom and picked up an argument with them. Based on a complaint lodged by officials, police registered a case against the management under Section 186 (obstructing public servant from discharging duty) of the IPC and are investigating it.




Seven nations' link in Mumbai attack: Interpol
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/7-nations-link-in-Mumbai-attack-Interpol/articleshow/4241155.cms
8 Mar 2009, 1341 hrs IST, Times Now
NEW DELHI: Interpol secretary general Ronald K Noble has said that links of seven different countries are found in the Mumbai terror attacks that killed more than 180 people. "Interpol and Pakistan are cooperating with each other to investigate into the Mumbai terrorist attacks, links of the seven different countries are found during the investigation. We are trying to help expose the terrorists wherever they are hiding," The Nation quoted Noble, as saying. Pakistan has asked Interpol to help it obtain information located in seven countries in connection with the Mumbai attacks, said Noble. During his three-day stay in Islamabad Ronald met Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gillani, Interior Advisor Rehman Malik and the DG Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) Tariq Khosa. When asked whether Pakistan had sought the handing over of Ajmal Kasab the only surviving terrorist of the brutal attacks in Mumbai, Noble did not reply saying, "This is the most difficult question to answer." Noble added that Pakistan was providing the DNA to the Interpol, which would be checked by the global data of the 187 countries maintained by the Interpol. He said Pakistan understood that unless terrorists-related information was compared against Interpol's global database and shared among its global network, an international terrorist investigation can never be considered complete and all countries, which are not provided with this vital information, remain at risk. Pakistan's interior ministry chief Rehman Malik had on Friday briefed visiting Interpol chief on Pakistan's investigation into the Mumbai attacks and the information shared with India in this regard. Noble called on Malik to discuss the investigation of the Mumbai incident. Malik had shared with him the information on the attacks that Pakistan had provided to the Indian government through diplomatic channels. The Interpol chief appreciated Pakistan's efforts to investigate the incident and the work done by Pakistani investigators, officials said. Interior secretary Syed Kamal Shah and federal investigation agency chief Tariq Khosa had also attended the meeting. Noble is on his second visit to Pakistan in the wake of the Mumbai attacks in November last year. Pakistani authorities have arrested six suspects in connection with the attacks. Four of these suspects Lashkar-e-Taiba operatives Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, Zarar Shah, Abu al Qama and Hamad Amin Sadiq have been remanded to the custody of the FIA till March 17 by an anti-terrorism court.





State holiday under Act
http://www.hindu.com/2009/03/09/stories/2009030955030400.htm
Special Correspondent
Thiruvananthapuram: The government has announced that the Negotiable Instruments Act (NIA) will be applied for the public holiday that has been shifted to Tuesday on account of Milad-e-Sherif. A statement said here on Sunday that Monday would be a working day for all government offices.
The BSNL has announced that Monday will be a working day for all its offices under the Kerala circle and the public holiday will be on Tuesday.
The Kerala State Electricity Board has announced that Monday will be a working day for its offices. The board said its offices would be closed on Tuesday.
DEOs to decide
The Director of Public Instruction, in a statement here, said the respective District Education Officers had been authorised to make arrangements in their areas in relation to the observation of Milad-e-Sherif holiday. The statement said that it had taken such a step because it had come to the directorate’s notice that several areas in south Kerala were observing Monday as Milad-e-Sherif. Tuesday would be working day for those institutions which observed Monday as holiday.





Attempts to localise HC Bench demand’
http://www.hindu.com/2009/03/09/stories/2009030959570300.htm
Staff Reporter
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Congress leader G. Karthikeyan has alleged that the CPM leadership in the State is trying to politicise and localise the demand for a High Court (HC) Bench in the city by projecting it as the demand of a district.
He said this after inaugurating a hunger strike being observed by Youth Congress State general secretary Niyas Chithara demanding the setting up of a HC Bench in the city on Sunday.
Mr. Karthikeyan said that the negative attitude of the Left Democratic Front government was the biggest impediment in setting up a HC Bench in the State capital.





Proposal to book illegal sand miners under Goonda Act
http://www.hindu.com/2009/03/09/stories/2009030953330300.htm
M.P. Praveen
District-level expert committee submits report for approval
If implemented, it is pointed out that, it would serve as an effective deterrent against looting river resources.
KOCHI: Illegal sand miners in the district are in for a tough time as the district administration is about to tighten the noose around them.
It is learnt that the district administration has moved a proposal to bring repeated offenders involved in illegal sand-mining within the definition of goonda and to deal with them as per the provisions of the Goonda Act.
If implemented, it is pointed out that it would serve as an effective deterrent against looting river resources.
Loopholes
Currently, the proposal is being worked upon to ensure that it is foolproof so that the offenders do not escape using the loopholes.
That a similar system in a neighbouring district failed to serve the purpose fully as the offenders managed to exploit the loopholes has prompted the district administration to do proper homework before going ahead with the proposal. The registration certificates of the vehicles seized while carrying illegally mined are being marked denoting the offence.
Identifying offenders
This helps to identify repeated offenders and charge them under the provisions of the Goonda Act. Efforts are also on to buy two boats using the river management fund. The district-level expert committee has submitted a proposal for the approval of the State-level expert committee.
New boats
Presently, the police and revenue officials engaged in the drive against illegal sand-mining are forced to hire private boats. However, there are instances in which the boat owner is hand in glove with the offenders leaving the entire operation a futile exercise, said a senior police official.
Meanwhile, it is warned that the shuffling of police and revenue officials in connection with the Parliament elections might present the illegal sand miners with hay days in the months leading up to elections.
Networking
Very often it is the assiduous networking and sources created over the years by the police and taluk officials in the areas concerned that help to keep illegal sand-mining under control.
With these officials being shunted out for three months or more the entire work might get derailed.
It takes at least three months for any newly posted official to study one’s area, the pattern of crimes and the known criminals, the police official said.




Holiday for High Court
http://www.hindu.com/2009/03/09/stories/2009030954940400.htm
Kochi: The Registrar-General of the High Court, in a statement, said that the court would remain closed on Tuesday, instead of Monday, in tandem with the State declaration of government holiday on Tuesday on account of Milad-i-Sherif. Consequently, the Registry of the High Court would function and cases would be received on Monday. But there would be no sitting. “The cases already notified in the cause list for Tuesday will be taken up on Wednesday. A supplementary list (regarding this) will be published on Monday,” said the release. — Staff Reporter





Uphold values of judiciary: Ravi
http://www.hindu.com/2009/03/09/stories/2009030953980300.htm
Staff Reporter
State meet of Indian Lawyers Congress
KOLLAM: People will lose confidence in the system if lawyers defy the judiciary, Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Vayalar Ravi has said.
He was inaugurating the third State conference of the Indian Lawyers Congress (ILC) here on Sunday. Mr. Ravi was referring to the clash between lawyers and the police on the premises of the Madras High Court on February 19.
“If we defy the court, it creates an impression that the respectability of the judicial system is eroded,” he said. Lawyers are part and parcel of the judicial system. They are in fact officers of the court. The judicial system cannot function without lawyers. But lawyers are duty bound to obey the laws and the directions of the court. Being court officers they are expected to respond in a responsible manner, the Minister said.
Women empowerment
Mr. Ravi said empowerment of women was very important in a democratic system. The United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government had included women empowerment in its development programme.
UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi is very keen to see the enactment of the Women’s Reservation Bill. That is why it was introduced in the Rajya Sabha. The term of the Rajya Sabha does not end and no Bill introduced in that house will get lapsed, he said.
He said the powers of the government to appoint persons as judges had not been misused. It is now proved more than ever that only eligible persons had been appointed as judges.
The Chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Law and Justice, E.M. Sudarsan Natchiappan, delivered the keynote address. ILC State president T.P.M. Ibrahim Khan presided over the function. Congress leaders C.V. Padmarajan, Kodikunnil Suresh, M.I. Shanavas, V.D. Satheesan, MLA, Sooranad Rajashekaran; Bar Council of Kerala chairman Vinodh Kurien and ILC High Court unit president P. Santhalingam addressed the gathering.





