(141) M/S. NARESH KUMAR GUPTA Vs. STATE OF PUNJAB AND ANOTHER[SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 01-05-2025 Punjab Value Added Tax Act, 2005 — Section 29 — Amendment by Punjab Value Added Tax Act, 2013 — Assessment of tax — Limitation period for assessment — Constitutional validity of amendment — Extension of limitation from three years to six years retrospectively — Effect of amendment on concluded proceedings challenged — Challenge based on prospectivity, overruling of judgments, violation of natural justice and Articles 14/19, extension of period for reassessment after expiry, and inconsistency wit India Law Library Docid # 2425830
(142) SHENBAGAVALLI AND OTHERS Vs. THE INSPECTOR OF POLICE, KANCHEEPURAM DISTRICT AND ANOTHER[SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 30-04-2025 Penal Code, 1860 — Section 306 — Abetment of Suicide — Ingredients — To constitute an offence under Section 306 IPC, the essential ingredients of abetment as defined under Section 107 IPC must be established — There must be proof of a direct or indirect positive act of incitement to the commission of suicide by the accused, reflecting a mens rea to instigate or aid the deceased to end their life. India Law Library Docid # 2425257
(143) KRISHNA KUMAR KEDIA Vs. UNION OF INDIA THROUGH DIRECTOR, CBI[SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 30-04-2025 Evidence Act, 1872 — Section 133 — Approver Evidence — Corroboration — Conviction based significantly on approver’s testimony admitting forgery at appellant’s behest is sustainable when corroborated by: (i) testimony of the official denying the forged signature, (ii) testimonies of appellant’s employees confirming lifting of goods and diversion on appellant’s instructions, and (iii) testimonies of departmental India Law Library Docid # 2425258
(144) KESHAV S/O LAXMAN RUPNAR AND ANOTHER Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA[SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 30-04-2025 Criminal Law — Rape — Evidence — Testimony of Prosecutrix — Reliability — While conviction for rape can be based solely on the testimony of the prosecutrix if it inspires confidence (State of Punjab v. Gurmit Singh), the court must carefully evaluate the testimony in the context of the entire case — Where the narrative contains significant inconsistencies, lacks corroboration on material aspects, and appears unbelievable, raising grave suspicion, implicit reliance cannot be placed solely on the India Law Library Docid # 2425259
(145) RINA RANI MALLICK Vs. SUSIM KANTI MOHANTY AND ANOTHER[SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 30-04-2025 Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 — Compensation — Injury to Minor — Non-Pecuniary Heads — In motor accident claims involving injury to minors resulting in permanent disability, compensation is determined primarily under non-pecuniary heads (pain, suffering, loss of amenities, inconvenience, discomfort) in addition to actual expenses incurred for treatment, attendant care etc., as establishing loss of future earnings is difficult — The quantum for non-pecuniary loss can be guided by the structured amount India Law Library Docid # 2425260
(146) SMT. M. SABITHA AND OTHERS Vs. BRAHMA SWAMULU AND ANOTHER[SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 30-04-2025 Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 — Negligence — Contributory Negligence — Head-on Collision — Overtaking Vehicle and Speeding Vehicle — In a head-on collision between a car overtaking another vehicle and a lorry approaching from the opposite direction at high speed (evidenced by dragging the car post-impact), both drivers are contributorily negligent — The car driver failed to exercise sufficient care while overtaking, and India Law Library Docid # 2425261
(147) MEERA BAI AND OTHERS Vs. ICICI LOMBARD GENERAL INSURANCE COMPANY LTD. AND ANOTHER[SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 30-04-2025 Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 — Negligence — Proof — Absence of Eyewitness — The High Court erred in dismissing a motor accident claim petition solely on the ground that no eyewitness was examined to prove rash and negligent driving, especially when other evidence indicated negligence — Eyewitness testimony is not indispensable India Law Library Docid # 2425262
(148) PRAGYA PRASUN AND OTHERS Vs. UNION OF INDIA AND OTHERS[SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 30-04-2025 Constitution of India — Article 21 — Right to Life — Digital Accessibility — In the contemporary digital era, the Right to Life under Article 21 encompasses the right to digital access — Bridging the digital divide and ensuring universal accessibility to digital infrastructure, government portals, and essential services (including financial and telecommunication services) for all, including persons with disabilities and marginalized populations, is a constitutional imperative for the State to en India Law Library Docid # 2425263
(149) KANIZ AHMED Vs. SABUDDIN AND OTHERS[SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 30-04-2025 Unauthorized Construction — Public Interest Litigation — Eviction and Demolition — High Court Directions Affirmed — Supreme Court affirms the High Court’s directions issued in a Public Interest Litigation, mandating authorities to ensure vacation of premises built unauthorizedly, eviction of occupants using adequate police force if necessary by a specified timeline, and subsequent demolition of the unauthorized structure by the Municipal Corporation, with the entire process being videographed a India Law Library Docid # 2425287
(150) GAYATRI BALASAMY Vs. M/S. ISG NOVASOFT TECHNOLOGIES LIMITED[SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 30-04-2025 Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 — Sections 34 & 37 — Power of Court — Modification of Arbitral Award — Courts exercising power under Section 34 (setting aside) or Section 37 (appeal) of the Act do not have the power to modify or vary the terms of an arbitral award — The legislative scheme confines the court's power primarily to setting aside the award on enumerated grounds, reflecting the principle of minimal India Law Library Docid # 2425294
