Justice Financial News

Calcutta High Court on Friday directed CBI to probe the alleged financial irregularities in state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital during the tenure of former principal Sandip Ghosh. «This court directs that the investigation be transferred to the CBI, given that the case involved serious allegations and multiple agencies handling different aspects of the case could lead to inefficiencies or inconsistency for comprehensive justice, unnecessary delays in the judicial process and potential misinterpretation of information thereby undermining effective and credible enforcement. Therefore, the investigation should not be fragmented between different agencies. Handing over the investigation to the CBI ensures consistency,» the HC order read. «The special investigation team (SIT) is directed to hand over the case diary, other records, CCTV footage, statements, if any, and all material and matters concerning the case to the CBI by 10 am tomorrow,» the court order said. The state government had constituted an SIT on August 16 to probe the allegation of financial irregularities at RG Kar since 2021 under Ghosh's tenure.

Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Friday expressed disagreement with a Bombay High Court order restraining political parties from calling a bandh, but asserted the opposition bloc MVA has withdrawn its proposed shutdown in Maharashtra on Saturday over a sexual abuse case in a school. Addressing a press conference, Thackeray said the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) has called off the August 24 (Saturday) bandh after the HC order, but leaders and workers from opposition parties will protest against the Mahayuti government with black bands tied around their mouth across the state. The former CM, whose party is a constituent of the MVA, said he will also join the protest. «We don't agree with the High Court order on bandh,» Thackeray maintained. Earlier in the day, the HC restrained political parties or individuals from proceeding with a Maharashtra bandh over the sexual assault incident, on August 24 or any future date, saying such a protest will paralyse normal life. A division bench of Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya and Justice Amit Borkar said if political parties and individuals were not restrained from proceeding with the call for bandh on Saturday, huge losses, not only in terms of economy and business but also essential services and basic amenities, including health services will occur, which needs to be prevented.

Karnataka High Court reportedly denied woman's demand for Rs 6.16 lakh per month in alimony, emphasizing the need for realistic financial claims. The single-judge bench, led by Justice Lalitha Kanneganti, addressed the woman's request for a substantial monthly alimony, which included Rs 15,000 for clothes, Rs 60,000 for living expenses and Rs 50,000 in legal fees, among other costs.

Delhi High Court on Thursday ordered Jagdish Singh to post an apology on X for labeling Alt News co-founder Mohammed Zubair as a «jihadi» in a post from four years ago, reported TOI. Justice Anup Jairam Bhambhani's single-judge bench directed Singh to issue the apology within a week and keep it on X for at least two months. The directive followed a 2020 petition by Zubair seeking to dismiss a Delhi Police FIR after Singh accused him of cyber sexual harassment related to a retweet of Singh’s granddaughter's blurred photo. Delhi Police had cleared Zubair of wrongdoing in the case, according to the TOI repot. The court stated that Zubair would not pursue further action against Singh once the apology was posted, and Singh must include the specific text: «I regret making the above comment which was not made with any malice or intention to hurt or offend Mohammed Zubair,» referring to Singh's original tweet claiming «Once a jihadi is always jihadi.»

The family of West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice says it has reached an agreement with a credit collection company to avert the foreclosure of their historic hotel as he runs for U.S. Senate

Nitish Kumar have assured the Muslim bodies that their parties would oppose the Waqf (Amendment) Bill. His remarks came at a joint press conference of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board, Jamiat Ulema-e-Hindi and other Muslim organisations where they asserted that they will launch a nationwide movement if the proposed legislation is not withdrawn and exhaust all measures within the ambit of law. «We have met various opposition parties. We also met Chandrababu Naidu, who assured us that 'we will oppose this bill'. We met Nitish Kumar yesterday and he also assured us that 'we will oppose this bill'. Tejashwi Yadav has also assured us that his party would oppose the bill. Uddhav Thackeray has made a statement that he would not allow anyone to lay a hand on the Waqf and Tamil Nadu Chief minister M K Stalin has also said he would oppose,» Rahmani said. Specifically asked about the details of the meeting with Naidu and Kumar, Rahmani did not give a direct answer and said the Muslim organisations want all secular parties, including the BJP allies, to support their stand in view of justice and secularism.

Supreme Court on Thursday refused to pass an interim order to ensure that the committee of creditors (CoC) does not hold any meeting in pursuance of the insolvency proceedings against embattled ed-tech firm Byju's. A bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, however, said it will accord the final hearing in the matter on August 27. The bench said the developments, which may take place in the meantime, can be negated if it finds there was no merit in the appeal of the US-based creditor Glas Trust Company LLC against the judgment of the insolvency body — National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT). At the outset, senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, appearing for Byju's, and Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), said the CoC has been constituted in the meantime and 98 per cent stakes are with the US firm.

CBI alleged in the Supreme Court on Thursday that there was an attempt to cover up the rape and killing of a post-graduate medic at Kolkata's RG Kar Medical College and Hospital by the local police as the crime scene was altered by the time the federal agency took over the probe. Appearing in the court on behalf of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told a bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud that senior doctors of the hospital as well as the victim's colleagues had asked for videography, which means even they had felt that there was a cover-up. «We entered the probe on the fifth day. Before that, whatever was collected by the local police was given to us. The investigation itself was a challenge because the scene of offence was altered. The FIR was registered only after the (victim's) cremation at 11:45 pm. »First, the parents of the victim were informed by the deputy superintendent (of the hospital) that she was not well. When they reached the hospital, they were told that she had committed suicide… Fortunately, the colleagues of the deceased insisted for videography. This suggests that they were suspecting a cover-up," Mehta told the bench, also comprising Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra.