‘Laws to protect women lack teeth’
http://www.hindu.com/2009/03/09/stories/2009030953300300.htm
Staff Reporter
THRISSUR: Participants in various programmes held here on Sunday to mark the International Women’s Day stated that laws to protect women lacked teeth.
The women’s policy envisages a State free of atrocities against women.
Many promises in the policy such as nightstay homes for women and installation of display boards in public places carrying helpline numbers remained on paper, women activists pointed out.
The Kerala Police staged ‘Pennayi Pirannaval’, a street play on harassment at home and workplace, to create awareness about ‘Jagratha Samithis’ of the State Women’s Commission. The samithis formed under the aegis of the commission, with the active involvement of local bodies, are meant to tackle cases involving women and children.
An open forum held by Organisation for Women’s Empowerment and Rural Development and Bethesda discussed problems faced by women commuters. “Physical and verbal abuse by men are common. Most women do not react fearing isolation and social stigma.
Victims are often the butt of ridicule. The culprits often go unpunished with the police and the bus crew adopting a lukewarm attitude towards incidents,” the forum said.
The speakers said that children should be empowered to handle such situations. “Girls should be taught to fight harassment. Commodification of women in society should be challenged.”
Women from various walks of life shared their experiences. The Centre for Social Education organised a seminar on ‘Women, environment and spirituality’.
Various other organisations, including the All-India Working Women’s Coordination (CITU) and the Federation of State Employees and Teachers’ Organisations, too conducted programmes to highlight problems faced by women Musician K. Omanakkutty, actor Nilamboor Aisha, singer Machad Vasanthi, dancer Kalamandalam Kshemavathi, social activist T.A. Ushakumari and police constable Aparna Lavakumar were presented with the Women’s Day Awards, instituted by the Asritha Service Society.





Remove illegal posters in Mira-Bhayander: HC
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Mumbai/Remove-illegal-posters-in-Mira-Bhayander-HC-/articleshow/4242441.cms
9 Mar 2009, 0418 hrs IST, Sandhya Nair , TNN
MUMBAI: Illegal hoardings in Mira Road and Bhayander may soon be a thing of the past, thanks to the efforts of Mira Bhayander Municipal Corporation
(MBMC) corporator Milan Mhatre. The Bombay high court, which was hearing a public interest litigation filed by Mhatre, has directed the MBMC to pull down all illegal hoardings and posters immediately. Mhatre has been fighting for the removal of illegal posters and banners for the past one-and-a-half years. A division bench of Chief Justice Swatanter Kumar and Justice Dr D Y Chandrachud asked the MBMC to remove all illegal hoardings and banners, especially those put up on public roads as well as government buildings, including offices of the corporation and police stations. The corporation has to reply in four weeks' time. Mhatre, in his PIL, has argued that illegal hoardings result in ugly incidents and are also responsible for sparking communal tension. Citing last year's incident at Rabodi, Mhatre pointed out that such hoardings had led to communal riots and arson in Thane district. The court observed that hoardings and banners were put up on government buildings without the permission of the municipal corporation and were therefore illegal. The court also said that the municipal commissioner, deputy municipal commissioner (encroachment), collector/ deputy commissioner of the area and the concerned superintendent of police will be personally responsible for carrying out the order. While the decision has been welcomed by residents from the region, political parties are unhappy as it has come at a time when the Lok Sabha polls are just round the corner. Parties will now have to seek MBMC's permission to put up their banners.





Cop threatened me, magistrate tells high court
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Mumbai/Cop-threatened-me-magistrate-tells-high-court-/articleshow/4242454.cms
9 Mar 2009, 0432 hrs IST, S Ahmed Ali, TNN
MUMBAI: Railway metropolitan magistrate R B Shaikh, who recently submitted her report about an alleged encounter, has complained that she has been threatened by a police officer. The woman magistrate has complained to the Bombay high court that she has been threatened through a lawyer representing the inspector. "Yeh tumne accha nahi kiya, hum tumko dekh lenge (You should not have done this. We will see you),'' is what the lawyer allegedly told Shaikh. The high court has taken serious note and has asked Mumbai police commissioner Hasan Gafoor to probe into her complaint and submit a report. Gafoor in turn has asked the joint commissioner of police (crime) Rakesh Maria to investigate. "We have received a complaint about a lawyer. We are looking into it.'' said an officer. The police said this could be a very serious matter as the court takes serious cognisance of such complaints, particularly when the person who has threatened a magistrate happens to be a policeman. The case relates to Ramnarayan Gupta of the Lakhanbhaiyya faction of the Chhota Rajan gang, who was shot dead on November 11, 2006, outside the Nana Nani park at Versova. The inspector concerned was part of the special squad which took part in the encounter. Gupta's family members challenged the police theory that he was killed in an encounter. Instead, they alleged that the inspector and his team had picked him up from Vashi a few hours prior to the encounter. Gupta's advocate brother Ramprasad Gupta filed a petition in the high court, alleging that his brother was killed in cold blood and demanded a judicial inquiry. Interestingly, Gupta has also stated that he had sent a telegram to then police commissioner A N Roy's office a few hours before the encounter, saying his brother had been picked up by plainclothes policemen from Vashi. Metropolitan magistrate (railway) Shaikh was asked to conduct a probe. In July 2008, Shaikh submitted her confidential report to the high court. "There is strong circumstantial evidence which suggests that the deceased was abducted by the police and killed in custody,'' the report says. Sources said various forensic reports indicate the police version has a few holes.




Conviction can be based even on ‘deficient’ evidence: SC
http://www.livemint.com/2009/03/09145832/Conviction-can-be-based-even-o.html
Evidence in each case has to be appraised as to what extent it is worthy of accpetance, the apex court said
PTI
New Delhi: The Supreme Court has held that an accused can be convicted even on deficient evidence as long as the same was credible and cogent.
“It is the duty of court to separate grain from chaff. Where chaff can be separated from grain, it would be open to the court to convict an accused notwithstanding, the fact that evidence has been found to be deficient, or to be not wholly credible,” a bench of Justices Arijit Pasayat and Mukundakam Sharma observed.
The apex court passed the ruling while dismissing the appeal of Mani alias Udattu Man and six others convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment by a sessions court in Tamil Nadu for the murder of one Prabha. The deceased was hacked to death by the accused due to previous enmity.
Even though seven of the prosecution witnesses turned hostile, the sessions court convicted the accused on the basis of the eyewitness account of Murugammal, mother of the deceased.
However, one of the accused was acquitted of the charge.The Madras High Court confirmed the sentence following which the accused appealed in the apex court.
Incidentally, the accused were acquitted in the earlier murder of Prabha’s younger brother Babu.
In the appeal before the apex court, Mani and the other accused took the plea that as seven of the witnesses failed to support the prosecution’s theory and one of the accused had been acquitted, they too were entitled to acquittal under the maxim “falsus in uno falsus in omnibus” (if part of the evidence is unbelievable then the rest should also be discarded).“
The same maxim is employed in some of the advanced countries, they argued.
Rejecting the argument, the apex court observed that the maxim has no application in India and the witness/ witnesses cannot be branded as liars.
According to the apex court, the maxim has neither general acceptance nor has occupied the status of rule of law in the country.
“It is merely a rule of caution. All that it amounts to, is that in such cases testimony may be disregarded, and not that it must be disregarded. The doctrince merely involves the question of weight of evidence which a court may apply in a given set of circumstances, but is not what may be called a mandatory rule of evidence,” the bench observed.
Evidence in each case has to be appraised as to what extent it is worthy of accpetance, the apex court said.
“Merely because in some respects the court considers the same to be insufficient for placing reliance on the testimony of a witness, it does not necessarily follow as a matter of law that it must be disregarded in all aspects,” the bench observed, while upholding the conviction and sentence.




Tamil Nadu Govt withdraws police personnel from HC premises
http://www.indlawnews.com/Newsdisplay.aspx?224949d7-dc77-43d2-8f74-1fdcdb146e6f
3/9/2009
The Tamil Nadu government has withdrawn all police personnel deployed on security duty on the Madras High Court premises following instructions from new Chief Justice H L Gokhale.Official sources said High Court Registrar-General R Mala had written to the State Chief Secretary and the Home Secretary on March 7, demanding full police protection on the court premises in view of the new Chief Justice assuming office.As per her letter, the government had deployed full police protection on the court premises since yesterday. Police personnel were also posted in all the four entrances of the High Court.Meanwhile, the Joint Action Council (JAC) of advocates, comprising representatives from various advocates associations, yesterday Mr Justice Gokhale and said there was no need for police protection.Providing police force on the court campus could be considered after the lawyers resumed work, they told the Chief Justice.Under the instructions of Justice Gokhale, the Registrar-General requested the government to withdraw the police force from the court campus. Officials were scouting for a suitable location to house the High Court police station, which was torched by the rampaging advocates during the February 19 clash between the lawyers and the police, outside the Court campus.Inspector of Police, Harikrishnan, attached to the police station, was already transferred to another station. In a related development, Chennai City Police Commissioner K Radhakrishnan held a meeting with Inspectors and Sub-Inspectors of Police at the Rajarathinam stadium here last evening.At the meeting, the police personnel were advised on how they should deal with advocates. The policemen were also advised not to get provoked.‘Some do’s and don’t’s were are also issued to the police personnel,’ police sources told UNI.UNI




