The span Weekly Reports:span Supreme Court of India

The Supreme Court last week only sat for four days, with Friday being a holiday for Shivratri. In the days that it did function, it seems it decided to allot homework for the summer vacations, with multiple matters being posted before Constitution Benches..Read the highlights from the short week below..Monday, February 20.No concessions for terrorists.Taking a tough stand against convicted terrorists, the Court said those lodged in prison for long years for terrorist activities could not be given parole or interim bail because of family exigencies..A bench of Chief Justice J S Khehar and Justices D Y Chandrachud and Sanjay Kishan Kaul dismissed a petition for interim bail by Mohammad Naushad, convicted by the trial court and the Delhi high court for the 1996 Lajpat Nagar bomb blast that killed 13 people and injured 38..Sabrimala to go to a Constitution Bench.A Bench of Justices Dipak Misra, R Banumathi and Ashok Bhushan have reserved their judgment on the issue of whether the matter should be referred to Constitution Bench or not. The Bench clearly expressed its inclination to refer the case to Constitution Bench..A slew of intervenors appeared before the Bench seeking impleadment. The Court allowed all the impleadment applications and gave the intervenors liberty to give their written submissions..Read full story here..Tuesday, February 21.Illegal Immigration case to be heard during summer holidays.The case relating to illegal immigration into the state of Assam, which was earlier referred to a Constitution Bench will now be taken up on May 11. The case, which was referred by a Bench of Justices Ranjan Gogoi and Rohinton Nariman, involves many significant issues including the constitutionality of Section 6A of the Citizenship Act and whether there is a rational basis for having a separate cut-off date for regularizing illegal immigrants who enter Assam as opposed to the rest of the country..Wednesday, February 22.Frame policy for mentally ill patients: Supreme Court.A Bench of Chief Justice JS Khehar and Justices DY Chandrachud and SK Kaul, has asked the Centre to frame guidelines for rehabilitation of persons who have been cured of their mental illness..The apex court told Solicitor General Ranjit Kumar, representing the Centre, that the government cannot allow a person to be kept in a mental asylum or a nursing home after he or she is fully cured of the ailment..The Solicitor General, who appeared in the matter, told the Bench that they needed some time as two ministries — Ministry of Health and Ministry of Social Justice — were involved in this process..The apex court gave eight weeks’ time to the Centre for this..Thursday, February 23.Constitution Bench for Delhi govt. v. Centre.The AAP government has approached the Supreme Court against the Delhi High Court’s ruling that the Lieutenant Governor is the administrative head of the NCT of Delhi. The matter was mentioned before the CJI by [….] who sought for setting up a 5-judge Constitution Bench to decide the appeal against the High Court verdict pronounced last year..In August last year, the Delhi High Court upheld the administrative powers of the Lieutenant Governor in noting that directions under the notification granting independence in decision making to the Lt Governor are neither illegal nor unconstitutional..The curious case of Kalikho Pul.The Court allowed the widow of former Arunachal CM Kalikho Pul to withdraw her letter written to the Chief Justice, seeking permission to investigate the contents of the letter written by her late husband..Senior Advocate Dushyant Dave, who appeared for the wife, Dangwimsai Pul, asked the bench why the matter was listed for judicial hearing despite his client having wanted an order on the administrative side..After an inconclusive hearing, the Court agreed to dispose of the writ petition as withdrawn..Read details here and here.