LEGAL NEWS 22-23.05.2009

HC go-ahead to PWC for entrance test
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Cities/HC-go-ahead-to-PWC-for-entrance-test/articleshow/4557536.cms
21 May 2009, 0354 hrs IST, TNN
PATNA: The Patna High Court on Wednesday allowed the plea of Patna Women's College (PWC) to conduct the entrance test on May 21, 22 and 23 for admission to different self-financing vocational courses run by the college.

A single bench presided over by Justice Mihir Kumar Jha disposed of the writ petition of PWC and passed an order to this effect. PWC had challenged an advertisement issued by Patna University that all entrance tests for admission to different courses in the university and its colleges would be held in the month of June.

In its writ petition PWC submitted that it had issued an advertisement on April 11, 2009, for conducting the entrance test from May 21 to 23 for the self-financing vocational courses for the academic year 2009-10. But Patna University issued an advertisement on May 6 announcing that all entrance tests for admission to different courses in the university would be held in the month of June.

The plea of PWC was that after the entrance test it takes one month time to take admission and start classes, and if the entrance test is conducted in June then there would be one-month delay in starting the classes.




HC against cutting trees in Lalbagh area
http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/hc-against-cutting-trees-in-lalbagh-area/358822/
Press Trust Of India / Chennai/ Bangalore May 22, 2009, 0:22 IST
The Karnataka High Court today directed Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation not to cut any trees in Lalbagh area without permission of the Tree Authority, in connection with a PIL seeking directions to change the alignment of Metro Rail, as it would pass through Lal Bagh.
Advocate general Uday Holla who appeared on behalf of the state government and BMRCL submitted that they had sought the permission of the Tree Authority to cut the trees and would continue the project after permission was given.
The petitioners, an environment support group Hasiru Usiru and others contended the ordinance promulgated by the governor on November 22, 2008 to earmark a portion of Lalbagh for metro and Indira Gandhi Musical Fountain Park, in Cubbon Park limits to widen the road had lapsed as the government failed to get assent to a bill to replace the ordinance.
Even as the ordinance lapsed, the government issued an order to Horticulture department to earmark 1135 square metres of Lalbagh area for the Metro rail project, they contended.
The bench, after hearing both parties, adjourned further hearing to next week.




BJP's Kheda candidate moves HC, demands re-counting
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/BJPs-Kheda-candidate-moves-HC-demands-re-counting-/articleshow/4560175.cms
21 May 2009, 1524 hrs IST, PTI
AHMEDABAD: BJP candidate Devusinh Chauhan, who lost the Kheda constituency in the just-concluded Lok Sabha elections by a narrow margin, has moved the Gujarat High Court demanding recounting for the seat.

Chauhan has made the Election Commission of India (ECI), Chief Election officer, returning officers of Gujarat and Kheda as respondents in the case.

The BJP candidate had lost by 846 votes to Congress' Dinsha Patel in a close contest between the two candidates.

When the counting began on May 16, Chauhan was leading against Patel. But towards the end, tables turned and Patel was up by a couple of hundred votes.

Due to a technical snag in an EVM of booth number 76 of Dholka Assembly segment, the declaration of results was stalled till late night, where Patel won by 846 votes.

Chauhan's request for recounting was denied by the returning officer following which he filed a writ petition in the Court.

The matter came up for hearing yesterday in the court of Justice Z K Sayyed who posted it for further hearing on June 8.