HC Quashes Petition on Special Magistrate/DCP Zone-X
http://www.planetpowai.com/news/0803200903.htm
By: Staff Reporter
Powai - 08 March 09 : The High Court at Judicature, Bombay dismissed a criminal court petition by advocate KH Giri and state of Maharashtra pertaining to contempt of court as appealed by the advocate during a routine hearing by KMM Prasanna.
KM Mallikarjun Prasanna is a dynamic IPS officer of the Maharshtra cadre posted with Zone-X as the Deputy Commissioner of police since June 2007. Powai happens to be in this zone with its office at MIDC, Andheri East.
Prior to this he had been the Supdt. of Police of Sindhudurg district in Konkan. He comes from a family of civil servants. His father is a senior IPS officer in Karantaka and wife a bureaucrat.
Recently, in his capacity as Special Executive Magistrate and discharging his official duties he got embroiled in a PIL by some disgruntled hotelier’s advocate. The incident being that during the hearing of a case of one Robert Diego Menses his advocate, KH Giri was not offered a chair to sit in the cabin during a quasi-judicial hearing by Prasanna.
Apparently, the advocate occupied a chair on his own in the magistrate's cabin without his permission or being offered to sit. Thereafter, he was made to stand in a corner with two alleged criminals during the proceeding.
The advocate KH Giri felt offended on this and reasoned with the magistrate of his discourteous behaviour. Subsequently, he filed a petition for contempt of court maintaining that advocates are part of the court system and were being ill treated by a magistrate.
The magistrate clarified in his affidavit that he was discharging his duty as per the norms and decorum of the courts and he had not lowered its sanctity.




'Pending cases biggest threat to RTI'
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Mumbai/Pending-cases-biggest-threat-to-RTI/articleshow/4242447.cms
9 Mar 2009, 0423 hrs IST, Viju B, TNN
MUMBAI: Central information commissioner Shailesh Gandhi on Sunday said that the three-and-a-half year old Right to information (RTI) Act has given the average citizen some hope in providing better governance, compared to the long-drawn legal system in the country. Gandhi, in his earlier avatar as a city-based RTI activist, had used the Act to expose some of the major loopholes in the state bureaucracy-be it examining the arbitrary disbursal of the chief minister's relief fund or procuring the medical report of convicted state minister Swarup Singh Naik who got admitted to the air-conditioned ward of JJ hospital to escape a one-month prison term. "I feel today the greatest threat to the survival of the RTI Act is the mounting pendency of appeals. If the applicants are not provided correct information within the stipulated period, then they will lose faith in the Act,'' Gandhi said during an interaction with senior officials with the state information commission and RTI activists at Wadala. State chief information commissioner Suresh Joshi, while lauding Gandhi's efforts of clearing over 2,300 appeals in five months, said that Gandhi is truly the Sachin Tendulkar of the RTI movement. "But the SIC has now caught up with this zeal. The pendency in Mumbai has now come down to around three months,'' Joshi said. TOI had last week done an analysis on the performance of various commissioners and found that Shailesh Gandhi and Annapurna Dixit topped in the number of disposals per month. Gandhi, for instance, has heard 670 appeals in January this year while Dixit disposed of 330 appeals in the same period. The CIC has a pending appeals of around 10,000 while the SIC's pendency figures is over 15,000 till date. The state has a higher number of pending appeals because Maharashtra also receives the highest number of RTI applications in the world, Joshi said. RTI activist Bhaskar Prabhu-while welcoming the state information commissioner's assurance of speedy disposal-said that each commissioner should dispose at least two appeals every day to clear the current backlog. "We will take up the pendency issue with the governor soon,'' RTI activist S K Nangia said. Gandhi said that though he was facing a staff crunch, he has managed to dispose around 500 appeals every month as he has recruited computer-savvy volunteers. "About 70% of my salary goes towards the honorary payment of these volunteers,'' Gandhi said. He said that it is sad that many babus at the government offices still cannot operate a computer. "In my short exposure to the working of the government, I have realised that there is a systemic problem in our bureaucracy. Only if citizens and media come forward and challenge this rot on a daily basis will there will be any effective change,'' he said.





SC uphelds Madras HC's order of quashing detention of MD of QuestNet India
http://www.indlawnews.com/Newsdisplay.aspx?b990735b-9e8d-4961-a5b4-0b9b25ecdd85
3/7/2009
The Supreme Court has upheld the Madras High Court order, quashing the detention of Pushpam Appalanaidu, Managing Director, QuestNet India under the Goondas Act. A bench comprising Mr Justice B N Agrawal and Mr Justice G S Singhvi, upholding the High Court order, maintained that it did not have any ground to interfere with the impugned order. After the High Court quashed the detention, the Tamil Nadu Police filed an appeal in the apex court, challenging the High Court order.A division bench of High Court, comprising Mr Justice Elipe Dharma Rao and Mr Justice S Tamizhvaanan quashed the detention, holding that there was a delay in serving the grounds of detention as contemplated under section 8 (1) of the Goondas act.It said the detention order was passed on May 24 and served on the same day. But the grounds of detention were served only on May 30. Police arrested Pushpam and six other Questnet company officials under the ‘Ban of MLM and Prize Articles Act’ following complaints from the General public that the company tried to cheat them on the promise of giving them gold coins. The City Police Commissioner, subsequently detained Pushpam under the Goondas Act. UNI




Justice Aftab Hussain Saikia takes over as Chief Justice of Sikkim HC
http://www.indlawnews.com/newsdisplay.aspx?bad0bb7c-5353-44bd-80d4-e66dc6ff2ec5
3/7/2009
Justice Aftab Hussain Saikia, judge of the Gauhati High Court, was sworn in as the new Chief Justice of Sikkim High Court.Governor Balmiki Prasad Singh administered the oath of office during a solemn function at the Ashirbad Hall of Raj Bhavan. Chief Minister Pawan Chamling, Cabinet Ministers and senior government officials were present to witness the oath taking ceremony.This has strengthened the erstwhile two-judge bench of the Sikkim High Court to three.Earlier, Justice A P Subba was functioning as the acting Chief Justice of the Sikkim High Court.UNI




Before elections, Govt to appoint 60 new HC judges, says code not in way
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/before-elections-govt-to-appoint-60-new-hc-judges-says-code-not-in-way/432572/0
Maneesh Chhibber Posted: Mar 09, 2009 at 0123 hrs IST
New Delhi: Before the UPA Government bows out of office, it would have created a unique record: of having made the maximum number of appointments to the higher judiciary by any government.
In the last three years alone, it has cleared the appointment of 247 judges, 15 of them to the Supreme Court. In fact, between now and mid-April, when the elections start, the government hopes to appoint at least 60-65 more judges to various High Courts.
To begin with, President Pratibha Patil on March 4 cleared the appointment of new Chief Justices (CJ) for the High Courts of Allahabad, Patna, Kerala, Gauhati and Rajasthan.
“Names of new judges have already been cleared by the respective High Court collegiums. We are working over-time to get the warrants of appointments of all new judges issued by the President before the elections,” a senior officer of the Union Law and Justice Ministry told The Indian Express.
Asked if the election code of conduct would come in the way of issuance of warrants of appointments of new judges, the Law Ministry officer replied in the negative. “These are Constitutional appointments and are being made on the recommendation of the SC collegium. The code of conduct will not stop the President from issuing the warrants,” the officer said.
In fact, this government also holds the record for most appointments to the superior judiciary in a single year — 110 new judges in 2006. But if things move as per the Law Ministry’s plan, 2009 could well be the year when the government appoints the maximum number of judges.
In what is a clear indication of its intent, the Law Minister is also learnt to have written to Chief Justice of India K G Balakrishanan to expedite the matter of recommending seven names to fill the available vacancies in the 31-Judge Supreme Court — two by retirement and five new posts created by Parliament during the winter session.
The government is keen that seniority among Chief Justices of various High Courts be the foremost criteria when the Supreme Court collegium recommends seven names for elevation to the apex court.
As per record, Uttarakhand HC Chief Justice (CJ) Vinod Kumar Gupta is the senior-most CJ in the country, having been appointed to the post in 2000. He is followed by Delhi HC Chief Justice A P Shah, who became CJ in 2005, and Madhya Pradesh HC Chief Justice A K Patnaik, who was appointed CJ in 2005.
Despite their seniority, all three had been overlooked late last year when the SC collegium recommended names of three CJs — all junior to them — for elevation to the apex court.
The SC collegium refused to reconsider its recommendation even after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh sent back the file containing the names, leaving the government with no other choice but to clear the three names sent by the SC.
Sometime back, the Ministry had written to the Chief Justices of Allahabad, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh and Punjab and Haryana HCs and requested them to expedite the process of recommending names for elevation to the bench.
According to available information, as of now, the Centre is working on clearing the cases for appointment of 20 judges to the Allahabad HC, 14 to the Madras HC, 13 to the Calcutta HC and 10 to Patna HC. Other HCs which could get new judges soon include Chhattisgarh (6), Bombay (4), Delhi (8), Rajasthan (3), and Karnataka (2).




