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Sikkim High Court to consider the unconstitutionality of the Sikkim Succession Act, 2008
Several Sikkimese women have filed a petition in High Court challenging the Sikkim Succession Act, 2008 for being discriminatory. Although the Sikkim Succession Act, 2008grants daughters and wives equal rights to hold and inherit property, it denies these rights to women married to non-Sikkimese men, or those who have acquired foreign citizenship. Immovable assets of […]
India presents third UPR at Human Rights Council
India presented its third Universal Periodic Review (UPR) at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on 4th May, 2017. The Government of India received recommendations on a number of gender and sexuality issues, including sexual violence, LGBT rights, girls’ education, child marriage, forced sterilisation, domestic violence and marital rape. In its reply, the government […]
Compassionate appointment cannot be denied on the ground of marriage of the daughter of the deceased
A cooperative bank refused to grant compassionate appointment to a woman on the ground that she was married at the time of her father’s death. This order of the Bank was challenged by the Petitioner as being violative of several fundamental rights, including the right to equality. Holding in favour of the Petitioner, the High […]
Eating food of choice, be it meat, is an aspect of the Right to Food
The Allahabad High Court has held that the right to choice of food falls within the fundamental right to food. This observation was made by the Court while granting relief to the petitioner, whose application for renewal of license for selling goat meat was not reviewed by the municipality. Criticising the lack of response to […]
Allahabad High Court holds Anti-Romeo Squads valid
Two separate public interest litigations sought intervention of the Allahabad High Court in restraining the Anti Romeo Squads of the UP government from ‘moral policing,’ in face of reports and videos showing an over-reach of powers in the way they targeted and humiliated young couples in public places. The first PIL was dismissed on the […]
Supreme Court takes note of Law Commissions recommendations on death penalty, commutes sentence
In a case of double murder of the accused person’s wife and child, the Supreme Court overturned the judgment of acquittal of the High Court. However, given the possibility of human error in investigation and appreciation of evidence, the Court refused to impose the death penalty upon the accused. The Court also noted that the […]
Divorced wife can claim maintenance despite desertion
The Supreme Court, upholding an order of the Himachal Pradesh High Court, granted maintenance to a divorced wife who had deserted her husband. Her husband had obtained divorce on the ground of desertion, and opposed her maintenance petition on the strength of an exception under Sec. 125(4) of the Criminal Procedure Code. This subsection states […]
Court refuses permission to abort 27 week old foetus
Developing a confusing jurisprudence on the right of women to terminate a pregnancy after 20 weeks, the Supreme Court refused to allow a woman who had been pregnant for 27 weeks to abort the foetus. The woman had petitioned to the Court seeking exemption from the 20 week rule under the Medical Termination of Pregnancy […]
High Courts directed to Implement the POCSO Act
Noting the non-implementation of Section 32 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO), the Supreme Court has directed High Courts of 12 states and two Union territories to take suo motu action and appoint special public prosecutors to deal with cases of child sexual abuse. Section 32 of the POCSO Act requires […]
Cabinet approves ratification of Minimum Age Convention, 1973 and Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 of ILO
The Union Cabinet has given its approval for ratification of two fundamental conventions of the International Labour Organisation, namely, Minimum Age Convention (No. 138) concerning minimum age for admission to employment and the Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention (No. 182) concerning the prohibition and immediate action for elimination of the worst forms of child […]