On the penultimate working day of Chief Justice of India NV Ramana, the Supreme Court heard a number of high profile cases, including — the remission of Bilkis Bano’s convicts, Pegasus spyware, and the review petition against the PMLA judgment. Here’s what happened:
🔴 Bilkis Bano: Agreeing to hear a plea challenging the Gujarat government’s decision to grant remission to 11 convicts in the Bilkis Bano case, the Supreme Court on Thursday issued notice to the state government. A bench headed by Chief Justice of India N V Ramana allowed the released convicts to be made parties to the case. The bench, also comprising Justices Ajay Rastogi and Vikram Nath, posted the matter for hearing after two weeks.
🔴 PMLA: Underlining its support for a law against money laundering, the Supreme Court Thursday agreed to reconsider its verdict upholding key provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2005. And flagged, for reconsideration, issues that have been criticised as possible violations of due process: reversal of the presumption of innocence and disclosure of information.
🔴 Pegasus: The Supreme Court-appointed technical committee, which probed allegations of unauthorised use of Israeli NSO Group spyware Pegasus software for surveillance, examined 29 phones and found some malware in 5 of them, said a bench headed by Chief Justice of India N V Ramana Thursday. CJI Ramana also said the government had not cooperated with the committee and had adopted the same stand that it had taken before the SC, in the panel’s proceedings too.
Chief Justice of India-designate Justice U U Lalit on Friday highlighted three areas on which he intends to work during his 74-day tenure as the head of the judiciary and said he would strive hard to ensure that at least one constitution bench is functioning in the Supreme Court throughout the year.
Justice Lalit, who will become the 49th CJI on Saturday, said the other two areas are -- listing cases for hearing in the apex court and mentioning urgent matters.
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Speaking at a function organised by the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) to bid farewell to outgoing CJI N V Ramana, Justice Lalit said he has always believed that role of the top court is to lay down law with clarity and the best possible way to do it is to have larger benches as early as possible so that the issues get clarified immediately.
"So, we will strive hard to say that yes, we will always have at least one constitution bench functioning all throughout the year," he said. Justice Lalit said one of the areas in which he intends to work is about the listing of cases before the constitution benches and matters which are specially referred to three-judge benches. (PTI)
Chief Justice of India (CJI) N V Ramana gave a clear message to the country and the outside that the Indian judiciary is “relevant, vibrant and alive to the rights to our people” and will always be there to uphold the Constitution, Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) President Vikas Singh said on Friday.
Singh, speaking at the function organised by the SCBA to bid Justice Ramana adieu on completion of his over 16-month-long tenure, referred to the keen interest of the outgoing CJI in politics and said it was the loss of politics and the gain of the judiciary and he would have become the Prime Minister.
“He was keen to join politics, and with his intellect, and with his ability, personality, charisma, I personally feel that it was a loss of politics because if he had been there, he probably would have been the Prime Minister of India today,” he said.
The SCBA leader said Justice Ramana gave a very different perception of the judiciary in his entire tenure as a CJI. (PTI)
Chief Justice of India (CJI) N V Ramana Friday hailed the media for disseminating information about the judiciary and termed it as an “active partner” in the collaborative project of strengthening the judicial system.
Justice Ramana, who succeeded S A Bobde on April 24, 2021 as the CJI, was delivering his address at a function organised by the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) in the apex court's auditorium to bid him adieu on completion of his over 16-month-long tenure as head of the judiciary.
“The media has been extremely cooperative in disseminating the information about the judiciary. You share the equal burden of dispelling myths and notions. I thank you for being an active partner in this collaborative project of strengthening the judiciary.
“I thank each one of the journalists who have been covering the proceedings of the Supreme Court diligently, efficiently, and instantly,” the outgoing CJI said. Born on August 27, 1957, Justice Ramana was enrolled as an advocate on February 10, 1983. (PTI)
Freebies are extended utilising taxpayers' money and may push the State towards "imminent bankruptcy", the Supreme Court said on Friday, as it directed that the pleas against the practice of political parties promising pre-election handouts be listed before a three-judge bench.
