WHAT’S INSIDE?

Message from Founder I

Message from Editor-in-Chief II

TABLIGHI JAMAAT CONTROVERSY & RECENT LEGAL DEVELOPMENTS 01

CAN A TWEET AGAINST THE CHIEF JUSTICE OF INDIA SCANDALISE THE ENTIRE

INSTITUTION OF SUPREME COURT 03

DECRIMINALIZING HOMOSEXUALITY AND RECENT DEVELOPMENTS 06

FARMER’S PROTEST (2020) AND ITS LEGAL ASPECT 09

EFFECT OF COVID-19 ON INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS 11

NEED FOR STRICT RAPE LAWS IN INDIA—A STATISTICAL ANALYSIS 13

PATRIARCHY & PERMANENT COMISSION OF WOMEN IN ARMY 16

TRANSGENDER PROTECTION BILL & RECENT LEGAL DEVELOPMENT 20

LOVE JIHAD: A CONTROVERSY 23

CLAT IS EASY NOW! 25

Credits III
 From the Founder’s Desk

Ms. Manvee
Student of B.B.A LL.B (Hons.) at Chanakya National Law
University, Patna
Mail: manvee483@gmail.com

I started this small initiative from my side named LLB Mania in the year 2018. Initially LL.B Mania started-of as
an Instagram page. Then slowly and steadily I started realising that this is what I wanted to do. Then I started
making my team - Team LLB Mania. And after searching for more than a year filtering more than 50 people
we are here with our small set of team having exceptional skills. After that in the beginning of the year 2020,
we came up with the website of LLB Mania and started posting different articles related to the legal issues and
concepts, and case analysis. A little later we also started our law journal named Legal Spectrum.

Now we have started our magazine -Law Maniac as we wanted to provide exclusive content to our readers
which merges the current issues with the legalities that go with it. The articles in the magazine are about the
burning issues in which people have shown a great amount of interest. This is the first edition of Law Maniac
and hopefully in the upcoming times we will be able to deliver all our audiences the best that we have.

The main aim of starting Law Maniac was that we wanted people to take interest and engage in the legal af-
fairs and indulge in a platform where you can put forward your opinions on the on-going issues and go in for
healthy debate. Our readers can send us all their opinions to us at our official mail id and on other social media
handles as well (LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter & WhatsApp)

We had to go through a lot of ups and downs in this procedure as we were new to all of this. But at the end
of the day and after planning for more than 2 months and executing the work for next 3 months we are here
with our 1st Issue of the magazine. & I am also happy and proud that we could pull this off and a take a prom-
inent step towards fulfilling our ambition of making LL.B Mania a big name. We welcome all kinds of sugges-
tions and feedback as it would be beneficial for my aim to provide and share our knowledge with you all. Hope
you like our work. Happy Reading!
I
 From the Editor’s Desk

Ms. Shivi Khare

Student of B.A LL.B (Hons.) at Presidency University,
Bengaluru
Email: shivikhare5@gmail.com

This is the first edition of our magazine “LAW MANIAC”. It is quarterly. This is launched by the team of LLB ma-
nia. We are new in this arena of magazine making so I just hope we live up to all the expectations of our read-
ers and provide them with interesting content. Law maniac delivers content which shows the legal point of
view of the real-life scenarios may it be the current issues or the older happenings of the society. Our articles
also contain static legal information which the readers would be interested in knowing.

The language used in our articles is quite simple to understand as we believe in what Leonardo da Vinci said -
“simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” We as a team wrote all our articles keeping in mind that this should
not be restricted to one particular section of people and everyone must be able to relate to and understand
what we wanted to deliver. We aim to provide only true information to our readers and we strive to make our
content worthy enough to be able for our readers to not regret their valuable time invested on law maniac.

Law maniac would also accept advertising as long as it isn’t misleading or morally objectionable. Our aim is to
publish anything which is a fact be it our content or the advertisements that we receive.

I would also want all our readers to be free and give any kind of feedback be it negative or positive regarding
our magazine so that we can provide all of you with a high-quality content. I believe that our readers are the
best critics, which we why I welcome all your suggestions that you have for Law maniac.

The suggestions, feedback and advertisement requests can be sent to us via mail.

Hope you guys are happy and content with our work.

Happy reading.

II
TABLIGHI JAMAAT CONTROVERSY & RECENT
LEGAL DEVELOPMENTS
NIMISHA

The Tablighi Jamaat controversy, was one of the most controversial issue in the year of pandemic, and in fact, still
continues to be. It all started when a religious congregation of Islamic preachers ( Tablighi's) had taken place in
New Delhi’s Nizamuddin area from 13th– 15th March 2020, drawing hundreds of foreign nationals from Thailand,
Nepal, Myanmar, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Kyrgyzstan.

WHY THE CONTROVERSY?

This was the time when the pandemic had started to hit the country hard, with the amount of COVID-19 positives
rising rapidly. And all hell broke loose when an Indonesian citizen, who had attended the congregation, tested posi-
tive for the virus!

And in no time, the issue had become communal in the country, with people starting to target the Muslim commu-
nity for the outbreak of the virus. Hate speeches by political parties, WhatsApp University, IT Cells, etc. took full
charge in doing their job, and they did succeed… people were distracted from the main issue, the Pandemic!
Phrases like Corona Jihad, Tablighi Virus too started peddling around, along with some old clips of the Muslim com-
munity vendors (who, in fact had nothing to do with the Tablighi Jamaat) selling fruits and vegetables in an unhy-
gienic manner, claiming that they were Tablighi's and were spreading the virus on purpose. While certain claims of
the Tablighi's misbehaving and not cooperating with the hospital staffs turned out to be true, most of the viral for-
wards were false. And instead of informing the people about the Pandemic and the situation the country was in,
the main stream media took for themselves the job of “exposing a massive conspiracy”, and ran their own propa-
gandas. In fact, a well-known media house claimed that almost 60% of the country’s pandemic cases, have links
with the Tablighi Jamaat, which was not proved. The Ministry of Health, however, intervened, and requested not to
target any particular community for the outbreak of the virus.

1
 THE LEGAL INTERVENTION

Around 2,000 foreigners have come to India due to the event, and about 4,500 have gathered at the congre-
gation. The sudden lockdown which came into force on 25th March resulted in a thousand Tablighi's being
stranded in Nizamuddin. And owing to the controversies, many FIRs were filed against these Tablighi's, accus-
ing them of extremist activities, planning “mass murders”, attempting to spread the virus on purpose, and the
government blacklisted over 950 foreign nationals. While various hearings happened in respected jurisdictions
of various courts, the Delhi High Court in its hearing, granted bail to some of the Tablighi's, and around 900 of
them even entered into a plea bargain and pleaded guilty (as they did not want to stand trial in the country). A
Delhi Magistrate’s Court even concluded that there was no prima facie evidence. While there were repeated
pleas for the CBI intervention and pleas to book them under attempt to murder, etc. the Courts refused to en-
tertain it. Earlier in August, one of the High Court even criticized the government for having “scapegoated” the
tablighis. The Supreme Court in fact on 22nd December, asked the Centre to facilitate the return of the tablighis
who were acquitted. Earlier in August, One of the High Court even criticized the government for having
“scapegoated” the tablighis. The Supreme Court in fact on 22nd December, asked the Centre to facilitate the
return of the tablighis who were acquitted.

EFFECT ON THE COMMUNITY

On 2nd of April, seven signatories, belonging to the Muslim clergy and the community — Dr. Zafarul Islam
Khan, Chairman, Delhi Minorities Commission; Prof. Akhtarul Wasey, President, Maulana Azad University, Jodh-
pur; Prof. Mohsin Usmani Nadwi, President, Human Welfare Society; Prof. A.R. Kidwai, Director, K.A. Nizami
Center for Quranic studies, AMU; Masoom Moradabadi, Secretary, All India Urdu Editors Conference; Zaheerud-
din Ali Khan, Managing Editor, Daily Siasat, Hyderabad, and Prof. Iqtedar Mohd. Khan, Dept. Islamic Studies,
Jamia Millia Islamia, Delhi— issued an appeal to the government against the communalization of the virus.

