- Rohan Mishra INTRODUCTORY REMARK - NECROPHILIA Ever since the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (hereinafter, “IPC”) came into play it has been celebrated widely as a great piece of penal legislation by positively testifying as the balance wheel of the society containing in itself a rich lode of progressive laws as per the growing … Continue reading The conundrum of ‘Necrophilia’ in India: Broadening the sphere of punishment is demanded.

By: Rishabh Saumya “Alexa raise your hand”. The problem is Alexa has no hands or any other human feature. We know Alexa- that’s the name used by Amazon for its virtual personal assistant, most frequently invoked on its echo in-home smart speaker. It may not have a face but the program can be treated as … Continue reading ALEXA: A CATALYST IN THE EVIDENCE LAW?

-By Darshil Sakhia and Pratham Shah Introduction In September 2020, a petition was filed in the Gujarat High Court (“Gujarat HC”) challenging the constitutionality of sections 2(1) (c), 16, 20(3), 20(4) and 20(5) of the Gujarat Control of Terrorism and Organized Crime Act, 2015 (“Act”). While the case is still being heard in the Gujarat … Continue reading GUJARAT CONTROL OF TERRORISM AND ORGANISED CRIME ACT: A PROCRUSTES SOLUTION

-By Renuka Nevgi The term ‘bail’ essentially means procurement of release of an accused awaiting trial or appeal by the deposition of security as an assurance for his/her submission whenever demanded by legal authority. The application for bail can be approved or rejected on various grounds such as nature of the offence, severity of punishment, … Continue reading Bail under CrPC v. Bail under UAPA: A Critical Analysis

By: Injila Khan and Utkarsh Mishra Abstract – “The current political situation in the country with the right-wing government and a complex set of relations between the state and the centre has given us a cause to revisit the realms of the VIP culture that has pervaded our governments and bureaucracy since the colonial era. … Continue reading Discrimination through the Tinted Glass: VIP Culture and its Manifestation

By: Shambhavi Shani INTRODUCTION Confession made by a suspect, being decisive in nature plays a significant role when criminal proceedings are pursued. Confession, simply put, is an acknowledgment of guilt by accused which is traced back, in various common law countries, to the guilt conscience associated with it. Being conclusive, it is of utmost importance … Continue reading AWARDING CUSTODIAL CONFESSIONS WITH EVIDENTIARY VALUE: A TIME TO MAKE REFORMS?

By: Harsh Sethi INTRODUCTION Marital rape is defined as the non-consensual sexual intercourse in a marital relationship with one’s own spouse. The act, often justified for reasons of the ‘implied consent of the spouse’, not only violates the sexual freedom of the wife but also undermines her dignity and self esteem. Nonetheless, marital rape remains … Continue reading MARITAL RAPE: REDIFINING SOCIETAL NORMS AND CONSENT BOUNDARIES IN MARRIAGE

By- Digvijay Sahni Introduction Decriminalising adultery and viewing it from outside the realm of criminal jurisprudence, was one of the landmark judgments that was rendered by the Supreme Court in 2018. The abrogation of the long-standing English provision in the IPC 1860 was seen as a step in the positive direction for which civil remedy … Continue reading Criminalising “Stealing the Affection of a Brother Officer’s Wife”: A Comparative Analysis with reference to the USA and South Africa

By- Swetha Somu On March 18, 2021, the French MPs approved to make ‘ecocide’ a serious crime under French law. The draft legislation passed the National Assembly by 44 votes to 10. Under the law, anyone intentionally causing pollution to land, water or soil will be liable for up to 10 years in prison along … Continue reading ECOCIDE: CHANGING THE LEGAL REALITY AND CULTURAL MINDEST

-By Abinav Sekhri In 2017, the Telangana government passed a Bill to ratify and ordinance which had made the "Telangana Prevention of Dangerous Activities of Bootleggers, Dacoits, Drug-Offenders, Goondas, Immoral Traffic Offenders and Land-Grabbers Act 1986", into the "Telangana Prevention of Dangerous Activities of Bootleggers, Dacoits, Drug-Offenders, Goondas, Immoral Traffic Offenders, Land-Grabbers, Spurious Seed Offenders, Insecticide Offenders, Fertiliser Offenders, … Continue reading Rendering Criminal Law Meaningless: On the Draconian Telangana Preventive Detention Law

-By Vidhik Kumar Introduction The status of women in our society can only be uplifted when we as a community tread towards the path of social justice, equality, and dignity- and provide women, without any discrimination, equal opportunities in every sphere of life. India has adopted several legislations for uplifting women in the social sphere, … Continue reading Protection of Women from Harassment at Workplace: A Mirror Reflection of the Vishakha Judgment

-By Yana Gupta and Ayush Mangal Social Media may either act as a bane or a boon for society and individuals. However, sometimes its cost outweighs its benefits, especially for juveniles. The access to electronic gadgets for long durations has opened floodgates of opportunities for juveniles to get inspired from the content on social media … Continue reading Social Media – A Breeding Ground for Juvenile Offenders

-By Sarthak Wadhwa (This article is the second part of a two part series) Introduction In a recent two-part post on this blog, Shraddha and Yana present a comprehensive account of how colonial era laws are weaponized to ‘crackdown on dissent’ – and how the detention of Safoora Zargar and Disha Ravi for sundry charges … Continue reading In ‘Furtherance’ of Substituting Criminal Conspiracy

~Sarthak Wadhwa (This article is the first part of a two-part series) Introduction In a recent two-part post on this blog, Shraddha and Yana present a comprehensive account of how colonial era laws are weaponized to ‘crackdown on dissent’ – against the ideals of democracy and criminal justice as found in the Indian Constitution and … Continue reading Crackdown on Dissent: A Conspiratorial Approach

-By Kirti Meena and Sandli Pawar Introduction Section 295A of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 has become a catchword in the context of any real or reel issue related to hurting religious sentiment. Section 295A criminalises any deliberate or malicious act intended to offend the religious sentiment of any class of people. The Section mandates … Continue reading Section 295A and Harm-Offence Debate

-By Mannat Marwah Introduction Parole or furlough is the temporary release of a prisoner before they have completed their sentence, on a conditional basis. Rules relating to parole and furlough are enshrined under the Prison Act, 1894 and the Prisoner Act, 1900. Each state has its own rules governing parole and furlough with only minor … Continue reading The Abuse of Parole and Furlough – An Analysis

-By Abhinav Sekhri This April, a Constitution Bench of the Indian Supreme Court took up the issue of delays in cheque bouncing cases — i.e., complaints instituted under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act 1881 — and passed some important directions on how such cases should be run [Order dated 16.04.2021 in Suo Motu Writ Petition (Crl.) 2 … Continue reading The Supreme Court and Delays in Cheque Bouncing Cases

-By Abhinav Sekhri (Special thanks to Ashna D and Aniket Singh for their help with research on some aspects.) In 2019, the State of Uttar Pradesh amended the Criminal Procedure Code of 1973 insofar as it applied to the state, to re-insert Section 438 (its at the end of the linked file) which provides for anticipatory bail. … Continue reading A Closer Look at the 1976 Deletion of Section 438 CrPC in Uttar Pradesh

-By Abhinav Sekhri 2020 (and January 2021) witnessed a series of high-profile cases where the potential accused persons were sought to be prosecuted across the country for their conduct. Arnab Goswami, Amish Devgn, the makers of Tandav; in all these cases, specific speech acts of the accused persons attracted the ire of people across states … Continue reading Crafting Accessible Remedies to deal with Multiple FIRs and Complaints