CPM trying to localise HC Bench:UDF
http://keralaonline.com/news/attempts-localise-hc-bench-demand_24781.html
Thiruvananthapuram, Monday 9 March 2009: Congress leader G Karthikeyan has alleged that the CPM leadership in the State is trying to politicise and localise the demand for a High Court (HC) Bench in the city by projecting it as the demand of a district.
He said this after inaugurating a hunger strike being observed by Youth Congress State general secretary Niyas Chithara demanding the setting up of a HC Bench in the city on Sunday.Karthikeyan said that the negative attitude of the Left Democratic Front government was the biggest impediment in setting up a HC Bench in the State capital.




Cop threatened me, magistrate tells high court
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Mumbai/Cop-threatened-me-magistrate-tells-high-court-/articleshow/4242454.cms
9 Mar 2009, 0432 hrs IST, S Ahmed Ali, TNN
MUMBAI: Railway metropolitan magistrate R B Shaikh, who recently submitted her report about an alleged encounter, has complained that she has been threatened by a police officer. The woman magistrate has complained to the Bombay high court that she has been threatened through a lawyer representing the inspector. "Yeh tumne accha nahi kiya, hum tumko dekh lenge (You should not have done this. We will see you),'' is what the lawyer allegedly told Shaikh. The high court has taken serious note and has asked Mumbai police commissioner Hasan Gafoor to probe into her complaint and submit a report. Gafoor in turn has asked the joint commissioner of police (crime) Rakesh Maria to investigate. "We have received a complaint about a lawyer. We are looking into it.'' said an officer. The police said this could be a very serious matter as the court takes serious cognisance of such complaints, particularly when the person who has threatened a magistrate happens to be a policeman. The case relates to Ramnarayan Gupta of the Lakhanbhaiyya faction of the Chhota Rajan gang, who was shot dead on November 11, 2006, outside the Nana Nani park at Versova. The inspector concerned was part of the special squad which took part in the encounter. Gupta's family members challenged the police theory that he was killed in an encounter. Instead, they alleged that the inspector and his team had picked him up from Vashi a few hours prior to the encounter. Gupta's advocate brother Ramprasad Gupta filed a petition in the high court, alleging that his brother was killed in cold blood and demanded a judicial inquiry. Interestingly, Gupta has also stated that he had sent a telegram to then police commissioner A N Roy's office a few hours before the encounter, saying his brother had been picked up by plainclothes policemen from Vashi. Metropolitan magistrate (railway) Shaikh was asked to conduct a probe. In July 2008, Shaikh submitted her confidential report to the high court. "There is strong circumstantial evidence which suggests that the deceased was abducted by the police and killed in custody,'' the report says. Sources said various forensic reports indicate the police version has a few holes.







HC fines officials for `lax' demolitions in Lonavla
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Mumbai/HC-fines-officials-for-lax-demolitions-in-Lonavla/articleshow/4242481.cms
9 Mar 2009, 0442 hrs IST, Yogesh Naik, TNN
LONAVLA: Demolition of illegal structures in the hill towns of Lonavla and Khandala has gathered momentum after the High Court fined three officials including the urban development secretary for not taking stringent action in this regard. However, the Lonavla Khandala Citizens' Forum (LKCF), which had filed a case against the Lonavla Municipal Council (LMC) accusing the council of apathy, said bigger offenders, including resorts and hotels were being spared as their demolitions were only cosmetic. LMC chief Sunil Lahane said the administration was carrying out demolitions at a fast pace and only 275 of the 773 illegal structures were remaining. A PIL had been filed in 2007 against the burgeoning illegal structures in Lonavla, which led to flooding and bad roads. The High Court had warned the LMC twice and asked it to take stringent action. On January 29, 2009, the HC asked LMC to undertake a massive demolition drive. However, unhappy with the action being taken, it fined the urban development secretary Manukumar Srivastava, LMC chief Sunil Lahane and the LMC administrative officer Ashok Jadhav Rs 3,000 each on February 12. Fergus Misquitta of the LKCF said the resorts and hotels were being given special treatment and demolition for these structures was only cosmetic. "Structures owned by those not so rich are demolished completely, while resorts and hotels that belong to the rich are only partially demolished,'' Misquitta said. Residents had told Srivastava that the LMC had not filed caveats. But Lahane said many offenders had moved the court for a stay and the LMC had to file its reply each time. Some of the offenders, including hotel owners, have got stays from a local court. LKCF chief Jaideep Samarth said the PIL has brought in some accountability. "Things were chaotic before the PIL. People had no concern for the environment and the LMC staff never checked the unauthorised structures. It is sad that the court has to make people do their jobs,'' he said. One of the hotels which was demolished is back in business. "They have put curtains on the demolished part and put tables again. Why can't the LMC clamp this down. It is illegal to do this on land which is not licenced for use as a restaurant,'' residents and members of LKCF said. However, the Lonavla Market, Khandala Lake and the road along the railway track have been cleared. The PIL has come as a shock to bungalow owners. Some of them who had constructed outhouses, kitchens and servant quarters, are seeking advice on whether these are legal or not. Though the court has criticised the functioning of LMC, Lahane said the demolitions would be over by the next hearing on March 12. Advocate Tanu Mehta Tiwari from the LKCF said they wanted a committee to monitor the demolitions.




Jails inmates could soon make handicrafts for your home
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Mumbai/Jails-inmates-could-soon-make-handicrafts-for-your-home/articleshow/4242484.cms
9 Mar 2009, 0446 hrs IST, Sanjeev Shivadekar, TNN
MUMBAI: Soon, over 23,000 prisoners across Maharashtra would be the envy of many an unemployed. In a unique kind of out-sourcing, the state government has given an in-principle approval to allow small-scale industries to out-source their work to over 38 prisons in Maharashtra. All that the industries have to do is set up manufacturing equipment within the prisons and explain the know-how to the prisoners. "The concept of this scheme is to ensure that prisoners get to learn skills for survival which they could use once they are out of the jail,'' said Anna Dani, principal secretary, home department. The move, aimed to ensure that prisoners become self-reliant by the time they finish their term, was discussed last year. "Former deputy chief minister R R Patil had given in-principle approval to this policy,'' Dani said, adding that modalities are being worked out to take this policy ahead. So in next few months, one could see handicrafts, leather goods, hair clips, pens and other products sent out of these prisons. The remuneration for the work the prisoners do here will be paid at the end of their term. When asked if these industries will agree to have their products made by convicts and undertrials, a senior home department official handling issues related to the prisons in the state, said: "It's a win-win situation for the industries as they would have comparatively cheap and assured labour, a work force that won't be amenable to pulls and pressures of political parties or unions, which means they won't go on strike.'' Secondly, the company just has to bear the cost of setting up the machinery within the jails and the raw materials for their products. They don't have to invest money in procuring land to set up industry or worry about the security, electricity and water bills. Besides, this machinery is most secure within the jail due to the high security here, he added. Superintendent of Arthur Road jail, Swati Sathe, said: "If adopted, the initiative will be a good rehabilitation programme for the prisoners.'' Prisoners have been involved in working within the jail like carpentry, cooking and gardening but all these activities are done for the jail inmates itself. There are 38 jails (including central and district jails) in the state. Among the new jails coming up in the state are at Taloja near Panvel where work is completed. Work on jails in Sindhudurg, Latur, Jalna, Gadchiroli, Washim and Nandurbar is in progress.




