Criminal Law
Bombay High Court Suspends Sentence Of Mother, Alleged Paramour Convicted Of Drowning 10-Year-Old Boy In Canal
The Bombay High Court recently granted bail and suspended the lifetime rigorous imprisonment imposed on a woman and her alleged lover, both of whom were convicted for killing the woman's son as he allegedly learnt about their affair. Sitting at the Kolhapur bench, a division bench of Justice Milind Jadhav and Justice Nandesh Deshpande noted that the motive attributed to the convicts...
P&H High Court Applies 'Descending Scale' Sentencing Model, Commutes Death Sentence For 6-Yr-Old's Rape-Murder But Bars Release Before 50 Yrs
The Punjab and Haryana High Court has commuted the death sentence imposed on a man convicted for rape and murder of a six-year-old girl, but directed that he shall not be released unless he serves a minimum actual sentence of 50 years. [2026 LiveLaw (PH) 228]In doing so, the Division Bench of Justice Anoop Chitkara and Justice Ramesh Chander Dimri applied the "descending scale" model...
Victim Not A 'Sterling Witness', Her Family Was Present In House: Why Allahabad High Court Upheld Acquittal In 2014 Rape Case
The Allahabad High Court last week dismissed a state appeal challenging the acquittal of a man accused of rape as it observed that it was highly improbable for the crime to have been committed while the victim's children and other family members were present inside the house. The High Court also noted a material discrepancy in the statement of the victim with regard to the commission of...
Section 354 IPC Not Covered By Section 42 POCSO Act, Trial Court Erred In Not Awarding Separate Sentence: Delhi High Court
The Delhi High Court has observed that a trial court erred in not awarding a separate sentence for the offence under Section 354 IPC (assault or criminal force to a woman with intent to outrage her modesty) in a case involving sexual assault on a six-year-old girl, clarifying that the provision is not among the IPC offences covered by Section 42 of the Protection of Children from Sexual...
Empty Berths Sold "Like Vegetables In A Market" By Ticket Checkers: Calcutta High Court In Train Murder-Robbery Case
The Calcutta High Court has come down heavily on the functioning of Travelling Ticket Examiners (TTEs), observing that the practice of illegally allotting vacant berths to unreserved passengers for money is the primary reason behind several drugging-and-robbery incidents on trains. The Court remarked that TTEs "sell empty berths in trains like vegetables in a market" and directed that a copy...
Mere Marriage To Extremist, Presence At Encounter Site With Child Can't Sustain Conviction: Jharkhand High Court Acquits Woman
The Jharkhand High Court has acquitted a woman convicted under various provisions of the IPC, Arms Act and Criminal Law Amendment Act in connection with an encounter involving alleged extremists, holding that mere marriage to an extremist and presence at the place of occurrence with her 1½-year-old child were insufficient to sustain her conviction in the absence of evidence showing any overt...
Mere Smell Of Alcohol Without Blood Test Or Breathalyser Cannot Establish Drunken Driving: Uttarakhand High Court
The Uttarakhand High Court has held that the smell of alcohol on the breath of an accused, without a blood test or breathalyser establishing that the alcohol concentration exceeded the statutory limit under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, cannot establish drunken driving or justify framing a charge of culpable homicide not amounting to murder under Section 105 of the Bharatiya Nyaya...
Previous Bail Orders Relevant Material For 'Subjective Satisfaction' Of Preventive Detention: Andhra Pradesh High Court
The Andhra Pradesh High Court set aside a preventive detention order after finding that the detaining authority failed to consider multiple bail orders granted to the detenu, holding that bail orders are vital material and their non-consideration vitiates the subjective satisfaction required for preventive detention. [2026 LiveLaw (AP) 121]The order was passed by a Division Bench of Justice...
Calcutta High Court Refuses To Quash Dowry Case, Says Woman Can File Complaint From Parent's Home If Cruelty Persists
The Calcutta High Court has refused to quash criminal proceedings against a husband and his family members in a dowry harassment and matrimonial cruelty case, holding that a woman who leaves her matrimonial home can initiate proceedings from the place where she takes shelter if the effects of cruelty continue there. The Court further held that withdrawal of proceedings under the Protection...
'Plea Of Alibi' Must Be Proved In Trial, IO Cannot Unilaterally Accept It To Be True To File Final Report: Allahabad High Court
The Allahabad High Court has explicitly ruled that an accused's “plea of alibi” must be proved by leading evidence during a criminal trial and the Investigating Officer (IO) cannot unilaterally accept it to be true to file a Final Report. A bench of Justice Vivek Kumar Singh held that it would be "gross illegality” if the IO files a final report relying on the statements...
No Prescribed Format For Providing Written Grounds Of Arrest: Delhi High Court Upholds NDPS Accused's Custody
The Delhi High Court has refused bail to an accused booked under the NDPS Act, holding that there is no legislatively or judicially prescribed format for communicating written grounds of arrest and that substantial compliance with the constitutional requirement would suffice in the facts of the case. [2026 LiveLaw (Del) 646]Justice Girish Kathpalia observed that the arrest memo prepared by...