HC refuses interim stay on plastic bag ban
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/HC-refuses-interim-stay-on-plastic-bag-ban/463179/
Express News Service Posted: Thursday , May 21, 2009 at 0202 hrs IST
New Delhi:
The Delhi High Court on Wednesday refused to grant an interim stay on the January 7 notification, banning plastic bags from public places in the Capital.
A Division Bench of Justices Madan B Lokur and A K Pathak, however, asked the Delhi government to consider the objections raised by plastic manufacturers. The Bench had earlier sought a response from the government on a petition filed by plastic bag manufacturers against the “blanket ban”.
The All-India Plastic Industries Association criticised the January 7 notification this year issued by the Department of Environment and Forests and Wildlife under the Delhi Degradable Plastic Bag Act, 2008, as “arbitrary”. The Association had argued that the present notification is contrary to earlier ones on June 2005 and May 2006, which allowed the use of degradable plastic bags in “certain places”.
HC seeks UGC response
The Delhi High Court on Wednesday sought response from the University Grants Commission (UGC) on a public interest litigation against a notification allegedly granting “university” status to institutions classified as “deemed to be”. A Division Bench led by Chief Justice A P Shah ordered the UGC and the Centre to file their responses by July 29, the next date of hearing.




In HC: NHRC agrees to probe Batla encounter
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/in-hc-nhrc-agrees-to-probe-batla-encounter/463148/
Express News Service Posted: Thursday , May 21, 2009 at 0136 hrs IST
New Delhi:
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on Wednesday agreed to go ahead with an independent inquiry into the September 19 police encounter at Batla House that left two alleged militants and Inspector Mohan Chand Sharma dead.
The nation’s top human rights panel told a High Court Division Bench led by Chief Justice A P Shah to open the probe into the police action regardless of objections raised by the government to a magisterial inquiry. The Bench recorded the submission from NHRC and observed that it would pass formal orders on May 21.
The court was hearing a PIL filed by an NGO — Act Now For Harmony and Democracy — that raised doubts over police’s version of the encounter and sought a judicial inquiry.
Two alleged members of the Indian Mujahideen — Atif Amin and Mohammed Sajid — and Special Cell’s Inspector Sharma were killed in the encounter, which took place days after the September 13 serial blasts in the Capital.
“Time is passing — You (NHRC) have every right to do it. I don’t see any obstacle in it,” the court had earlier told the human rights commission.




Kalyan gets breather from HC
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/kalyan-gets-breather-from-hc/463302/
Posted: Thursday , May 21, 2009 at 0435 hrs IST
The Calcutta High Court on Wednesday stayed the legal proceedings against Kalyan Banerjee, an adovcate and Trinamool MP from Serampore, in a defamation suit pending against him in the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate’s Court for his alleged derogatory remarks against CM Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee.
Justice Asim Roy directed that the proceedings be stayed in the defamation suit that had been filed against the Trinamool MP on May 4 by Mridul De, a CPM state committee member, who alleged that Banerjee had made derogatory remarks against Bhattacharjee in an interview to a private TV channel. After a hearing, S S Anand, the chief metropolitan magistrate, issued summons against Banerjee and the TV channel for appearance in the next hearing fixed on August 12, 2009.





Iranian moves HC against deportation
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Pune/Iranian-moves-HC-against-deportation/articleshow/4557547.cms
21 May 2009, 0246 hrs IST, Asseem Shaikh, TNN
PUNE: An Iranian national Mohammed Hadi Wayez Jahed Asadi, who is facing deportation for allegedly violating the visa rules and regulations, has moved the Bombay High Court in April end for stalling his deportation.

Asadi was running a hotel in partnership, which was in violation of the visa rules and regulations.

Asadi and his girl friend Nazeri Rodsari Shayad went missing from the city on April 7 after the foreigners registration office (FRO) had issued deportation notices to them.

Asadi was staying in Wadgaon Sheri and Shayad in Kalyaninagar. Both the foreigners, whose passports have been impounded, instead of complying with the notices, have managed to disappear.

The police had launched a massive hunt to trace them. Later, acting on a tip off, a police team traced the duo in Mundhwa and took them into custody on May 7 for completing the deportation process.

The Iranians were served with the restriction order under the Foreigners Act after they were nabbed in Mundhwa.

Shayad, who had taken admission to a city college on the basis of a forged bona fide certificate, was recently deported to Iran. However, Asadi moved the high court for extending his stay in Pune.