Fight for your rights as a consumer
http://blogs.livemint.com/blogs/life_etc/archive/2009/03/08/fight-for-your-rights-as-a-consumer.aspx
Bobby John Varkey - Sunday, March 08, 2009 3:54 PM
Normal 0
It had to happen. An almost two-month-long struggle last year with a bank in Delhi over cheque clearance got me seriously thinking if we can, possibly, do without them at all. Disgruntled, disappointed at the futility of the thought, the idea died faster than I could imagine. And before long, I found myself joining the long list of people who believe you are too insignificant when it comes to dispute resolution with big businesses. After all, it is no easy task circumventing the chain of command starting with know-it-all executives, unhelpful secretaries, and, of course, those irritating, long-winded pre-recorded telephone menus
Yes, it happens again and again. And most stories sound so similar. From astronomical bills for credit cards you never asked for and never got to missing cash or bounced cheques, banks in India, one is forced to believe, are the biggest defaulters when it comes to catering to the consumers. Okay, mistakes happen, but what really takes the cake is when banks refuse to come clean or behave in a way that is totally against the accepted norms of service behaviour.Perhaps, on a related note, you would not want to miss the Personal Finance page in Business of Life on Monday, 9 March. No, it is not about frauds, but about the hidden fees most banks charge for doing business with them, and justify it with the fine print that escapes most of us.A subsequent net search prompted by the story, looking for tips to improve my banking habits, threw up a very surprising result: I stumbled upon Lt. Col. Rajesh Yadav. This serving army man’s story is no different from what many of us may have faced. He had a salary account with a leading back in Delhi for 9 years. He was issued a new debit card, which never reached him. But to his shock, the bank maintained that the card was delivered, and was even being used. When Yadav sought details from the bank, he was given a statement showing Rs45,623 of purchases on the card.
Yadav’s nightmare continued inspite of repeated assurances from the bank. Tired of this never-ending nightmare, Yadav filed a case against the bank in the Consumer Forum in July 2006. Within one year, he got his money back, along with a penalty of Rs40,000.But Yadav didn’t let the story end here. Today, he is helping others fight similar battles for them with his Yahoo group Adhikaar and a “team of 350 like-minded volunteers”. Check it out at here
I spoke to him a few days ago.Lt. Col. Yadav, what really prompted you to approach the Consumer Forum? Considering what most of us think of our judicial system, you must be prepared for a long-drawn battle yourself before starting.In the beginning, I too was completely clueless about the forum. And to begin with, I filed the case only to fight the high-handedness of the bank. But as the case progressed and I started understanding how the Forum functioned, I became increasingly convinced of my victory.How do you file a case in Consumer Forum?It is very simple. You can file your complaint on an ordinary piece of paper, giving details of the case. You can also take help from www.core.nic.in. In fact, at Consumer Forum, you don’t even need a lawyer to present your case. You can do it personally or even by one of your family members.How bad is the situation in terms of businesses/agencies taking the average consumer for a ride?Indian origin companies have the worst track record. Our consumers are still at the mercy of shopkeepers, service providers, MNCs and the like. Banks in India somehow seem to have a single point agenda of making maximum profits at the expense of the consumers. They don’t have any consideration for their customers when it comes to redressal of their complaints. In 99% cases, their standard answer is to reject the claim without going into the details. At the same time, it is also true that India’s Consumer Protection Forum is one of the strongest and best-framed acts in the world, comparable to the best.But you become a victim only because of your own ignorance and apathy towards the courts. Yes, cases are dragged for years in our courts, but not in the Consumer Forum. My personal experience with the forum has been extremely satisfying. It aims to deliver justice within 6 months. However, practically, it may take 12-18 months which still is quite fast considering the time taken in our courts. And during the entire procedure, the complainant is not required to personally appear before the court for more than 3-4 times.
How foolproof would you say are the consumer's rights?To put it in simple terms, every consumer has the right to expect the same quality and quantity of the goods or services that he is promised at the time of purchase/hiring of the services.
How does Adhikaar help the victims? We encourage the affected consumers to raise their voice themselves and we arm them with all the required knowledge in their fight. You can find a large number of success stories in various posts in the Yahoo group Adhikaar. Besides bank related cases, we recently successfully highlighted atrocities on poor people by Haryana police in Gurgaon.
What kind of complaints does Adhikaar generally handle?A majority of problems that come to us relate to harassment by recovery agents of private sector banks. And then we also get complaints regarding credit card frauds, warranty issues for consumer goods or cars, and insurance claims.





Onus is on fair organisers
http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?newsid=1237529
MS Kamath
Sunday, March 8, 2009 21:13 IST
Mumbai: A person who goes to a fun and fair is a consumer and if any problem occurs to him because of the organiser's negligence, he is entitled to compensation. This order was passed by the National Consumer Dispute Redressal Commission in Haryana Institute of Fine Arts & another vs. Rajesh Mani Kaushik and others.
The Institute of Fine Arts organised a 'Phulwari Children Bazar' at Karnal with entertainment programmes and a fun fair. The Institute, which claimed to be an NGO, also gave stalls on rent. Kaushik, his wife and two children visited the Bazar and boarded a merry-go-round. When the merry-go-round was at full speed, the seat got detached and Kaushik and his family were thrown about 15-feet away. All sustained injuries.
Kaushik sued the Institute and the owner-operator of the ride for deficiency of service in the consumer forum at Karnal, claiming Rs4 lakh for treatment and trauma. The forum ordered the owner-operator of the ride to pay Rs20,000 as compensation to Kaushik. The Institute was absolved of all liability.
Dissatisfied, Kaushik approached the Haryana State Commission in appeal, and the compensation was enhanced to Rs1 lakh by an order. In addition, the State Commission held that the Institute was also liable to the complainant.
The Institute took the matter to the National Commission. They contended that they were an NGO and had no supervisory control over the owner of the merry-go-round. They had not charged any fee for entrance to the bazaar from the consumer and no liability could be attached to them under the Consumer Protection Act.
However, the National Commission held that the Institute was charging the owners of the stalls which showed that this was not a charitable event. It noted that the Institute was in control of the carnival area and hence could not wish away their liability. The order of the State Commission was hence upheld in its entirety.




Only 1,000-odd trains have cushioned seats for women-only bogies: RTI
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Mumbai/Only-1000-odd-trains-have-cushioned-seats-for-women-only-bogies-RTI-/articleshow/4242486.cms
9 Mar 2009, 0448 hrs IST, Viju B , TNN
MUMBAI: Railway minister Lalu Prasad cannot stop talking of how he has turned around the ministry's financial fortunes and how it earns cash surplus of thousands of crores of rupees every year. But there is one relic from the past that the ministry is clinging on to, much to the discomfort of millions of women passengers who travel

by long-distance trains: the wooden seats in unreserved compartments that are no different from the third-class mode of travel that was scrapped 33 years ago. A Right to Information (RTI) query filed by Nashik-based activist Balasahib S Kurup has revealed that, till last year, only 1,258 unreserved coaches had been retrofitted with cushioned seats. "The railways run 11,000 trains every day across the country. It is shameful that till date, only 1,000-odd trains have cushioned seats. The railways are charging the general second class fare while giving the comforts of third class travel,'' Kurup said. A survey of long distance trains that plied from CST station to different parts of the country revealed that a majority of the dimly-lit women's only compartments had wooden planks as seats; some of the wooden racks meant for luggage even had gaping holes. Millions of women travel in these compartments and by the time they reach their destinations, they have severe back and spinal problems. For passengers like Rahena Sultana and her 73-year-old ailing mother who were travelling by the Mumbai-Howrah express from CST, the agonising journey had just begun. "My mother cannot sit properly as all these wooden seats are already in a bad shape. I do not know how we will manage the one-and-half day journey,'' Sultana said, pointing out to the rickety planks. In the neighbouring platform, Nanded-bound Devgiri Express had a similar story to tell. The women's compartment had already been curtailed and part of it was used as a luggage compartment. "Probably the authorities thought that we can be fitted into these compartment just like cartons,'' said Sunita Borde, who was travelling with her 7-year-old daughter. She said the situation is similar in unreserved second class compartment. "Here men keep their suitcases and bags as makeshift seats in the places where the planks have broken,'' she said. Senior railway officials said that retrofitting of passenger coaches are being done on a contractual arrangement. "We have also manufactured 670 new coaches,'' the official said. Chief public relations officer, Central Railway, S D Mudgerikar added that the retrofitting work is being done at different workshops at Parel and Matunga. "The work is being done in a phased manner as and when the trains reach the workshops,'' he said. But for women passengers like Anitha Kadam who travel every six months from CST to Aurungabad in the ladies only compartment, the ordeal never seems to never end.




Special judge files complaint on finding his car damaged
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Chennai/Special-judge-files-complaint-on-finding-his-car-damaged/articleshow/4242521.cms
9 Mar 2009, 0556 hrs IST, TNN
CHENNAI: A special judge appointed in the special court in Singaravelar Maligai on Rajaji Salai has lodged a complaint at Egmore Police Station after he found that his car had been damaged at the parking lot inside the judges' quarters in Egmore, adjacent to the police commissioner's office on Sunday. The judge, S Manoharan is living at A-14 in the judges' quarters located near the Egmore Court. On Sunday morning, he found his car, which was parked inside the quarters, in a damaged condition. Its rear glass had been broken open. Burglars may have sneaked into the the parking space in an attempt to steal valuables from the car. As the culprit apparently found nothing interesting. Following the incident, Manoharan lodged a formal complaint at the Egmore police station. Police are interrogating the policemen posted on security duty at the judges' quarters to find out whether they had been slack in their duty. Police have registered a case and further investigation is on.




