In the Supreme Court

Plea against RCom chief to be heard today

RELIANCE Communications chairman Anil Ambani on Tuesday appeared before the Supreme Court in a contempt plea filed by telecom company Ericsson India over failure to pay outstanding dues of about `550 crore, as ordered by the top court on August 3, 2018 and October 23, 2018. The court adjourned the hearing to Wednesday and directed Ambani and the other alleged contemnors to be present. Ambani was issued a show-cause notice in January and had to respond within five weeks. 

Minority tag for AMU referred to 7-judge bench

In an order that could have wide ramifications, the Supreme Court on Tuesday said a seven-judge bench will decide on the minority tag for Aligarh Muslim University and also lay down criteria for granting the status to an educational institution in future.
A three-judge bench headed by CJI Ranjan Gogoi agreed with AMU’s submission that the correctness of the 2006 judgment of the Allahabad High Court, by which the minority tag accorded to the university was taken away, needed to be examined in detail. Besides AMU, then UPA government had filed an appeal against the HC verdict.

Verdict reserved on plea in Pandya murder case

THE Supreme Court on Tuesday reserved its verdict on a petition seeking a fresh investigation into the murder of former Gujarat home minister Haren Pandya. A bench of Justices Arun Mishra and Vineet Saran also questioned the petitioner for filing a fresh petition when a criminal appeal in the matter is already pending in SC. Senior Advocate Shanti Bhushan, arguing for CPIL, the petitioner, submitted that fresh evidence had come to light warranting a fresh probe. Opposing the plea, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said the petitioners had no locus in the case.