Observing that issues raised before it require an "extensive" hearing, the top court said though all promises cannot be equated with freebies as they relate to welfare schemes or measures for the public good, fiscal responsibility cannot be dispensed with under the guise of electoral promises. It said these schemes are not only part of the Directive Principles of State Policy but are also a responsibility of the welfare state.
"Freebies may create a situation wherein the State Government cannot provide basic amenities due to lack of funds and the State is pushed towards imminent bankruptcy. In the same breath, we should remember that such freebies are extended utilising taxpayers' money only for increasing the popularity of the party and electoral prospects," a bench headed by Chief Justice N V Ramana said. (PTI)
The Supreme Court collegium led by Justice N V Ramana as Chief Justice of India (CJI) made more than 250 recommendations for high court judge appointments, helping bring vacancies down to their lowest level since 2016.
According to data from the Ministry of Law and Justice, there are 380 vacancies against the sanctioned strength of 1,108 judges in 25 high courts as of August 1.
The average vacancy since January 2016 has been 418 judges. The highest vacancy level in this time was 478 in August 2016. (Read More)
The Supreme Court on Friday directed listing before a three-judge bench pleas against the practice of political parties promising pre-election freebies, saying it appeared the issues raised before it require an "extensive" hearing.
A bench headed by Chief Justice N V Ramana noted that certain preliminary issues may be needed to be deliberated upon in these petitions.
"Looking into the complexities of the issues involved and the prayer to overrule the judgement rendered by a two-judge bench of this court in Subramaniam Balaji, we direct listing of the set of petitions before a three-judge bench after obtaining the orders from the Chief Justice of India," it said.
In its 2013 judgement, the apex court had noted that after examining and considering the parameters laid in section 123 of the Representation of People Act(RPA), it arrived at a conclusion that the promises in the election manifesto cannot be read into section 123 for declaring it to be a corrupt practice.
The apex court on Friday said the pleas would be listed after four weeks. (PTI)
Judges must never forget that sooner or later, they too will be judged. Of late, we have witnessed many who failed their oath of office and withered away unwept, unsung and unhonoured. Chief Justice of India N V Ramana, who retires on August 26, took over the reins of the Supreme Court in difficult times when the fundamental rights and civil liberties of the citizens were under threat as never before. Speaking against the government or its policies was treated as equivalent to speaking against the Indian state. (Read More)
Chief Justice of India N V Ramana took path-breaking judicial and administrative decisions that included putting the sedition law on hold, reviewing the money laundering verdict, ordering probes into Pegasus snooping and Lakhimpur Kheri cases and ensuring appointments of record 11 judges in the top court and over 220 in high courts.
On his last day in the office, the 48th CJI got one more feather in his cap by ensuring live streaming of Supreme Court proceedings of the ceremonial bench headed by him by implementing the 2018 verdict which had allowed such webcasts.
Hailing from an agriculturist family in Ponnavaram village of Andhra Pradesh's Krishna district, Justice Ramana had succeeded S A Bobde on April 24, 2021 with a dire situation of huge unfilled vacancies in the top court and the high courts staring at the face of the judiciary.
Creating a record, the CJI headed apex court collegium meetings led to appointment of 11 Supreme Court judges with nine of them, including three women, appointed in one go. Justice Ramana recommended 224 names from several bars and the judicial services for judgeship in high courts, besides ensuring uninterrupted functioning of courts during pandemic. (PTI)
The Supreme Court Friday raised the annual iron ore production limit for Ballari, Chitradurga, and Tumakuru districts in Karnataka.
For Chitradurga and Tumakuru districts the annual iron ore production limit was raised from 7 MMT to 15 MMT while for Ballari, the apex court raised the limit from 28 MMT to 35 MMT a year.
A bench headed by Chief Justice N V Ramana passed the order on pleas seeking lifting of ceiling limits on the excavation of iron ores on the lines of other states. The apex court-appointed Central Empowered Committee (CEC) had also favoured the lifting of the ceiling limit on iron ore mining in three districts. However, the court decided to raise the limit instead of lifting the cap.
