- NRC Co-ordinator to submit district wise data of exclusions – Continuing its supervision of the NRC process, the Supreme Court has directed the Assam State Co-ordinator for the NRC to submit a district wise data of the persons excluded from the list, in a sealed cover. While the Union Government submitted the standard operating procedure outlining the procedure for filing and disposal of claims/objections, the Court sought the views of various stake holders, including the Petitioners, student union groups, etc on the standard procedure. The claims and objections against the NRC would be allowed till 30 August, 2018 and copies of the draft NRC would have to be made available at each Panchayat office. [Assam Public Works v Union of India, Writ Petition(s)(Civil) No(s). 274/2009, date of order: 16.08.2018]
- Inquiry ordered in Hapur Lynching – The Supreme Court has issued notice to the Uttar Pradesh Government on a petition filed by the survivor and eye witness of the gruesome lynching in Hapur, UP, which resulted in the death of a Muslim meat trader. Terming the allegations in the petition as ‘serious’, the Apex Court ordered the Inspector General of Meerut to conduct an inquiry into the lynching incident, and also directed the IG to issue orders to the concerned magistrate to record statements in the matter. The Court further asked the Superintendent of Police, Hapur to provide police protection to the witnesses, if they fear for their security. This comes in the light of the decision of the Supreme Court, rendered last month asking the Centre as well the States to comply with its directions to curb such vigilantism. The states have to show compliance by 20th August, 2018. [Samaydeen v State of Uttar Pradesh, Writ Petition (Criminal) No.189/2018, date of order: 13.08.2018]
- Re-visiting the judgment on reservations in promotion- The Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court is currently hearing a batch of petition seeking reconsideration of its own 2006 judgment in M. Nagaraj & Ors. vs. Union of India, wherein it was held that reservations for SC/ST’s in promotion were not mandatory. The Attorney General of India, Shri KK Venugopal, sought a reference to a larger bench, in light of the seven (N.M. Thomas, 1976) and nine judge (Indra Sawhney, 1992) bench decisions. In extending the creamy layer concept to SC’s/ ST’s, the AG submitted that there is no precedent on the same and they shouldn’t be deprived of benefits that accrue to them. [Jarnail Singh & Ors. vs. Union of India, Special Leave Petition (Civil) No. 31735/2011, date of order: 16.08.2018]
- Reduction in water levels at Mullaperiyar dam – In light of the current devastating floods in Kerala, the Supreme Court asked the Sub-Committee constituted under the Disaster Management Act, 2005, along with National Crisis Management Committee to look into the issue of reduction of the level of water in the Mullaperiyar dam below the 139 feet mark. The petitioner claimed that Tamil Nadu let the water levels rise to 142 feet before it took any action leading to the current situation in Kerala. The Court asked the States of Tamil Nadu and Kerala to follow the recommendations of the Committee including the reduction of water levels of the dam gradually, and to take measures while releasing water to ensure that downstream inhabitants of that area are not affected. [Russel Joy v Union of India, Miscellaneous Application No.2219/2018 in Writ Petition (Civil) No.878/2017, date of order: 17.08.2018]
- Congress leader moves court demanding random verification of VVPAT machines – Senior Congress leader, Kamal Nath has moved the Supreme Court asking for a random verification Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) machines in the ongoing Assembly polls in Madhya Pradesh. According to his petition, he has also approached the Election Commission of India highlighting 60 lakh duplicate, repeat, multiple, illegal, invalid, false etc. entries/voters in the elections. He also suggested that the paper trail time be increased from 7 to 15 seconds, not posting officials in important positions in the election who have disciplinary proceedings going on against them etc. Matter has been ordered to be listed before appropriate bench. [Kamal Nath v Election Commission of India, Writ Petition (Civil) No. 935/2018, date of order: 10.08.2018]
- 355 army officers move against CBI alleging dilution of AFSPA – In a surprising development, 355 army officers have approached the Supreme Court against the dilution of the provisions of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act, without any specific amendment to that effect. There were reports of more than 1500 extra judicial killings in Manipur between 2000 to 2012 for which an SIT was constituted under the guidance of the Court. The petitioners allege that the SIT is proceeding in a hasty manner as they have to file their chargesheets in a time bound manner. The petition also asks for absolute immunity for the officers since they acted on orders from their superiors who were following orders from the Government of India.
- Fundamental rights under Article 14 and 19 to, prima facie, extend to Overseas citizens – The Delhi High Court has held that the rights under Articles 14 and 19 under the Indian Constitution are prima facie available to an Overseas citizen of India. The Court based its reasoning in Section 7B(1) of the Citizenship Act, which states that all the rights except those mentioned in it are the ones that are available to an OCI. The case pertained to a medical missionary who was working in Bihar. According to the intelligence report, which in turn led to the cancellation of his OCI status, his teaching had led to a law and order situation in the area where he was practicing. The proceedings in the matter are still going on. [Christo Thomas Phillip v Union of India, Writ Petition (Civil) 1775/2018, date of judgment: 30.07.2018]
- Closure of abandoned asbestos mines ordered across 4 states – The National Green Tribunal has ordered the governments of Jharkhand, Rajasthan, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh to systematically and by following scientific procedures close down abandoned asbestos mines in their territories. The Tribunal took note of the impact caused to people’s health the areas surrounding the abandoned mills. The petitioners claimed that the mines had been abandoned years ago but no action was taken to close them down leading to tons of asbestos leaking into water bodies, agricultural lands etc, impacting the health of the residents, supporting their claims with medical studies. The rehabilitation of the mines has to be done in 6 months.
IPA Service)
Prepared by Amritananda Chakravorty (amritananda.c@gmail.com) and Mihir Samson (mihirsamson@gmail.com), Delhi based practicing Advocates.
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