Ramadoss for new strategy to combat smoking in films
http://www.samaylive.com/news/ramadoss-for-new-strategy-to-combat-smoking-in-films/612842.html
Author: Deepak RanaPublished: Sun, 08 Mar 2009 at 23:22 IST
F Prev Next L
Mumbai, Mar 8 : It is important to find new strategies to combat the depiction of smoking in films since many youth take to tobacco products after being influenced by them, Union Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss said today."Earlier in films only villains would smoke on screen but these days most heroes smoke," Ramadoss said at the inaugural function for the 14th World Conference on Tobacco or Health.A study had found that close to 52 per cent youth take their first taste of a tobacco product influenced by films and it was important to combat it, he said, adding that a PIL was pending in the Supreme Court to prevent smoking on-screen.After introducing the law against smoking in public places, it was hoped that people would follow the law voluntarily in the next six months, the Health Minister said."The focus of the law is not to impose fines on people but to make it voluntary among people," Ramadoss said.Pictorial warnings on tobacco products were to be implemented by May 31 and it was now necessary to scare youngsters from tobacco products, he said.Groups could be formed in all institutes like schools and colleges to raise awareness and motivate each other to abstain from tobacco products, Maharashtra Governor S C Jamir said on the occasion.




Dummy writers' scam: Little action taken
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Ahmedabad/Dummy-writers-scam-Little-action-taken-/articleshow/4239834.cms
8 Mar 2009, 0521 hrs IST, TNN
AHMEDABAD : The chairman of Gujarat Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board (GSHSEB) has written to the police commissioner of Ahmedabad to know how far investigation in the dummy writer scam has progressed and what action is being initiated. The letter was issued by the former chairman of the board, RK Pathak. On March 14 last year the scam was busted. But till date the police has not initiated any action. Police sources said: "There has been little progress as there was a delay in getting relevant documents from concerned schools and even the board." The reason for this letter can be found in a public interest litigation filed in Gujarat High Court. Soon, during the hearings, the board will have to tell the court what progress has been made. The PIL has been filed by Manish Doshi, a syndicate member of Gujarat University and Congress spokesperson. The cops have yet not tracked down those who played dummy writers to answer the questions on behalf of two students Komal Patel and Harsh Kotak. Kotak and Patel were penalised by the board. They were barred from appearing for exams for three years. But the board too has stopped right there. "No other official has been penalised for being involved in this dummy writer scam," said a source in the board. On the directives of the board only token punishment has been given to principals of schools like Sant Kabir and HB Kapadia school. "Their increments were stopped for one year. But, this is just an eyewash," said the source.




Protest against deceptions from Daughter-in-laws
http://supari.org/0803-protest/
By sunita ⋅ March 8, 2009 ⋅
On 8th March, Woman’s day is going to be celebrated all over the world. Seeking opportunity of this day, many Vandals (organizations) and Clubs have become very busy in felicitating women who have managed to carve out their own unique identity from adverse conditions that they were once in.
On other hand, Mothers and sisters from organization that calls itself “All India Forgotten woman and Brothers and Sisters Initiative” have taken a decision to organize a morcha (rally) at the offices of National Commission of Women (NCW) Offices in Delhi to highlight the plight of victims when one women in order to deceive another women misuses section 498 law.
On International Women’s day, Felicitations, Recognitions are Parities (Rewards) are given to women with noticeable achievements in industries, Academics, Journalism, Medicine and many other such fields.
The objective behind felicitating Achievements of these women where they’ve matched shoulders with shoulders with fellow men in Male Dominated Culture is to inspire and provide an example to other women.But it is being reported that inspire of recognition and felicitation in society and outside world, there are stories of torture and torment within the confines of their houses.
A Spokesperson Gokul from Protect Indian Family - Mumbai (PIF) has said that in most cases, police after filing a complaint u/s 498, harass many women of the house based on complaint of one without any prior investigation whatsoever.
Hence On International women’s day, the intent behind taking rally to the offices of National Commission of Women is to protest against women who misuse the laws, says Gokul. If requirement arises, organizing such a rally in Mumbai is also being planned, he said.
Translation of Protest in front of NCW- report in Saamana, Marathi




Women from all over country protest against ‘abused’ Sec 498 IPC
http://news.chennaivision.com/index.php/2009/03/women-from-all-over-country-protest-against-abused-sec-498-ipc/
By chennaivision at 9 March, 2009, 11:41 am
New Delhi, As women the world over rejoice over equality and freedom on International Women’s Day, more than a 100 women from all parts of the country today protested at the National Commission for Women (NCW) office against the grossly abused IPC Section 498A.
Seeking an ‘inclusive deterrent’ in the prevalent law (Protection of Women Againt Domestic Violence Act - 498AIPC), under which more than a lakh women in the last four years have been arrested, the protestors denounced NCW’s ‘inaction’ in getting the law either repealed or amended.
Pointing that Section 498A of the IPC had done more harm to women than protecting them and their rights, the protestors who were demonstrating under the banner of NGOs ‘All India Forgotten Women’ and ‘Mothers and Sisters Initiative’, said the NCW which claimed to take care of them was doing nothing to ’save them’ from the law which was actually harassing women.
”Last year alone 63,000 women were arrested under the law and in the last four years 1.23 lakh women have been arrested,” Dr Anupama Singh, president ‘Mothers and Sisters Initiative’ told UNI.
Questioning the veracity of the law which was outdated, Dr Singh asked whether penalising innocent women under false cases brought justice to genuinely abused women? ”Every year thousands of families are broken and thousands of children rendered fatherless. Does women empowerment mean destroying family harmony and creating a fatherless society?” ”We want that at least an amendment be introduced which could be a deterrent against filing false cases,” she said. ”This would act as a balance in the law, as even the Supreme Court has accepted that Sec 498A was grossly misused.” We also want that the CrPC Amendment Act, which has been passed by Parliament, be immediately notified so that it takes the shape of law, she said, adding that the government had failed to do so under pressure of protesting lawyers.
”The lawyers don’t want it as it would affect their finances because most of their income came from bails given to the accused.” Calling the amendment as ”excellent and visionary”, Dr Singh stressed that some vested interests and the lawyers lobby was preventing the amendment from becoming a law which would prove very beneficial to the poor class of the country.
”Its never that the rich suffer, its always the poor who are burdened after being arrested under superficial charges.” Women from Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Lucknow and Indore among other places participated in the protest demonstration.




Widows still live a pathetic life in society
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Varanasi/Widows-still-live-a-pathetic-life-in-society/articleshow/4239823.cms
8 Mar 2009, 0600 hrs IST, TNN
A study on the status of widows in Varanasi and Vrindavan was conducted by the Guild of Service with supported of the National Commission for Women (NCW) to get an insight into the social and cultural deprivation of the widows. According to the study, the widows of Varanasi had less access to the comfort of the rehabilitation home. The widows of Varanasi had fewer living options and consequently a large number were to be found begging. An integrated approach with both the state and civil society working in tandem can change the status of the widows. Adequate pension benefits, access to fair price shops, availability of banking benefits along with a more creative option to earn a living can make a visible difference to the status of the widows. On the other hand the state government's document on 'social security and welfare and nutrition' describes women as an independent target group that represent more than 47 per cent of the total population. According to the document, to improve the well being of women and children in the society, the government has made a significant shift in the approach for the empowerment. The programmes of the women welfare department include empowering strategies, employment and income generation, welfare and support services, awareness generation and gender sensitisation. According to the district probation officer AK Mishra, who looks after the women welfare department, the district has funds to provide 30,351 widows with a pension of Rs 300 each per month. This scheme is for widows between the age of 18-60. Those above 60 will then have to apply for old age pension from the social welfare department. A government old-age home exists in the Durgakund area and most of the inmates are widows. Government schemes and programmes for women welfare # Grant in aid to the women (whose husbands are not alive) # Grant for the daughter's marriage to women (whose husbands are not alive) # Award to the person who marries a helpless widow # Legal help to the women suffering from dowry # Financial help to women suffering from dowry menace National Policy for the empowerment of Women # The empowerment of women has been recognised as the Central issue in determining the status of women. The National Commission for Women was set up by an act of the Parliament in 1990 to safeguard the rights and legal entitlements of women. The 73rd and 74th amendments (1993) to the Constitution of India have provided for reservation of seats in the local bodies of Panchayats and municipalities for women. # India has also ratified various international conventions and human rights instruments, committed to secure equal rights of women. Key among them is the ratification of the Convention on Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) in 1993. Objectives of national policy The goal of this policy is to bring about advancement, development and empowerment of women. The objectives include (i) Creating an environment through positive economic and social policies for full development of women to enable them to realise their full potential (ii) Equal access to participation and decision-making of women in social, political and economic life of the nation (iii) Equal access to women to health care, quality education at all levels, career and vocational guidance, employment, equal remuneration, occupational health and safety, social security and public office (iv) Strengthening legal systems aimed at elimination of all forms of discrimination against women (v) Changing societal attitudes and community practices by active participation and involvement of both men and women (vi) Mainstreaming a gender perspective in the development process (vii) Elimination of discrimination and all forms of violence against women and the girl child Action Plans All central and state ministries will draw up time-bound action plans for translating the policy into a set of concrete actions. The plans will include: (i) Measurable goals to be achieved by 2010 (ii) Identification and commitment of resources (iii) Responsibilities for implementation of action points (iv) Structures and mechanisms to ensure efficient monitoring, review and gender impact assessment of action points and policies (v) Introduction of a gender perspective in the budgeting process Self-help groups Self-help groups (SHGs) of women have been recognised as an effective strategy for the empowerment of women in rural as well as urban areas, bringing women together from all spheres of life to fight for their rights or a cause. Since the overall empowerment of women is crucially dependent on economic empowerment, women through these SHGs work on a range of issues like health, nutrition, agriculture, forestry, besides income generation activities and seeking micro credit. Objectives of SHG # To sensitise women of target area for the need of SHG and its relevance in their empowerment process # To create group feeling among women # To enhance the confidence and capabilities of women # To develop collective decision making among women # To encourage habit of saving among women and facilitate the accumulation of their own capital resource base # To motivate women taking up social responsibilities particularly related to women development Women-related statistics in Varanasi district Women teachers in educational institutions Year Primary Upper PrimarySecondary CollegePG ITI 07-08 26911135615308565 06-072233963615304493 05-062348914602293544 (As per District Shankhyiki Patrika) Population of the district ================== Men1649.19 lakh Women1489.48 lakh Total3138.67 lakg (As per 2001 Census)