FAIMA) on Thursday decided to end its 11-day strike, called to protest against the rape and murder of a medic in Kolkata, following «positive directions» from the Supreme Court. The apex court earlier in the day asked protesting doctors to resume work and assured them that no adverse action would be taken after they rejoin. "#FAIMA has decided to call off the strike following positive directions from the #Chief Justice of India. We welcome the acceptance of our prayers for interim protections and the necessary steps to enhance security in hospitals. United, we will continue to fight legally," FAIMA, an umbrella body of doctors, said in a post on X. The move comes soon after several resident doctors' associations (RDAs) called off their strike over Kolkata incident, following an appeal from the Supreme Court.

Toronto-Dominion Bank missed analysts’ estimates as wealth-management results underperformed expectations and the company took a restructuring charge related to job cuts, adding to the firm’s troubles as it also booked a new US$2.6 billion provision for fines tied to U.S. money-laundering investigations.

Siddaramaiah on Thursday urged Union Steel & Heavy Industries Minister HD Kumaraswamy to resign from the Cabinet over approving 550 acres of forest land to an ‘unregistered company’ and face trial. He “now sheds tears, claiming, the signature isn't mine; it was forged,” the CM posted on X in continuation of a bitter war of words between the two top political leaders in Karnataka. Siddaramaiah took potshots at Kumaraswamy demanding his resignation over the Mysore Urban Development Authority (MUDA) alternative site allotment case though there was neither a note from him nor his signature. And the allotment did not take place during his tenure either. “Yet you demand my resignation?”

The asset manager's shares slumped 12.5% yesterday after the firm said in a statement that Ken Leech, co-CIO of subsidiary Western Asset Management had taken a leave of absence.  Last month, Franklin Templeton said that the US Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission were launching an investigation into WAM's past trade allocations of treasury derivatives in a plethora of WAM-managed accounts.  WAM has said the company is «cooperating with the investigations». Based on the conclusion of the SEC's investigation, the firm said it will «take action as warranted». ...

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, in a letter to Prime Minister Modi, requested the formation of a 'stringent central legislation ' to fight against the rising cases of rape in India. Alapan Bandyopadhyay, Chief advisor to the West Bengal CM, on Thursday revealed that the TMC Supremo urged PM Modi to take into account the increasing number of rapes throughout the country, and help set-up laws that put an end to such hate-crimes. «Respected Prime Minister, I wish to bring to your kind attention the regular and increasing occurrence of rape cases throughout the country and in many cases rapes with murder are committed according to the available data, it is horrifying to see that almost 90 cases of rapes occur daily throughout the country,» the letter read by Bandyopadhyay stated.

Rahul Gandhi criticized the difficulty victims face in filing FIRs through a post on micro social media platform X. Referring to the recent crimes against women in Maharashtra, he questioned the direction in which society is heading. Writing in Hindi, the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha highlighted that after the assault on two children in Badlapur, justice only began to take shape when the public protested. He asked why it has become so challenging for victims to even approach the police to register an FIR.

Maharashtra, the Bombay High Court on Thursday questioned the investigating authorities on whether complaint has been filed against the school where the incident happened under provisions of POCSO. «Did you register any case against the school? There is a provision in POCSO to make the concerned officer of the school a party for not reporting the crime,» said Bombay HC. During the hearing, the High Court was told that the investigation has started from every angle, and there will be no mistake anywhere.

Toronto-Dominion Bank is taking a provision of US$2.6 billion for fines it expects to pay for failures in its money-laundering controls, and has sold part of its stake in Charles Schwab Corp. to fund it.

U.S. Senate candidate West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice is in a mad-dash legal fight to keep a historic hotel at his luxury resort before it’s auctioned off next week due to unpaid debts

Editor’s note (June 20th 2024): The Supreme Court has ruled in Moore v United States, upholding the tax at issue (the “mandatory repatriation tax"). The court declined to weigh in on the constitutionality of a tax on unrealised gains. What is income, really? Ask an economist and they might describe “Haig-Simons" income—the value of a person’s consumption of goods and services, plus the change in their net worth over a certain period. A lawyer might refer to Section 61(a) of the IRS Code 26, which defines “gross" income as “all income from whatever source derived", including but not limited to commission, interest, property deals and wages.

Nagpada area of Mumbai on Wednesday, police said. The police further said that the accused had been identified as Zubair Shah. «A case of molestation of an 8-year-old girl was registered in the Nagpada area of Mumbai. An earring seller molested the girl. The accused touched the girl inappropriately. Mumbai's Nagpada Police has arrested Zubair Shah who was selling earrings,» Nagpada police said. «Case registered under POCSO Act. Further investigation underway,» police added.

Supreme Court ruling on SC/ST reservations. The Reservation Bachao Sangharsh Samiti announced the Bharat Bandh as a mark of protest against the SC's ruling on SC/ST reservations. The Patna Police baton charged the people protesting in support of a day-long 'Bharat Bandh' on Wednesday against the SC's recent judgement. An atmosphere similar to lockdown is also being seen in Rajasthan's Bikaner district. The people from the SC/ST community are monitoring by forming groups to make the shutdown successful. The police administration is also keeping a close watch on the area with full alertness so that no unusual incident takes place. The SC/ST people took out a procession from Kote Gate to the collector's office.

ICICI Securities Ltd’s application for delisting the company from the stock exchanges on Wednesday. The division bench of Justice Virendra Singh G. Bisht and a technical member Prabhat Kumar, while approving the scheme in an oral order, also dismissed two applications that objected to the delisting scheme. The detailed order was not uploaded till the time of filing the story.