(41) KAZI AKILODDIN Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA AND OTHERS [SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 10-07-2024 Land Acquisition Act, 1894 — Section 4 — Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning Act, 1966 — Section 14(j) and 22(j) — Land acquisition for the construction of a flood protection wall — The court found that the market value of the acquired land should be determined based on the potentiality of the land and the surrounding area's development — The court awarded compensation of Rs. 100 per sq. ft. for the plotted area and rejected the claim for higher compensation based on intra-family sale deeds — India Law Library Docid # 1604260
(42) ROHINI SUDARSHAN GANGURDE Vs. THE STATE OF MAHARASHTRA AND ANOTHER [SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 10-07-2024 Penal Code, 1860 (IPC) — Section 306 — Abetment to suicide — Suicide by Husband — The court found that there was no evidence to show that appellant-wife had played an active role in abetting her husband's suicide — The court emphasized that for a conviction under Section 306, there must be a clear mens rea (intent) to commit the offense, and the accused must have either instigated, engaged in a conspiracy, or intentionally aided the person in committing suicide — The Court found that none of the India Law Library Docid # 1604263
(43) VIKAS KANAUJIA Vs. SARITA [SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 10-07-2024 Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 — Section 13 — Divorce — Ground of irretrievable breakdown of marriage — The couple had been married for only 23 days since the wife left the marital home, and they had been living separately for over 22 years — They had also filed multiple legal cases against each other, including criminal cases, and had not made any attempts at reconciliation — The court noted that the marriage had ceased to India Law Library Docid # 1604264
(44) UNIWORLD LOGISTICS PVT. LTD. Vs. INDEV LOGISTICS PVT. LTD [SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 10-07-2024 Civil Procedure Code, 1908 (CPC) — Order 7 Rule 11 and Order 2 Rule 2 — Two different cause of action — The appeal challenged a High Court judgment that allowed the respondent to file a separate suit for recovery of arrears of storage charges, warehouse charges, and damages for illegal use and occupation beyond the period allowed in a notice — The appellant had filed a commercial suit claiming that the respondent had provided only 1,03,522 sq. ft. area of the factory shed instead of 1,50,000 sq. India Law Library Docid # 1604265
(45) THE STATE OF PUNJAB AND OTHERS Vs. BHAGWANTPAL SINGH ALIAS BHAGWANT SINGH (DECEASED) THROUGH LRS. [SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 10-07-2024 Limitation Act, 1963 — Article 65 — Ownership of land — The court found that the plaintiff's suit for possession was time-barred under Article 65 of the Act, 1963, as the plaintiff had known about the construction of the veterinary hospital on the disputed land since 1981 but filed the suit in 2001, more than 12 years later — The court also noted that the plaintiff had failed to claim relief of declaration, making the suit itself not maintainable — The court set aside the High Court's judgment a India Law Library Docid # 1604266
(46) CHIEF CONSERVATOR OF FOREST AND OTHERS Vs. VIRENDRA KUMAR AND OTHERS [SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 10-07-2024 Refund — Auction — Refund of a forfeited security amount — The case involved an auction of forest produce, where the respondents had failed to complete the work within the stipulated time and had subsequently challenged the forfeiture of their security deposit — The Supreme Court held that the applicable conditions of sale were those of the 1987-88 manual, which imposed the responsibility on the contractor to enquire about the acceptance of the contract if no information was received within 35 d India Law Library Docid # 1604267
(47) DUNI CHAND Vs. VIKRAM SINGH AND OTHERS [SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 10-07-2024 Transfer of Property Act, 1882 — Section 41 — Transfer by ostensible owner — Dispute over a property between the legal heirs of ‘T’ (plaintiff-appellant) and the defendants, who purchased the property from the defendant no.1, ‘V’, based on a second Will dated 16.05.1994 — The plaintiff-appellant had a registered Will in his favor dated 12.12.1988, which was held to be genuine and valid by the High Court — The second will was held to be invalid due to suspicious circumstances — The High Court ext India Law Library Docid # 1604268