Motor accident tribunal: Battling overload
http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/motor-accident-tribunal-battling-overload/432585/
Express News Service
Posted: Mar 09, 2009 at 0145 hrs IST
New Delhi With the number of vehicles in the Capital on the upward curve, the Motor Accidents Claim Tribunal across the five district courts is constantly juggling pending cases and fresh claims. There are 13 MACTs in Delhi: three at Tis Hazari, two at Karkardooma, two at Dwarka, three at Rohini and three at Patiala House, presided over by judicial officers from the Delhi Higher Judicial Service.
* Till February 2009, 4,619 fatal accident cases were pending at these tribunals (from the previous years). In 2008-09, 1,955 new fatal accident cases were recorded. 2,004 cases of fatal injury are pending with the MACT at Patiala House courts alone. The Rohini Courts are next in line, battling 1,144 pending accident fatal cases.
* As far as minor injuries are concerned, a total of 9,573 cases are pending, with the highest — 3,838 cases— pending at Patiala House.
* Pending property damage cases have gone down from last year’s 202 cases to 126 cases.
* Miscellaneous pending cases stand at 291, down from 848 cases that were pending till last year. The massive disposal rate could indicate the success of the MACT Lok Adalat organised early this year that has disposed of most of the pending cases.
* Number of motor accident claims tribunals in Delhi— 13
* Number of judges in these tribunals — 13
* Number of cases disposed of by MACT judges last year — 7,219
— Courtesy the Delhi courts website




Bigger Bench to decode electricity tribunal powers
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/Economy/Policy/Bigger-Bench-to-decode-electricity-tribunal-powers/articleshow/4242748.cms
9 Mar 2009, 0106 hrs IST, Sanjay K Singh, ET Bureau
NEW DELHI: A constitution Bench of the Supreme Court will consider whether the Appellate Tribunal for Electricity has the jurisdiction to deal with the validity of regulations framed by the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission. A three-judge Bench headed by Justice. Arijit Pasayat referred the issue to a larger Bench of five judges or more. The Bench was hearing a case filed by power trading firm PTC India. The company had challenged a decision by the tribunal that it was not empowered to look into the validity of the regulations framed by the CERC. PTC had challenged CERC’s regulations that fixed trading margin in 2006. The tribunal had cited an earlier apex court judgement while expressing its inability to hear PTC’s plea against CERC. The apex court had earlier held in the West Bengal Electricity Regulatory Commission case that the tribunal, which is a creature of statute, cannot question the provisions under which it functions. “Considering the importance of the matter we feel it necessary to refer the matter to a larger Bench to consider whether the West Bengal Electricity case can have application to the cases coming under the 2003 Act (Electricity Act, 2003), where the parties go before the tribunal in terms of Section 121 of the 2003 Act.” PTC had said that the order of the apex court in the West Bengal Electricity Regulatory Commission case pertained to the Electricity Regulatory Commission Act, 1998. However, the issue of power trading margin falls under the Act of 2003. There was a conceptual difference between the provisions contained in the Acts of 1998 and 2003, PTC had said. It said that Section 121 of 2003 Act gives ample powers to the tribunal to deal with the matter.







Post-Godhra riots: Court grants remand of accused in Gulbarg massacre case
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Ahmedabad/Post-Godhra-riots-Court-grants-remand-of-accused-in-Gulbarg-massacre-case/articleshow/4242416.cms
9 Mar 2009, 0406 hrs IST, TNN
Ahmedabad: Special Investigating Team (SIT), appointed by the Supreme Court to investigate incidents of rioting of 2002, arrested an accused in Gulbarg massacre, Dinesh Sharma. Till date more than 70 persons have been arrested for communal violence in Meghaninagar, where 39 persons had been killed and many went missing. Sharma, 32, was indicted for rape and murder on the basis of victims' statements recorded by SIT members. "Sharma has been arrested after seven years of the incident that took place on February 28, 2002. His name did not figure in the police complaint filed after the massacre," said SIT sources. "Sharma's brother, Girish, is also wanted in the case. He is, however, still at large. Sharma, a resident of Patel ni Chali in Chamanpura, was produced before the court on Sunday. The court granted a remand to SIT, till March 13," said police officials.




Bribery case: Cop in police custody till Feb 9
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Pune/Bribery-case-Cop-in-police-custody-till-Feb-9-/articleshow/4242088.cms
9 Mar 2009, 0304 hrs IST, TNN
PUNE: Inspector Sanjay Pawar of the Haveli police, arrested for allegedly taking a Rs 2.5 lakh bribe from a builder, was on Friday remanded to police custody till February 9. Special judge P R Bora also remanded Pawar's purported accomplice Irshad Shaikh Musa (36) of Shukruwar Peth to police custody till Saturday. The duo were arrested by the state Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB), Pune, for purportedly taking the bribe from builder Ravindra Barate of Mukundnagar at Centurion Motors' office on the Kondhwa-Bibvewadi road on Thursday night. In a statement issued on Friday, the ACB said Pawar allegedly demanded Rs 10 lakh from Barate on February 19 to register a case against some people for forging the documents pertaining to four acres of land in Dhayari. After negotiations, Pawar reduced the amount to Rs 8 lakh. He allegedly took Rs 5 lakh from Barate and asked him to hand over the balance Rs 3 lakh later. Pawar frequently called up Barate to demand the remaining sum. Barate filed a complaint against him with the ACB, which registered a complaint under the Prevention of Corruption Act. The ACB thrice laid a trap to nab Pawar accepting the bribe red-handed, but failed each time due to various reasons. Pawar later sent Musa to collect the balance at Centurion Motors' office, where he was nabbed by the ACB. On Friday, demanding that the suspects be remanded to police custody, additional public prosecutor Vijay Hole told the court that Pawar's custodial interrogation was required to recover the Rs 5 lakh. Hole pointed out that the ACB suspects that Musa might have accepted bribes at Pawar's behest earlier as well. Hole stated that the agency also suspects the involvement of others in the case and sought time to conduct detailed investigations. He argued that the ACB had earlier recommended departmental action against Pawar after receiving complaints of corruption against him. Opposing the prosecution's plea, defence lawyer Pratap Pardeshi said his clients were falsely implicated in the case. Pardeshi further said that Pawar had issued a notice under section 149 of the Code of Criminal Procedure to Barate to take preventive action against him last year. He then asked that his clients be remanded to magisterial custody. However, the judge upheld the prosecution's plea and sent Pawar to four days' and Musa to a day's police custody.