Speaking to TOI on Wednesday, senior police inspector Bhanupratap of the FRO said, "Asadi has filed a petition for seeking benefit of the Indian Constitution for extending his stay in Pune".

According to Barge, "Asadi's petition states that he wants to stay here till August end for completing education. Asadi has assured the court that he will go back to Iran on his own. Asadi has pleaded that he had become a partner in a hotel as he was not aware of the India law".

After receiving the notice from the petitioner, "The FRO has filed a written statement in the high court for opposing the petition on the grounds that a foreigner cannot claim benefit of the Indian Constitution," Barge said.

The petition will come up for admission before the high court on June 10.

The FRO had found several students overstaying in the city. Deputy commissioner of police (special branch) Ravindra Sengaonkar had launched a drive against people staying illegally in the city. The FRO has recently deported 200 such foreign students.




HC dismisses eatery's plea against demolition
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Mumbai/HC-dismisses-eaterys-plea-against-demolition/articleshow/4557632.cms
21 May 2009, 0221 hrs IST, TNN
MUMBAI: In a setback for the popular McDonald's restaurant opposite CST station, the Bombay high court on Wednesday dismissed its application challenging a BMC order to demolish the kiosk and shelters it had put up in the compound.

A vacation bench of Justice A V Nirgude and Justice R G Ketkar, however, stayed its order for four weeks to allow Hard Castle Restaurant Private Ltd, the company running the McDonald's chain in the city, time to file an appeal in Supreme Court.

McDonald's is housed on the ground floor of Mahendra Chambers, a Grade II-A heritage structure. The restaurant had received a no-objection certificate from the corporation in 2005 to put up temporary shelters and a kiosk in the open space. Two years later, the BMC cancelled the NOC and ordered the restaurant to clear the area. On May 5, 2009, the assistant municipal commissioner gave the restaurant two weeks to remove the structures (PVC shelters and a kiosk).

"Under the guise of a temporary structure, the restaurant constructed permanent structures in violation of rules,'' said advocate Janhvi Durve, counsel for Mahendra Builders (landlord of the property). The company on its part insisted that it had complied with all the rules.





HC for maintenance of decorum on court premises
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Allahabad/HC-for-maintenance-of-decorum-on-court-premises/articleshow/4557061.cms
20 May 2009, 2224 hrs IST, TNN
ALLAHABAD: The Allahabad High Court has stated that under no circumstances should the decorum be overlooked in the court. This remark was made by a division bench of the Allahabad High Court comprising Justices Amitava Lala and D K Arora when some office-bearers of the High Court Bar Association (HCBA) requested the courts to retire to their chambers as the bar had decided to abstain from judicial work and hence had not put on proper uniform.

The lawyers of the high court abstained from judicial work on Wednesday in support of the call given by the UP Bar Council to all the bar associations of the state to observe protest day against police inaction in a lawyer's death case.

The lawyers of the court under the leadership of the president of the bar VC Misra assembled on the court premises and thereafter went into the court rooms and requested the judges to retire to their chambers. The courts, accepting the request of the members of the bar, retired to their chambers.

Thereafter, HCBA held a meeting and passed a resolution stating that the protests would continue against a Supreme Court judge till he withdraws his remarks made against the lawyers. HCBA also passed a resolution that the bar would make application for intervention in all the cases filed by Dr A K Bansal either in the high court or in the apex court.





Reinstate policemen or face contempt charges: HC tells UP Govt.
http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/002200905202005.htm
Allahabad (PTI): The Allahabad High Court on Wednesday warned Uttar Pradesh government that it will face contempt proceedings if it did not reinstate by May 27 nearly 18,000 police personnel sacked by the Mayawati regime for alleged irregularities in recruitment.
Holding that non-compliance with the order was prima facie tantamount to contempt of court, Justice Vikram Nath directed the Principal Secretary (Home), the Director General of Police and other top officials to appear before the court on May 27.
The order was passed on a petition filed by Pawan Kumar Singh and others who claimed that the state government was neither allowing them to resume duty nor has it taken any step for the screening of the dismissed police personnel despite the High Court ruling in this regard.




