RERA office being shifted to Dharamshala: HP govt in HC affidavit
The state government on Monday told the Himachal Pradesh high court through an affidavit that the Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) office was being shifted to Dharamshala to congest Shimla, and it needed time to complete the formalities.
The affidavit was submitted by principal secretary (housing) Devesh Kumar to the division bench of chief justice GS Sandhawalia and justice Ranjan Sharma during resumed hearing of a petition challenging a six-month extension granted to chief secretary Prabodh Saxena, filed by one Atul Sharma.
The court had questioned the government on the delay in appointments of the RERA chairperson and two members. The case will now be heard on June 20.
HC issues notice to CS Saxena
The high court issued notice to Saxena. The petitioner contended that the extension was given in violation of the Central Services Rules and guidelines of department of personnel and training (DoPT). The petitioner argued that vigilance clearance can't be granted to an officer who is nominated in a corruption case.
The petition pointed out that a chargesheet had been filed before Saxena was granted the extension, Saxena was chargesheeted in the infamous INX Media scam, in which then Union finance minister P Chidambaram and his son Karti are also named as accused. Saxena served as the director of the Department of Economic Affairs (DEA) between April 2008 and July 2010.
Saxena was considered frontrunner for the RERA chairperson post, but the selection committee, headed by the high court chief justice, had raised objection to his candidature.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
3 hours ago
- Time of India
Kerala govt finalises new school academic calendar; working hours extended by 30 minutes
T'puram: Following pressure from the Kerala high court, the govt on Saturday finalised a new school academic calendar. Accordingly, the working hours of govt and aided schools in the state will be extended by 30 minutes, except on Fridays. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The office of the general education minister V Sivankutty stated that the daily additional hours would be equally split into two. The morning session will start 15 minutes earlier than the previous schedule, and the afternoon session will conclude 15 minutes after the schedule. Two Saturdays in an academic year will be working days for upper primary (UP) classes while there will be regular classes on six selected Saturdays for high school classes. However, there will be no classes on Saturdays for lower primary (LP) classes. The high court had recently criticised the state govt for not finalising the school academic calendar on time and asked it to finalise the calendar at the earliest to avoid the general education principal secretary being summoned to the court. Following the court's strong observations, minister Sivankutty revealed the govt's plans at a hastily called Quality Assurance Programme (QAP) meeting on Friday. However, only pro-CPM and CPI teachers' organisation representatives attended that meeting, as invitations were sent to them at the last minute. The new academic calendar has been finalised as per the recommendations of a committee appointed by the govt for this purpose. According to the new academic calendar, there will be 198 teaching days and 800 study hours in LP schools. With the inclusion of two Saturdays, the teaching days in the UP section will be 200, and the learning hours will be 1,000. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now As per Kerala Education rules, there should be a minimum of 1,100 learning hours in high schools. With the new arrangements, there will be 204 working days for the high school section. The govt earlier tried to overcome the minimum working days issue by declaring 25 Saturdays as working days. However, the order was challenged by stakeholders, and the high court struck down the govt's decision to declare Saturdays as working days in the 2024-25 academic year. The HC then urged the govt to ensure the minimum working days and teaching hours in schools after taking all stakeholders into confidence.
