Jharkhand High Court Upholds Mother's Life Sentence For Killing 4 & 2-Year-Old Sons, Says 'Instead Of Protecting, She Devoured Them'

The Jharkhand High Court has upheld the conviction and life sentence of a woman for the murder of her two minor sons, aged four and two years.A Division Bench of Justice Rongon Mukhopadhyay and Justice Arun Kumar Rai found that the circumstances on record pointed towards the woman's involvement in the killings. The Court dismissed her appeal against a 2021 trial court judgment convicting her...

Chotanagpur Tenancy Act | Restoration Proceedings Must Be Initiated Within Reasonable Time; Final Orders Cannot Be Reopened: Jharkhand High Court

The Jharkhand High Court has held that although Section 71A of the Chotanagpur Tenancy Act does not prescribe a limitation period, restoration proceedings must nevertheless be initiated within a reasonable time. The Court also held that once an order passed in a restoration proceeding has attained finality, it cannot be reopened in subsequent proceedings.A Single Judge Bench of Justice...

Once Court-Annexed Mediation Ends In Signed Settlement, Party Cannot Withdraw Consent On Mere Change Of Mind: Jharkhand High Court

The Jharkhand High Court has held that a settlement reached through court-annexed mediation, reduced into writing and signed by the parties, cannot be unilaterally withdrawn merely because one party later changes their mind. The Court held that the right to withdraw exists only during the mediation process and not after a binding settlement has been executed.A Division Bench of Justice...

Loan Amount Not 'Entrusted Property'; Mere Failure To Repay Doesn't Constitute Criminal Breach Of Trust: Jharkhand High Court

The Jharkhand High Court has held that money advanced as a loan cannot be treated as property “entrusted” to the borrower for the purpose of constituting criminal breach of trust under Section 406 of the Indian Penal Code. The Court observed that a borrower is free to use the loan amount, unlike a person who receives property through entrustment and must deal with it subject to the...

Jharkhand High Court Dismisses State's Appeal Against Compensation For Illegal Shop Demolition, Calls Actions 'High-Handed'

The Jharkhand High Court has dismissed the State's appeal against an order directing it to compensate a shop owner whose premises were demolished without authority of law, holding that the appeal was “an abuse of the judicial process” and appeared to have been filed only because officials feared recovery proceedings against them.A Division Bench of Chief Justice M.S. Sonak and Justice...

Family Court Cannot Skip Mother's Main Plea For Interim Custody & Only Grant Restrictive Visitation Rights: Jharkhand High Court

The Jharkhand High Court has held that where a parent's application contains a substantive prayer for temporary custody and an alternative prayer for visitation rights, the Family Court must first consider and reject the substantive prayer by assigning cogent reasons before proceeding to the alternative relief.A Division Bench of Justice Sujit Narayan Prasad and Justice Sanjay Prasad set aside...

Victim 'Habituated To Sexual Intercourse': Jharkhand High Court Acquits Man In Rape Case After Noting 5-Year Relationship

The Jharkhand High Court has acquitted a man convicted of rape on the false promise of marriage, holding that the evidence showed the prosecutrix, a 30-year-old woman, had been in a consensual relationship with the appellant for nearly five years and was habituated to sexual intercourse. The Court held that the case did not fall within the category of rape on a false promise of marriage.A...

LiveLaw Jharkhand High Court Half-Yearly Digest : January - June, 2026

Nominal Index [Citations: 2026 LiveLaw (Jha) 1-55] Pali Hill Breweries Private Limited v. State of Jharkhand and Others (along with connected matters) 2026 LLBiz HC (JHA) 1 / 2026 LiveLaw (Jha) 1State of Jharkhand v. Indar Oraon 2026 LiveLaw (Jha) 2Shivnarayan Yadav v. State of Jharkhand and Anr. 2026 LiveLaw (Jha) 3Vinay Kumar Choubey v. State of Jharkhand 2026 LiveLaw (Jha) 4Debleena Dutta...

Mere Existence Of Mental Disorder Is Insufficient To Dissolve Marriage: Jharkhand High Court

The Jharkhand High Court has held that the mere existence of a mental disorder, irrespective of its degree, is insufficient to justify dissolution of marriage under Section 13(1)(iii) of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955. The Court observed that the disorder must be of such a nature and extent that the petitioner cannot reasonably be expected to live with the spouse.A Division Bench of Justice...

Permanent Alimony Must Secure Wife's Future; No Arithmetic Formula Can Determine Quantum: Jharkhand High Court

The Jharkhand High Court has held that no arithmetic formula can be applied while determining permanent alimony under Section 25 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955. The Court observed that while fixing permanent alimony, courts must consider the parties' status, the husband's financial capacity, the wife's future needs, inflation and the standard of living she enjoyed during the marriage.A...

Father Taking Away His Own Minor Child From Mother's Custody Doesn't Constitute Kidnapping: Jharkhand High Court

The Jharkhand High Court has held that a father, being the natural guardian of his minor child, cannot be prosecuted for kidnapping under Section 363 of the Indian Penal Code merely for taking away his own son from the custody of his wife. The Court observed that the essential ingredients of the offence are not satisfied where the accused himself is the child's natural guardian.A Single...

Unfounded Allegations On Wife's Chastity, Denial Of Child's Paternity Amount To Matrimonial Cruelty: Jharkhand High Court

The Jharkhand High Court has held that unfounded allegations questioning a wife's chastity and denying paternity of her child amount to a grave assault on her character, honour and reputation and constitute matrimonial cruelty.A Division Bench of Justice Sujit Narayan Prasad and Justice Sanjay Prasad dismissed a husband's appeal against the Family Court's refusal to dissolve the marriage on...