(48) CENTRAL INFORMATION COMMISSION Vs. D.D.A. AND ANOTHER [SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 10-07-2024 Right to Information Act, 2005 — Section 12(4) — Constitution of Central Information Commission — The Supreme Court upheld the power of the Central Information Commission (CIC) to constitute benches and frame regulations under Section 12(4) of the Act, 2005 — The court emphasized the importance of the CIC's autonomy and independence to effectively carry out its functions — The court also clarified that the term "Regulations" used by the CIC should not detract from the functional equivalence of t India Law Library Docid # 1604269
(49) ELFIT ARABIA AND ANOTHER Vs. CONCEPT HOTEL BARONS LIMITED AND OTHERS [SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 09-07-2024 Arbitration and Conciliation Act 1996 — Section 11(6) — Negotiable Instruments Act 1881 — Section 138 — The Supreme Court dismissed an arbitration petition filed by petitioners stating that the claim was ex-facie barred by limitation — The petitioner had executed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the respondents in 2004 to finance a telecom project, and cheques were given to the petitioner from time to time during the course of meetings between the parties to negotiate repayment — However India Law Library Docid # 1604284
(50) RAM @ RAMDAS SHESHRAO NEHARKAR Vs. SHESHRAO BABURAO NEHARKAR AND OTHERS [SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 09-07-2024 Partition Suit and separate possession of the suit property — The appellant filed a suit for partition and separate possession, claiming to be the son of the respondent, born from a marriage with ‘P’ — The main issue was the establishment of the factum of marriage between ‘P’ and the respondent, and whether the appellant was born from that wedlock — The appellant contended that the High Court should not have re-appreciated evidence regarding the marriage and his birth from that union — The respo India Law Library Docid # 1604247
(51) MUTHYALA SUNIL KUMAR Vs. UNION OF INDIA AND OTHERS [SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 09-07-2024 Constitution of India, 1950 — Articles 32 and 226 — All India Tourist Vehicles (Permit) Rules, 2023 — The Supreme Court has dismissed a batch of 117 petitions filed by transporters and tour operators challenging the legality of various state governments levying and collecting Authorization Fee/Border Tax on all-India tourist vehicles — The court held that the petitioners should have approached the respective High Courts under Article 226 of the rather than filing petitions under Article 32 — The India Law Library Docid # 1604248
(52) M/S AL-CAN EXPORT PVT. LTD. Vs. PRESTIGE H.M. POLYCONTAINERS LTD. AND OTHERS [SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 09-07-2024 Maharashtra Land Revenue Code, 1966 — Section 247 — Civil Procedure Code, 1908 (CPC) — Order 21 Rule 90 — Auction Proceedings — Legality of auction proceedings conducted by the Tahsildar, Talasari for property owned by respondent, which was mortgaged to the State Bank of India and later assigned to ARCIL under the SARFAESI Act, 2002 — The main legal questions were whether Order 21 Rule 90 of the CPC applies to writ proceedings under Article 226 of the Constitution, and whether the Additional Com India Law Library Docid # 1604249
(53) ARMY WELFARE EDUCATION SOCIETY NEW DELHI Vs. SUNIL KUMAR SHARMA AND OTHERS ETC. [SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 09-07-2024 Constitution of India, 1950 — Articles 12 and 226 — Management and Service conditions of staff at an Army Public School run by the Army Welfare Education Society (AWES) — The court considered whether AWES is a "State" under Article 12 of the Constitution and whether a service dispute involving a private educational institution and its employees can be adjudicated upon in a writ petition filed under Article 226 of the Constitution — AWES argued that it is a private society providing educational f India Law Library Docid # 1604250
