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Time of India
8 hours ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Supreme Court warns governments against invoking stringent laws as tool of harassment
Representative Image NEW DELHI: Cautioning govts not to invoke stringent laws like UP Gangsters Act "as an instrument of harassment or intimidation, particularly where political motivations may be at play", Supreme Court has quashed an FIR lodged under the Act against people taking part in a demonstration after a communal flare-up arising out of a controversial social media post targeting a religious group, reports Amit Anand Choudhary. It said the accused were arrested and booked under various provisions of IPC for vandalising a shop owned by a person who had put an "incendiary" social media post. Supreme Court said the accused were arrested and booked under provisions of IPC for vandalising a shop and there was no need for lodging a second FIR against them by invoking Gangsters Act six months after the incident. Noting the stringent law was invoked 13 days after an accused's daughter-in- law filed nomination for chairmanship of Nagar Panchayat Khargupur (UP), a bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta said, "This timing lends credence to their contention the Act may have been weaponised for extraneous considerations. " Allowing the plea of Lal Mohammad and other accused, the bench said the Act was enacted to combat organised gang-based crime and dismantle criminal syndicates, and invoking the law "based on a single incident of communal violence... is a significant departure from its legislative purpose". It said mere involvement of the accused in a demonstration after the communal flare-up, however serious, did not transform the participants into a 'gang' without evidence of organised and continuous criminal activity. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like What She Did Mid-Air Left Passengers Speechless medalmerit Learn More Undo "The constitutional guarantee of personal liberty acquires even greater significance when extraordinary legislation with stringent provisions, such as UP Gangsters Act, is invoked. While the state has broad discretion in criminal prosecution, this discretion must be exercised judiciously, based on relevant considerations, and in conformity with the statutory purpose. The power conferred upon the state cannot be wielded as an instrument of harassment or intimidation, particularly where political motivations may be at play," said Justice Mehta, who penned the judgment. "It is a cardinal principle of criminal jurisprudence that extraordinary penal provisions, particularly those that substantially abridge regular procedural safeguards, must be invoked based on evidence that meets a threshold of credibility and substantiality. The materials relied upon must establish a reasonable nexus between the accused and the alleged criminal activity, demonstrating actual probability of involvement rather than mere theoretical possibility. When a statute creates serious fetters on personal liberty, the evidentiary foundation for its invocation must be commensurately strong, supported by concrete, verifiable facts rather than vague assertions."
Time of India
02-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
SC strikes down JSW's deal, orders liquidation of Bhushan Steel & Power
NEW DELHI: Supreme Court on Friday quashed the acquisition of bankrupt Bhushan Power & Steel Ltd by under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code and ordered liquidation of the debt-ridden company, in a blow to the Sajjan Jindal-led group and public sector banks, reports Amit Anand Choudhary. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The court said there were multiple violations of law and regulations in accepting JSW's Rs 19,700 crore plan and held that the resolution professional "utterly failed to discharge his statutory duties" and the committee of creditors, largely comprising lenders, "failed to exercise its commercial wisdom" and protect the interest of creditors. The bench accepted the submission that there was "a dishonest and fraudulent attempt" by JSW by misusing the court process, not making upfront payments after its plan was approved. There was an entire spectrum of flaws in JSW's resolution plan: SC A bench of Justices Bela M Trivedi and Satish Chandra Sharma set aside the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal ( NCLAT ) order approving JSW's Rs 19,700 crore resolution plan. "There was an entire spectrum of lacunae and flaws in the resolution plan of JSW with regard to non-compliance of the mandatory requirements under IBC. The upfront payments as agreed to be made in the resolution plan within 30 days of the approval of the plan by National Company Law Tribunal ( NCLT ) was delayed by 540 days in respect of payment to the financial creditors and by 900 days in respect of payment to the operational creditors," the bench said. JSW's actions faced severe criticism. "Instituting vexatious and frivolous litigations in NCLT or NCLAT and delaying the implementation of resolution plan under the garb of pendency of proceedings has clearly proved the mala fide and dishonest intention on the part of JSW, in firstly securing highest score making misrepresentation before CoC and then not implementing the same under the garb of pendency of proceedings, though the resolution plan was supposed to be an unconditional one," the bench said. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now In 2017, had initiated insolvency action. In Sept 2019, NCLT had approved JSW's resolution plan, and in Feb 2020, NCLAT had passed its order on a batch of petitions filed against the order. The admitted claims of financial creditors, led by , was to tune of Rs 47,000 crore.
Time of India
02-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Digital access part of fundamental right to life and liberty, says SC
Ruling that right to digital access is an intrinsic part of the fundamental right to life and liberty , Supreme Court on Wednesday said it is a constitutional imperative for the Centre and its authorities to bridge the digital divide faced by large sections of the country's rural population, senior citizens, economically weaker communities, linguistic minorities and differently-abled persons. SC passed a slew of directions to revise the current KYC process for visually- and hearing-impaired users, and to develop alternative formats — including Braille and voice-enabled services — to ensure accessibility for all, reports Amit Anand Choudhary. 'At this juncture, we may also wish to observe that in the contemporary era, where access to essential services, governance, education, healthcare and economic opportunities is increasingly mediated through digital platforms, the right to life under Article 21 of the Constitution must be reinterpreted in light of these technological realities. The digital divide — characterised by unequal access to digital infrastructure, skills, and content — continues to perpetuate systemic exclusion, not only of persons with disabilities, but also of large sections of rural populations, senior citizens, economically weaker communities, and linguistic minorities. The principle of substantive equality demands that digital transformation be both inclusive and equitable,' Supreme Court said.
