Criminal Law

The Supreme Court on July 9, 2026, set aside the discharge of a school official accused of failing to report a child's complaint of sexual assault, holding that conducting a private verification and concluding that 'nothing had happened' does not absolve a person of criminal liability under Section 21 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012. Facts of the Case The case arose from allegations that an eight-year-old girl studying at a school in Aruna

The Supreme Court on July 9, 2026, indicated that it may refer to a larger bench the question of whether grounds of arrest must mandatorily be supplied in writing to the accused at the time of arrest. The bench of Justices Manoj Misra and Shree Chandrashekhar noted that different Supreme Court benches have delivered conflicting judgments on this fundamental issue of criminal procedure. The Meghalaya Honeymoon Murder Case The issue arose in the context of the State of Meghalay

On July 7, 2026, the Gujarat High Court upheld the death sentences of 38 convicts in the 2008 Ahmedabad serial bomb blasts case, one of India's deadliest coordinated terror attacks. A Division Bench comprising Justices A.Y. Kogje and Samir Dave confirmed the Special Court's February 8, 2022 verdict, which had convicted 49 of the 77 accused and awarded 38 death sentences alongside 11 life imprisonment terms. Background: The 2008 Ahmedabad Serial Blasts On July 26, 2008, 21 bom

The Faizabad Bar Association has filed a formal criminal complaint seeking the registration of a First Information Report against key officials of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust over the alleged theft of donations received at the Ram Temple in Ayodhya. The complaint names former General Secretary Champat Rai, former Trustee Anil Mishra, and administrator Gopal Rao, alleging a well-planned conspiracy to embezzle donation money. Background: The Original FIR and A

Allahabad HC Slams UP Police for Flouting SC Arrest Guidelines Under Satender Antil The Allahabad High Court has delivered a series of sharp rebukes to the Uttar Pradesh Police for systematically flouting the Supreme Court's arrest guidelines laid down in Satender Kumar Antil v. Central Bureau of Investigation (2026 INSC 115). In multiple cases heard in recent months, the Court has found that police officers are making arrests in defiance of the mandatory requirement under Se

Delhi Court Rejects Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam Bail in 2020 Riots UAPA Case On 4 July 2026, Additional Sessions Judge Sameer Bajpai of the Karkardooma Courts in Delhi dismissed the fresh bail applications of Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam, both accused in the alleged larger conspiracy case related to the 2020 North East Delhi riots. The Court held the applications to be "not maintainable" in light of a binding Supreme Court order from January 2026, which restricted the trial c

West Bengal Passes Public Safety and Anti-Social Activities Bill 2026 On June 29, 2026, the West Bengal Assembly passed the West Bengal Public Safety and Control of Anti-Social Activities Bill, 2026, with 176 votes in favor and 41 against. The legislation significantly expands the state's powers to deal with organised crime, enabling preventive detention for up to one year, externment orders, and seizure and confiscation of properties linked to anti-social activities. The bil

Supreme Court Holds RPA Penal Provisions Do Not Apply to Municipal Elections The Supreme Court of India, in Chandrikaben Kishor Dafda v. State of Gujarat & Anr. (2026 INSC 665), decided on July 1, 2026, held that the penal provisions of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 (RPA) do not apply to municipal elections. The ruling by a bench of Justices Sanjay Karol and Nongmeikapam Kotiswar Singh resolves a recurring question about whether candidates accused of filing false

Filing a complaint against a police officer in India is possible through several clear channels, from approaching a senior officer to invoking the courts and independent oversight bodies. The law does not place police personnel above accountability: any person can set the criminal law in motion against an officer whose conduct discloses an offence, and there are dedicated remedies where a police station refuses to act. This guide explains how to file a complaint against a pol

To quash an FIR in India is to ask the High Court to terminate a criminal case at its root when continuing it would be an abuse of the legal process or would defeat the ends of justice. The power to quash an FIR now flows from Section 528 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, which preserves the inherent powers of the High Court that earlier existed under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. This guide explains when an FIR can be quashed, the recognised g

