Weekly Legal Updates July Week 2

1. Delhi : District Judges and Additional District Judges (DJs and ADJs) to function as
commercial courts.
The Delhi High Court has nominated all the district and additional district judges of Delhi as commercial
courts as a measure to revise the pecuniary jurisdictional value. All DJ and ADJ courts can now take the
commercial matters and disputes of value between Rs. 3 lakh to Rs. 2 crore. This shall facilitate in the
ease of doing business and shall primarily reduce the burden of such matters on the High Court up to 60% as
now onwards these commercial disputes shall be dealt by the court of DJs and ADJs and can no more be
filled in the Delhi High Court.

*Pecuniary jurisdiction of any court is the monetary limit up to which any court is allowed to take and
adjudicate the matter. If the matter exceeds the set pecuniary limit, then the case has to be filled in the higher
court.

* District Judge (DJ) – Also known as the District and Sessions Judge. He is the Judicial and
Administrative head of a District and Sessions Court. When exercises his civil jurisdiction, then is called the
District Judge and while exercising his criminal jurisdiction, is called the Sessions Judge.

* Additional District Judges (ADJ) – They exercise and share mostly the same jurisdictional power and
authority as that of the district judge, but they are more than one in number. They are appointed for
distribution of the work load of cases pending with the District Judge. But the administrative and judicial
head is only the District Judge who is only one for one District and Sessions Court.

2. Contempt proceedings closed against Kerala advocate C K Mohan :

The Supreme Court and the Kerala High Court have closed the contempt of the court proceedings against
advocate C K Mohan after his unconditional apology was accepted by the High Court of Kerala. This
criminal contempt proceeding was started suo motu by the Kerala High Court division bench of Justice P N
Ravindran and Justice Dama Seshadri Naidu due to wilful disobedience by the advocate during a habeas
corpus petition hearing.

He was sentenced to 3 months of simple imprisonment and fine of Rs. 1,000. It was held that a lawyer
charged with criminal contempt of court can’t appear in the lawyer’s robe. The advocate then filed an appeal
in the Supreme Court where the bench headed by Justice Ranjan Gogoi directed him to file an affidavit of
unconditional apology before the High Court.
 Weekly Legal Updates July Week 2
* Contempt of Court is of 2 types – Civil and Criminal.

* Only the Supreme Court and the High Courts have the power to issue notice or initiate contempt
proceedings for the contempt of themselves or the lower courts.

*Contempt can be issued against lawyers/advocates or even the judges. Example – Justice Karnan Contempt
Case.

*Suo Motu – On its own/self cogizance

*Habeas Corpus – The writ where Supreme Court or High Courts can ask to present the body.

*Simple Imprisonment – Imprisonment is of 2 types, simple and rigorous. In rigorous, the jail authorities
can make the prisoner to work also. Rigorous is imprisonment with work also (both physical and mental).

3. The evidence of an Eye-witness can’t be doubted on the ground that they didn’t
attempt to save the deceased person : Supreme Court
The division bench of Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice R. Bhanumati in the case of Motiram Padu
Joshi v. State of Maharashtra held that the evidence of an eye witness cannot be doubted on the ground
that they didn’t go to the person or help the person and thus failed to or didn’t attempt to save the deceased.
The judges said that every person shall react to each and every situation in a different manner and it can’t be
expected from everyone to forward and save the deceased at the time of commission of an offence. A person
out of fear might choose to stand and witness the incident from a distance.

* Justice Ranjan Gogoi is the second senior most judge in the Supreme Court of India and is in the line to
become the next Chief Justice of India after Justice Dipak Mishra.

4. Threshold monetary limits for tax department appeals increased.

The government has increased the monetary limits for appeals in the matter of tax department for reducing
the tax litigations. The new limits are :

Income tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) and Central Excise And Service Tax Appellate Tribunal
(CESTAT) – 20 Lakhs from the earlier 10 Lakhs.
 Weekly Legal Updates July Week 2
High Courts – 50 Lakhs from the earlier 20 Lakhs.

Supreme Court – 1 Crore from the earlier 25 Lakhs.

*The ITAT is the 1st court of appeal in the matters of Direct Taxes (Income tax) against any orders or ruling
of the Commissioner of Income Tax (CIT ) whereas the CESTAT is the first court of appeal in the matters of
Indirect Taxes. The appeal from these two can go to the High Courts and then to the Supreme Court.

5. Up to Class VIII no student can be failed for any reason : Chhattisgarh High Court
The High Court of Chhattisgarh held that no student can be failed up to class VIII for any reason, whatsoever
it may be. The court said that Article 21 A of the Constitution read with the Right to Education Act, 2010,
it is the fundamental right of all the children between the age of 6 to 14 years of age to get free and
compulsory education and therefore it is the duty of the state to ensure that elementary education is
compulsorily provided to the children. Even if the student was absent throughout the year, he can’t be denied
promotion to the next class on this ground as it is the duty of the state and the school administration to ensure
the student’s attendance in the school.

*Article 21 A was added in The Constitution of India through the 86th Constitution Amendment Act, 2002.

* The Right To Education Act, 2009 was enacted for implementing Article 21 A.

6. Swati Bidhan Baruah becomes the first Transgender Judge of Assam :

Swati has been appointed as the judge for mediation in the lok adalats. She is the first transgender judge of
Assam and third in India. The first transgender judge of India is Joyita Mondal who joined the West Begal
Judiciary in 2017 and the second being Vidya Kamble in Maharasthra was appointed in february 2018.

The Supreme Court’s judgement of 2014 in the case of National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) v.
Union of India had officially and legally recognised transgender as the third gender.

*Lok Adalats – A part of the Alternative Dispute Resolution System. It is type of an informal court. Brought
in to through The Legal Services Authority Act, 1987. Set up of 3 authorities at different levels :- National
Legal Services Authority (NALSA)- Chaired by a senior Supreme Court Judge (Presently CJI Dipak
Mishra), State Legal Services Authority (SALSA) – Chaired by a senior High Court Judge), District Legal
Services Authority – Chaired by the District and Sessions Judge.

*Prior to the 2014 Judgement, there existed only 2 options in the gender coloumn of each and every
government or private entity. Now, along with male and female, transgender is also mentioned. It is all due to
this judgement of NALSA v. Union of India.