They argued that it was not a time to find fault and also stated that any attempt to give it a sectarian twist
would weaken the battle against the deadly virus.

The Islamic community as a whole did face a lot of issues pertaining to the controversy. The members of the
community were largely targeted, not sparing the ones who even didn’t attend the congregation. Viral trends
against the community made the rounds amidst the pandemic, resulting in communal clashes (verbally).

Certain members of the Islamic community, however took it upon themselves to prove the hatemongers
wrong, like Maulana Khalid Rasheed for example, who had asked mosque-going Muslims to take preventive
measures against COVID - 19, and told them to avoid congregations and coughing and sneezing in public, and
the Islamic seminaries, such as the Darul Uloom, Nadwa and Deoband, which issued fatwas asking the faithful
to offer Eid prayers at home, and most importantly the members of the Tablighi Jamaat who had tested posi-
tive for the virus, and have since been cured, and came forward in huge numbers to donate their blood plasma
— containing anti-viral antibodies — and helped cure many affected people.

2
 THE OBVIOUS MISTAKE

There is a criticism that the government had reacted quite lately with regard to the Pandemic, or rather was not
“ready” for it. On 12th of March, the government of Delhi issued an advisory asking people with travel history to iso-
late themselves, and on the very next day passed another order prohibiting any gathering of over 200 people. When
questions of the Delhi Police not having taken any action against the congregation piled up, it was stated that the
notice had no mention of religious gatherings.

But the question is, should we really blame the Police forces here? When the whole world’s hot topic then had been
the COVID-19, when there were deaths (due to the virus) that had already taken place, when heath organiza-
tions warned about the seriousness of social distancing, The Tablighi Jamaat, undoubtedly, was a great blunder, and
there is no denying in the fact that the recklessness of the tablighis lead to the increase in the number of COVID-19
positive cases in the country. And while it is rational to defend the Islamic community against the biases and contro-
versies made on purpose to defame the community as a whole, and question the government as to how the COVID-
19 positive foreign nationals made it beyond the airports, it would not be wise to brace a public gathering of the
nature of a Tablighi Jamaat at the time of a growing Epidemic (which turned into a Global Pandemic).

CAN A TWEET AGAINST THE CHIEF JUSTICE

OF INDIA SCANDALISE THE ENTIRE
INSTITUTION OF SUPREME COURT
DIVYASHREE KAMANA

According to the apex court of India, yes it can. The recent verdict of The Supreme Court, declaring public interest
lawyer and activist Mr. Prashant Bhushan as guilty for committing criminal contempt of court, needs no introduction.
The judgment of the three-judge bench on the suo-moto contempt proceedings against Mr. Bhushan is hardly ap-
pealing to the prestige and the majesty of the Court.

3
The first tweet, which was used to portray an informal image of Chief Justice of India S.A Bobde perched atop a
Harley Davison motorcycle owned by a BJP leader without wearing a mask in times of Covid where the whole
nation was shut down make a critical point of denying people the right to seek justice, maybe an exaggerated or
even unjustifiable view on the absence of physical hearings. It is, however, rather an extension of stating that it
damages the legitimacy of the Court, decreases its power, or interferes with justice. At best, the action of the CJI
and the administration of the decision-making mechanism is partly influenced. No word in this tweet bears any
unresolved animosity or scurrility that gives rise to criminal contempt. The judiciary needs to be able to shake off
this kind of critique. But the Court while analyzing this tweet stated that it criticizes the Chief Justice of India in his
capacity as chief justice and highlighted that the day on which the photo was clicked on is part of the summer
vacation.

It was also called into attention that court proceedings were continued in the lockdown through video conferenc-
ing and the contemnor himself attended various cases through the same. The working of the vacation bench was
also mentioned but the aspect that the bike was owned by a BJP leader was ignored.

The first tweet, which was used to portray an informal image of Chief Justice of India S.A Bobde perched atop a
Harley Davison motorcycle owned by a BJP leader without wearing a mask in times of Covid where the whole
nation was shut down make a critical point of denying people the right to seek justice, maybe an exaggerated or
even unjustifiable view on the absence of physical hearings.

It is, however, rather an extension of stating that it damages the legitimacy of the Court, decreases its power, or
interferes with justice. At best, the action of the CJI and the administration of the decision-making mechanism is
partly influenced. No word in this tweet bears any unresolved animosity or scurrility that gives rise to criminal con-
tempt. The judiciary needs to be able to shake off this kind of critique. But the Court while analyzing this tweet
stated that it criticizes the Chief Justice of India in his capacity as chief justice and highlighted that the day on
which the photo was clicked on is part of the summer vacation. It was also called into attention that court pro-
ceedings were continued in the lockdown through video conferencing and the contemnor himself attended vari-
ous cases through the same. The working of the vacation bench was also mentioned but the aspect that the bike
was owned by a BJP leader was ignored.

It was the second tweet in which Mr. Bhushan blamed the Court, in particular the last four CJIs, for "the destruc-
tion of democracy" in the past six years, "even without a formal emergency." It specifically refers to the essence of
the individual political perspectives, whether it is about the institution's workings or about the four figures that led
the judiciary at that period. It is very difficult to accept that the mere expression that successive CJIs have demol-
ished democracy will undermine public faith in the judiciary. The Apex court looked into this tweet as a criticism
against the whole institution of the Supreme Court and the institution of the Chief Justice of India. Mr. Bhushan's
abrasive animadversion of judicial actions in his design and purpose is no more discordant than the allegation on
the former CJI For being under the control of executive power, by his colleagues or misusing his authority as a
master of the roster with a view of producing good results..

4
The court didn’t even consider examining the 134-page affidavit explaining the context and nature of his state-
ments filed by Mr. Prashanth Bhushan.

Through this affidavit he tried to demonstrate a factual basis on which he relied upon while making the state-
ment in question. it was implausible on the side of The Supreme court that it convicted Mr. Bhushan guilty of
contempt of court without even engaging in his reasoning that his tweets constitute fair criticism. When the
question of fair criticism arose, the court pointed out two attending circumstances, one of which is the extent of
publication. The court opined that the huge extent of publification should be considered while answering the
question of good faith. The other circumstance is that the contemnor himself is practicing in The Supreme Court
for the past 30 years and was expected to protect the institution rather than indulging in acts that invite disres-
pute to the administration of justice. Though the term Fair Criticism was not properly defined in the verdict, de-
claring that the tweets weren’t part of fair criticism only on the basis of the indefinite attending circumstances
was unreasonable on part of the apex court. Full-length scrutiny of the judgment and imposition of nominal 1
rupee fine makes it evident that the court opines, Mr. Bhushan’s tweets if passed unpunished, would harm the
reputation of the country as mentioned in the judgment “affect the national honor and prestige in the comity of
nations”, which was earned by passing exemplary judgments and a record of fearless autonomy. The offence of
scandalizing the court in India requires a re-examination, and the Prashant Bhushan case offers an apt ground
for it. Constructive criticism is the life and blood of democracy. However, the Apex court has not been broad-
minded in launching contempt proceedings and have made use of their wide-ranging discretion to take action
against remarks that have damaged their own feelings, which may not actually impact the general opinion of
the court as a whole.

The court didn’t even consider examining the 134-page affidavit explaining the context and nature of his state-
ments filed by Mr. Prashanth Bhushan. Through this affidavit he tried to demonstrate a factual basis on which
he relied upon while making the statement in question. it was implausible on the side of The Supreme court
that it convicted Mr. Bhushan guilty of contempt of court without even engaging in his reasoning that his tweets
constitute fair criticism. When the question of fair criticism arose, the court pointed out two attending circum-
stances, one of which is the extent of publication. The court opined that the huge extent of publification should
be considered while answering the question of good faith. The other circumstance is that the contemnor him-
self is practicing in The Supreme Court for the past 30 years and was expected to protect the institution rather
than indulging in acts that invite disrepute to the administration of justice.