News18
4 hours ago
- News18
Delhi HC Upholds Dismissal Of Christian Indian Army Officer Who Shunned Religious Parades
Last Updated: Samuel Kamalesan had argued that he accompanied his troops to the mandir and gurdwara in weekly parades and festivals, seeking exemption only from entering the innermost sanctum The Delhi High Court has confirmed the dismissal of a commanding officer in the Indian Army, Samuel Kamalesan, who consistently refused to participate in regimental weekly religious parades due to his Christian faith, despite multiple counselling sessions and opportunities provided by his superiors. Kamalesan challenged his termination and the denial of pension and gratuity, arguing that he had accompanied his troops to the mandir and gurdwara during weekly parades and festivals. He sought exemption only from entering the innermost sanctum during rituals, citing respect for his monotheistic Christian beliefs and his troops' sentiments. His plea highlighted that the regiment maintained only a mandir and a gurdwara for its religious needs, not a 'Sarv Dharm Sthal" for all faiths. The court noted that the dismissal was based on his conduct and its negative impact on military discipline and unit cohesion, not solely on his Annual Confidential Report (ACR) ratings. The HC emphasised the dedication of armed forces personnel and their ethos of placing the nation before self and religion. It observed that the armed forces are united by their uniform, not divided by religion, caste, or region, and commanding officers have a higher responsibility to ensure their troops can observe their religious practices. Commissioned as a lieutenant in March 2017, Kamalesan served in the 3rd Cavalry Regiment, which includes Sikh, Jat, and Rajput personnel. He led a squadron primarily composed of Sikh soldiers and noted the absence of a Sarv Dharm Sthal, or church, on the premises. Kamalesan claimed regular attendance at the mandir and gurdwara but sought to avoid the inner temple sanctum during rituals. The respondent argued that his consistent non-attendance at regimental parades was despite efforts to explain their significance. The Chief of Army Staff reviewed the records and deemed his retention undesirable due to misconduct. The court dismissed the plea, underscoring the secular principles of the armed forces, despite regimental names and war cries that might appear religious to outsiders. It respected the religious beliefs of personnel but stressed the higher standard of discipline required in the armed forces. The HC ruled that Kamalesan's prioritisation of his religion over a lawful command constituted indiscipline. It underscored that the armed forces and military leadership, not the courts, determine necessary actions for effective command and troop motivation. The termination order highlighted Kamalesan's behaviour as contrary to the Indian Army's secular ethos and detrimental to officer-troop camaraderie essential in combat. The court concluded that a court-martial trial for Kamalesan's misconduct was impractical due to the sensitive nature involving religious beliefs and upheld the disciplinary action taken against him. First Published:
Hindustan Times
4 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
Adolescence, consent & the grey zone for Pocso
Indian law puts the age of consent at 18. This means that sex with a girl below the age of 18, even if she consents, amounts to rape under the stringent Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) law. The law does not recognise the relationship between the 14-year-old girl and the 25-year-old man. In a trial court, the girl told the judge she loved the man and wanted to live with him. Sorry, said the judge, and sentenced him to 20 years in prison. The man was able to get bail and appealed before the Calcutta High Court (HC). In October 2023, the HC acquitted him but not before a bizarre digression into adolescent sexual urges and advice to young women everywhere to 'control sexual urges as in the eyes of the society she is the looser [sic] when she gives in to enjoy the sexual pleasure of hardly two minutes'. Steeped in patriarchy, stereotypes and outdated notions of chastity, the judge's remarks led to considerable outrage — and the attention of the Supreme Court. Pocso was intended to protect adolescents and children. But the increasing criminalisation of consensual teenage sexual activity has become a problem in a country where every fifth Indian is an adolescent. A five-state study by the Centre for Child and the Law at the National Law School found that in 20% of Pocso cases, the victim said she was in a consensual relationship, or marriage, with the accused. Who files these cases? In one third of rape cases being tried in Delhi and Mumbai in 2013, it was the parents of daughters who had filed complaints — maybe her boyfriend was of a different caste or faith or maybe they were just upset at her exercise of agency. This desire for control extends to khap panchayats and even elected leaders who have said parental consent should be mandatory for love marriages. The irony of weaponising a law intended to protect adolescent girls to control them is evident. 'This was a classic Pocso case,' says Madhavi Divan, amicus curiae in the matter. 'But the truth is more complicated. The girl is very sure of her choices and determined to protect her small family.' One solution to prevent the abuse of Pocso could be a 'Romeo and Juliet' clause adopted this year in the UK that exempts consensual teenage sex from mandatory reporting of child sexual abuse. The clause is intended to provide some discretion in limited situations to avoid 'unintentional consequences'. But a more long-term solution suggested by Divan is to have a national sex education policy so that adolescents are made aware of the consequences of a sexual relationship. The Supreme Court has asked the Union government to consider devising such a policy. In a country where 22% of female adolescents are married as children, sex education remains a red flag. A Unesco report found that 71% of youth aged between 13 and 30 in 17 states said they had not been taught about sexuality by either teachers or parents. The Supreme Court has upheld the conviction of the man for sexually assaulting a minor girl in 2018 but refused to sentence him, noting that the victim would be the 'worst sufferer' if he was to be jailed again. The girl, meanwhile, told the court she wants to complete her education and get on with her life. Namita Bhandare writes on gender. The views expressed are personal
