The Yearly Reports: The top eight litigation stories of 2015

Meat bans, boycotts and high-profile acquittals. These are just some of the key words which summed up the progress of litigation in various courts this year..But has it been all doom and gloom? In this Yearly Report, we look at eight stories from various courts that grabbed the headlines in 2015..1. A Court under Siege – The Madras High Court..It has not exactly been smooth sailing for the Madras High Court and its Chief Justice, Sanjay Kishan Kaul this year. Repeated instances of indiscipline on the part of sections of the Bar have brought the age-old institution to disrepute..It began in February, when Chief Justice SK Kaul witnessed advocates shouting slogans telling him to go back to Kashmir..And things would get far worse..Firstly, Court No. 1 witnessed a sit-in protest demanding that Tamil be made the language of the court. Groups of lawyers as well as the general public entered the courtroom with large banners..Then on September 16, hordes of advocates from Madurai turned up at the Chennai campus in a show of solidarity for lawyers implicated in a contempt case. Not allowed to witness the proceedings, they reacted by shouting slogans in the corridors and wreaking havoc on the campus. Subsequently, the Bar Council of India suspended 14 lawyers involved in the protests..These incidents left Justice Kaul no choice but to demand for CISF protection on campus. Whether the enhanced security ends up making a difference remains to be seen..And it is not just the undisciplined sections of the Bar that are to blame. Judges too have not exactly covered themselves in glory. The High Court has approached the Supreme Court against sitting judge Justice CS Karnan for exhibiting judicial indiscipline and disrespecting the Chief Justice..Justice P Devadass also found himself in the news after he suggested mediation as a solution for “resolving” rape cases. Another brother judge, N Kirubakaran J. had passed an order calling for the abolition of the 3-year law course and the disbandment of the BCI..2. Within Striking Distance: “Boycotting” courts.The jury’s out on whether advocates should be allowed to go on strike at the cost of litigants’ time and resources. And the lawyers of the Madras High Court are not the only ones to have abstained from work this year, with High Courts various parts of the country witnessing similar boycotts..The lawyers at the Gauhati and Orissa High Courts abstained from attending their respective Chief Justice’s courtrooms. Both Justice Waghela and Justice Sreedhar Rao (who retired in October) allegedly made disparaging comments against members of the Bar..Advocates at the trial courts of Hyderabad went on strike demanding the creation of two separate high courts for Andhra Pradesh and the newly formed Telangana. Meanwhile, lawyers of the Calcutta High Court abstained from court because of a “heat wave”, prompting disapproval from the sitting judges and senior lawyers alike..3. The Cost of Justice.The year 2015 will remembered as the year which saw high profile celebrities getting favourable decision from courts..In May, the Karnataka High Court overturned a Special Court’s conviction of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaaa in the disproportionate assets case..A month later, corporate lawyer Janhavi Gadkar was involved in a car accident that resulted in the death of two persons. The Reliance Industries lawyer was granted bail by a Sessions Court in August..Perhaps the most controversial acquittal was that of Salman Khan. The Bombay High Court could not find enough evidence to convict the Bollywood actor, and came down heavily on the investigative authorities. Interestingly, Amit Desai represented both Khan and Gadkar..However, both Khan and Amma are not out of the woods just yet, with the Maharashtra and Karnataka governments respectively preferring appeals to the Supreme Court..4. Seniority Complex.The Karnataka High Court recently dismissed the petitions challenging the designation of 15 lawyers as Senior Advocates in 2014..The matter brought up relevant questions about the process of designating Seniors. While the practice of applying for the designation has become the norm in many High Courts, there are some like advocate TN Raghupathy (one of the petitioners in the case) who abhor the practice. He is likely to challenge the verdict in the Supreme Court, which is hearing a similar petition filed by Senior Advocate Indira Jaising..5. Whose Land is it Anyway?.The Gujarat High Court this year witnessed a controversy allegedly involving both, former and sitting judges. Based on two separate letters written by former High Court judges, a suo moto PIL taken by outgoing Chief Justice VM Sahai sought deeper scrutiny into certain land allotments made to judges..According to the letter written by former judge, Justice BJ Sethna, “some” High Court judges “directly informally participated” in the discussion that followed, and “manipulated with the State government” to get the plots directly. The other letter alleges that some plots were kept “reserved for Judges who were yet to be appointed”..The matter would eventually reach the Supreme Court, which ordered a stay of proceedings before the High Court. (Read the full report here.).6. A Call to Arms.Eighty-seven kidnappings in the first ten months of 2015, villagers who live “totally exposed to the mercy of insurgents”, a civil administration (including the police) that “stealthily fulfil the illegal demands of the insurgents” and “veiled threats” received by the judges on their safety once they retire..These were some of the reasons why the Meghalaya High Court in November asked the state government to consider the implementation of the much maligned Armed Forces Special Powers Act in the Garo Hills region of the state..The High Court’s order evoked strong criticism from civil society for asking for the implementation of the draconian AFSPA. Whether the state government considers the High Court’s directions remains to be seen, with the matter coming up for hearing next year, on January 4..7. Getting into a Beef.The Maharashtra Government courted controversy this year with its “beef ban”. The new law sought to outlaw the slaughter of cow, bulls and bullocks, and even the possession of said meat..The ban is being challenged in the Bombay High Court; the matter will come up for hearing again next year on January 8..The High Court also stayed a notification banning the sale of meat during the Jain festival of Paryushan, issued by a municipal body..On a related note, the Jammu & Kashmir High Court also ordered the strict implementation of a law prohibiting the slaughter of bovine animals, which can be traced to the pre-independence era..8. Balancing the Scales.We end on a rather warm note, with the story of a subordinate court judge from Kerala personally intervening in a case to make things right..In April, S. Manohar Kini, an Additional District Judge posted at the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal in Palakkad district, paid the family of an accident victim a compensation of 1 lakh rupees from his own salary. The son of one Sundaran was killed in a motor accident, after which the MACT mistakenly granted the compensation to Ramakrishnan, who had subsequently passed away..Kini was put in the unenviable position of deciding whether Sundaran could claim compensation from the heirs of Ramakrishnan, who were financially unstable. Considering the plight of both parties, the judge saw it fit to pay the compensation to Sundaran out of his own salary.