Jaypee Hotels gets HC nod of merger
http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/blnus/02201908.htm
MUMBAI: Jaypee Hotels on Wednesday said it has received the approval from Allahabad High Court for the merger of the company along with some of its group firms with Jaiprakash Associates.
The Allahabad High Court has sanctioned the scheme of amalgamation of Jaypee Hotels, Jaypee Cement, Jaiprakash Associates and Gujarat Anjan Cement with Jaiprakash Associates, the company said in a filing to the BSE. - PTI




Catching them drunk: new HC mandate for pubs finds few takers
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/catching-them-drunk-new-hc-mandate-for-pubs-finds-few-takers/462709/0
Zahid Rafiq Posted: Wednesday, May 20, 2009 at 0142 hrs IST
New Delhi: The High Court’s proposal — to deploy mobile police teams at exit points of bars to check drunken driving— can hardly be washed down with drinks by customers in the city’s bars and pubs. For the owners, too, the news means a clear loss of business. While the police teams are yet to be posted, faces inside the bars have already drooped.
“We have already lost 30 per cent of our customers after the ban on smoking; now there will be more losses,” says Ajay Kaushal, manager of Qash Qai, a year-old bar at Connaught Place.
Reclining on a plush sofa, Amit Arya, employed with a multi-national company, says: “Why don’t they just as well say that only those with chauffeurs are permitted to drink? This will give the police more excuses to harass common people like us.”
While a recent Delhi Traffic police survey reveals that 80 per cent customers at high-end bars in the city drive back on their own, challans for drunken driving in 2008 show a 90 per cent increase over the figures of 2007.
At the posh Q’BA bar in Connaught Place in Central Delhi, Rajiv Sinha, a customer says, “This means I will have to pay a policeman Rs 100 or 200 to let me go. It all ends at corruption.”
Bar owners in Delhi say they usually have no means to stop people from getting drunk. “On several occasions I have asked customers that they have had enough to drink, but they usually reply that it is none of my business. This is my bread and butter and I do not want to incur losses in my business. It is the customers’ problem and they should be careful,” says Firoz Ali, manager of Q’BA.
There are others who are happy with the idea of policemen outside bars and pubs. Haresh Bhatta, manager with a multinational company, thinks this is the best way to prevent deaths due to drunken driving. “If you have to drive, do not drink. If you cannot follow that rule, someone else has to make you do it,” says Bhatta.
Gurgaon bars ‘not under Delhi HC jurisdiction’
Bar owners in Gurgaon say the proposal to have cops stationed outside bars will not affect them as Gurgaon does not fall under the Delhi High Court’s jurisdiction. “We do not fall under the jurisdiction of the Delhi HC,” S K Tyagi, manager at 32 Milestone on NH-8, said. Assistant manager of The Odyssey on MG Road Vineet Grover added: “We do not have any policemen bothering our clients.” DCP (traffic) Satbir Singh was of the same view: “A Delhi High Court order is not binding on us. However, we conduct regular checks on drunken drivers.” —ENS




