Charu Khurana: Fair End, Flawed Means

In Charu Khurana v. Union of India, 2014 SCC Online SC 900, a Supreme Court Bench comprising of Dipak Misra and U.U. Lalit, JJ held that the bye-laws of Cine Costume Make-up Artists and Hair Dressers Association (‘Association’) prohibiting women from practising as make-up artists and requiring residency for over 5 years in Maharashtra violate fundamental rights enshrined in the Constitution as well as statutory provisions. The Court directed the bye-laws to be quashed, and the police administration to prevent any harassment of female artists by the Association.

Does Gambling Qualify as a Trade?

A five judge bench of the Hon’ble Supreme Court, in State of Bombay vs R.M.D. Chamarbaugwala (AIR 1957 SC 699), held that gambling or conducting the business of gambling is extra-commercium and hence not included within the meaning of ‘trade, commerce or intercourse’. Consequently, it is not protected by the fundamental right to trade and profession under Article 19(1)(g) or the freedom of trade, commerce and intercourse under Article 301 of the Constitution of India.

Right to Employment vs Security

The Hon’ble High Court of Gujarat, in Mahila Utkarsh Trust vs Union of India (2014 SCC OnLine Guj 7642), held the provisions contained in Section 66(1)(b) of the Factories Act, 1948 – prohibiting women from working in factories between 7.00 pm and 6.00 am - to be ultra vires Articles 14, 15, 16, 19(1)(g) and 21 of the Constitution of India, relying on the decision of the Hon’ble Supreme Court in Anuj Garg vs Hotel Association of India (AIR 2008 SC 663).

Model Rules under the Street Vendors Act 2014

iJustice has drafted Model Rules under the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act 2014, for dissemination amongst Government Authorities. These rules have been drafted with the aim to ensure effective implementation of the Street Vendors Act 2014, keeping in mind the goal of ensuring livelihood freedom to vendors and hawkers and adherence to the rule of law and the principles of natural justice.

Proposed amendment in Delhi Street Vending Rules

The Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi published the Delhi Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Rules, 2014 in the Delhi Gazette on 26th of November, 2014 under the provisions of the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014.

Although the rules are largely in consonance with the parent Act, there are six main flaws in the rules:

Implementation of the Rajasthan Street Vendors’ Act 2012

The Rajasthan Street Vendors Act was passed on 29 August 2011 and came into force on 1 April 2012. The Act mandates setting up of Town Vending Committees (TVC), registration of street vendors and framing of a street vendors’ scheme. Additionally, it lays down the responsibility of monitoring the functioning of the TVCs and implementation of the Scheme on the Municipalities.

Submission on farm Laws : Summary

Despite decades of policy interventions, a majority of Indian farmers have not seen their incomes rise. Farmers with small or marginal holdings, who make up around two-thirds of all farmers, find themselves prey to indebtedness, a lack of choice in inputs, and underdeveloped warehousing and processing facilities.

Many policies that previous Governments have framed ostensibly to protect farmers, have added to the distress in the sector by granting farmers little or no control over anything in agriculture.

Examination of the implementation of the SVA, 2014 Submissions to the Parliamentary Standing Committee

The Parliament of India introduced the Street Vendors Act 2014 (SVA) with an aim to protect the rights of urban street vendors and regulate street vending activities. Among other things, the Act aims to formalise vendors by surveying them, providing them with certificates, demarcating vending zones and putting in place a grievance redressal mechanism.

Offer Of Judgment Rule Proposing Section 35C in the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908

There are several alarming figures that sum up the need for judicial reform, especially in the domain of contract enforcement. This paper undertakes a comprehensive analysis of the solution to improve contract enforcement in India, lobbying for a demand-side approach. It focuses on the offer of judgment rule, i.e. Rule 68 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure as suggested by Shubho Roy, and builds on that. The paper reviews the existing scholarly work on the current debate on the efficacy of Rule 68 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.

Advocates Act, 1961

This report highlights key issues litigants face in India due to regulatory gaps in the legal services sector. This paper puts forward an agenda for reform in the regulatory framework, for consideration of the Law Commission.

Legal services in India are regulated by the Advocates Act, 1961 (hereafter, Advocates Act), which constitutes the Bar Council of India (BCI) and respective State Bar Councils. The paper identifies two key areas that put litigants availing legal services at a disadvantage:

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