Though the term Fair Criticism was not properly defined in the verdict, declaring that the tweets weren’t part of
fair criticism only on the basis of the indefinite attending circumstances was unreasonable on part of the apex
court. Full-length scrutiny of the judgment and imposition of nominal 1 rupee fine makes it evident that the
court opines, Mr. Bhushan’s tweets if passed unpunished, would harm the reputation of the country as men-
tioned in the judgment “affect the national honor and prestige in the comity of nations”, which was earned by
passing exemplary judgments and a record of fearless autonomy.

5
The offence of scandalizing the court in India requires a re-examination, and the Prashant Bhushan case offers
an apt ground for it. Constructive criticism is the life and blood of democracy. However, the Apex court has not
been broad-minded in launching contempt proceedings and have made use of their wide-ranging discretion to
take action against remarks that have damaged their own feelings, which may not actually impact the general
opinion of the court as a whole.

The offence of scandalizing the court in India requires a re-examination, and the Prashant Bhushan case offers
an apt ground for it. Constructive criticism is the life and blood of democracy. However, the Apex court has not
been broad-minded in launching contempt proceedings and have made use of their wide-ranging discretion to
take action against remarks that have damaged their own feelings, which may not actually impact the general
opinion of the court as a whole.

In so doing, it has only trampled on the civil rights provided by the Constitution and dealt a massive blow on
India's still tottering political foundations. The fact that tweets and social media posts are viewed as contempt
for the court poses a risk of fear of being criticised in the fear of criminal prosecutions. In the midst of such
trials, scandalising the court must be reassessed on the grounds of its rationale. The assumption that it be-
lieves that public scrutiny has a greater effect on the reputation of the judiciary than the consistency of deci-
sions and the actions of judges is controversial. In the current situation, where the line between rational cri-
tique and scandalous remarks is virtually non-existent, the accountability of the judiciary is at risk. Moreover,
the courts need to be broad-shouldered and to follow a liberal approach to criticism in order to prevent the
possibility of being more like an authoritarian government, where it is above all criticism. Only time can decide
the ramifications of this case on the future of Indian democracy at a time when claims of authoritarianism are
increasing in prominence.

DECRIMINALIZING HOMOSEXUALITY &

RECENT DEVELOPMENTS
ADARSH GAUTAM
“History owes an apology to the members of this community and their families, for the delay in providing re-
dressal for the ignominy and ostracism that they have suffered through the centuries”- Justice Indu Malhotra’s
statement in the 50-page verdict which decriminalised homosexuality by partially striking down section 377 of
Indian Penal Code, 1860.

6th of September 2018, beginning of a new era in the fight for LGBT Rights. The move in the comprehension
of homosexuality from transgression, wrongdoing and pathology to an ordinary variation of human sexuality
started in the late twentieth century. To eradicate the exploitation and ostracization against the LGBTQ com-
munity, the judiciary has pronounced several landmark judgements to confer upon the LGBTQ community, the
basic rights.

6
Naz Foundation Govt. v. NCT of Delhi, an incident in Lucknow which put false charges on men of being homosex-
ual and put them behind the bars, this incident drew the attention of an NGO Naz Foundation and they along
with Lawyers Collective knocked the doors of Delhi High Court and filed a petition challenging the constitutional
validity of Section 377 of IPC. After 8 years in 2009, the milestone judgment of the Delhi High Court, announced
that Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code disregards principal rights ensured by the Constitution as it was viola-
tive of rights conferred upon them under Article 14, 15, 19, and 21 of the Constitution.

After this historic judgement, numerous faith-based groups and individuals having counter gay perspective strictly
stood against it and they considered the law to be against the ethics and cultural & traditional history of India.

They appealed before the apex court of the country to relook into the matter, in Suresh Kumar Koushal v. Naz
Foundation, the decision which marked the beginning of a new life was overturned by the Supreme Court on the
grounds that Section 377 cannot be said to be in the vice of unconstitutionality. Thus, repealing the judgement
which showed a sigh of relief for the LGBTQ community. However, the judgement attracted the interest of the
whole country and it faced major criticisms from every nook and corner of the country and finally in 2014, in Na-
tional Legal Services Authority v. Union of India, the court created the third gender and created a framework to
ensure the basic rights of the transgender or hijras who were earlier forced to identify themselves as male or fe-
male.

In K. Puttaswamy v. Union of India, it was observed by Justice Chandrachud that sexual orientation also falls with-
in the wide ambit of right to privacy and he also criticised the decision in Koushal case. This judgement gave a
new ray of hope and euphoria to LGBTQ community that section 377 will be soon strike down by the court.

India witnessed wave of protest for securing the rights of LGBTQ community and many petitions were filed in
their support. In Navjet Singh Johar v. Union of India, on 6th September, 2018 a five-judge bench unanimously
struck down section 377 of the IPC to the extent that it criminalizes same sex relationship. The court held that
the sexual orientation of each individual in the society must be protected on an even platform, for the right to
privacy and protection of sexual orientation which lies at the core of the fundamental rights guaranteed by Article
14, 15 and 21 of the Constitution.

7
India joined 125 nations where homosexuality is legal as Supreme Court decriminalized gay sex, thus providing
a huge boost to the LGBTQ community of India. The Court recognised sexual orientation as a “natural and in-
herent” phenomenon, which is biological and not a matter of choice. The court has rightfully protected animals
against attempts by humans who have intercourse with them, that still remain under the purview of crime.

The same-sex couples now have the legal right to cohabit and conduct their personal affairs without any fear of
persecution but are still denied equality of treatment in various aspects. These judgements have just laid down
the ground for the establishment of a society where the other civil rights of the LGBTQ community will be re-
garded. Hence, there is way more to go, these rights include the right to marriage, right to surrogacy, right to
adoption, etc. Proficient social orders need to build consciousness of these issues.

In order to fully accept this new change, society needs to understand that marriage is a sacred bond which is
not limited to just opposite sex but also applicable to those two people who have willingly decided to live as a
normal couple even if they are of the same sex. Since the motto or aim of marriage is not only procreation then
same sex marriages should be recognised in the society as well.

Many people after the legalisation of same sex, are coming forward and are trying to fit in the society. Many
people think that it is some kind of mental disease which is to be treated but this is not the truth. This is to be
considered as a choice of the individual and should be respected. In order to accept this relation, the society
should be taught that this is all a natural choice of individuals and not any bad influence.

No matter what laws are made it can never be successfully implemented if the co-operation of society is not
there. These marriages should be accepted in society as at last we should keep in mind that marriage is the
special bond between two souls and not just two bodies.

Human sexuality is perplexing and differing. Similarly, as with every single complex conduct and character at-
tributes, natural and ecological impacts consolidate to deliver specific sexual direction and personality. We have
to zero in on individuals' humankind instead of on their sexual direction.

8
FARMER’S PROTEST AND ITS LEGAL ASPECT
CHARISMA GUGGILAM

One of the most pressing issues now in India is the farmer protests that have been going on for over three
months in their own state and for a few weeks in Delhi. The basic reason for the protests is the rejection of the
central government to repeal the three new farm laws which were passed in the monsoon session of the parlia-
ment in the month of September. The government's motive to introduce these laws was to make the farmers
richer and give them the opportunity to earn more. The farmers are unhappy because they feel that these laws
and new amendments will only benefit the corporate companies but not the farmers. They didn't even follow the
due procedure of the bill passing in both the houses, but the bill still took over four months to get implemented.
Farmers were waiting for the government to take steps for their welfare, the government then announced the
20-lakh crore stimulus package to save India from slipping into an economic crisis. Looking at the conditions
prevailing now in the country we can understand that it will definitely take more time for the government to im-
plement these laws and even more time for them to reap the benefits, maybe a few years or even more. The
government believes that brining in a new law where the famers are given chance to sell their products privately
and don't even need complete documents will help the farmers themselves but the farmers are of another view
because they believe that giving the farmers the choice might be disadvantageous to hem but at the other hand
help the corporates. While the other two laws also were introduced for the same reason but the famers are firm
to get the new laws repealed. There were five talks but none of them proved to be successful. The farmers have
decided to stay on their decision of continuing the deliberations to get the laws repealed.