Most junior lawyers in HC unhappy over working conditions
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/most-junior-lawyers-in-hc-unhappy-over-working-conditions/462800/0
Adam Halliday Posted: Wednesday, May 20, 2009 at 0336 hrs IST
Ahmedabad: A recent survey on the working conditions of junior lawyers in the Gujarat High Court has once again highlighted the pathetic state of affairs they have to put up with. Most apprentice lawyers surveyed by the Ahmedabad-based NGO, Research Foundation for Governance in India (RFGI) admitted that they were paid little, if at all.
The findings further reveal that nine of the 10 junior lawyers are of the opinion that family connections in the legal fraternity matter much in terms of developing a career.
The study, using feedback from junior lawyers, their seniors and also judges, was specifically meant to assess the working conditions of junior lawyers.
Apparently, half of the junior lawyers are dissatisfied with their working conditions.
An instance is of one of the respondents, Sunil Kotia, a young lawyer at the High Court. A gold medallist at Bhavnagar University’s Law Department three years ago, he lived on the Rs 3,000 per month that he received as stipend in Ahmedabad. But with his family in Bhavnagar, he struggled to manage his food, lodging, transportation and other needs.
Kanan Dhru of RFGI said that the meagre stipends litigation lawyers receive during their apprenticeship, coupled with the absence of a legislation concerning this, is one of the reasons why many graduates from the country’s best colleges join corporate firms or work abroad.
The Advocate Act, 1961, the main legislation concerning advocates in the country, makes no mention of apprenticeship.
Several junior lawyers acknowledged that corporate groups pay much more. Pratik Thakar, who studied at ILS Law College, Pune receives a monthly stipend of Rs 5,500 from the litigation firm he currently apprentices under, while his former classmate earns Rs 1.3 lakh per month in a corporate law firm in Mumbai.
But many senior lawyers believe the initial low pay is part of the profession. They also believe that law colleges should restructure their curriculum to accommodate more time for internships and hands-on experience. They say most law schools structure their internships to coincide with their seasonal vacations.
Dharmistha Raval, an advocate and sister of late Kirit Raval, founder of the Gujarat National Law University, said: “It’s like learning how to drive. If you come for a week, take a month off and come back for a week again, you won’t learn anything.”
Raval believes that slowly working one’s way up is the norm for any profession, including law.
“You have to remain in the queue for a few years,” she said.
But not everyone share the same sentiment. Johnsey Macwan, who graduated from Gujarat Law Society, Ahmedabad, in 2006, said he is already thinking of leaving the profession. “I’m not satisfied with the pay,” he said, though he has no idea what other profession he should take up.




For reporters, HC puts bench in parking lot
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/for-reporters-hc-puts-bench-in-parking-lot/462720/
Express News Service Posted: Wednesday, May 20, 2009 at 0149 hrs IST
New Delhi:
Four concrete benches on a dusty footpath in the parking lot outside the rear gate of Delhi High Court do not deserve a second glance. But a cheeky signboard recently put on to the high iron grills — declaring this to be space “for accredited journalists only” — has raised some eyebrows.
After “much consideration, a three-member judicial panel has reportedly decided to allot a temporary lounge for journalists in this parking lot.
“There is an acute shortage of space inside the High Court and we are finding it difficult to provide space even for court staff,” an HC official told the media on Tuesday. “That is why we had to put four seats outside — this is only a temporary arrangement.”
In contrast, the Supreme Court has a separate lounge for both accredited and non-accredited journalists, complete with telephone facilities.





ED seeks HC nod to quiz Rajus
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Hyderabad/ED-seeks-HC-nod-to-quiz-Rajus/articleshow/4553501.cms
20 May 2009, 0431 hrs IST, TNN
HYDERABAD: Aggrieved by the delay in granting permission for recording the statements of the accused in the Satyam scam, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has filed a petition in the A P High Court seeking its intervention in the matter.

"The lower court is delaying its permission and hampering our investigation which is at a crucial stage now," the ED's assistant director L V Rao said in the petition filed on Monday. The investigation is under progress in accordance with the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002, he said. Several properties worth hundreds of crores of rupees are liable to be confiscated from the possession of the accused as they were bought with scam money and this cannot be done without interrogating the accused and recording their statements, he said.

"We filed a petition in the fourteenth additional chief metropolitan magistrate court on April 2 this year and though some of the accused have no objection, the court below has been delaying the matter just because some of the accused are raising needless objections. In fact, the consent of the accused is not necessary here and in matters such as these, the court can straight away accord us permission because we only record the statements of the accused in jail," the petition said.

According to the petition, section 50 of the Money Laundering act empowers court to grant permission even without seeking any objections from the accused. The petitioner found fault with the lower court which has posted the matter to June 1 for further hearing just because some of the accused have raised objections.