Earlier on May 20, the top court had permitted mining firms to sell outside the state and export already excavated iron ore from mines in the districts of Ballari, Chitradurga, and Tumakuru in Karnataka without having to resort to the process of e-auction. (PTI)
Terming pendency of cases a "huge challenge", Chief Justice of India N V Ramana on Friday expressed regret for not being able to pay much attention to issues of listing and posting of matters for hearing in the Supreme Court.
The CJI, who is to demit office on Friday, said there is a need to deploy modern technology tools and artificial intelligence to find a solution. "Even though we tried developing some modules, because of the compatibility and security issues, we could not make much progress," Justice Ramana, who was heading the ceremonial bench, said.
He said during the COVID-19 pandemic, the priority was running of the courts and unlike commercial establishments, "we cannot secure the technological tools from the market directly".
"We have to admit the fact that the pendency is a huge challenge before us. I must admit that issues of listing and posting of matters is one of the areas on which I could not pay much attention. I am sorry for that," the CJI said, adding, "We are busy in fire-fighting on all days". (PTI)
Attorney General K K Venugopal on Friday termed as "remarkable" the efforts of Chief Justice of India (CJI) N V Ramana in filling up vacancies in higher judiciary and tribunals, saying that for the first time, the Supreme Court worked at full strength of 34 judges during his tenure as head of the institution.
“I understand that more than 224 vacancies were filled up in high courts and I think more than 100 members were appointed to tribunals,” the top law officer said to the CJI who was sitting on the ceremonial bench along with CJI-designate Justice U U Lalit and Justice Hima Kohli.
Venugopal, who was usually asked by the CJI-led bench to inform about the status of appointments, said, “I was at the receiving end from time to time.” He said the vacancies were filled up during his tenure and for the first time, "we have had a full court of 34 judges in the Supreme Court." "What is outstanding for the CJI is the persuasion with which he was able to clear appointments and vacancies," Venugopal said.
"I wish well for this new era in your career and I have no doubt that it will be as fruitful and productive as the one which your lordship has just concluded on the bench of the Supreme Court of India," said the Attorney General. (PTI)
Senior advocate Dushyant Dave broke into tears on Friday while bidding adieu to outgoing Chief Justice N V Ramana, saying he maintained checks and balances between the judiciary, executive and the parliament and did so "with a spine".
While Dave described Ramana as a citizen's judge, his colleague, senior advocate Kapil Sibal, said the court will remember him for "maintaining balance even in turbulent times".
"I speak on behalf of vast multitude of citizens of this country.You stood up for them. You upheld their rights and the constitution. When you took over, I was sceptical of what the court had gone through. I must say, you excelled our expectations. You maintained checks and balances between judiciary, executive and the parliament. You did with a spine,” Dave said Sibal added that Ramana has also taken care of the family of judges. (PTI)
The Supreme Court Friday dismissed an appeal challenging the denial of sanction by the Uttar Pradesh government to prosecute Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath in a 2007 case for allegedly delivering an inflammatory speech.
A bench headed by Chief Justice of India N V Ramana and comprising Justices Hima Kohli and C T Ravikumar was hearing the matter. Reading out the judgment, Justice Ravikumar said: “We do not think it is necessary to go into the legal questions relating to grant of sanction. Consequently, the appeal is dismissed. The question of law is left open,” reported law news website Live Law. Read more.
The Supreme Court on Friday directed that its 2013 judgment by a two-judge bench in the case S Subramaniam Balaji vs State of TN that held that the “state distributing largesse in the form of distribution of colour TVs, laptops, etc. to eligible and deserving persons is directly related to the directive principles of the State policy” be listed before a three-judge bench for a relook.
Taking up petitions demanding a ban on freebies, a three-judge bench presided by Chief Justice of India N V Ramana said “looking at the complexity of the issues involved, and the prayer to overrule the judgement rendered by two-judge bench of this court in S Subramaniam Balaji, we direct listing of this set of petitions before a three-judge bench after obtaining the order from the Hon’ble Chief Justice”. The court had earlier hinted at setting up a committee to go into the issue and make recommendations. Read more.