The new farming laws are The Farmers Produce Trade and Commerce (promotion and facilitation) act, 2020
and the farmers (empowerment and protection) agreement of price assurance and farm services act, 2020 and
also the The Essential commodities (amendment) Act,2020. The APMC (Agriculture Produce Market Commit-
tee) bypass law which gives the rights to the farmers to sell their produce to the private owners at the rate they
wish to and there will be no restrictions to them and also they do not need to have the licence or the PAN card
still they can sell the produce in the markets outside .

9
This may give the price fixing power to the corporate companies and the market will be unregulated which will
eventually lead to the dismantling of APMC and the number of APMC markets currently running would be closed
down. According to the december 9 proposal the central government gives the amending power of the respective
state governments for the act and for the registration of mandis and also it is the state government's choice re-
garding the private cess or tax. And also the contract farming law which enables the farmers to fix a contract with
the corporate companies for a predetermined price, but the reason why they refrain to accept the new law is be-
cause they firmly believe that this will allow the corporate companies to take control over the farmers and there
have been instances earlier which prove that contract farming is not a viable option. Earlier when contract farming
was introduced it gave undue advantage to the contracting firm over the farmer and lasso by getting into the con-
tract the farmers eventually lost the autonomy over the land and also the decision making power that they have.
They will become slaves to the corporate companies. There might be delayed payments, no proper implementa-
tion by the state governments which will later affect the farmers and they will be on the losing side. It is another
regulation that is seen to favor big business. It seeks to abolish arbitrary and periodic stocking limits imposed on
traders by the government on agricultural commodities. "The new legislation provides price triggers, instead of
discretionary triggers, to be used only under "exceptional circumstances". Stocking caps can now be implemented
only when perishable prices have increased by more than 100% and non-perishable prices have increased by
more than 50% in the last year. The MSP was recently given to 23 crops. And with the new law the government
is moving away from offering MSP to the farmers, while they have already given them the freedom to sell it even
in the private space. The farmers want the government to pass a new law which makes the MSP a legal right, this
issue was already brought up in the year 2018 but there was no solution. The Punjab government has already
made it legal but is waiting for the president's assent, but even if the president gives his assent the way of imple-
mentation is not clear. The fight to make MSP a legal right is still continuing.

Farmers actually benefit from subsidized electricity prices in many states, where they pay a fraction of the overall
tariff they consume. But the Electricity Amendment Bill, 2020 has made changes, now the farmers will have to
pay the full bill and this has irked many of them. There was also a case in the Supreme Court that the protests
should stop but the judgement stated that farmers have the constitutional right to protest for the changes and
there will be no charges on them until and unless the protest is peaceful and does not cause any damage to the
property or the life of any person. And Supreme Court also suggested that instead of only protests there should
be talks held to further find the solution to this problem. The right to protest peacefully is also a part of the funda-
mental right as stated by the Supreme Court.

The new farm bills have been the reason for the farmers to protest for so long because they do not give complete
justice to the demands of the farmers and they believe that they are in favor of the corporate companies. The
government believes that whatever it has done is for the greater good of farmers but there's a different opinion of
the farmers. The government and the farmers have different views on the new farm bills, it would be a great step
if the government tries understanding the reason why the farmers wish to repeal these laws and take steps to
make changes in the laws to provide justice to the farmers demands and edit or change the new laws according-
ly.

10
 EFFECT OF COVID-19 ON INTELLECTUAL
PROPERTY RIGHTS
ASHLESHA SURYAWANSHI

INTRODUCTION
Man is an artistic creature, He has created art. In today's modern world, there are many changes happening around
us such as advanced and modern technology, new ideas, concepts, changes in the production process. This new
concept depends only on the intellectual skills of the people.

The intellectual property rights are the set of rules that protect these new concepts and skills which are considered
to be intellectual property. The main objective of this law is to protect new ideas, innovations and to control the re-
production of new innovated products, as well as to preserve skills and creativity.

The law not only encourages the creation of new intellectual property, but also provides information about new
products and assets, and gives people the right to own and gain profit from them. Nowadays, any new idea,
knowledge, innovations, are essential assets for any business to succeed and flourish and also helps it to increase
its goodwill. So, this intangible asset is referred to as intellectual property. Since the nature of intellectual property is
indivisible, it can be consumed by the people. It needs to be curtailed. Therefore, the law protects this intellectual
property as well as new creation and limits the reproduction of that thing. This intellectual property is the creations
of the mind over which intellectual property law gives exclusive rights to the people.

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS IN INDIA

The Intellectual Property Rights Act (Indian Patent system) was first enacted in India in 1856. The Copyright Act
was enacted in India in 1847 and, Its main purpose was to help bring new discoveries to the world. It was later
renamed as ‘patterns and design protection act’ in 1872 and has been in force 1883. After amending in the years
1911, 1999, 2002, it finally came into force in the year 2005 as The Patents amendment act 2005.

11
The Copyright Act was enacted in India in 1847 and at that time it was 42 years and 7 years after death. Reg-
istration of copyright was mandatory under this Act. Then in 1914, the Indian legislature introduced a new cop-
yright law, which provided for copyright infringement, but due to differences of opinion, it was repealed, and in
1957 under Bern convention, independent India enacted the copyright act with new provisions.

India's first trademark law was enacted in 1940, A new trademark law came into existence in 1999 with some
changes to the provisions. The law protects the owner from duplicating his intellectual property.

CONSEQUENCES OF COVID-19 ON INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS

At the end of year 2019 and in the beginning of 2020 , the whole world is facing the terrible spread of COVID
19 which is a pandemic disease. Many things in life and important routines have come to a complete standstill
due to this spread. This has had a hugely detrimental effect on the country's economic development, as well as
many other things similarly, many industries and trades and currently stalled. This also affects the protection of
intellectual property rights, IP holders are forced to allow third parties to exercise their IP rights. Many compa-
nies have lost intellectual property rights, which they had acquired from third parties. Companies develop their
own IP rights and use them or license them to other companies, but they could not sell their ownership rights
during the COVID 19 period. All the employees are working remotely from home so the free exchange of infor-
mation has started and information of any intellectual property is seen flowing unsafely in many places,

This is causing financial loss to the owners. Such a COVID 19 environment has resulted in the cancellation of
many IP contracts and huge losses to companies. Many employees are providing services from home and this
causes a violation of many responsibilities. Many of the provisions of the IP Act are not being complied with
while fulfilling all the demands as per the environment of COVID19. Also, the confidentiality of information is
violated by the employees. Then the protection of such intellectual property information is endangered. There
have been several IP breaches during the epidemic, but due to the standstill and closure of companies, appro-
priate action has not been taken promptly.

PROTECTIVE MEASURES

 Companies should consult their legal advisor when making any disclosure, as the disclosure of such a
new invention damages patent holder right. During such an epidemic, a fast IP deal is needed.

 All agreements need to be properly reviewed. Many things have been postponed during this period of
compulsion. Therefore, many responsibilities need to be fulfilled. During this COVID 19, many bankrupts
is entitled in contacts. Therefore, it is necessary to take action and review of liabilities in bankruptcy
agreements.

 It is also necessary to take care not to post any information on public about the intellectual property on a
public platform and on the unsafe site illegally.