Lawyer writes to ECI against Mehra's new charge
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Chandigarh/Lawyer-writes-to-ECI-against-Mehras-new-charge/articleshow/4242612.cms
9 Mar 2009, 0325 hrs IST, Deepak Yadav, TNN
CHANDIGARH: A city-based senior lawyer has moved a representation to the Election Commission of India on the issue of posting UT advisor Pardip Mehra as chief electoral officer (CEO) of Chandigarh. Saying that he is least concerned with the controversy surrounding the corridors of bureaucracy here, the lawyer maintained that as a responsible citizen of the country, he only seek to draw ECI’s attention towards the fact that Mehra is a resident of the city and his selection as the CEO is against ECI norms. ‘’Besides this, Mehra is the top official of the city, which is equal to the status of chief secretary of state,’’ he maintains. 75-year-old lawyer Santosh Kumar Aggarwal, who is a resident of the city forlast fifty years and practiced with the Punjab and Haryana High Court, said in his representation that he is not so much concerned with the merits and demerits of Mehra. ‘’He may possess an undoubtedly impeccable reputation, but it is a matter of principle and precedent,’’ he states. ‘’Generally, only those belonging to outside the home state are posted as CEOs. In the present case, Mehra is admittedly enlisted as a voter in Chandigarh and enjoying a third term, while his parents are also staying in the city.’’ In a letter, which was sent to the ECI a week ago, Aggarwal stated that among all institutions in the country, it has been the sole tradition of the ECI to choose CEOs of different places. He further says that besides that Mehra has been conferred powers of revisional authority to entertain petitions as a final authority while exercising quasi-judicial powers. ‘’Due to the ongoing tussle, he has not been holding office for last so many weeks. Thus, the additional duties of CEO would further burden him,’’ Aggarwal states.





Public prosecutor hand-in-glove with accused: Complainant
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Chandigarh/Public-prosecutor-hand-in-glove-with-accused-Complainant/articleshow/4242614.cms
9 Mar 2009, 0320 hrs IST, TNN
PANCHKULA: Complainant in the Panchkula police torture case has levelled serious allegations against public prosecutor Gurpal Singh for being hand-in-glove with an accused police personnel. Acting upon the same, district and session judge has transferred the case from the public prosecutor and handed it over to another lawyer. Meanwhile, the complainant and victim have also decided to move a complainant against the PP before director of prosecution department, Haryana. The entire drama played out on Friday when complainant Utsav Bains refused to record his statement before the magistrate. Complainant ‘alleged’ that while he was giving his testimony before the court, public prosecutor Gurpal Singh disrupted the proceedings by taking away the testimony papers and started dictating him to give a specific statement. Reacting on turn of events, the judge referred matter to sessions judge, who changed the public prosecutor in the case. The matter will come up for hearing on March 28. In his testimony, the complainant revealed how the child was tortured, abused and sodomized by policemen in the CIA staff police station. The complainant also gave account of the subsequent events, which had unfolded in past four years after registration of an FIR on October 9, 2005. The complainant said the accused cops tortured the child on 20 occasions. He alleged that the cops had even registered false criminal cases against the kid in order to pressurize his parents to take the case back.




Lawyers need to rediscover the nobility in their profession
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/Lawyers-need-to-rediscover-the-nobility-in-their-profession/articleshow/4241970.cms
9 Mar 2009, 0305 hrs IST, Dhananjay Mahapatra, TNN
An old Danish proverb -- "Virtue is in the middle", said the devil and sat between two lawyers -- appears to be an exaggerated generalisation of then prevailing public perception. We in India though believe `law is a noble profession'. We will believe it to be so for the unparalleled contribution of lawyers -- Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Vallabhbhai Patel, C Rajagopalachary, Rajendra Prasad, B R Ambedkar... They were instrumental not only in earning India freedom but also contributed immensely towards development of the ethos and ethics of the profession and society. If law is indeed a noble profession and we have such inspiring examples, then why did Madras High Court lawyers behave like "hooligans and miscreants" to exercise their right to freedom of speech and expression, as Justice B N Srikrishna's probe report told us recently. Justice Srikrishna, applauded for his fearlessly impartial probe into the Mumbai riots, must have found it tough to inquire into the February 19 violence in Madras HC involving lawyers and police. But the courageous retired judge did not mince words in calling a spade a spade. Apart from laying the blame at the doors of the lawyers and castigating the police for showing its brutal face, Justice Srikrishna made a very relevant point against the highly politicised yet inefficient Bar Councils which have failed to discharge their task in regulating the legal profession and the professional conduct of the lawyers. Misconduct by a single lawyer affects a few persons. But when they act as a mob, it virtually destroys the sanctity of the temples of justice, as courts are reverently referred to, and violently shake the confidence of poor litigants who mercifully still have faith in it. No one can predict how long the temples of justice will stand to such naked assaults, like the one continuing in Tamil Nadu depriving litigants the fruits of justice. Justice Srikrishna's 22-page caustic report will not provide any comfort to those concerned about the symptoms of a deadly flu in the legal profession. The former judge castigated the Madras HC judges, its acting Chief Justice and lawyers for bringing disrepute to the name of the institution. He framed sentences in the report with brutal honesty when he talked about the general attitude of lawyers of the day. "The incidents that transpired over a last month or so make it clear that the lawyers seemed to be under the impression that, because they are officers of the court, they are immune from the process of law and that they could get away with any unlawful act without being answerable to the law enforcing agency," the report said. The task, howsoever bitter it my be, is to bring to book the "hooligans" among lawyers and the policemen who used excessive force. This is about time the Madras HC and the Tamil Nadu government mustered courage to accomplish this unenviable task and tell the rest of the country that we believe in the dictum -- "Be you ever so high, the law is above you". Nay sayers to this must apprise themselves of the Supreme Court's famous verdict in the case P N Duda vs P Shiv Shankar [1988 SCC (1) 728] where it eloquently talked about the importance of public accountability, which alone sustains common man's faith in an institution, profession or a leader. Lawyers, like judges, are intrinsic to administration of justice. The legal community -- lawyers and judges -- are open to public criticism and public scrutiny. If the legal community fails in public scrutiny, then it could have cataclysmic effect on the enforcement of rule of law. In the Shiv Shankar case, the SC had said, "Faith in the administration of justice is one of the pillars through which democratic institution functions and sustains." Apart from fixing accountability in the lawyer-police clash in Madras HC, an equally important task at hand is to revitalise the core ingredient -- nobility in the profession. Only this will strengthen public faith in the legal community, for they are the priests in the temples of justice. dhananjay.mahapatra@timesgroup.com




Two-year-old accused of arson
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/Two-year-old-accused-of-arson/articleshow/4242072.cms
9 Mar 2009, 0212 hrs IST, TNN
SAMSTIPUR: The chief judicial magistrate in Bihar's Samastipur district heard an unusual plea this weekend when a mother wanted her two-year-old to be exonerated from charges of arson and looting. Ravi Shankar Sinha, the magistrate, was surprised to see the child, Sahil, in his mother's lap on Saturday. The case was lodged with Pusa police station in November last year. The child is an accused under various sections of IPC for "torching a house, attacking several people with an iron rod and looting the money'' of Mohammed Naushad of Devpar village. The local police investigated the case and approached the court for a warrant of arrest against the boy. The magistrate asked the Pusa SHO to submit a petition seeking the release of Sahil from the case.




Kasab likely to attend court proceedings through video conferencing today
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/Kasab-likely-to-attend-court-proceedings-through-video-conferencing-today/articleshow/4244763.cms
9 Mar 2009, 1350 hrs IST, PTI
MUMBAI: Mohammed Ajmal Amir Kasab, the lone terrorist arrested in the Mumbai terror strikes case, is likely to participate in court proceedings on Monday through video conferencing following a heightened threat perception about his security. Kasab, arrested on November 26, has never been produced in open court due to security concerns. He is presently lodged in a high security barrack of the Arthur Road jail in central Mumbai. As Kasab is required to be present for court proceedings, but could not be brought to the court house in south Mumbai due to security concerns, video conferencing will be arranged, sources said. The Mumbai police have filed its chargesheet against Kasab and two others, Faheem Ansari and Sabauddin Ahmed, for their alleged involvement in the terror strikes. The prosecution on Monday will be seeking the case to be committed from the magistrate's court to the special court which has been created to conduct the trial. The magistrate will also pass orders on a plea by Ansari and Ahmed, alleged Lashkar-e-Taiba operatives, to receive copies of the 11,000 page chargesheet in Urdu. The original copies are in English and Marathi.




Trial in 26/11 case to start on March 23
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/Trial-in-2611-case-to-start-on-March-23/articleshow/4245745.cms
9 Mar 2009, 1650 hrs IST, PTI
MUMBAI: The trial in the Mumbai terror attacks case will begin on March 23 with a metropolitan magistrate committing the proceedings to the special session court set up inside the high-security Arthur Road prison here. Mohammed Ajmal Amir Kasab, the lone terrorist caught in connection with the terror strikes, for the first time today interacted through video conferencing with magistrate N N Shrimangale from the jail premises. "I am committing the case to sessions for trial," the magistrate said. During the video conferencing , Kasab told the magistrate that he did not understand the chargesheet filed in English and Marathi. The magistrate told the accused that he could make his plea before the special court.