Speaking on his final working day before retirement, CJI NV Ramana said: "I have been here for 22 long years. Since the bar is posting a farewell in afternoon I will like to refer to only few issues. Indian judiciary cannot be defined by one single thing. The majesty will be protected by both bench and bar." (Live Law)
While bidding adieu to CJI NV Ramana on his final working day, Senior advocate Dushyant Dave broke down.
The Supreme Court on Friday raised the mining limits on iron ore in Karnataka.
The Supreme Court dismissed an appeal challenging the denial of sanction to prosecute Yogi Adityanath in the 2007 Gorakhpur riots case.
Chief Justice of India NV Ramana on Friday said that it would be appropriate to constitue an expert body to examine the issue of 'Election freebies'. "The worry raised by petitioner that under the guise of welfare fiscal responsibility is dispensed with must also be considered," Ramana said, according to Live Law. The CJI pointed out that the issue requires "extensive hearing".
The Supreme Court on Friday held that the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code will prevail over the Customs Act. Once moratorium under IBC is declared, Customs authorities have only limited jurisdiction to assess the quantum and they cannot take steps to recover the dues, the Supreme Court said, according to Live Law.
The proceedings of the ceremonial bench in the Chief Justice of India NV Ramana's court have commenced. You can watch the proceedings here.
For the first time in the Supreme Court, the proceedings of the ceremonial bench in the Chief Justice of India NV Ramana's court will be live streamed. On the last working day, CJI Ramana will share the bench with CJI-designate Justice UU Lalit & Justice Hima Kohli at 10.30 am, ANI reported.
The Supreme Court on Friday is set to hear a plea for bail filed by Kerala journalist Siddique Kappan, who along with three others were arrested on October 5, 2020 by the Uttar Pradesh police under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act while he was on way to Hathras after rape and murder of a Dalit girl.
Kappan approached the apex court after the Allahabad High Court rejected his bail application earlier this month. In his petition, Kappan has challenged the Allahabad High Court’s order, on August 2, dismissing his bail application. “As a result of the rejection of the application, the petitioner, a journalist of 12 years experience, who has also served as the secretary of the Delhi chapter of the Kerala Union of Working Journalists, continues to be incarcerated. Presently, the petitioner has spent almost two years behind bars, on the basis of trumped up charges, only because he sought to discharge his professional duty of reporting on the infamous case of the Hathras rape/ murder,” said the plea.
On the penultimate working day of Chief Justice of India NV Ramana, the Supreme Court heard a number of high profile cases, including — the remission of Bilkis Bano’s convicts, Pegasus spyware, and the review petition against the PMLA judgment. Here’s what happened:
? Bilkis Bano: Agreeing to hear a plea challenging the Gujarat government’s decision to grant remission to 11 convicts in the Bilkis Bano case, the Supreme Court on Thursday issued notice to the state government. A bench headed by Chief Justice of India N V Ramana allowed the released convicts to be made parties to the case. The bench, also comprising Justices Ajay Rastogi and Vikram Nath, posted the matter for hearing after two weeks.
? PMLA: Underlining its support for a law against money laundering, the Supreme Court Thursday agreed to reconsider its verdict upholding key provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2005. And flagged, for reconsideration, issues that have been criticised as possible violations of due process: reversal of the presumption of innocence and disclosure of information.
? Pegasus: The Supreme Court-appointed technical committee, which probed allegations of unauthorised use of Israeli NSO Group spyware Pegasus software for surveillance, examined 29 phones and found some malware in 5 of them, said a bench headed by Chief Justice of India N V Ramana Thursday. CJI Ramana also said the government had not cooperated with the committee and had adopted the same stand that it had taken before the SC, in the panel’s proceedings too.
Good morning and welcome to our live blog. Today is NV Ramana's last day as Chief Justice of India. He is set to deliver verdicts in five high-profile cases — the PIL seeking a ban on ‘election freebies’, the 2007 Gorakhpur riots case, the Karnataka mining case, the Rajasthan mining lease issue and the liquidation regulations under the bankruptcy law.