12
 In the current situation, it is very important to protect your invention first and keep the information confi-
dential.

CONCLUSION

The Corona virus is affecting our daily lives. But even in this situation, one supportive thing is the intellectual
property, which drives our innovation and which is unlimited. It paves the way for research and development.
Therefore, the protection of this intellectual property is essential. Even as this spreads around the world today,
some industries are contributing to the economy. For example, social media, video conferencing, medical, en-
tertainment, etc. The IP Act protects its intellectual property. During such a recession, many companies can
sell their intellectual property to make up for a lost time. Overall, the IP Act can make a company financially
strong. The world today needs new and advanced technological methods. Intellectual property plays an im-
portant role in this. While IP law promotes innovation, many filmmaker writers give musicians a great platform
for the arts as well as respect for their business. At a time when many people have become financially weak
due to this epidemic, Intellectual property rights has helped many families and companies to make financial
contributions.

NEED FOR STRICT RAPE LAWS IN INDIA—A

STATISTICAL ANALYSIS
SNEHA GUPTA

It’s a high time to talk about rapes. The global statistics on sexual assault against women are shocking be-
cause there is no sign of improvement rather situation is getting worse day by day. Issues against women al-
ready got attention at international level; still no ray of hope can be seen as of now. The UN report and other
data make it clear that violence against women is a worldwide problem that is increasing day by day. Yet this
critical issue is being ignored because of various reasons like cases are unreported, filed cases taken back be-
cause of threat and society pressure, blackmails etc.

13
If we talk only about India what we see and hear daily?

Women getting harassed, raped, murdered, burnt alive, some month year old babies getting raped. What else
left?

According to the statistical analysis India is getting 87+ rape cases daily and a rise of 7% from 2018 to 2019
in number of rape cases reported. Rape is fourth most common crime in India. Still no improvement.

Gang rape, brutal murder, online petition, candle march, rallies etc. we see this every time. But do you ever
wonder why crimes against women are not decreasing?

Is there any fault in our law? Are criminals not getting punishing what they deserve? Is society still lagging be-
hind in supporting the agenda?

Yes, above mentioned reasons are absolutely correct and are responsible for why situation is getting worse.
So if we talk about what changes can be made, we see people talking about death penalty for crimes against
women. So there are some questions which arises in our mind.

• Yes, they deserve death punishment but what about victims? Can she be brought back?
• Can the crime be undone for what women are struggling?
• Will the death penalty stop rapes?
• Victim blaming and slut shamming are common in case of sexual assault so can this be stopped?
• What about harassment she faced or after her family faced in a society.
These are the major questions but the important question is will the death penalty stop rapes?
Answer is big no…
People start blaming victim only in every case. If we take example of recent case of veterinarian from Telangana
raped, we saw people talking and giving statement that victim should have called police. Society always try to
blame victim, like in case of nirbhaya, victim was blamed for being out late night with male friend in body hug-
ging clothes.
Why society always target victim rather targeting accused?
Let me ask some questions to the society who always blame victim for the wrong committed.
So if women are blamed for being out late night – what about those who got rapped in daytime even in home,
public place etc.?
If women are blamed for wearing tight and body revealing clothes –what about those some year months old
baby girls got rapped? Will now society blame that month year old baby girl who can’t even speak and walk?
Was that baby girl partying late night?
If women are blamed for making male friends – what about those who got trapped even then?
These are some of the questions out of many which need to be answered urgently before criticizing victim.
There is a urgent need to educate boy from the start to respect every girl/woman irrespective of their age, reli-
gion, skin color and body shape.

14
Now comes about laws for crime against women.
Awarding death penalty is subject to the ‘rarest of rare cases’ doctrine according to which a death sentence is to
be pronounced only in those cases where the crime has been committed in an extremely cruel, barbaric or grue-
some manner so as to be covered in the category of rarest of rare cases. The compulsory death penalty is against
Constitutional rights of equality and right to life and personal liberty guaranteed under articles 14 and 21.
So its clear that death penalty alone can’t stop rapes in India. There needs to be some strict laws that can stop
crime against women.
Suggestions to improve condition of women in India are-

1. Compulsory education of girl/woman.

2. Encouraging participation of women entrepreneurs.

3. Government needs to be highly active, police night patrolling must be compulsory in all areas.

4. Toll free helpline emergency number should be developed and software should be installed to track
location. We see now a days government provides many helpline numbers, but do they really help in
case of emergencies? No, call even not answered sometimes. So these lacunae must be resolved and
renewed with hiring of responsible employees of this job.

5. Cases related to crime against women should be reported immediately without any negligence. And
fast track courts should do the needful for the betterment.

6. Schools and colleges should train girl/woman for self-defense and it should be made compulsory.
Women empowerment in a society needs to be improved to improve the condition of women in India.

7. Some organizations and committees should be formed in every part of cities to encourage
development for women.

So if we see this graph we can clearly notice whether the situation is improving or getting worse. From 2015
to 2019.
This year too we came to know about many serious cases where men rapped the victim and even burnt her
alive. And this is where humanity ends.

15
 Now if we come to conclusion we can see situation is getting worse day by day and it’s a high time to do
something , to make changes in laws and policies of India for the betterment of women, otherwise a day will
come when India might be declared as unsafe county for women and this will create a hindrance in develop-
ment of country in every possible ways. India’s position in every index will drop. So this is really a serious issue
which needs to be addressed soon to save country’s pride and for the justice of every Nirbhaya in the world
who sacrificed her life. Society needs to come forward and participation of every citizen will make situation im-
prove.

“RAPE IS THE ONLY CRIME IN WHICH VICTIM BECOMES THE ACCUSED”

- FREDA ADLER

PATRIARCHY & PERMANENT COMISSION OF

WOMEN IN ARMY
ANISH SINHA

INTRODUCTION
The word “Patriarchy” is derived from Greek mythology which literally means “Rule of father”. In layman's
terms it is the anatomy of society where male dominance is over the region. When we peep into the society
then history clips the pages of societies where male power dominancy Is the main fuel of society and only
males formulate all the rules for governing the society's legislation and political leaderships, moral principles
and values even have certain special privilege over the property rights. Though being highly male dominated
time, females were fighting for their rights and proved their abilities in each spheres like if we talk about battles
then women's like Rani Lakshmi bai, Razia Sultana etc fought the battles and also led the revolution for
change in society like Savitri bai Phule, first woman teacher of India and established India’s first school for girls
in 1848. The women’s also took active participation in India's freedom from Britishers like by taking part in
world war-II the women played a vital role in the Azad hind Fauj, fighting for India's freedom and proved their
potential.

16
But in recent judgement delivered by honourable supreme court of India by dismissing the union Government
profile submission claiming that females are psychologically and physically weaker then male as principal of
sex stereotype and are unfit for permanent commission in Indian and are only suitable for short service com-
mission, proved that no system can beat the women power and abilities and can't stop them for being what
they are able to.

Indian government sanctioned the induction of Women officers first batch in 1991 and later got commis-
sioned in 1992 and before 1992 women were not allowed to be enrolled as an officer in Indian army. By this
small data we can figure out that Indian government took more than forty years to identify the capability of
women to serve in the Indian army. But this induction was under short service commission and were recruited
under the Women Special Entry Scheme (WSES) for specifically five non combat branches of Indian army act
1950 like corps of signals, corps of engineering, armed force medical unit, intelligent corps etc and specifically
government made the Permanent Commission to women in Army Education Corps and Judge Advocate Gen-
eral branches.

