Swatanter Kumar

The Delhi high court’s order, restricting media coverage of the sexual harassment allegations against Swatanter Kumar, should give the Supreme Court cause to consider its Sahara gag order decision, argues Chinamyi Arun, research director at the Centre for Communication Governance at NLU Delhi and fellow at the CIS Bangalore.

After sending a takedown request for a photograph last Thursday, Karanjawala & Co, representing ex-SC judge Swatanter Kumar in a defamation case, declined to specify which parts of Legally India’s coverage relating to the case should be removed.

Karanjawala & Co, the law firm representing Swatanter Kumar in his Rs 5 crore defamation suit, has sent Legally India a legal notice for the removal of an anonyised photograph of the ex-judge.

Delhi law min under bar council lens: The Delhi Bar Council decided to meet today to discuss disciplinary action against Delhi law minister Somnath Bharti against whom reports of “tampering with evidence” as an advocate last year, emerged last week. Bharti meanwhile also faces an FIR relating to an alleged assault of a Ugandan women by unnamed persons in a Delhi basti, and the National Human Rights Council has also taken cognisance of the matter [Zee News]

AAP vs Delhi police: Delhi may see the arrest of its chief minister (CM) as newly elected CM Arvind Kejriwal and his AAP party stage protests at the home ministry today to press for the suspension of five policemen who disobeyed Delhi law minister Somnath Bharti’s orders to arrest Ugandan women suspected of drug trafficking. AAP has demanded that the Delhi police be brought under the Delhi government [IBN Live / NDTV’s live blog]

Delayed MP bar council polls: The delayed Madhya Pradesh state bar council elections pushed a contestant – advocate Dwarkadhish Chowdhary – to write to the Bar Council of India (BCI) requesting for a special committee to to take charge of the elections in the state bar “to save and maintain fairness” [Free Press Journal]

Additional judges in Kerala HC: Justices Alexander Thomas, Muhamed Mustaque Ayumantakath, Ala Kunnil Jayasankaran Nambiar and Anil Kalavampara Narendran were appointed additional judges of the Kerala high court on Friday [PTI]

Editors Guild on Swatanter gag: The Editors Guild has taken exception to the Delhi high court’s “gag order” restricting media reporting news of the sexual harassment case against former SC justice Swatanter Kumar, calling it “a mockery of the rule of law” [TOI]

Indira Jaising, by Outlook: Outlook profiles Additional Solicitor General Indira Jaising as the staunch supporter of women’s rights who is due to retire in April. “I’d rather be remembered as a woman who raised the issue of integrity in the highest court of the land,” says Jaising

The Delhi high court yesterday restrained anyone from publishing or broadcasting the detailed sexual harassment allegations against Swatanter Kumar, without stating prominently that they are “mere allegations”, as a battery of counsel appeared for the former Supreme Court judge in the court yesterday.

Swatanter wins media blackout: The Delhi HC has provided former SC judge Swatanter Kumar interim relief in the defamation suit he had filed against three media houses. The HC prohibited the media from publishing anything beyond the court’s orders in his ex-intern’s sexual harassment PIL against him, including his photographs [Hindustan Times]

Bar boycott of Swatanter’s NGT: The All India Bar Association has asked its over 10,000 Delhi members to boycott the National Green Tribunal’s Delhi bench until its current head Swatanter Kumar quits the post. Kumar is accused of sexual harassment by his former intern from NUJS Kolkata [PTI]

Judges immune from sex harassment complaints: The Supreme Court was yesterday stuck on the question of absence of mechanism to deal with sexual misconduct cases against its sitting and retired judges, while hearing the ex-intern’s sexual harassment case against Swatanter Kumar. The matter has been posted to 14 February for further hearing [DNA India]

CBI to get more autonomy: CBI on the road to autonomy has gained central government secretary-rank status for its chief and power to approve spending up to Rs 15 crore, as opposed to earlier when it infamously waited 100 days for government approval on a laptop’s purchase and three months for a mobile phone [TOI]

Swatanter Kumar ex-intern PIL admitted: Former SC judge Swatanter Kumar’s ex-intern from NUJS Kolkata who had made sexual harassment allegations against him yesterday moved a petition in the SC for inquiry against him. The intern challenged the SC’s 5 December 2013 full court resolution that it could take no action against Kumar because he was now retired, although he was not at the time of making the allegation.

The intern is supported in her petition by additional solicitor general Indira Jaising, and advocates Kamini Jaiswal, Harish Salve and Vrinda Grover.

The Chief’s court agreed to take up the matter on 15 January [PTI]

NUJS intern sex harassment policy: NUJS Kolkata will, by next month, ready a policy to formally deal with complaints of sexual harassment by its students against anyone they intern with through the university. The law school will also sensitise students on how to deal with any incidence of sexual harassment during internships [Firstpost]

ML Sharma Legally India-CIA link petition dismissed: “ML Sharma [was upset] over @IJaising, @LegallyIndia & @kianganz in CJI's court accusing them of CIA funding for reporting [sexual harassment], Swantantar.” tweeted @JaskiratSB yesterday. Chief Justice of India Sathasivam declined to entertain Sharma’s writ petition, which sought action against the intern, “a website and a national daily” for publishing the “defamatory” allegation, reported the PTI.

Swatanter Kumar lashes back: Former SC judge and National Green Tribunal head Swatanter Kumar – who was accused of sexual harassment by an ex-intern from NUJS Kolkata according to Friday’s media reports – sent a legal notice to three media houses demanding an apology from them within 24 hours for publishing “incredulous and false” allegations against him [PTI]

Clifford Chance now CV-blind to nix Oxbridge bias: UK-magic circle firm Clifford Chance has introduced the “CV-blind” policy for graduate recruitment, giving no information of a candidate’s institutional affiliation to final interviewers at the firm, to reduce the Oxbridge bias in its intake. In its first year of operation the scheme saw 100 recruits from 41 different educational institutes – a 30 per cent rise in the number representation from last year [Independent]

Delhi judiciary transfer lists released: The transfer lists for the Delhi lower and higher judiciary have been released. All six joint registrars of the Delhi HC have now been replaced, and two new registrars have also been added with creation of two new courts for them. 49 judges from the lower judiciary have been promoted to the higher judiciary with the creation of 39 new courts in he higher judiciary for them [DK Mahant]

Bombay HC pendency busting judge: Bombay HC justice Gautam S Patel has, targeting pendency reduction, realigned his case schedule according to urgency of matters. He has also drawn a weekly working schedule for the court and categorised all pending cases [New Indian Express]

Himachal HC judges retire: Himachal Pradesh HC judtices Kuldip Singh and DD Sud will retire, respectively, on 17 January and 18 February [Hindustan Times]

The new law minister Ashwani Kumar has asked the new Chief Justice of India (CJI) Altamas Kabir to look again at ex-CJI SH Kapadia’s nomination of sitting Supreme Court judge Swatanter Kumar for chairperson of the National Green Tribunal (NGT).

Kabir faces the choice of either confirming Kapadia’s decision or to put forward a new name to head the potentially powerful tribunal, which is currently headed up by acting chairperson Justice AS Naidu. Swatanter Kumar’s nomination had attracted media attention, as well as contempt of court proceedings of two newspapers [Economic Times]