Dear All,
Today we are sharing information from legal fraternity which will show significant timeline journey of the Supreme Court in short info.
January 26, 1950: Constitution of India comes into force, marks the
establishment of the Supreme Court of India. Justice Harilal Jekisundas Kania
assumes office as the first Chief Justice of India.
January 28, 1950: Supreme Court of India is officially inaugurated,
starts functioning from the Chamber of Princes in the Parliament House.
First sitting of Supreme Court of India
May 19, 1950: AK Gopalan v. State of Madras – One of the first instances
in which the Court gets an opportunity to interpret Article 21. Holds that if
personal liberty is taken away by the State in accordance with the procedure established
by law, then challenge to it will fail.
July 27, 1950: Champakam Dorairajan v. State of Madras – Court holds
that providing for reservations in educational institutions is in violation of
Article 15(1). One of the catalysts to the first amendment to the
Constitution.
November 6, 1951: Justice Kania retires.
1956: Number of judges increased to 11.
1958: Supreme Court moves to its present building.
1960: Strength of the Court is raised to 14.
February 3, 1964: Justice SM Sikri is appointed as Supreme Court judge;
becomes the first Supreme Court judge to be elevated directly from the Bar.
Since then, there have been only five direct elevations, namely Justices SC
Roy, Kuldip Singh, Santosh Hegde, Rohinton Nariman, UU Lalit and L Nageswara
Rao.
October 30, 1964: Sajjan Singh v. State of Rajasthan – Court rules that
the word “Law” in Article 13(2) does not take in Constitutional amendment Acts
under Article 368. When Article 368 confers on Parliament the right to amend
the Constitution, the power in question can be exercised over all the
provisions of the Constitution.
November 24,1961: KM Nanavati v. State of Maharashtra – The case which
received great media attention, particularly in Mumbai, marks the end of jury
trials in India. Considered as one of the first instances of media trial where
public opinion and media coverage allegedly made a significant impact on the
jury members who, thereby, acquitted Indian Navy officer KM Nanavati for
killing his wife’s paramour.
February 27, 1967: Golaknath v. State of Punjab – Supreme Court
overrules Sajjan Singh, holds that amendment under Article 368 is “law” within
the definition of Article 13(2); Rules that Legislature does not have the power
to amend Part III of the Constitution to take away or abridge fundamental
rights. Applies doctrine of stare decisis to protect such amendments made till
then.
1971: Parliament amends Article 13 by the 24th Amendment Act to
circumvent the ruling in Golaknath. Inserts Article 13(4) expressly providing
that Constitutional amendments are excluded from the ambit of Article 13.
January 22, 1971: Justice SM Sikri takes charge as the Chief Justice of
India thereby becoming the first CJI to be elevated directly from the Bar.
Keshavananda Bharathi.
April 24, 1973: Keshavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala – The landmark judgment
in which a Bench of the Supreme Court comprising all the 13 sitting judges lays
down by a majority of 7-6 that the Parliament has the power to amend any part
of the Constitution including Part III which lays down fundamental rights
provided such amendment does not impinge upon the “Basic Structure of the
Constitution”. Overrules Golaknath and lays down that Constitutional amendment
is not “law” within the meaning of Article 13.
April 26, 1973: Justice AN Ray supersedes three senior judges, Justice
KS Hegde, Justice AN Grover and Justice JM Shelat to be appointed as the CJI.
Dubbed as a payback by the Executive for the Keshavananda judgment.
Subsequently, Justices Hegde, Grover and Shelat resign in protest.
May 3, 1973: SCBA observes ‘Bar Solidarity Day’ in protest against
appointment of Justice Ray as CJI, calls upon all Bar Associations in India to
abstain from court work.
July 17, 1973: Justice VR Krishna Iyer assumes office as Supreme Court
judge.
November 23,1973: EP Royappa v. State of Tamil Nadu – A judgment which
had received mixed response. Justice PN Bhagwati expostulates the “reasonable
classification test” as the test for equality under Article 14. Instead, he
propounds the “new doctrine” in which he says that Article 14 “strikes against
arbitrariness in State actions” and the concept of equality is “a dynamic
concept with many aspects and dimensions and it cannot be imprisoned within
traditional and doctrinaire limits.”
April 28,1976: Shame of emergency: ADM Jabalpur v. SS Shukla –
Considered as one of the darkest days of Indian democracy as a Constitution
Bench of the highest court of the land, by a majority of 4:1, rules that, while
a proclamation of emergency is in operation, the right to move High Courts
under Article 226 for Habeas Corpus challenging illegal detention by State will
stand suspended.
Justice HR Khanna’s dissenting judgment in which he appeals to “the
brooding spirit of law” and “the intelligence of the future” earns him
legendary status but loses him the post of CJI.