(54) SUBODH KUMAR SINGH RATHOUR Vs. THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER AND OTHERS [SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 09-07-2024 Constitution of India, 1950 — Article 14 — Tender — Cancellation of — The maintenance transfer of two underpasses in Kolkata was awarded to the appellant but later cancelled by the respondent due to technical faults — The appellant argued that the cancellation was arbitrary and lacked a public law element, while the respondent argued that it was due to technical faults and financial losses — The court scrutinized the internal file-notings related to the cancellation, emphasizing the need for fai India Law Library Docid # 1604235
(55) RATNU YADAV Vs. THE STATE OF CHHATTISGARH [SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 09-07-2024 Penal Code, 1860 (IPC) — Section 302 — Murder — Murder of own stepmother over a land dispute — The prosecution's case was based on an extra-judicial confession and the testimony of a witness who saw accused dragging the deceased — The main issue was whether the death was homicidal and if the appellant's guilt was proven beyond a reasonable doubt — The defence argued that the death could have been accidental, questioning the reliability of the extra-judicial confession and the absence of injury m India Law Library Docid # 1604237
(56) MAHARAJ SINGH AND OTHERS Vs. KARAN SINGH (DEAD) THR. LRS. AND OTHERS [SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 09-07-2024 Transfer of Property Act, 1882 — Section 3 — Uttaranchal (The Uttar Pradesh Zamindari Abolition and Land Reforms Act, 1950) (Adaption and Modification order, 2001) (Amendment) Ordinance, 2003 — Section 154-B — Dispute over a registered agreement for sale of land, subsequent sales by the original owner, and a suit for specific performance filed by the plaintiffs — Whether the agreement was sham and bogus, if the subsequent purchasers were bona fide, and the applicability of the Zamindari Abolitio India Law Library Docid # 1604238
(57) GAURAV MAINI Vs. STATE OF HARYANA [SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 09-07-2024 Penal Code, 1860 (IPC) — Sections 364A, 392 and 120B — Kidnapping — The High Court upheld convictions in a case where appellants challenged the prosecution's case in the Supreme Court — The defence argued that the prosecution's case was fabricated, with inconsistencies in FIR registration, non-examination of a key witness, and procedural errors in recovering ransom money — The State maintained that the prosecution's case was based on reliable testimony from the kidnapped boy — The Supreme Court India Law Library Docid # 1604239
(58) NASEEM KAHNAM AND OTHERS Vs. ZAHEDA BEGUM (DEAD) BY LR. AND OTHERS [SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 09-07-2024 Property Dispute — Validity of an agreement for the settlement of family property under Mohammedan Law — The case concerns a property dispute where plaintiffs seek to enforce a family settlement agreement (Exhibit-A6) for division — The main issues are its validity and enforceability under Mohammedan Law — The petitioner argues it's unenforceable due to lack of registration and stamp duty, while respondents maintain it's valid and should be enforced for family peace — The Court upheld the High C India Law Library Docid # 1604240
(59) STATE OF PUNJAB Vs. RANDHIR SINGH ETC. [SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 09-07-2024 Penal Code, 1860 (IPC) — Sections 302 and 34 — The case involves appeals by the State of Punjab against the acquittal of the accused by the High Court in a murder, who suffered burn injuries — The Supreme Court upheld the High Court's acquittal of the accused in a case where the State argued that the victim was harassed and set on fire by her in-laws due to objections over an illicit relationship — The defence contended that the dying declaration recorded by the police was fabricated — The Supre India Law Library Docid # 1604241
(60) VINOD JASWANTRAY VYAS (DEAD) THROUGH LRs. Vs. THE STATE OF GUJARAT [SUPREME COURT OF INDIA] 09-07-2024 Penal Code, 1860 (IPC) — Sections 302, 304 Part I and 114 — Death in Police Custody — The Supreme Court has acquitted two police officers, who were accused of custodial violence leading to the death of ‘J’ — The court found that the prosecution failed to provide cogent, convincing, and reliable evidence to prove the guilt of the accused — The court also noted that the testimony of the prosecution witnesses was contradictory and inconsistent with the medical evidence — The court concluded that th India Law Library Docid # 1604242