1. Jayalalitha's Acquittal in DA Case
On May 11, 2015, the Karnataka High Court acquitted the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and three others in the infamous Disproportionate Assets Case. The High Court struck down the judgment and conviction recorded by the trial court and nullified “all the charges leveled against them” in the 19 year old case. Read more
2. Salman Khan Acquittal in Hit and Run Case
On 10th December 2015, The Bombay High Court quashed the 5 year jail sentence awarded to the Bollywood super star by the sessions court and acquitted him of all charges. Justice A.R.Joshi set aside Salman's conviction holding that the prosecution had failed to prove that he was driving the vehicle under the influence of alcohol. Read more
3. Yakub Memon Execution
Yakub Memon, one of the prime accused of the 1993 Bombay blasts was hanged to death on 30 July, 2015 after the Supreme Court in an unprecedented move opened its gates and held a special hearing at 3:20 AM to reject his final plea to delay the execution. Soon after, he was sent to the gallows at 6:35 AM on his 54 birthday. Read more
4. Conviction of Accused in Park Street Gangrape Case
Three years after the horrific rape of Suzzette Jordan, a Sessions Court in Kolkata sentenced all the three convicts to 10 years rigorous imprisonment and slapped them with a fine of Rs. One lakh each. Suzette Jordan, who had waived off her rights to anonymity preferred to be called as a ‘survivor of rape’ than a rape victim. She died of encephalitis in March this year, 8 months before the verdict came out. Read more
5. NJAC Held Unconstitutional
In a landmark judgement, the Supreme Court struck down the NDA government’s National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) Act as unconstitutional upheld the collegium system for appointment of judges to the higher judiciary. Four judges out of the five member bench quashed the constitution's 99th amendment and the NJAC Act as unconstitutional, while Justice Chelameswar differed and gave his own reasons for upholding its validity. Read more
6. Section 66A of IT Act Struck Down
In a welcome ruling, the Supreme Court bench comprising of Justices J. Chelameswar and R.F. Nariman struck down Section 66A of the IT Act observing that it clearly affects the “Right to Freedom of Speech and Expression enshrined under Constitution". The incumbent BJP government had argued for the continuation of the draconian law which gave power to arrest a person for posting offensive contents on web. Many netizens welcomed the judgement as one of the major victories of Free Speech in independent India. Read more
7. Unwed Mother Can Become Sole Guardian of a Child
In a progressive boost to women’s rights across the country, the Apex Court ruled that an unwed mother can claim guardianship of her child without disclosing the father's name. The Delhi trial court and HC earlier had ruled against the woman petitioner who questioned the necessity of involving the father who had not married her. Read more
8. No Compromise in Rape Cases Over promise of Wedlock
In the State of Madhya Pradesh vs. Madanlal case, the Supreme Court ruled that there cannot be any compromise or mediation in cases of rape or attempt to rape. The Apex court bench also held that crimes like rape are against the body of a woman which is her own temple and any compromise promising wedlock between a rape accused and the victim compromises the dignity of the woman.