(151) SHYAM NANDAN MEHTA Vs. SANTOSH KUMAR AND OTHERS[SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 29-04-2025 Service Law — Appointment — Validity — Discrepancy in Category Certificate — No Undue Advantage — An appointment secured on merit cannot be set aside merely due to a discrepancy between the candidate’s actual reservation category (Backward Class - BC) and the category mentioned (Most Backward Class - MBC) in the qualifying Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) certificate, especially when: (i) the candidate applied for and was selected under their correct category (BC); (ii) they secured higher marks t India Law Library Docid # 2425190
(152) PUNIT BERIWALA Vs. THE STATE OF NCT OF DELHI AND OTHERS[SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 29-04-2025 Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 — Section 482 — Quashing of FIR — Scope of Inquiry — The power to quash an FIR under Section 482 Cr.P.C. must be exercised sparingly and with circumspection — The Court cannot embark upon an inquiry into the reliability or genuineness of the allegations made in the FIR/complaint and must proceed assuming the averments to be true — Investigation should not be thwarted at the initial stage unless no cognizable offence India Law Library Docid # 2425191
(153) RENUKA Vs. STATE OF KARNATAKA AND ANOTHER[SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 29-04-2025 Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 — Section 482 — Quashing of FIR/Chargesheet — Scope of Inquiry — Mini Trial — The High Court, while exercising its inherent jurisdiction to quash criminal proceedings, particularly under Sections 498-A, 324, 355, 504, 506 read with Section 149 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, cannot embark upon an inquiry into the credibility or reliability of the evidence presented in the FIR/Chargesheet — Comparing allegations in India Law Library Docid # 2425178
(154) VISA COKE LIMITED Vs. M/S MESCO KALINGA STEEL LIMITED[SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 29-04-2025 Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 — Sections 8 & 9 — Service of Demand Notice — Service of a demand notice under Section 8 upon Key Managerial Personnel (KMP) of the Corporate Debtor, delivered at the Corporate Debtor’s registered office, constitutes valid service on the Corporate Debtor for the purpose of initiating Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) under Section 9, provided the notice clearly and substantively demands payment of the operational debt from the India Law Library Docid # 2425180
(155) S.D. JAYAPRAKASH AND OTHERS Vs. THE UNION OF INDIA AND OTHERS[SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 29-04-2025 Service Law — Pension — Central Civil Services (Pension) Rules, 1972 — Rule 17 — Counting of Contractual Service — Persons initially appointed on a contractual basis and subsequently regularised in service without interruption are entitled under Rule 17 of the CCS (Pension) Rules, 1972 to count their prior contractual service period for pensionary benefits, provided they exercise the option under Rule 17(1)(b) to either refund the monetary benefits received for the contract India Law Library Docid # 2425181
(156) RUTU MIHIR PANCHAL AND OTHERS Vs. UNION OF INDIA AND OTHERS[SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 29-04-2025 Consumer Protection Act, 2019 — Sections 34(1), 47(1)(a)(i), 58(1)(a)(i) — Constitutional Validity — Pecuniary Jurisdiction based on ‘Consideration Paid’ — Sections 34(1), 47(1)(a)(i), and 58(1)(a)(i) of the Act, which determine the pecuniary jurisdiction of the District, State, and National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commissions based on the ‘value of goods or services paid as consideration’ instead of the ‘compensation claimed’ (as under the 1986 Act), are constitutionally valid. India Law Library Docid # 2425182
(157) P. KUMARAKURUBARAN Vs. P. NARAYANAN AND OTHERS[SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 29-04-2025 Civil Procedure Code, 1908 — Order 7 Rule 11(d) — Rejection of Plaint — Limitation — Mixed Question of Law and Fact — Date of Knowledge — Where the plaint specifically pleads facts alleging fraud or unauthorized execution of documents (sale under a limited Power of Attorney) and asserts a date of knowledge of such facts which brings the suit within the limitation period prescribed by Article 59 of the Limitation Act, 1963, the issue of limitation becomes a mixed question of law and fact — Such a India Law Library Docid # 2425183
(158) JAIPUR VIDYUT VITARAN NIGAM LIMITED AND OTHERS Vs. RAJASTHAN TEXTILE MILLS ASSOCIATION AND ANOTHER ETC.[SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 29-04-2025 Electricity Law — Cross-Subsidy Surcharge (CSS) — Determination — Timing vis-à-vis Tariff Order — Determination of Cross-Subsidy Surcharge (CSS) under the Electricity Act, 2003 and relevant State Regulations (Rajasthan Tariff Regulations, 2014, Reg 90) is not mandatorily required to be simultaneous with the determination of the general tariff — CSS can be determined separately based on the prevailing tariff applicable to the relevant consumer category as per the formula provided in the regulatio India Law Library Docid # 2425184
(159) SHARDHAMMA AND ANOTHER Vs. THE DY. COMMISSIONER AND OTHERS[SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 29-04-2025 Land Laws — Karnataka Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prohibition of Transfer of Certain Lands) Act, 1978 (PTCL Act) — Section 5 — Limitation — Reasonable Time — Even though Section 5 of the PTCL Act does not prescribe a specific period of limitation for filing an application for restoration of granted land, such an application must be made within a reasonable time — An application filed after an unreasonably long delay (in this case, 23 years after the alienation and 14 years after the A India Law Library Docid # 2425185
(160) KAMAL DEV PRASAD Vs. MAHESH FORGE[SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 29-04-2025 Employees’ Compensation Act, 1923 — Section 4(1)(c), Explanation 1; Schedule I, Part II — Loss of Earning Capacity — Multiple Injuries — Functional Disability — When an employee suffers multiple injuries specified in Schedule I, Part II in the same accident (loss of phalanges in multiple fingers of the operational hand), the assessment of loss of earning capacity is not rigidly confined to the mere aggregation of percentages prescribed therein for individual injuries — Considering the Act’s bene India Law Library Docid # 2425186