Taking advantage of this delay, the accused can direct their men to change the ownership of the properties, which could result in more third party tussles, the ED's assistant director contended and urged the HC to accord it the permission to question the Raju brothers, former Satyam CFO Vadlamani Srinivas and the two PwC auditors. The matter is likely to come up before a vacation bench of the high court on Wednesday.

In fact, the CBI's petition seeking the lower court's nod for conducting polygraph tests on the accused is also getting delayed due to various reasons. One reason could be the the transfer of the magistrate concerned and the resultant administrative delay in paving the way for the new magistrate to take over etc, a legal source said.

Meanwhile, the bail petitions of the auditors will come up for hearing on Wednesday in the lower court.





HC to set up museum in its golden jubilee year
http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/hc-to-set-up-museum-in-its-golden-jubilee-year/462801/
Syed Khalique Ahmed
Posted: May 20, 2009 at 0339 hrs IST
Ahmedabad During its golden jubilee year that began on May 1, the Gujarat high court has planned to set up a full-fledged museum depicting judicial history of the state and aims to make at least one village in the state litigation free.
One of the most significant contributions of the Gujarat high court in its 50 years of existence has been introduction of judicial ombudsman concept in the country by the then high court chief justice D M Dharmadhikari which resulted into solving of 48,000 cases of earthquake in 2001.
Among various things planned to be preserved in the museum is the original copy of the first vakalatnama of the first case filed in the high court on May 1, 1960, when it became functional after its separation from the Bombay High court. The history of the Saurashtra high court before the region was merged with Gujarat would also be exhibited in the museum.
The museum will also have historical documents, old furniture and artefacts relating to judiciary. The high court authorities have set up different committees for the purpose, with senior most advocate K G Vakharia having been given the responsibility to provide historical background of the Gujarat high court and development of judiciary in the state since its inception.
Intending to conserve every minute detail of judicial progress in the state and maintain a record for the posterity, the high court authorities have planned a year-long programme including holding of seminars, symposia, workshops, lectures and felicitation of former judges and senior legal luminaries.
Chief Justice K S Radhakrishnan said he intended to make at least one village litigation free during the Golden Jubilee year of the high court.
Stating that the number of litigations indicated the degree of comparative peace so vital for the growth of any society, he said he did not want to stop at making only one village litigation free but take the task further and make at least a cluster of villages or a whole taluka litigation free.
In fact, he has already initiated a novel project of classifying cases for quick judicial delivery and bringing down the pending number of cases after he took over in September 2008. He said his aim was to reduce the pendency of the cases to the minimum in the state’s courts and bring it to a level where a case was disposed of within a year of filing it.
The growth
The Gujarat high court which went operational in its old building in Navrangpura on May 1, 1960, with mere four permanent judges and one additional judge has now a total sanctioned and working strength of 42 judges – 28 permanent and 14 additional judges.
The number of judicial districts, which was 15 in 1960, has now increased to 26.
The high court shifted to its new building spread over 34 acres in Sola village on Sarkhej-Gandhinagar highway in 1998. Chief Justice of India K G Balakrishnan also served as a judge in the Gujarat high court in 1997 before he was appointed as its chief justice in July 1998.




Mumbai SEZ moves HC over Raigad land buy
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/Economy/Infrastructure/Mumbai-SEZ-moves-HC-over-Raigad-land-buy/articleshow/4554033.cms
20 May 2009, 0514 hrs IST, ET Bureau
MUMBAI: Mumbai SEZ, promoted by RIL chairman Mukesh Ambani and his associate Anand Jain, on Tuesday moved the vacation bench of the Bombay High Court seeking a direction to the state government to quickly complete the process of land acquisition in Raigad district. The court, in turn, has called for a reply from the district collector’s office by May 22.

Janak Dwarkadas, the lawyer for the SEZ argued that two years after the state issued a declaration of “intention to acquire the land” for the company, the collector has not issued a final award.