BACKGROUND

The journey of the quest initiated in 2003 when PIL was filed at Delhi HC for granting access of women's in
permanent commission of Indian army and later in 2006 writ petition was filed by Major Leena Gaurav against
the provisions, terms and conditions of service claimed by a report issued in 2005. The result of the petition
was that in 2006, the SSC formula was extended for women. However unlike male SSC officers female offic-
ers have no access grant in permanent commission at the end of then years of service. And due to this provi-
sion women's weren't allowed to get through command appointments and we're not under ambit of govern-
ment pension, which initiate only after twenty year of service as an officer in Indian army

The defence minister issued a circular in 2008 stating that permanent commission would be provisionally
granted to SSC women officers in two streams, Judge Advocate General (JAG) department and the Army Edu-
cation Corps (AEC). But again this circulation was challenged at Delhi high court. Delhi High court in response
given judgement that the women officers of Indian army and Indian Air force under SSC can look for perma-
nent commission but unfortunately they were not granted the same benefits entitled to male officers at PC.

Later The central government challenged the ruling of Delhi High court at Supreme Court, So the current ap-
peal issue is being originated against the order of Delhi high court.

The union Government mentioned a couple of rationale behind the patrilateral treatment of women and men
like the government arrowed professional hazards cautions and physiological and psychological limitations for
women in calling war situations. Like in mid of war or war like situation when there is need of personals wom-
en may fall to issues like pregnancy and various other family issues and this will hinder them from being at ser-
vice.

17
 JUDGMENT

The supreme court in case Ministry of Defence vs Babita Puniya and others, ruled in favour of 322 women
officers, represented by advocate Meenakshi Lekhi and Senior Advocate Aishwarya Bhati, and ruled that SSC
serving Women Officers are well eligible for the Permanent Commission (PC) and SC bench comprising Justic-
es D Y Chandrachud and Ajay Rastogi reserved their orders on February 5. The court also issued the circular
and directed the government to ensure that women officers, irrespective of their years of service, are being
granted PC in the army. The court also eradicated all discrimination on the basis of years of service for grant
of PC in 10 branches of combat aiding arms and services, helding them at par with male officers. In the judg-
ment, the bench held that absolute debarring of women from command field assignments is against Article 14
of the Constitution and groundless and unjustified. So the policy of women being only at "staff appointments"
was held to be unenforceable by the bench.

After this landmark judgement On 17th March 2020 a judicial bench comprising Justices Chandrachud and
Ajay Rastogi in case Union of India v. Ld. Cdr Annie Nagaraja and others ruled that serving women Short Ser-
vice Commission Officers in Indian Navy branch were also entitled to get in Permanent Commission just like
male officers.

SCREENING OF WOMEN FOR PERMANENT COMMISSION

According to statistical figures, there are approximately 44,000 officers serving in Indian army and out of that
somewhere around only 1,683 women officers are there, so the ratio is still not in balance. Indian Army re-
cently after judgement constituted a special dedicated Number 5 Selection and screening board, headed by
senior officers and also comprises brigadier rank women officers to select women officers for Permanent Com-
mission, which will be in effect from 14/09/2020. Women officers who get qualified in screening board pro-
cess, BPET series of physical tests comprising a 5-km run, a 60-metre sprint, climbing vertical rope till particu-
lar height, jumping 6-feet ditch and traversing horizontal rope up to a certain distance will be getting access to
medical test and after Medical results they will be allotted for permanent commission.

AUTHOR’S VIEWPOINT
According to me this is a case of right to equality and opportunity embodied in fundamental rights part lll, arti-
cle 16(A) available equally to both male and female, not about Feminism or women empowerment. Undoubt-
edly the man and women both are different individuals with different psychological and physical characteristics
and there are ample stuff a female can perform and male can not and vice versa but on that parameters we
can't discriminate them. Like faces of coin they both are unique and different on their part, both are equally
important for the development of any society. And it has also been scientifically proved that though facing
many unusual tasks/assignment women are way more analytically efficient than their males.

18
The apprehension that women have their menstruation cycle every month and during this course of event she
encounter colossal pain, and so therefore her body gets weaken and during those cycle days she cannot work
efficiently, is purely baseless as this menstrual cycle is temporary and lasts for few days only and pain can al-
so be kept under control if adequate care and nominal cautious steps are taken. It's nothing like menstrual
pain increases gradually and so tolerance power is being lowered in fact they gain strength from the pain and
get stronger. According to me no government, person, institutions etc would ever pause a woman from being
what she wants to or aspires to and serving in the army is her right and no one has the right to infringe her
right.

The concerns like what if women is being captured by hostile/enemy country and taken as prisoner of war dur-
ing war and due to absence of conventional rule and understanding this imprisonment may result her to en-
counter sexual abuse and assault. So to coupe up from such situation firstly government should make under-
standings and conventions and secondly they shall be entitled to more training than male in concern of time
duration, strategy formulation etc and, like how every weak student need more than normal attention to in-
crease their capabilities for future issues not like they should be assumed that they are weak and are unfit for
participation.

Last but not least is that a prohibiting women to take active participation in combat role or fine line arena de-
fence is somewhere appropriate but not allowing them to get permanent commission posts and pensionary
benefits prior retirement is non justiciable as they through the rigorous training same like male and put their
all efforts and labour to get in services. So at least their portion of mass should be given them with proper
honour just like mens.

WAY FORWARD

The court observed that women were being kept out of command posts on the reasoning that the higher rank
and portfolios will have issues with women as commanding and presiding officers therefore changes are being
demanded to take place not only the rank level and portfolios of the Army but also that of society at large. The
responsibility to get upon these changes depends on the shoulders of senior political and military leaders.

In India, Supreme Court had to force the government to take some steps and measures to make women’s
role stronger in the Army branches more comprehensive sir that

overall contribution of women’s at all branches of the armed forces.

Not only the judiciary but also parliament should work on women rights and empowerment and work on gen-
der barrier deformation till then the war against inequality has a long way to go ahead.

19
TRANSGENDER PROTECTION BILL & RECENT
LEGAL DEVELOPMENT
AMIT SHEORAN

This Bill is also known as “The Transgender Person (Protection of Rights) Bill 2019. This bill was introduced
by the Ministry of social justice. The main objective of this bill is to eliminate discrimination against transgender
person and raise various steps for the welfare and upliftment of transgender community and to provide a
mechanism for social, economic and educational empowerment of Transgender community. This bill was ta-
bled or introduced in Lok Sabha on 19 July 2019 and was passed by the same on 5 august 2019. It was also
passed by Rajya Sabha on 26 November 2019 after defeating the selected committee of upper house. This
bill was in controversy since the beginning. The Supreme Court of India gave a judgment in NALSA v. Union of
India case to make new law for transgender community for prohibition of Discrimination against them and said
they also have right to self- perceived gender identity.

HISTORY
In 2014, Rights of Transgender person Bill 2014 was introduced by the leader of DMK party Truchi Siva in
Lok Sabha, and in 2015 this was also passed by Rajya Sabha. But it was in controversy due to which it was
not passed by President. Again the govt. tabled the Transgender person (protection of rights) Bill 2016. This
bill met with criticism and the bill was referred by the standing committee. This committee submitted its report
in July 2018. After that Lok Sabha passed a new version of this bill after making a few changes with nearly 27
amendments. The bill once again met with various criticism and it was overlooked for the recommendation by
standing committee and the bill got lapsed. After a long struggle this bill was passed by both houses of parlia-
ment and got assent of president on 5 December 2019 and became an act. It was enforced and came into
effect from 10th January 2020.

20
Now the question arises, who come under the category of Transgender community? And How are they differ-
ent from other genders or community? The answer is that Transgenders are those persons whose gender
does not match with the gender assigned at the time of their birth and their gender identity is different from
the gender that they actually thought they possess at the time of birth. It includes transgender men,
transgender women, the people who are with intersex and seems to be partially male and partially female,
gender queers such as Hijra, kinner, arravani and jogta are some parts of the transgender community.

