Criminal Law
Gravity Of POCSO Allegation Alone Can't Justify Denial Of Bail To Juvenile: Uttarakhand High Court
The Uttarakhand High Court has granted bail to a juvenile accused in a POCSO case, observing that the gravity or seriousness of the alleged offence, by itself, is not a valid ground to deny bail to a child in conflict with law unless the case falls within the statutory exceptions contained in the proviso to Section 12 of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act,...
Bengaluru Court Grants Anticipatory Bail To KPSC Chairperson's Daughter In 'Fake' Family Income Certificate Case
A Session Court in Bengaluru granted anticipatory bail to Suma S Sahukar, daughter of Karnataka Public Service Commission (KPSC) Ex-Chairman Shivashankarappa S. Sahukar, for allegedly creating fake income certificate to claim reservation benefits. LXII Additional City Civil and Sessions Judge Raghavendra S. Channabasappa, on Friday made absolute an earlier interim anticipatory bail granted...
Can POCSO Court Frame Charges Without Hearing Accused On Discharge? Andhra Pradesh High Court Answers
The Andhra Pradesh High Court has held that a POCSO Special Court cannot frame charges without first affording the accused an effective opportunity of hearing on the question of discharge as contemplated under Sections 250 and 251 BNSS. [2026 LiveLaw (AP) 152]Clarifying that the POCSO Act's mandate for expeditious trials does not override the accused's statutory right to seek discharge, the...
S.482 BNSS | Accused Need Not Surrender Before Jurisdictional Magistrate To Avail Anticipatory Bail: Andhra Pradesh High Court
The Andhra Pradesh High Court held that Section 438 CrPC/Section 482 BNSS does not require an accused to surrender before the jurisdictional Magistrate as a condition for availing anticipatory bail. [2026 LiveLaw (AP) 151]While modifying the Sessions Court's direction requiring the petitioner to surrender before the jurisdictional Magistrate within seven days, the Court observed that...
Convict's Age, Physical Fitness Alone Cannot Justify Denial Of Premature Release: Meghalaya High Court
The Meghalaya High Court has held that a convict's age, physical fitness, and the gravity of the offence cannot, by themselves, form the sole basis for rejecting a plea for premature release. Observing that the object of remission is to assess the prisoner's reformation, the Court ruled that any determination regarding the likelihood of a convict committing future offences must be based...
Income Tax Set-Off Rules Can't Be Applied To Reduce Motor Accident Compensation: Bombay High Court
The Bombay High Court has held that loss computed under the head "Income from House Property" under the Income-tax Act, 1961, cannot be set off against income under the head "Business or Profession" while determining compensation under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. The Court observed that the Income-tax Act and the Motor Vehicles Act operate in distinct fields, and the mechanism of set-off...
Non-Mentioning Of Specific POCSO Provision Wasn't Material : Supreme Court Affirms Conviction
The Supreme Court has held that the failure of a trial court or a High Court to specifically mention sub-section (2) of Section 4 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act while convicting an accused did not vitiate the conviction or sentence, as the facts of the case clearly attract that provision..A bench of Justice Prashant Kumar Mishra and Justice Shree...
How Juvenile Justice Boards Should Conduct Preliminary Assessment Under S.15? Supreme Court Issues Guidelines
The Supreme Court has issued guidelines as to what factors should be considered by the Juvenile Justice Board while conducting preliminary assessment under Section 15 of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015. A bench of Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan issued these guidelines while dismissing an appeal challenging the Patna High Court's ruling which...
"Exceptional Violence": Bombay High Court Upholds Stricter Remission Category For Convict Who Murdered Woman For Refusing To Marry Him
The Bombay High Court recently upheld the decision of the Maharashtra Government to place a life convict under the 26-years imprisonment category, after noting that he had killed a woman, who had refused to marry her, in a brutal manner. A division bench of Justice Sarang Kotwal and Justice Ashish Chavan noted that the convict had killed the woman in an exceptionally brutal manner. "We...
Madras High Court Directs Two Police Officers To Pay ₹1 Lakh Each For Failing To Register Dowry FIR
The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court has directed two police personnel— an Inspector and a Sub Inspector, of an All Women Police Station to pay Rs. 1,00,000 each as compensation to the father of woman, for closing a dowry complaint without registering an FIR despite disclosure of cognizable offence. [2026 LiveLaw (Mad) 338]“The lapse committed by respondents 2 and 3 [police...