Closely following the developments at Sansad and Tilak Marg, New York
Times describesthe Indian Supreme Court’s capitulation as “virtually the
last step in the destruction of a democratic society” and a decision “which
appears close to utter surrender”.
January 29, 1977: Justice MH Beg supersedes Justice HR Khanna as the
Chief Justice of India, the second such instance of the senior most judge being
superseded for the post of CJI. Justice Khanna resigns.
1978: The strength of the Court is raised again, this time to 18.
January 25, 1978: Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India – Court holds that as
per Article 21, “procedure established by law” must be “fair, just and
reasonable, not fanciful, oppressive or arbitrary”; overrules AK Gopalan.
September 15, 1979: Tukaram v. State of Maharashtra – Famously
known as the Mathura rape case, the Supreme Court reverses the order of
conviction passed by the Bombay High Court and acquits the accused on the
ground that the victim had consented to sexual intercourse. Judgment creates
uproar after jurists including Professor Upendra Baxi write to the Supreme
Court judges; leads to a slew of amendments in penal provisions pertaining to
rape.
November 26, 1979: First Law Day celebrated by the Supreme Court Bar
under the leadership of Dr. LM Singhvi to commemorate the adoption of the
Indian Constitution; the tradition continues to date.
May 9, 1980: Bachan Singh v. State of Punjab – Supreme Court upholds
Constitutionality of death penalty.
July 31, 1980: Minerva Mills v. Union of India – Court gives key
interpretations to the “Basic Structure Doctrine”. Holds that Parliament’s
power to make Constitutional amendments is limited and it cannot be used to
enfeeble fundamental rights. The Court also interprets the “Directive
Principles of State Policy” and holds that social welfare laws cannot be made
in abrogation of Part III rights.
November 14, 1980: Justice VR Krishna Iyer retires as Supreme Court
judge.
December 30, 1981: SP Gupta v. President of India & Ors. (First
judges case) – Court holds that among the opinion of the three Constitutional
functionaries, the opinion of the Chief Justice of India does not enjoy primacy
over those of the other two in the matter of appointment of judges.
April 23, 1985: Mohammed Ahmed Khan v. Shah Bano – Court holds that
divorced Muslim women are entitled to maintenance under Section 125 of the Code
of Criminal Procedure.
July 10, 1985: Olga Tellis v. Bombay Municipal Corporation – A classic
case of expansion of the scope of Article 21 with the Court ruling that slum
and pavement dwellers can be evicted from public places where they reside only
after the State provides them alternative shelter.
1986: Court’s strength is raised to 26.
December 20, 1986: MC Mehta v. Union of India – Popularly known as the
‘Oleum gas leak case’, Supreme Court discards the ‘Strict Liability’ test
enunciated in the English case of Rylands v. Fletcher for deciding the
liability of an enterprise engaged in a hazardous or inherently dangerous
activity; Lays down the principle of ‘Absolute Liability’.
Justice Fathima Beevi
October 6, 1989: Justice Fathima Beevi takes charge as Supreme Court
judge, becomes the first woman judge of the Supreme Court.
November 16, 1992: Indra Sawhney v. Union of India –Landmark judgment
pertaining to reservation for backward classes.
Court accepts the recommendations of the Mandal Commission; excludes
“creamy layer” from the purview of reservation benefits.
October 6, 1993: Supreme Court Advocate on Record Association & Anr.
v. Union of India (Second Judges case) –Birth of Collegium system as the
Supreme Court lays down that the opinion of the Chief Justice of India will
have primacy over the opinion of the Executive with regard to appointment of
judges. The Court also prescribes that the CJI before making his recommendation
shall consult the two senior most judges of the Supreme Court and the senior
most judge of the State from where the appointee hails.
August 13, 1997: Vishaka v. State of Rajasthan – Court frames guidelines
to tackle sexual harassment at workplace. Classic example of Judiciary
intervening to legislate, thanks to absence of law.
October 28, 1998: In re Special Reference 1 of 1998 – Popularly known as
the ‘Third judges case’, the Court on a reference by the then President of
India, KR Narayanan, lays down that the Collegium should consist of the Chief
Justice of India and four senior most puisne judges, thus raising the strength
of the Collegium from 3 to 5.
June 8, 2000: Supreme Court gets first judge from the Dalit community.
Justice KG Balakrishnan is sworn in.
October 31, 2002: TMA Pai Foundation v. State of Karnataka – Court
overrules decision in Unni Krishnan’s case, insofar as it framed the scheme
relating to the grant of admission and the fixing of the fee; elucidates the fundamental
rights available to private educational institutions and relaxes State control
over such private unaided institutions.