LEGAL DEVELOPMENT

Various legal developments were made in the Transgender Protection Bill 2019 for the upliftment and welfare
for the transgender community these are given as follows:

• Prohibition of discrimination: This bill prohibits discrimination against trans persons. It including denial of
service and unfair treatment with transgender persons in relation with Education, Employment,
Healthcare, avail of public facilities and public places and opportunities available to the public.
• They have right to residence. They can live anywhere with their choice. If the immediate family is unable
to care of transgender person and they do not want to keep the transgender person with them due to
some social pressure and anything else like that then they can put the transgender person in rehabilita-
tion center on the order of competent court. They have right to move anywhere as they wish. They have
right to ownership of property and can occupy property according to this transgender protection bill.
• They also said to raise various steps to provide health facilities to transgender persons including sepa-
rate HIV surveillance center and sex reassignment surgeries center.
• Certificate of identity for transgender persons, Transgender person can take the certificate of gender
identity from District Magistrate if they want. They also can take revised certificate after undergoes sur-
gery to change their gender either as male or female.
• Various steps taken by the govt. for the welfare of transgender person. This bill states that relevant gov-
ernment will make ensure to provide full inclusion of participation of transgender in society. It must also
take steps for their rescue and rehabilitation, vocational training, self -employment and create various
scheme that are very sensitive to transgender and promote their participation in various activities.
• This bill also have provision for the formation of National Council for Transgender Persons. It will includes
members from various ministry and society for their welfare these member are as follows :- It will in-
cludes Union Ministry of Social justice (as a Chairman), Ministry of state for social Justice (vice chair-
man), Secretary of ministry of social justice, and one representative from ministry of Health and home
affairs, human resource development, one member of each NITI Aayog, NHRC, state govt. will also be
representative, 5 members from NGO, and 5 members also from the Transgender community. The main
work of this council is to advise the central government as well as keep monitoring the impact of policies
and projects with respect to transgender persons. It will also try to redress the grievances of
transgender.

21
• The bill also contain the provision of penalties for those who commit wrong and offence with
transgender like offence of force/ bonded labor, denial the use of public places and public facilities, Re-
moval from households and villages, abusing of physical as well as sexual, verbal and emotional and
economic blackmail, will be punished with imprisonment of 6 months to 2 years and fine also.

CONTROVERSY FACED

The bill was passed by parliament even after that the controversy was going on by the people of LGBQT
(lesbian gay Bisexual Transgender Queer ) because the transgender protection bill was drafted and passed
without asking and approaching from anyone of transgender community. No one was asked about their needs
and requirement. The bill contain provision of less penalties for several type of sexual and criminal offence
while it is very high in case of any female, it is 7 years of imprisonment. According to this bill transgender per-
son have need to take certificate of gender identity from the District Magistrate that is against the NALSA
judgment passed in 2014. In NALSA judgment supreme court said that transgender have self -determination
of their gender but here it will open the door of humiliation and harassment of transgender community. And
one of the main reason for controversy is that there is no any reservation provided for transgender community
people. While it is considered that nearly 5 lakh transgender person are living in India that is very less than the
other person. Even after low population of transgender they didn’t provide any reservation for them while
other minority people have provided in various fields.

CONCLUSION

After discussing the entire process we found that the bill was passed after facing a lot of criticism and also var-
ious provision made by legislation for the benefit of transgender community but the bill still has a lot of loop-
holes and gap which is to be filled. The bill has also given equal rights to the community of transgender but
this is not happening in reality. It is just mentioned in the act but is not actually applied, till now they are facing
a lot of problems and discrimination. It also violates the supreme court judgment that is known as NALSA
judgment. In NALSA judgment apex court said that transgender community have right to perceived self-identity
but the bill is completely against it, the bill said transgender have to take certificate of identity from District
Magistrate. The bill was passed without the asking transgender community that what type of problems they
have faced and still facing. There is variation in punishment in transgender community and in male and female.
After seeing it we can say that there are a large number of questions that are not answered in bill. However, it
is not only legislation which needs to take care but it is also us who need to change our mindset towards
them and accept them in our society. We need to bring a change within the society rather than requesting the
government to do something about them.

22
 LOVE JIHAD: A CONTROVERSY
JASHASWEE MISHRA

Marriage is a social institution, which promotes healthy love and peaceful living. But with the onset of the con-
cept of love jihad, various controversial statements and opinions have been expressed in the mainstream me-
dia. The love jihad, is an Islamophobic act, also known as Romeo jihad. To understand what it means is, basi-
cally Muslim men targeting other religion women and displaying their fake emotions, falsify the intentions for
the conversion to Islam. The movement has also been said as suppression of women's rights, due to paternal-
istic attitudes towards women's choice in marriage. The concept of love jihad, is an alleged theory, brought to
the limelight by the right wingers. This rose to prominence in the year 2009. Religious conversion, converting
people from one religion to another has always appealed the political agenda and has been exploited by reli-
gious leaders as well. The history of love jihad has its roots in the 1947 partition of India. The partition of the
country lead to the creation of two nations with different majority religions. This migration leads to forced con-
version and sexual predation in the name of division. Love jihad in earlier decades has been closely connected
with Hindu nationalism, the orthodox still prevails and there's a resistance for pluralistic society. The anti - Is-
lamic stances of the right wingers have been criticizing the inter faith marriages from the beginning of their
reign. Looking at the history of love jihad, even during the 20th century, woman forceful conversion was the
catalyst of disparity between men and women, also leading to inter- religious conflicts and violence. The first
instance of love jihad was reported in Kerala in 2009, where the Hindu community and the Sikh community
alleged Narayaneeya community for love jihad attempts. There were several reports that the Sikh and the Hin-
du girls were exploited by their Muslim spouses, they were abandoned later in Pakistan. There was even denial
that the conversion is not a crime. In 2010, there were reports that the conversion was promoted in the state
of Kerala in an effort to make Kerala a Muslim majority State, which was later described as deplorable and
dangerous. In 2014, newly elected BJP government alleged that the Love jihad was an international conspiracy
targeting India. On the same ground, public highly opinionated that the term love jihad was only to create an-
other division, along the communal lines to break the secular fabric.

23
The latest controversy was about the Syro Malabar church, which alleged that the Islamic states are targeting
Christian young girls and are making them sex slaves. In September 2020, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi
Adityanath considered passing an ordinance for the prevention of similar conversions. As of November 2020,
four BJP ruled states namely, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana and Karnataka were considering and
framing laws to prevent forceful conversions through marriage, knows as love jihad laws. The prevention
framework in Uttar included an ordinance, which was passed thereafter and called as, prohibition of unlawful
religious conversion ordinance. The present-day criticism is due to the passing of the anti- conversion law. This
new law comes amidst criticism not wholly because of its anti-Muslim nature but also of its legality. Uttar Pra-
desh Governor Anandiben Patel, on November 28, had given her nod regarding the same. This law prohibits
inter-faith religious conversions solely for the change of religion. It also provides for imprisonment of up to 10
years and a maximum fine of Rs 50,000 under various categories of forcible or fraudulent religious conver-
sions. While Section 3 of the ordinance highlights ‘coercion’ into religious conversion as an offence, it is very
ambiguous and unclear as to how this would apply to a conversion that has not taken place beforehand and
as to why the existing sections of the Indian Penal Code which deal with threatening a woman, pressuring her
into marriage or threatening to kidnap her would not apply in such a case. According to section 12 of the Uttar
Pradesh prohibition of unlawful religious conversion ordinance, the burden to proof oneself innocent lies with
the accused. While the Indian law believes in being innocent until proven guilty, this ordinance turns the table
down. The accused has to proof himself or else, he will be considered guilty. Burden of proof as to whether a
religious conversion was affected through misrepresentation, force, undue influence, coercion, allurement or by
any fraudulent means or by marriage, lies on the person who has caused the conversion and, where such con-
version has been facilitated by any person. This law restricts the freedom to practice and profess any religion,
which is a given right under article 25 of the Indian constitution. The ordinance, at present the way it is draft-
ed, dangerously imperils the freedom of conscience and the right to profess, practice and propagate religion
under Article 25 of the Constitution. There are other terms and provisions in the ordinance which remains
open for interpretation, such is the word allurement. The term isn't defined, it can be even for adopting a bet-
ter lifestyle of her choice and it can be also the other way round, as in the displeasure. As per the Indian law,
article 25 gives us the freedom to practice and preach the religion of our choice, this under no circumstances
covers the forceful conversion. But on the same line, Uttar Pradesh ordinance considers reconversion into orig-
inal faith, even with misrepresentation, fraud or force as not illegal. The offence of illegal conversion is also
“cognizable” and “non-bailable”. With all the provisions the ordinance holds, the most likely result will be, it will
create another wall between the Hindu and Muslim relations. Despite all the tiffs, the harmony still has been
remarkable, but with the passing of this ordinance, the sheer bonding wouldn't be the same. Love jihad narra-
tives only shows the distrust and all the pre-existing fissures in the social fabric. The social stigma that India is
a secular country and promotes every religion equally is shading its essence. This law infringes the fundamen-
tal rights and the Supreme Court duly upheld the right to marry to be an inviolable tenet of the exercise of per-
sonal liberty. The fears and anxieties of such relationships are linked to the concept of the Hindu majoritarian-
ism, patriarchy and nationality.

