Legal

OPINION | Justice Surya Kant’s tenure begins amid reform imperatives

Justice Surya Kant, brings decades of distinguished service, marked by landmark rulings on free speech, privacy, and human rights, and faces crucial judicial reform challenges ahead. He takes oath as the next CJI on November 24 

OPINION | What is the real issue ‘My Lords’?

Despite explicit court orders, Bar Council resolutions, and even petitions seeking to ban such colonial honorifics, their persistence raises a deeper question: is this merely a colonial relic that refuses to fade, or an institutional compulsion the judiciary itself continues to uphold?

OPINION | The Constitution Made Accessible: A new scholarly analysis in Hindi

‘Hum Bharat Ke Log: Bhartiya Samvidhan Par Nau Nibandh’ (We, the People of India: Nine Essays on the Indian Constitution), represents a significant step towards making serious constitutional scholarship available in Hindi. The paucity of scholarship in Indian languages represents a drawback in making the foundational document more accessible

OPINION | Can you claim ownership of your AI-generated creatives?

AI is not only disrupting the creative world, but also emerging as a creative contender itself. Because of the scale of innovation, there is a need for clarity of the law in protecting AI-generated outputs guided by humans

OPINION | Trillions are stuck in disputes at commercial tribunals but reform agenda ignores it

Litigation amounting to nearly 7.5% of GDP is stuck at the level of tribunals, locking in capital. It’s not the stuff of headlines but it’s a big contributor to regulatory cholesterol. Reform attempts should not ignore blockages in the plumbing

Complaint against ICICI Prudential AMC over non-disclosure of trademark dispute in IPO papers

ICICI Prudential AMC clarified the company has disclosed the details in accordance with applicable law.

OPINION | Rethinking the POSH Act: Ensuring protection for women in all professional spaces

The Supreme Court upheld that political parties aren't workplaces under the POSH Act, excluding women in politics from legal protections against harassment, highlighting urgent need to expand the law's scope

OPINION | Refusing mediation should come at a cost

Mediation in India today is too often a box to be ticked, a hollow formality. Without a credible cost for walking away, mediation will remain symbolic. With such consequences, however, it could become the pressure valve India’s clogged courts desperately need

India’s an antique land, but its antiquities law needs to be modern

The prevailing law treats every collector with suspicion. The outcomes are lost opportunities to project soft power and limited revenue for the government. The law needs to change and treat collectors as partners in preserving India’s rich heritage

OPINION | The real Kerala story

The state is now outperforming the US in some critical social and economic indicators despite having a fraction of the latter’s per capita income. Kerala is an outlier in the truest sense. A look at what went into making this development model

Explainer: Why personal Wills are leading to succession disputes in India Inc?

Following the death of business leader Sunjay Kapur, a legal dispute emerged over his assets, with his children from first marriage to actress Karisma Kapoor challenging a Will presented by his widow, Priya Sachdev.

[In]Complete Justice: Reflecting on the Supreme Court at 75 -- triumphs and trials

The book ‘[In]Complete Justice: The Supreme Court at 75, Critical Reflections’ critically examines the Supreme Court's evolution, highlighting its successes, failures, judicial activism, and key reforms. It explores the Court’s role in shaping India’s democracy, law, and social justice

OPINION | Reforming the collegium system will preserve judicial independence, not undermine it

For the judiciary to remain independent, it must first acknowledge its own flaws and correct them. Ignoring the cracks in the Collegium only invites external intervention, which would compromise its autonomy

Presidential Reference once again brings Parliament–Judiciary supremacy tussle to the fore

An ongoing hearing in the Supreme Court on a Presidential Reference has brought to the fore the perennial tussle between legislature and judiciary on the issue of which body is supreme. The widely accepted idea is that it’s the Constitution that is supreme and higher judiciary interprets it. A deeper look at the long and yet unresolved issue follows

When courts find no one guilty after a crime, it’s the justice system that’s in the dock

Two high profile terror cases recently collapsed in different courts. The judgements held the prosecution guilty of doing shoddy work, which led to acquittals. However, none of the acquitted are likely to be ever free of suspicion following years of trial and jail terms. These acquittals show that investigation, the first step towards ensuring justice, is a weak link in the chain

IBC Amendment Bill brings in essential reform to speed up insolvency resolution

The underlying principle of IBC is that quick resolutions are more likely to preserve value in firms going through an insolvency process. The track record, however, is of timelines being breached frequently. The amendment bill tries to find a solution to delays and simultaneously empower creditors

Justice in Despair: How India’s judiciary mishandles sexual harassment allegations within its ranks

Supreme Court addressed and remedied the legal vacuum in sexual harassment through an innovative approach.  It then took the Parliament more than a decade to address the issue through legislation. The judiciary’s pioneering effort, however, has been undone by the tardy and unsympathetic approach to complaints from within the institution

Supreme Court’s recall of Bhushan Power and Steel judgement is a step in the right direction

The judiciary carries out the role of interpreting the law and it should harmonize its interpretation wherever possible with our social and economic development. While addressing procedural anomalies is important, it is crucial to remain mindful of the larger economic import and the primary goal of providing a second chance to failing but viable businesses

Presidential Reference under Article 143: A quiet force in constitutional evolution

Article 143 has not only served as a means of constitutional clarification but has also helped shape the trajectory of India’s constitutional development in a way that continues to safeguard the foundational principles of justice and separation of powers 

Parliament may move to impeach Justice Yashwant Varma, but history offers little hope

The impending impeachment motion against Justice Yashwant Varma highlights India’s weak judicial accountability, where past cases show judges often resign to evade scrutiny, undermining public trust in the judiciary’s integrity

Judiciary treats Constitution’s preamble as a no-go area

RSS general secretary Hosabale wants a discussion on whether a decision to introduce the words “socialist” and “secular” in the Constitution in 1976 should be reversed. When asked to decide on the same issue earlier, the judiciary has signalled that it’s the Parliament’s call

Social media platform X calls enforcement of content takedown a 'textbook example of arbitrariness'

Social media platform X argued before the Karnataka High Court that nodal officers across the country are independently deciding what content should be taken down, with no consistency or central oversight.

44th Amendment: Restoring constitutional safeguards and limiting emergency powers

The Forty-Fourth Amendment (1978) reversed the Emergency-era changes, strengthening democratic safeguards by restricting executive powers, protecting fundamental rights, and ensuring stricter parliamentary oversight during national emergencies

Even cinema calls out POCSO misuse; law needs safeguards

While POCSO aims to protect children, courts and reports reveal growing misuse in consensual teen relationships, prompting calls for nuanced reforms that balance child rights with justice and intent