Shiva Kirti Singh

The Supreme Court on Monday directed the government to consider the matter of passive euthanasia and made it clear that pendency in the apex court should not come in the way of authorities to take a decision on the matter.

History was made today, with three Constitution benches sitting at the same time in the Supreme Court at 2 pm.

The Supreme Court bench comprising Justice Vikramajit Sen and Justice Shiva Kirti Singh today upheld the Kerala Government’s liquor policy which was challenged as being discriminatory. 

Justice Vikramajit Sen of the Supreme Court, who is retiring on 30 December, has told reporters that he would pronounce the verdict in the Kerala Bar licence case on or before the last day of his tenure.

Arguments in the Kerala liquor case Kerala Bar Hotels Association vs State of Kerala came to an end yesterday (August 27) at 12:30 pm after the bench comprising justices Vikramajit Sen and Shiva Kirti Singh heard as many as five counsel and reserved their judgment, while asking them to give the court written submissions, if any, during next week.

Arguments in The Kerala Bar Hotels Association vs State of Kerala began with a lot of excitement on both sides last week before the bench of justices Viramajit Sen and Shiva Kirti Singh.

The Supreme Court will have two new judges in Allahabad high court chief justice (CJ) Shiva Kirti Singh and Orissa High Court CJ C Nagappan, reported the Hindu. Both will serve three-year tenures at the SC, taking its judges’ strength up to 30.

Justice Singh is the third judge representing Bihar in the SC, while Nagappan is the third from Tamil Nadu. Singh has been the acting chief justice of the Patna HC in 2009, and again in 2010 before being transferred to the Allahabad HC where he became the acting chief justice in November 2012 and chief justice in February this year.

Justice Nagappan became judge of the Madras HC in 2000 and a permanent judge in 2002. He was appointed CJ of the Orissa HC in February this year.

Editor's note: An earlier version of the story mentioned justice Singh as the second judge representing the state of Bihar in the SC which is an incorrect fact reported in the Hindu story which this story is linked to. Justice Singh is the third representative from Bihar after justice GS Misra and justice CK Prasad.