24
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Is it possible to crack CLAT within a short span of 3-4 months?

Is coaching required for cracking the CLAT UG exam now?

Is a drop year required to crack the CLAT exam?

These are the few questions which often come in the minds of most of the CLAT aspirants.

NLU Delhi has announced the date for the AILET examination 2021. Even the date for CLAT has been an-
nounced that is to be conducted on June 13th 2021. So now the students should start their preparation in se-
rious manner because not much time is left for the law entrance exams.

So now coming to the questions which I raised in the beginning. Let us come to each question in detail one by
one.

Coming to the 1st question which is “Is it possible to crack CLAT within a short span of 3-4 months?”

The answer to the above question is Yes! Its obviously possible to crack CLAT within the short span of 3-4
Months. In fact, 3-4 months are more than enough for the aptitude-based exam such as CLAT specially with
the new pattern which is totally based on the reading skills of the student and now they don’t even need any
prior legal knowledge to crack this exam.

The only thing required is to read the newspaper thoroughly specially the editorial section of the newspaper
because once you get the tone of the author in the article it becomes easier for you to crack the questions
both on Critical Reasoning as well as English. In the new pattern of CLAT which is comprehensive based if a
students’ master their English by reading the newspaper continuously then they won’t find much difficulty in
cracking the other 2 sections of the exam i.e., Legal and Critical Reasoning. If one reads news paper diligently
then he/she won’t find much difficulty in cracking Current Affairs sections too. But yes, making notes from
newspaper and GK compendiums is a must.

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What I feel Is one cannot crack CLAT without preparing notes from the newspaper, the reason is that when
you prepare notes for GK you are doing the research work making the questions related to the events as well
so most of the things get covered in that only. Now you are left with the Quantitative techniques section which
is often neglected by the majority of CLAT takers but one who cracks minimum 5 questions out of 15 Ques-
tions in CLAT along with Other 4 sections with greater accuracy gets a seat in NLU.

I repeat you cannot get a seat in NLU without attempting at least 2-4 questions in Quantitative techniques
unless you are really lucky.

Your rank can make a wide difference if you attempt atleast 2-3 questions in Maths it will be the deciding fac-
tor that whether you are getting the seat in a NLU or Not. There are more than 50 students in a gap of 0.25
marks, so you can easily figure out that 2-4 marks can create a rank gap of 2000-4000 easily. I feel maths is
the only reason why people get or miss the seat in NLU’s.

Coming to the 2nd Question “Is coaching required for cracking the CLAT UG exam now?”

The answer for the above question is No! now on the new comprehensive pattern no more expensive coach-
ing classes is required. But Yes! mocks are must for any of the CLAT taker. I would suggest to take at least
mocks of 2-3 Institutes so that you can analyse your performance. Presently what I feel is Career Launcher is
only giving mocks on the same level of CLAT. For other coaching Institutes I would refer to take mocks of Le-
gaLight Coaching Institutes Patna, since they gave AIR 02, 03,05 and many more in CLAT 2020. So, one
should definitely try them because if 3+ students are in Top 10 from same institute then they must have
some quality in them, only thing needed is show trust on them.

I would suggest the CLAT takers to get their mentorship for CLAT 2021 from those who cracked CLAT 2020
because only those students can tell how they prepared for CLAT on the new pattern although situation and
plans are different for every student who is preparing for CLAT. So, get your mentors from NLU’s as soon as
possible because they are the one who can tell you the exact way and approach for the CLAT more than any
one from coaching. And if you really feel you need a coaching then go for it my friend. On YouTube there are
plethora of content available for English, Critical Reasoning, Current affairs, Maths as well as legal.

For Quantitative Techniques one should refer Bulls Eye Jaipur YouTube channel I bet if anyone completes the
whole playlist of Quantitative Techniques of their channel 5+ marks are guaranteed for those who are ex-
tremely weak at maths and 8+ for those who know few concepts.

For English & Legal refer to videos of ProTalent in their playlist it will really help you to save your money as
well as time from the Coaching Institutes.

For Current Affairs Read Newspapers The Hindu, The Indian Express and The Wire or any other good English
newspaper and please refer to Dristi IAS current affairs on daily basis after reading the newspaper…I repeat
after reading the newspaper not before that because you need to get the crux of the passage as well the cur-
rent affairs note from the Dristi IAS website and Newspapers. You can also refer to the YouTube Channel of
CLATIANS and ProTalent for Current Affairs.
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For Critical Reasoning which is the most haunting part for most of the aspirants refer to the videos of CLA-
TIANS, ProTalent and read the LSAT Bible for Critical reasoning then you are good to go for that because once
you get the concepts of Critical Reasoning then believe me my friend no one can stop you from getting into
NLU.

[Note: I am not advertising any of the above coaching institutes, what I saw and felt I gave my opinion]

Coming to 3rd Question “Is a drop year required to crack the CLAT exam?”

The answer for the above question is No! but yaa it will vary from person to person some people will advise to
take a drop for CLAT.

See, now the paper is comprehension based and does not tests the prior knowledge of student except in GK
(Static part). So, if you are in Class 11th or 12th now when you are reading this blog then my friend you can
easily crack CLAT exam in your very 1st attempt. Only thing required for that is Speed Reading and Compre-
hending ability which you can get gradually not in a month before exam. So, start reading newspaper from to-
day if you do not have the habit of reading and comprehending the long texts then make yourself familiar with
that because in the law profession you will only need to read long judgements sometimes 50 pages sometime
500 or even 1000+ pages. So, get habitual to read and comprehend. Once you develop this habit then get
your mentors and enrol in mocks of 2-3 Coachings and start analysing them because mock analysis is must
for every clat taker. I will be coming up with more blogs related to CLAT. But you need to keep one thing in
mind that you have to manage both your 12th Board and CLAT preparation because if you don’t do so; Sorry
to say you might not be able to crack CLAT in your very 1st attempt.

CLAT is a exam based on aptitude and skill only Reading and Comprehending skill is required now for cracking
CLAT.

The sooner you develop the habit you will be step closer to crack the exam and get a seat in NLU.

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 Credits
Designing: Ms. Manvee [CNLU, Patna]

Editing of Articles: Ms. Shivi Khare [SoL, Presidency University, Bengaluru]

Our Contributors

Nimisha— School of Law, Presidency University, Bengaluru

Adarsh Gautam— School of Law, CMR University, Bengaluru

Anish Sinha— Asian Law College Noida

Divya— DSNLU Vizag

Jasashwee— DSNLU Vizag

Charisma— DSNLU Vizag

Amit—Symbiosis Law School, Nagpur

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