Last month, Americans were on streets protesting against the tragic murder of George Floyd, an African-American national who died due to police brutality. Floyd’s episode gave rise to questions about racism and status of other races (particularly African Americans) in USA. One cannot talk of African-Americans without bringing up the infamous case of Dred Scott... Continue Reading →
45 years ago, on this day, the central government led by Late Mrs. Indira Gandhi imposed the infamous National Emergency in the country (“Emergency”). The Emergency lasted for 21 months and is considered to be one of the darkest phases of independent India. It saw widespread human rights violations, censorship of the press, rampant arrest... Continue Reading →
Article 21 of the Constitution of India guarantees to every person the Right to Life and Liberty. The Courts have interpreted the Article to include the Right to Reproductive Choices. In particular, the Article allows a woman to decide whether she wants to procreate or not. This Right is not absolute and is limited once... Continue Reading →
‘I can’t breathe!’ These were the last words of George Floyd, an African-American citizen of the United States of America who died due to police brutality, recently. Floyd was arrested for allegedly using counterfeit currency for buying cigarettes. He was pinned down by officer Derek Chauvin who knelt Floyd’s neck for over nine minutes, causing... Continue Reading →
[This post is part of a special series celebrating 47 years of the decision in Kesavananda Bharti v. State of Kerala, wherein the Supreme Court of India laid down the ‘Basic Structure Doctrine’]. It has been republished by Live Law. The judgment in Kesavananda Bharti v. State of Kerala [(1973) 4 SCC 225] is arguably... Continue Reading →
Recently, a petition has been filed before the Hon’ble High Court of Delhi which seeks orders from the Court to appoint an Advocate General (premier law officer of the government) for the National Capital Territory of Delhi (“NCT of Delhi”). It should be noted that NCT of Delhi is a not a state but a... Continue Reading →
Yesterday, the Calcutta High Court passed a significant verdict wherein it quashed a Leave India Notice issued by the Foreigners’ Regional Registration Office, Kolkata to a Polish national, studying in India. The Polish citizen was served the Notice for allegedly violating his visa conditions as he had participated in political rallies against the recent Citizenship... Continue Reading →
Recently, the government of Andhra Pradesh dissolved the state’s Legislative Council. Arguably, the primary motive behind the dissolution seems to be the fact that the Council dominated by the opposition, had been stalling several key legislations passed by the Legislative Assembly. One such legislation is the AP Decentralisation and Inclusive Development of All Regions Bill,... Continue Reading →
[As India celebrates its 71st Republic Day today, I wish to share with all my readers a speech I had given on the 70th Republic Day celebrations at the National Law University, Jodhpur. The speech is extremely close to my heart as it allowed me to express my love for the Constitution of India and... Continue Reading →
[Picture credits: The New Indian Express] The Andhra Pradesh government led by Chief Minister YS Reddy has been in news for proposing to make significant constitutional and structural changes to the state. Recently, the government introduced a Bill to establish a respective legislative, judicial and executive capital in the state. While the Bill has been... Continue Reading →
The 'Basic' Structure 