August 12, 2005: PA Inamdar v. State of Maharashtra – Court clarifies
that the reservation policies of State will not be applicable to private
unaided colleges whether belonging to minority or non-minority.
January 11, 2007: IR Coelho v. State of Tamil Nadu & Ors. – Court
holds that any law inserted in the Ninth Schedule on or after April 24, 1973
(date on which Keshavananda was pronounced) can be subject to judicial review
and will be struck down if it violates the basic structure doctrine. The ruling
effectively nullifies the object of Article 31B.
January 14, 2007: Justice KG Balakrishnan becomes India’s first CJI from
the Dalit community.
2008: Court’s strength is raised to 31, its current strength.
April 2011: Campaign for Judicial Accountability and Reforms writes to
Prime Minister and President to initiate steps for removal of former CJI
Justice KG Balakrishnan from the post of Chairman of NHRC amidst allegations of
corruption and amassing disproportionate assets and benami properties.
January 20, 2012: Vodafone International Holdings v. Union of India
& Anr. – The landmark tax dispute in which the Court ruled that Indian
revenue authorities do not have jurisdiction to impose tax on an offshore
transaction between two non-residents companies by virtue of the fact that the
transaction leads to one of the companies acquiring a controlling stake in a
resident (Indian) company.
Government amends tax laws with retrospective effect to tax the
transaction.
February 2, 2012: Supreme Court cancels 2G spectrum licensesallotted to
various Telecom companies.
July 18, 2013: Supreme Court scraps NEET for admission to medical and
dental colleges; leaked judgment in the case causes furore.
August 2013: PIL filed in Supreme Court by NGO Common Cause seeking
inquiry into allegations of corruption and acquisition of disproportionate
assets against Justice KG Balakrishnan; it is still pending.
November 29, 2013: Retired Supreme Court judge Justice AK Ganguly gets
embroiled in sexual harassment of a law intern.
December 11, 2013: Suresh Kumar Koushal & Anr. v. Naz Foundation
& Ors. – Supreme Court upholds the Constitutionality of Section 377 of the
Indian Penal Code criminalising gay sex; reverses Delhi High Court judgment
which had struck down its Constitutional validity.
January 2014: After Justice Ganguly, Justice Swatanter Kumar gets
embroiled in sexual harassment controversy.
April 15, 2014: National Legal Services Authority v. Union of India –
Transgender persons recognised as third gender with equal entitlement to all
Constitutional and legal rights as any other person.
June 25, 2014: Senior Advocate and former Solicitor General Gopal
Subramanium withdraws consent to be appointed as Supreme Court judge after the
Central government returns his name for reconsideration; Subramanium writes to
CJI RM Lodha saying he is being targeted for his “independence and integrity”.
Justice Lodha subsequently expresses disappointment over Subramanium’s
withdrawal of consent and reiterates that independence of judiciary will not be
compromised.
August 25, 2014: Manohar Lal Sharma v. Principal Secretary & Ors. –
Supreme Court declares all coal block allocations, made since 1993 through the
government dispensation route and Screening Committee, illegal.
December 31, 2014: President signs the National Judicial Appointments
Commission Bill, 2014 leading to a keenly watched litigation before the Supreme
Court.
February 12,2015: Senior Advocate and then the President of Supreme
Court Bar Association, Dushyant Dave writes two strongly worded letters to the
Chief Justice of India opposing the proposed elevation of Bombay High Court
Chief Justice Mohit Shah to the Supreme Court. Shah J would eventually retire
as a High Court judge.
March 24, 2015: In one of the most widely discussed judgments of recent
times, the Supreme Court strikes down Section 66A of the Information Technology
Act, 2000 as unconstitutional.
July 30, 2015: In an unprecedented move, the Court opens its doors at
2.30 am in the morning to hear the plea filed by Yakub Memon to stay his
execution. Court eventually rejects the plea.
October 16, 2015: Court holds that National Judicial Appointments
Commission (NJAC), and the Constitutional amendments involved, is in violation
of the Constitution of India; Collegium system stays.
November 5, 2015: In an unprecedented move, the Supreme Court invites
suggestions and inputs from the public on improving the Collegium system of
judicial appointments.
May 13, 2016: Court upholds the constitutional validity of provisions
relating to criminal defamation.
August 12, 2016: In a rare outburst, Supreme Court warns the
Central government, that it will consider withdrawing judicial work from two
judges – Justice Valmiki Mehta of the Delhi High Court and Justice MR Shah of
the Gujarat High Court if the transfer of these judges are not given effect to.
November 11, 2016: Court issues
notice of contempt to its former judge, Justice Markandey Katju, for a blog
post on the Soumya verdict. The matter is later settled with Justice Katju
tendering an unconditional apology. Supreme Court passes landmark judgment
upholding the validity of entry tax in a 7:2 majority judgment.
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