Author: Anvita Dwivedi
In a significant development that could reshape India’s labour and social welfare jurisprudence, the Supreme Court of India has urged the Union Government to introduce a legal framework recognizing paternity leave as a social security benefit, signalling a shift towards a more gender-neutral understanding of parenting and caregiving. The observation came from a bench comprising Justice J.B. Pardiwala and Justice R. Mahadevan, while deciding a case concerning maternity benefits for adoptive mothers under the Code on Social Security, 2020. In the same judgment, the Court declared unconstitutional a provision that restricted maternity leave for adoptive mothers only where the adopted…
In a significant ruling reinforcing consumer protection in the insurance sector, the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, East Delhi, has held Star Health and Allied Insurance Co. Ltd. guilty of deficiency in service for wrongfully denying a mediclaim reimbursement to a policyholder. The Commission ruled that the insurer had failed to establish that the medical treatment fell within the policy’s exclusion clause, thereby rendering the repudiation unjustified. The decision was delivered by a bench comprising S.S. Malhotra (President) and Ravi Kumar (Member), which allowed the complaint and directed the insurer to honour the claim after finding the repudiation legally unsustainable.…
The long-standing constitutional dispute over women’s entry into the hill shrine of Sabarimala Temple has once again reached the centre of judicial scrutiny, with Hamid Dabholkar, son of slain rationalist Narendra Dabholkar, approaching the Supreme Court of India seeking permission to intervene in the ongoing review proceedings. In his intervention plea, Hamid Dabholkar along with social activist Nandini Jadhav has strongly defended the Court’s landmark 2018 verdict that permitted women of all age groups to enter the temple dedicated to Lord Ayyappa. The applicants contend that the traditional prohibition on women between the ages of 10 and 50 amounts to…
The Supreme Court of India has indicated its reluctance to intervene in matters relating to the structure of legal education while hearing a public interest litigation seeking to reduce the duration of the five-year integrated LL.B programme to four years. The Court observed that such policy decisions fall primarily within the domain of academic and regulatory bodies rather than judicial determination. A Bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi made the observations while considering a petition filed by advocate Ashwini Upadhyay, which calls for comprehensive reforms in legal education, including a review of the duration…
In a significant development highlighting the intersection of criminal law, state sanction, and freedom of expression, the Government of Haryana has informed the Supreme Court of India that it will not grant sanction to prosecute Professor Ali Khan Mahmudabad, a faculty member at Ashoka University, in connection with criminal cases registered over his social media remarks on “Operation Sindoor.” A Bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi recorded the State’s submission and consequently brought an end to the criminal proceedings arising from the controversy. The decision came after the Court had earlier indicated that the State…
The Supreme Court of India on Thursday heard review petitions challenging its earlier decision mandating three years of legal practice as a prerequisite for entry into judicial service. During the hearing, Justice K. Vinod Chandran remarked that much of the opposition to the rule appears to be influenced by the growing ecosystem of coaching centres that prepare candidates for judicial examinations. The observation was made by a bench led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, also comprising Justices Augustine George Masih and K. Vinod Chandran, while hearing review petitions against the Court’s May 2025 judgment restoring the three-year practice…
In a significant observation reaffirming the protection of religious freedoms, the Allahabad High Court has held that administrative authorities cannot restrict the number of persons offering Namaz merely on the apprehension of law-and-order issues. The Court emphasized that maintaining public order is the responsibility of the State, and such concerns cannot be used to curtail the exercise of religious practices. The remarks were made by a division bench comprising Justice Atul Sreedharan and Justice Siddharth Nandan while hearing a writ petition filed by Munazir Khan, who alleged that authorities in Sambhal district had prevented worshippers from offering Namaz at a…
In a significant step that could reshape the contours of labour jurisprudence in India, the Supreme Court of India has notified the composition of a nine-judge Constitution Bench to examine the scope of the term “industry” under the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947. The bench is set to reconsider the expansive interpretation laid down in the landmark judgment of Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board v. A. Rajappa (1978), a precedent that has long governed labour law disputes across the country. The Constitution Bench will be headed by the Chief Justice of India, Surya Kant, and will include Justices B. V.…
In a significant development concerning the use of preventive detention powers, the Union Government has revoked the detention order issued against Ladakh-based climate activist and education reformer Sonam Wangchuk under the National Security Act, 1980 (NSA). The decision, communicated through the Ministry of Home Affairs, brings an end to Wangchuk’s detention months after he was taken into custody following protests and unrest in the Union Territory of Ladakh. The revocation order has been issued with immediate effect after the Central Government reviewed the circumstances surrounding the detention. The development effectively terminates the preventive detention proceedings that had been initiated under…
The Maharashtra National Law University Mumbai (MNLU Mumbai) has announced a call for papers for its first International Labour Law Conference, inviting scholars, practitioners, and students to engage in academic discussions on India’s evolving labour law framework under the new labour codes. The conference aims to bring together academicians, lawyers, policymakers, researchers, and industry professionals to critically examine the legal and policy implications of India’s labour law reforms, particularly the shift from multiple labour statutes to a consolidated code-based framework. The event seeks to foster scholarly dialogue on how these reforms will shape industrial relations, workers’ rights, and corporate compliance…