Author: Anvita Dwivedi
The Supreme Court of India has raised significant concerns over the interpretation and implementation of its landmark Lalita Kumari v. Government of Uttar Pradesh judgment, observing that the ruling which traditionally requires police to register a First Information Report (FIR) upon receipt of information disclosing a cognizable offence has been abused extensively, and that its application must be re-examined in the context of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), one of India’s new criminal statutes. A bench led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and comprising Justice Joymalya Bagchi was hearing a petition challenging several provisions of the BNSS,…
New Delhi, February 27, 2026: The Supreme Court of India has raised serious procedural questions about the nationwide enforcement of the Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act, 1937 (“Shariat Act”), directing all States and Union Territories (UTs) to file a consolidated report outlining the status of rules framed under the statute. A Bench comprising Justice Sanjay Karol and Justice Augustine George Masih expressed concern that several States/UTs have not framed the requisite rules under Section 4 of the 1937 Act, effectively leaving the law inoperative in crucial aspects for Muslim citizens seeking its protections. Under the Shariat Act, a Muslim…
New Delhi, February 27, 2026: In a significant judicial decision, a special court at the Rouse Avenue Court Complex has discharged Arvind Kejriwal the national convenor of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and former Chief Minister of Delhi along with Manish Sisodia, former Deputy Chief Minister, in the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)’s high-profile excise policy corruption case. The order also cleared all other accused, bringing a major turnaround to nearly three years of legal confrontation. Court’s Rationale: No Prima Facie Case, Flawed Chargesheet Presiding Special Judge Jitendra Singh declined to take cognizance of the CBI’s chargesheet, observing that the…
Indore, 27 February 2026: The Madhya Pradesh High Court has delivered a significant order addressing a habeas corpus petition filed by a Bangladeshi national detained in a detention centre for over six years, directing the State to expedite the long-pending criminal trial against her while declining to order her immediate release. The decision reflects the court’s attempt to balance individual liberty, public safety concerns, and the need for a speedy trial. The petitioner, identified as Lima @ Riya Sheikh, a citizen of Bangladesh, filed a writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution contending that her ongoing detention was illegal…
New Delhi, 27 February 2026: The Supreme Court of India has clarified a critical aspect of criminal procedure law holding that the limitation period for filing criminal complaints under the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) begins from the date on which the identity of the accused becomes known to the investigating authority, and not from the date when the first complaint is received. This landmark interpretation affects how time-bars are calculated in regulatory and economic offence prosecutions. A Division Bench of Justices Ahsanuddin Amanullah and S.V.N. Bhatti delivered the judgment in an appeal arising from Kerala, setting aside a Kerala…
Bhopal/Indore, 26 February 2026: The Madhya Pradesh High Court is hearing a significant challenge to the state’s medical admission framework relating to the treatment of Non-Resident Indian (NRI) quota seats in postgraduate medical counselling for NEET PG 2025. A postgraduate medical aspirant has approached the Court seeking a judicial review of Rule 14(2) of the Madhya Pradesh Medical Education Admission Rules, 2018 and an extension of NRI quota protection into the stray vacancy round of counselling. The petition, filed before a Division Bench of Justice Vijay Kumar Shukla and Justice Alok Awasthi, targets the provision in Rule 14(2) that permits…
Kochi, 26 February 2026: The Kerala High Court has taken significant interim measures in the legal controversy surrounding the upcoming Hindi film The Kerala Story 2 goes Beyond by temporarily staying its release and raising pointed questions about the Central Board of Film Certification’s (CBFC) decision to grant it a U/A certificate. The film, produced by Vipul Amrutlal Shah and directed by Kamakhya Narayan Singh, was scheduled for a nationwide theatrical release on 27 February 2026. A single-judge bench led by Justice Bechu Kurian Thomas on Thursday granted an interim stay on the film’s release and distribution rights, observing prima…
New Delhi, 26 February 2026: The Lok Sabha Speaker, Om Birla, has reconstituted the three-member parliamentary inquiry committee tasked with examining the allegations of corruption and misconduct against Justice Yashwant Varma, currently a judge of the Allahabad High Court. This move comes in light of the upcoming retirement of one of the committee’s original members and ensures continuity in the ongoing probe under the Judges (Inquiry) Act, 1968. According to an official notification issued by the Lok Sabha Secretariat, the inquiry committee will be reshaped with effect from 6 March 2026. Justice Shree Chandrashekhar, Chief Justice of the Bombay High…
New Delhi, 26 February 2026: The Supreme Court of India on Thursday took suo motu cognisance of contentious content in a newly released NCERT Class 8 Social Science textbook, leading to an ongoing hearing before a Constitutional bench and swift responses from educational authorities. A bench headed by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, along with Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M. Pancholi, is hearing the matter titled In Re: Social Science Textbook for Grade-8 (Part-2) Published by NCERT and Ancillary Issues. The Court’s intervention follows widespread concern over a chapter that discusses “corruption in the judiciary” a reference that…
New Delhi, 25 February 2026: The Supreme Court of India today dismissed a petition seeking to ban or change the title of the upcoming Hindi film Yadav Ji Ki Love Story, holding that the film’s name does not cast the Yadav community in a negative light and therefore does not warrant judicial interference. A bench comprising Justices B.V. Nagarathna and Ujjal Bhuyan heard the writ petition filed by the chief of the Vishwa Yadav Parishad, who contended that the movie’s title offended community sentiments and propagated a derogatory stereotype. The petitioner argued that linking a community name with “Love Story”…