THE LEAFLET

Supreme Court agrees to hear arguments on three main issues in the EWS quota case

A?five-judge Constitution Bench is all set to begin hearing on a?batch of petitions?assailing the validity of the?Constitution (One Hundred and Third Amendment) Act, 2019?that provides for a ten per cent quota to economically weaker sections (‘EWS’) of citizens in admission to educational institutions including private educational institutions. The lead petition is?Janhit Abhiyan versus Union of India.?

The constitution bench is headed by Chief Justice of India (‘CJI’) Uday Umesh Lalit, and comprises Justices Dinesh Maheshwari, S. Ravindra Bhat, Bela Trivedi and J.B. Pardiwala. They will begin hearing on September 13.

Supreme Court to examine whether a minor can donate his organ to save his father’s life

THE?Supreme Court on September 12 will examine whether a minor can donate an organ to save the life of his critically ill father. A bench comprising the Chief Justice of India U.U. Lalit, and Justices S. Ravindra Bhat and P.S. Narishma, issued notice to the Uttar Pradesh government on a petition filed by a minor, through his mother, who wants to donate his liver to his critically ill father.

The minor is obstructed from donating the organ because under the?Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Act, 1994, a donor can only be a major person. However, under the?Rules?framed under this Act, a living organ or tissue donation by a minor shall not be permitted except on exceptional medical grounds, to be recorded in detail with full justification and with prior approval of the appropriate authority and the state government concerned.

Corruption by a public servant is an offence against the State and the society at large: Supreme Court

ON September 8, a Supreme Court bench consisting of Justices S. Abdul Nazeer and V. Ramasubramanian observed that?“[i]t is needless to point out that corruption by a public servant is an offence against the State and the society at large. The Court cannot deal with cases involving abuse of official position and adoption of corrupt practices, like suits for specific performance, where the refund of the money paid may also satisfy the agreement holder.”

In the instant case, the original complainant was a worker in the technical wing of the factory of Metropolitan Transport Corporation, Perambur, Chennai, whom, along with others, the accused persons had allegedly promised to give jobs for vacancies existing for the posts of Conductor and Driver in the state’s Transport Department in lieu of money.

Supreme Court grants bail to Siddique Kappan after two years of incarceration

THE?Supreme Court earlier today granted bail to Kerala-based journalist Siddique Kappan, who was?arrested?in October 2020 by the Uttar Pradesh police on his way to report the?Hathras gang-rape?case. He was later booked under the anti-terror Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (‘UAPA’). A bench comprising the Chief Justice of India (‘CJI’) Uday Umesh Lalit, and Justices S. Ravindra Bhat and P.S. Narasimha, directed that Kappan shall be produced before a trial court within three days for release formalities.

The bench directed Kappan to house himself in Delhi for the next six weeks, and thereafter he will be entitled to go back to his native place Malappuram in Kerala. It also directed Kappan not to misuse his liberty, and mark his presence every Monday in the register of the appropriate police station. Kappan was asked by the bench to deposit his passport at the trial court, if not done already.

Supreme Court directs listing of petitions challenging Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991

THE?Supreme Court earlier today directed the listing of a batch of petitions challenging the constitutional validity of the?Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991?on October 11 for hearing. A bench comprising the Chief Justice of India (‘CJI’) Uday Umesh Lalit, and Justices S. Ravindra Bhat and P.S. Narishma, formally assigned the case to a three-judge bench.

The bench also granted two weeks’ time to the Union Governemnt to file its reply to the petitions questioning the 1991 Act. It also allowed the impleadment and intervention applications filed by the Royal Family of Kashi, the Jamiat Ulema-i-Hind and others to make submissions during the hearing of the case.

Indiscriminate and excessive curfews under Section 144 of CrPC are unconstitutional

WHICH are the recent instances of excessive and arbitrary orders under Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code?

Last month,?Section 144?(power to issue order in urgent cases of nuisance of apprehended danger) of the Code of Criminal Procedure was?invoked?in Bishnupur and Churachandpur districts of Manipur to impose a two-month long curfew. It was?reported?that the order was issued after a vehicle was set on fire by a group of people in the Phougakchao Ikhai area of Bishnupur district?and the Kangvai area of Churachandpur district. According to the state authorities, these instances took place due to the arrest of leaders of a student union demanding more autonomy for hilly areas. However, the order fails to provide any of these reasons.

My country in the era of hate speech

I am an embarrassing twitch

Of failing ignorance that’s why

I carry cherry wine blossoms

Like an abandoned retrofit

Of eccentricity in a red blue pickup

Truck of maddening laughter

All my Thursday evenings have turned

My frenzy readings into a bounty head

Within a homecoming bullet

That’s why I am learning to forget my

Speech just like my country

Marching with its tongue tied

To a barbed wire of insanity

Of course, our history

Is a barbaric irony

That’s why I live in my hometown turf now

Safe & Sound

Carrying the kind of silence

We feign to detest

My country becoming a vowel

Deathstruck in a spectacle

We hate to confess.