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Friday, October 2, 2015

Order passed without jurisdiction can be challenged even after the period of limitation

Singham Chetty v. State of T.N., 2001 (5) SCC 700

Interim Bail to be considered on the same day

 Sukhwant Singh v. State of Punjab, (2009) 7 SCC 559 at page 560

3. When a person applies for regular bail then the court concerned ordinarily lists that application after a few days so that it can look into the case diary which has to be obtained from the police authorities and in the meantime the applicant has to go to jail. Even if the applicant is released on bail thereafter, his reputation may be tarnished irreparably in society. The reputation of a person is his valuable asset, and is a facet of his right under Article 21 of the Constitution vide Deepak Bajaj v. State of Maharashtra [(2008) 16 SCC 14 : JT (2008) 11 SC 609] . Hence, we are of the opinion that in the power to grant bail there is inherent power in the court concerned to grant interim bail to a person pending final disposal of the bail application. Of course, it is in the discretion of the court concerned to grant interim bail or not but the power is certainly there.

 

4. In the present case, if the petitioners surrender before the court concerned and makes a prayer for grant of interim bail pending final disposal of the bail application, the same shall be considered and decided on the same day.

Sunday, June 14, 2015

Undertaking to Pay Damages - not contemplated in law

Vinod Seth v. Devinder Bajaj, (2010) 8 SCC 1 at page 15
26. But the Code nowhere authorises or empowers the court to issue a direction to a plaintiff to file an undertaking to pay damages to the defendant in the event of being unsuccessful in the suit. The Code also does not contain any provision to assess the damages payable by a plaintiff to the defendant, when the plaintiff's suit is still pending, without any application by the defendant, and without a finding of any breach or wrongful act and without an inquiry into the quantum of damages. There is also no contract between the parties which requires the appellant to furnish such undertaking. None of the provisions of either the TP Act or the Specific Relief Act or any other substantive law enables the court to issue such an interim direction to a plaintiff to furnish an undertaking to pay damages. In the absence of an enabling provision in the contract or in the Code or in any substantive laws a court trying a civil suit, has no power or jurisdiction to direct the plaintiff, to file an affidavit undertaking to pay any specified sum to the defendant, by way of damages, if the plaintiff does not succeed in the suit. In short, law does not contemplate a plaintiff indemnifying a defendant for all or any losses sustained by the defendant on account of the litigation, by giving an undertaking at the time of filing a suit or before trial, to pay damages to the defendants in the event of not succeeding in the case.

Monday, May 25, 2015

Importance of Procedures (Criminal Law - Preventive Detention)

Rekha v. State of T.N., (2011) 5 SCC 244 at page 257

38. Procedural rights are not based on sentimental concerns for the detenu. The procedural safeguards are not devised to coddle criminals or provide technical loopholes through which dangerous persons escape the consequences of their acts. They are basically society's assurances that the authorities will behave properly within rules distilled from long centuries of concrete experiences.


Why Litigant in Person may not be effective

Rekha v. State of T.N., (2011) 5 SCC 244 at page 252

16. The importance of a lawyer to enable a person to properly defend himself has been elaborately explained by this Court in A.S. Mohammed Rafi v. State of T.N.[(2011) 1 SCC 688 : (2011) 1 SCC (Cri) 509 : AIR 2011 SC 308] and in Mohd. Sukur Ali v. State of Assam [(2011) 4 SCC 729 : JT (2011) 2 SC 527] . As observed by Mr Justice Sutherland of the US Supreme Court in Powell v. Alabama [77 L Ed 158 : 287 US 45 (1932)] (US p. 69), "[e]ven the intelligent and educated layman has small and sometimes no skill in the science of law", and hence, without a lawyer he may be convicted though he is innocent.

Tuesday, April 28, 2015

Sanction after retirement

Chittaranjan Das v. State of Orissa, (2011) 7 SCC 167 at page 170

14. We are of the opinion that in a case in which sanction sought for is refused by the competent authority, while the public servant is in service, he cannot be prosecuted later after retirement, notwithstanding the fact that no sanction for prosecution under the Prevention of Corruption Act is necessary after the retirement of the public servant. Any other view will render the protection illusory. Situation may be different when sanction is refused by the competent authority after the retirement of the public servant as in that case sanction is not at all necessary and any exercise in this regard would be action in futility.

 

 

 

Thursday, February 5, 2015

Permission to file appeal / SLP


Jatan Kumar Golcha v. Golcha Properties, (1970) 3 SCC 573, para 83. - a person who is not a party to the suit may challenge it appeal with leave of the court and such leave should be granted if he would be prejudicially affected..