The company intending to set up the SEZ, had already paid Rs 600 crore, apart from signing agreements with the land owners. “If the final consent award is not made before June 6, the whole process would lapse in line with the Land Acquisition Act,” he contended.

The government’s lawyer maintained that before the award is made, the persons “interested in the land” — this refers to the original land owners — must appear before the collector. This is to enable the administration to verify whether the land acquisition has been carried out properly. This logic was countered by Mr Dwarkadas who said Mumbai SEZ had, in place registered agreements for the sale of the land which, therefore, made any further verification unnecessary.




GU tribunal revokes transfer, suspension of clerk
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Ahmedabad/GU-tribunal-revokes-transfer-suspension-of-clerk/articleshow/4562201.cms
22 May 2009, 0500 hrs IST, TNN
AHMEDABAD: Gujarat University Service Tribunal has pulled up university authorities for transferring a clerk to another department following his union activities. The tribunal has also quashed university's decision to transfer and suspend the employee.

As per case details, a senior clerk with the Physical Education Department at GU-Bhavin Dave was transferred to Saraspur Reading Centre last year by an official order. However, the director of the department didn't relieve him claiming that he was not taken into confidence by the authorities before transferring Dave along with 10 other employees.

Since Dave was not relieved by the department, he could not resume service at the reading centre. The university in September last year suspended him for not following the order issued by the registrar and vice-chancellor.

Dave approached the tribunal against the suspension order alleging that he was removed from the service with malafide intentions only because he was active in union activity. Dave is the honorary secretary of Anyay Pratikarak Binshikshak Karmachari Sangh that is operative in Gujarat University.

Tribunal judge RA Patel commenced hearing in November and asked the university to show why Dave was transferred. But the university could not answer this, as the transfer order itself didn't mention a reason. Authorities could not place the file on record which they claimed was the base of their decision to transfer 11 employees.

The tribunal took note of inadequate reasons forwarded by the university and also observed that the officials had provided factually wrong information during proceedings. Judge RA Patel set the university's decision to transfer and suspend Dave aside and termed it "malafide".

Moreover, when the university's lawyer sought stay on this order for sometime so that university can approach higher forum, the tribunal rejected the demand stating that the judgement is on merit and doesn't required to be stayed.




Regional language writers on human rights issues to be awarded
http://www.indopia.in/India-usa-uk-news/latest-news/579535/National/1/20/1
Published: May 21,2009

New Delhi, May 21 In a bid to spread awareness about human rights, the National Human Rights Commission has decided to give awards to deserving writers on the issue in 22 official languages.
The NHRC was so far giving awards only to Hindi language writers for their outstanding books and original manuscripts written on human rights issues under one of the schemes run by it for last 11-years.
"Henceforth, we have decided to give awards to the outstanding writers of human rights issues for their books and original manuscripts written in any of those languages enshrined in the Eighth Scheduled of the Constitution," NHRC Secretary General Akhil Kumar Jain said during the inaugural session of the two-day seminar on" Right to Information, Human Rights: The Present Scenario"which began today.
This will help spread human rights awareness among the users of all these languages either, he added.

Source: PTI





Batla: NHRC gets 60 days
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Delhi/Batla-NHRC-gets-60-days/articleshow/4562062.cms
22 May 2009, 0508 hrs IST, TNN
NEW DELHI : Delhi High Court on Thursday gave two months time to National Human Rights Commission to complete its inquiry into the controversial Batla House encounter case in which two suspected Indian Mujahideen terrorists and a police officer were killed.

"The NHRC is requested to complete the inquiry and file the report by July 22,'' HC said, admitting the plea of the commission which had agreed to conduct the probe despite the government's reluctance to conduct a magisterial inquiry into the case which is mandatory before initiating its own investigation.

"Having regard for the fact that nearly nine months have already passed since the incident and that any further delay would prejudice the inquiry, the commission is of the view that it would proceed with the inquiry into the case without insisting on a magisterial inquiry," the commission pleaded.