2025 | Page 172 of 239

SAM & Co. Promotes 107 Lawyers to Principal Associate and Senior Associate Roles for FY 2025-26

India’s leading Law Firm, Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas

MP High Court calls for report on Legal Aid provided to undertrials/convicts in filing Bail applications, appeals & revisions

In the instant matter, appellant was a poor person having no source of earning and there was no one in the immediate family to take care which caused delay in filing the appeal.

Case Briefs High Courts

‘Illegal construction by residents, cannot claim vested right for resettlement & rehabilitation’; Gujarat HC refuses to stay demolition drive on Chandola Lake

The Court stated that since the land was a notified water body and no construction could be permitted on it, the constructions carried out by the residents was illegal.

Digital KYC acid attack victimsvisually impaired

Case Briefs Supreme Court

‘Right to digital access intrinsic component of right to life & liberty’; SC issues Directives to ease Digital KYC for acid attack victims/visually impaired

“Bridging the digital divide is no longer merely a matter of policy discretion but has become a constitutional imperative to secure a life of dignity, autonomy and equal participation in public life”.

Case Briefs High Courts

Bar Associations not ‘State’ under Art. 12 of Constitution, hence writ petition under Art. 226 not maintainable against them: Bombay HC

The bar associations are either societies registered under the Societies Registration Act, 1860, or trusts; are governed by their own byelaws or rules and there is no pervasive control of the Government or even of the Bar Council on the bar associations.

Legal RoundUp Topic-wise Roundup

CRIMINAL LAW ROUNDUP: A quick recap of the top criminal cases from April 2025

Covering all the important criminal cases across various High Courts, this roundup provides a quick summary of cases such as Asaram Bapu’s Bail, ₹37.29 Cr ITC fraud case, Raj Thackeray’s stone pelting case, Hathras Gangrape and Murder Case, KIIT Student’s Death, and much more.

Case Briefs High Courts

Offence under POCSO Act not against individual but against society; Subsequent marriage between accused and victim does not erase the crime: Madras HC

“Offence under the POCSO Act is not against individual and it is against the Society. Hence, the subsequent marriage between the convict and the victim will not take away the offence committed by the convict when the victim girl was a child. If the defence of subsequent marriage or the elopement is accepted, then the purpose of enactment of the POCSO Act would get defeated.”

Legal RoundUp Supreme Court Roundups

Supreme Court Roundup April 2025 | Stories on Manual Scavenging; Modification of Arbitral Award; Child Trafficking; and Appointment of Justice B.R. Gavai as 52nd CJI

This comprehensive roundup brings together the Court’s most impactful rulings and judicial developments from the month.

Case Briefs High Courts

Meghalaya HC closes suo motu PIL to protect wetlands, considering none of the sites qualified as Ramsar site

The Supreme Court had directed the High Court to pass suitable orders for the State for the identification, preservation, and maintenance of these waterbodies in accordance with the resolution taken in the Ramsar Convention.

Legal RoundUp Legislation Roundup

LEGISLATION ROUNDUP APRIL 2025: Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025; Custom clearance of imports; Increased excise duty on petrol; and more

Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025 receives assent of President on 5th April 2025.

Experts Corner Tarun Jain (Tax Practitioner)

GST on Online Gaming: Unravelling the Shades of India’s Leading Tax Controversy

by Tarun Jain*

Case Briefs High Courts

Karnataka HC emphasises on the need for Investigating Officers acquainted with technology to tackle emerging cybercrimes

“An ordinary Investigating Officer or a conventional Investigating Officer would not be so equipped with such emerging crimes to decode the labyrinth of cybercrimes”.

Leave encashment under Sikkim Leave Rules

Case Briefs Supreme Court

Supreme Court overturns Sikkim High Court ruling on leave encashment for re-employed retired government employees beyond 300 days under Sikkim Leave Rules

While leave encashment served to reward the extraordinary work ethic of an employee, its application needed to uphold both the legal rights of the employee and the long-term viability of the institution. Courts, therefore, had to interpret leave encashment provisions and related statutes in a manner that protected against undue financial burden on the employer while ensuring lawful entitlements were honored.

Case Briefs High Courts

‘Mother equal natural guardian, cannot be implicated in kidnapping her child’; P&H HC dismisses uncle’s habeas corpus plea for custody of 12-year-old nephew

The Court noted that the mother, who ordinarily resides in Australia, merely responded to the distress call of her child who was left with the house help by his father while he was on a business trip.

Case Briefs High Courts

Delhi HC dismisses BSNL’s appeal; Upholds ₹43.52 cr. arbitration award in favour of Vihaan Networks for pre-contractual work on 2G Network in Northeast

The genesis of the dispute lay in the Notice Inviting Tender by BSNL, acting on behalf of the Universal Services Obligation Fund, for the establishment and maintenance of 2G GSM BSS Network in remote and insurgency-affected areas of Arunachal Pradesh and Assam.

Hot Off The Press News

Courts have limited power to modify arbitral awards under Sections 34 and 37 of Arbitration and Conciliation Act: Supreme Court by 4:1 majority

Section 34 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 provides the legal framework for challenging an arbitral award before a court, while Section 37 governs appeals against specific orders passed under the Act, including those made under Section 34.

Case Briefs High Courts

Services provided to individual by advocate or firm are exempted from levy of service tax; Orissa HC quashes Rs. 2 Lakhs service tax notice

Services provided by an advocate or a Partnership firm of advocates providing legal services to any person other than a business entity and a business entity with a turnover up to rupees ten lakhs in the preceding financial year are exempted from the levy of service tax.

Case Briefs Supreme Court

Honour killing, an odious crime & ugly reality of deeply entrenched caste structure; must get a strong measure of punishment: SC

In the instant case, a young married couple in their early 20s were murdered via administering them poison in full view of the villagers.

Case Briefs High Courts

‘Non-bailable warrants must not be issued mechanically’; Punjab & Haryana HC quashes bail cancellation order of accused who missed one hearing due to ill health

“The issuance of non bailable warrants must not be exercised in a mechanical manner. It must be adopted sparingly and only upon recording cogent reasons that reflect the necessity of such a stringent course.”

Case Briefs High Courts

MP High Court upholds Civil Judge’s dismissal for delivering verdicts in several criminal cases without writing judgments

“A judicial officer cannot pronounce the concluding portion of his judgment in open court without the entire text of the judgment being prepared/dictated.”