Latest news with #PunjabPoliceAct
Time of India
2 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Send Punjab plea on bills to 5-judge bench: Govt urges SC
NEW DELHI: The Centre has requested the Supreme Court to refer a petition filed by the Punjab govt seeking the court's intervention in two bills - one amending the Sikh Gurdwaras Act and the other Punjab Police Act - to the five-judge bench which is scheduled to hear Presidential Reference on SC's jurisdiction to fix timelines for the President and governors in granting, refusing or withholding assent to bills. For the Centre, advocate Kanu Agrawal requested a bench led by CJI B R Gavai to either tag the Punjab petition with the Presidential Reference or keep it pending for adjudication after the five-judge bench gives its opinion on the 14 questions raised by President Droupadi Murmu in her reference under Article 143 following SC's Apr 8 judgment. The bench posted the Centre's application for hearing on Monday. The Punjab govt had complained that the bills passed by the assembly two years back - The Sikh Gurdwaras (Amendment) Bill, 2023, and The Punjab Police (Amendment) Bill, 2023 - have been kept in limbo by the President after the governor arbitrarily referred these to her. The state challenged "the governor's referral of the two bills to the President of India for her consideration in contravention to the aid and advice of the council of ministers in the absence of any constitutional trigger or any extraordinary breakdown of democratic governance." It also challenged "the President's inaction on both the bills" and said as per the Apr 8 judgment, she has to provide reasons for refusing assent or withholding assent. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Could This NEW Collagen Blend Finally Reduce Your Cellulite? Vitauthority Learn More Undo The Sikh Gurdwaras (Amendment) Bill, 2023, mandates the board constituted under the Sikh Gurdwaras Act, 1925, to propagate teachings of the Gurus by making uninterrupted live feed of the holy Gurbani from Sri Harmandir Sahib available to all media houses, platforms, channels etc. free of cost, and restrains anyone broadcasting the Holy Gurbani from telecasting any advertisement 30 minutes prior to and after the broadcast. The Punjab Police (Amendment) Bill, 2023, seeks to amend the Punjab Police Act, 2007, to create an independent mechanism for selection and appointment of suitable persons to the post of Director General of Police (DGP). The state said the amendment would free the selection from political or executive interference, while keeping in view the peculiar conditions in Punjab.
Time of India
2 days ago
- Time of India
Public drinkers sentenced to serve in cow shelters, old age homes
Chandigarh: Those caught drinking in public in the city now have a chance at redemption. A total of 514 persons were caught drinking in public and creating a nuisance across the city between January 1, 2023 and June 30, 2025. Normally, the court would only have imposed fines on them but now, the approach is reformative. In the UT, people caught for such offences are being ordered to serve in old age homes and cow shelters. This decision is aligned with a shift in the criminal justice system, that includes community service as an alternative to traditional punishments for minor offences, as noted in the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS). In August, the UT court ordered five convicts to perform community service in local old age homes and gaushalas for four days. As per police data, 16 police stations of Chandigarh nabbed 291 people from different parts of the city for consuming alcohol and creating a nuisance in public places in 2023. With police cracking down on those drinking in public, the number of arrests for public drinking came down to 102 in 2024. However, the figure rose to 121 in just six months of this year. Police book people for drinking under Section 355 (dealing with misconduct in public by a drunken person) of BNS and Section 68-1(B) of the Punjab Police Act. Earlier, courts only fined them Rs 1,000 to 2,000 and disposed of the cases. Most of them were fined only for drinking in public. After the implementation of three new criminal laws in the city, new laws provide community service as an alternative form of punishment for minor offences like drinking in public, lodging a fake complaint of defamation, attempting to commit suicide, failing to appear in court on summons, and public servants unlawfully engaging in trade. The UT district and session court ordered five people who were caught by the Chandigarh police for creating a nuisance and drinking alcohol in public, in July and August, to perform community service in the city's old age homes and gaushalas for four days. The court also directed investigating officers of the case to coordinate with in-charges of cow shelter homes and old age homes. They will assign attendance charts of the convicts and furnish reports of their community service, to be submitted in court. On July 29, one of the convicts, Shintu, was arrested for drinking in a public place. The court convicted him on August 2 and ordered him to perform community service for four days in the Sector 30 old age home. As Shintu resolved never to repeat the mistake, the court gave him a chance to redeem himself and gave him the opportunity to reform. UT SSP Kanwardeep Kaur also hailed the move saying that paying a fine of Rs 1,000 or 2,000 would not make much of a difference for convicts, who would be better off performing community service would help them realise their shortcomings better. In February, 2025, the Chandigarh court sentenced a man with a history of 269 traffic violations, including dangerous driving, red light jumping, and not wearing a helmet, to 15 days of community service. The court ordered him to manage traffic alongside police officers at a signal as part of his community service. MSID:: 123347335 413 | Stay updated with the latest local news from your city on Times of India (TOI). Check upcoming bank holidays , public holidays , and current gold rates and silver prices in your area.
