-By Shreyas Sinha Introduction The Latin term ‘mens rea’ refers to the mental element of a criminal act, i.e., a legally-determined state of mind required to convict an individual of a criminal offence. A person can be said to possess the requisite mens rea vis-à-vis a criminal offence when – (1) they are aware that … Continue reading The Mens Rea of Fraud: Lessons from the Great White North
~By Abhinav Sekhri The Criminal Procedure Identification Act, 2002 ["CPIA"] was passed this April amidst significant criticism [see, for instance, here, here and here]. The issues identified with this law were across a wide spectrum — the attack on the right to privacy, the uncertain status of the forensic 'science' at play, the lack of clarity in terms of implementation. Some … Continue reading Taking a Closer Look at the Criminal Procedure Identification Act & Rules
~By Abhinav Sekhri On July 11, 2022, the most recent clarifications were issued by the Supreme Court in respect of the bail guidelines which it had first issued in October, 2021 [MA No. 1849 of 2021 in SLP (Crl) 5191 of 2021, titled 'Satender Kumar Antil v. CBI' (Order dated 11.07.2022)]. This blog had covered the guidelines in October, … Continue reading The Most Recent Clarifications to the Supreme Court Bail Guidelines
-By Abhinav Sekhri Prologue: The Budget Leaks of 1956 Aschara Lal Mehra was, presumably, one of many Sales Managers in Bombay's Mercury Paints and Varnishes Ltd.; a pre-independence firm which continues to exist today. Perhaps Mehra was dissatisfied with the income Mercury Paints gave him, because when he was introduced to one Davinder Pal Chadha from … Continue reading Indefinite Incarceration of Approvers — In Need of Necessary Amendments
-Sanjana Gupta & Aditi Roy Introduction Bail can be termed as the procurement of a person’s release from legal custody through an undertaking that one shall remain present at the designated time and place and submit himself to the Court. Bail can be denied only in exceptional circumstances and has to be given as a … Continue reading Setting the paper tiger free – Bail provisions and UAPA
By Aditya Saraswat Introduction The number of women prisoners is constantly rising in India; however, the male-centric prison system in the country is denying some crucial rights to them which are extremely necessary for their reformation. One such right is the access to Open Jails. There is apparent discrimination in the selection procedure of inmates … Continue reading Open Jails for Women: The Disguised Discrimination
By Gahna Rajani and Himanshu Bhargava Introduction J Jayaraj and Bennix Immanuel were subjected to brutal torture in police custody and later succumbed to death. This was not the first incident. The prisoners in India have been subjected to torture and violence for a long time. The apex court has issued several guidelines in the … Continue reading Police in India: Protectors against Injustice or Perpetrators of Injustice?
By Shivangi Pandia Remember our parents telling us about the term “stranger danger” and the risk that we might be exposed to on the internet? Today the youth is facing much more insidious threats to its emotional and mental health with the menace of cyber flashing. Have you ever come across a situation when you … Continue reading Stranger Danger: Making a Case for Cyber Flashing as a Crime
By Jayanta Boruah INTRODUCTION Protection of forests is both a responsibility of the state[1] and a duty of the citizens[2] in India. It is even a moral obligation of the entire humanity to protect and conserve the forests since they provide with the basic necessities for surviving on this Planet. Moreover, at present conservation of … Continue reading Environmental Crimes in the Forests of Kamrup District, Assam
By Pramothesh Mukherjee Two individuals enter into a contract of services, however, due to unforeseen circumstances, it so happens that the fulfilment of such contract turns out to be equally fruitless to both. They ‘agree to end’ the contract; as a result, neither party is obligated to perform their contractual duties. In essence, they agree … Continue reading Section 120A of the Indian Penal Code: At the Cusp of Civil and Criminal Jurisprudence
By Bodhisattwa Majumder and Ritika Acharya A pandemic does not discriminate on the basis of class, community or character and strikes every section of the society equally. However, the precautions one can take against the virus are highly prejudiced and biased based on an individual’s financial, social and geographical position in the society. While society … Continue reading COVID-19 – XVI: Monitoring the Prisoners Beyond the Prisons: GPS Tracking for Interim Bails/Paroles
By Milind Rajratnam and Srishti Bhargav Introduction The healthcare workers across the world are most susceptible to workplace violence, but still their concerns are least discussed and deliberated upon. According to the World Health Organization, around 8% to 38% of healthcare workers suffer physical violence at some point in their careers. A study conducted by … Continue reading COVID-19 – XV: Atrocities against Healthcare Workers- Why India needs a Comprehensive Legislation?
By Kaartikay Agarwal “It is the power of punishment alone when exercised impartially in proportion to the guilt, and irrespective of whether the person punished is the King’s son or an enemy, that protects this world and the next” – Chanakya Reformation of a Penal Code based on 19th-century Victorian ideals has been a constant process … Continue reading Conceptualizing a Kautilyan Criminal Justice System
By Anmol Mathur Introduction The Constitution of India guarantees all persons the right to personal life and liberty, equal protection of laws and prohibits any discrimination based on sex. The Constitution is not simply a long, celebrated, big-book of ideas on democracy and civil society, but is a tool for social change in the coming … Continue reading The Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill, 2019 and Gender-Neutral Sexual Offences in India
By Abhiraj Das and Nihal Deo On the 24th of February, when the international community was keenly looking forward to the U.S. President’s visit to India, a severe riot broke out in Delhi. More than 50 people are reported to have lost their lives with hundreds being injured, shops thrashed and several homes set ablaze. … Continue reading Delhi Riots: Duties of the State Organs
By Anchal Bhatheja The Law treats civil and criminal matters differently in terms of the degree of burden of proof required, the nature of courtroom procedure to be followed, the punishment to be awarded and so on. This is because civil matters concern only private individuals while criminal matters concern the society at large and … Continue reading The Economics of an Imbalanced Scale of Justice
By Yagnesh Sharma INTRODUCTION India is viewed as an emerging superpower in the world that we live in today, and one of the major reasons for this status of India is attributed is to the sheer workforce that is translated to the population of the country. This population, however, brings its own problems. While India … Continue reading Privatization of Prisons and the Constitution in India
By Viti Bansal A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) has been filed in the Supreme Court seeking framing of proper procedures, rules, and guidelines for the disposal of mercy petition in an effective and time-bound manner. According to the petitioner, the rights of both the convicts as well as that of the victims under Article 14 … Continue reading Mercy Petitions: The Need for Regulation
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