Categoies
High Courts and Tribunals
Delhi High Court issues notice to JNU, UGC in GS CASH case
The Delhi High Court has issued notice to Jawaharlal Nehru University and the University Grants Commission in a petition filed by some teachers of JNU against the disbanding of GS CASH. GS CASH, the University’s Committee for entertaining complaints of sexual harassment, was replaced with an Internal Complaints Committee vide an administrative decision. As students […]
Jharkhand and Bombay High Courts adopt opposing views on second and third trimester abortions
The Jharkhand High Court has held that medical termination of pregnancy after the statutorily stipulated twenty week period is permissible in cases where carrying the pregnancy to term would harm the mental health of the pregnant woman. In doing so, the Court has adopted a wide interpretation of Sec. 5 of the Medical Termination of […]
Vodafone fined for violation of Supreme Court’s Vishakha guidelines
The Bombay High Court has imposed a fine of Rs. 50,000 on the company Vodafone for failing to constitute a complaints committee in accordance with the Supreme Court’s guidelines in the case of Vishakha v. State of Rajasthan in the year 1997. The quantum of the fine is analogous to the amount that the company […]
Punjab and Haryana High Court suspends sentence for rape on the grounds of promiscuity of the victim, grants bail to 3 convicts
The Punjab and Haryana High Court has suspended the sentence of three persons convicted of aggravated rape, gang rape, criminal conspiracy, criminal intimidation, and obscenity, and has granted them bail, on the grounds that the facts of the case spoke to an alternative story of a casual relationship with friends, which had taken an unfortunate […]
Kerala High Court denies plea of parents for custody of adult daughter, but restricts her freedom of movement and autonomy
Following the Hadiya case, the Kerala High Court has, in another case of a young adult women eloping with her partner with the intention of marrying him, ruled in favor of the girl’s choice while continuing to exercise severe restrictions over her movement and autonomy. In this case, the parents of the adult woman registered […]
Sikkim High Court declares all orders under Sikkim Succession Act 2008 null and void
As reported by PLD in its May-June newsletter, several Sikkimese women had filed a petition in High Court challenging the Sikkim Succession Act, 2008 for being discriminatory as it denies equal property rights to women married to non-Sikkimese men, or those who have acquired foreign citizenship. The Sikkim High Court has declared all orders arising […]
Occurrence of harassment immediately before death not necessary to prove offence of murder for dowry, rules Delhi HC
Delhi High court refused to set aside the conviction of a man in a case of dowry death merely on the ground that no harassment had occurred immediately before the incident. Justice Gupta noted that the essential ingredients for prosecution under Section 304B are: (i) the death of a woman must have been caused by […]
Victims of sexual harassment must be provided case information within 48 hours, holds CIC
The Central Information Commission has ruled that information on sexual harassment cases should be provided to the victims within 48 hours under the Right to Information (RTI) Act, as it pertains to their “life and liberty” under Section 7 (1) of the Act. The Appeal under consideration by the CIC was filed by a woman […]
Additional Sessions Judge has jurisdiction to award compensation under POCSO, holds Chhattisgarh High Court
The Chhattisgarh High Court has noted that an Additional Sessions Judge trying cases under the Protection of Children against Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012 would have the same power as a Special Judge to award compensation to a child victim of sexual offences. The Court placed reliance on Section 33(8) of the POCSO which confers […]
Benefits under the Maternity Benefits Act must be extended to contractual workers, holds MP HC
The Madhya Pradesh High court has ruled that maternity leave should be granted to contractual employees at par with regular employees. In this case, the state was denying maternity leave relying on the contract of appointment which stated that maternity leave can be granted to contractual workers only upon the completion on one year of […]