When a court considers bail in a dowry death case, it cannot ignore the statutory presumption that the law attaches to such deaths. The Supreme Court reinforced this position in 2026 by setting aside a High Court order that had granted bail to an accused in a dowry death case without engaging with the presumption under Section 118 of the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, 2023. The ruling is part of a series of decisions in which the Court has cautioned bail courts against granting

The State bears a heightened constitutional duty to protect the life of every person in its custody, and an unnatural death in custody, even one caused by suicide, attracts public law liability. Applying this principle, the Delhi High Court directed the Delhi Government to pay Rs 18.44 lakh in compensation to the father of a 19-year-old who died while in police custody. The judgment in Shyam Sundar v. State (NCT of Delhi), reported as 2026:DHC:5226, is a strong reaffirmation

A Magistrate is not required to record pre-charge evidence under Section 244 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 before committing a complaint case that involves an offence triable exclusively by a Court of Session. That is the effect of a Supreme Court judgment delivered on 1 July 2026 in Neeraj Gupta v. Pardeep Kumar Bansal (2026 INSC 660), which clarifies a point of criminal procedure that frequently arises in private complaint cases involving serious offences such as

Anticipatory bail is a legal provision that allows a person who apprehends arrest in a non-bailable offence to seek bail in advance, before the arrest actually takes place. Under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023, which replaced the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), anticipatory bail is governed by Section 482 (previously Section 438 CrPC). This guide explains the full process of filing an anticipatory bail application in India. When Can You Apply for Antic

The Delhi High Court has cancelled the bail granted to a 57-year-old school caretaker, Lalit Kumar, accused of aggravated penetrative sexual assault on a three-year-old nursery student under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012. Justice Vinod Kumar held that the trial court had failed to adequately consider the child victim's consistent version of events and directed the accused to surrender before the POCSO court. Facts of the Case The incident c

The Supreme Court has clarified that a Magistrate is not required to record prosecution evidence under Section 244 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (CrPC) before committing a complaint case to the Court of Session when the alleged offence is exclusively triable by a Sessions Court. A bench of Justice Sanjay Karol and Justice Nongmeikapam Kotiswar Singh set aside an order of the Punjab and Haryana High Court that had directed a Judicial Magistrate to record such evidenc

The Supreme Court of India has ruled that the mere presence of a public servant at the place where a superior officer allegedly accepted a bribe is not sufficient to establish criminal conspiracy under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988. A bench of Justice Pankaj Mithal and Justice Prasanna B. Varale delivered this significant ruling while dismissing appeals filed by the State of Uttar Pradesh, upholding the acquittal of three Central Excise inspectors by the Allahabad Hi

The Patna High Court has restrained media outlets from portraying contractor Rishu Shree as guilty of orchestrating a tender scam before his trial has even begun. In an order passed in June 2026, Justice Anshul held that referring to the accused using labels such as "mastermind" or "scamster" ahead of a conviction amounts to a media trial that violates the constitutional presumption of innocence. The ruling in Rishu Shree v State of Bihar is a significant reaffirmation of a p

Actor Jacqueline Fernandez has withdrawn her Supreme Court petition challenging the order that framed a charge against her in a money laundering case linked to an alleged Rs 200 crore extortion run by a conman. A bench of Justices B.V. Nagarathna and Joymalya Bagchi dismissed the matter as withdrawn after her counsel sought permission to take the plea back. The development is a reminder of how charge framing works under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 and what op

A significant ruling on cheque bounce cases has come from the Supreme Court, which held that a conviction under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 cannot be allowed to stand once the complainant and the accused have reached a genuine settlement and the complainant has received the agreed amount in full and final satisfaction. The decision in Gian Chand Garg v. Harpal Singh reinforces that the dishonour of a cheque is at heart a compensatory dispute, and that