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EGAL
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TAJ: Legally FARMERS DEATH:
strangled 54 Judicial fallout 44
40
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BEHIND THE
MUMBAI
ATTACKS
ALSO
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INDERJIT BADHWAR
ANOTHER DOSE
OF DISGUSTING
DISINFOMATION
xus Investments Chairman Surjit Bhalla
who is also a columnistis a rare breed of
a no-nonsense, tell-it-like-it-is and the
devil-take-the-hindmost writer who comments mostly on the lies and statistics that
politicians and their economic spin doctors weave in
order to score a goal against an ideological opponent.
Bhalla strips the concoctions bare until they either
implode into their own hollow shells, or reveal evidence-based truth which lies at the core of the selfserving prevarications.
We come, now, to his latest observations on the
tragic death of farmer Gajendra Singh at the AAP
pro-farmer rally in Delhi, organized by Chief
Minister Arvind Kerjriwal and his party colleagues
to oppose the Narendra Modi governments land
acquisition bill.
For some odd reason, despite its several merits,
the opposition, led by the media-created resurgent
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has labeled the bill
pro-rich and therefore, anti-farmer in order to
reposition the new BJP government as a right-wing,
neo-capitalist, pro-industrialist behemoth. What
being pro-rich has to do with being anti-farmer
escapes me.
Why? Simply because there are plenty of rich
farmers across India. Also being pro-industrialists
does not mean being anti-poor because right since
the days of Nehrus socialist dreams, industrialization and urbanization have been considered important tools of social and economic engineering
designed to help the nation climb out of poverty. And
industrialists, not the government, run the most effi-
editor@indialegalonline.com
INDIA LEGAL May 15, 2015
VOLUME. VIII
ISSUE. 17
Editor
Inderjit Badhwar
Managing Editor
Ramesh Menon
Deputy Managing Editor
Shobha John
Senior Editor
Vishwas Kumar
Contributing Editor
Girish Nikam
Associate Editor
Meha Mathur
Deputy Editors
Prabir Biswas, Niti Singh
Assistant Editor
Somi Das
Art Director
Anthony Lawrence
Senior Visualizer
Amitava Sen
Graphic Designer
Lalit Khitoliya
Photographer
Anil Shakya
News Coordinator/Photo Researcher
Kh Manglembi Devi
Production
Pawan Kumar Verma
LEAD
Intelligence breakdown
NSAs tall claims of
bringing to book David
Headley are far from true.
SEBESTIAN ROTELLA
reports that the agency
fumbled on crucial leads
in the Mumbai terror
attack
22
CFO
Anand Raj Singh
VP (HR & General Administration)
Lokesh C Sharma
Circulation Manager
RS Tiwari
For advertising & subscription queries
sales@indialegalonline.com
SUPREME COURT
10
14
28
Its stiffling
56
DEFENCE
Second inning
INDIA LEGAL digs out more cases of
bureaucrats taking up lucrative
assignments after retirement.
34
A childhood
lesson
40
46
50
Under the
scanner
64
How a transgender is
bravely leading life in a
country of biases
By Khalid Shah............76
REGULARS
CM on a string?
60
AVIATION
PROFILE
ALSO
Edit........................................................................................4
Quote-Unquote.........................................................................8
Ringside.................................................................................... 9
Supreme Court..........................................................................17
Courts....................................................................................... 20
National Briefs...........................................................................33
More News................................................................................39
International Briefs.....................................................................75
Wordly-wise..........................................................................81
People....................................................................................... 82
QUOTE-UNQUOTE
PM Modi while
addressing bureaucrats
on Civil Services Day
Muslims will
have no future
till they are used
to play vote
bank politics.
Shiv Sena leader
Sanjay Raut
arguing that
Muslims should be
stripped of their
voting rights.
Saamna
Aruna
VERDICT
It is better to risk saving a guilty man than to condemn
an innocent one.
Voltaire
NEW
WINE
IN NEW
BOTTLE
With the collegium
system coming to an
end, the National
Judicial Appointments
Commission Act has
taken over. This will
herald new ties between
the executive and the
judiciary, where the
position of the
Chief Justice of India will
be merely symbolic
By Vinay Rai
10
UNI
DEBATE OVER
SELECTION
(Facing page) Union
Ministers Ravi Shankar
Prasad and Arun Jaitley at
a discussion on the
collegium system
in New Delhi
(L-R) Chief Justice of India
HL Dattu; Justice Anil R
Dave
JS Studio
While the
collegium
system
facilitated the
role of plurality
of functionaries
in the
appointment
process, it
suffered from
the vice of
opaqueness,
and thus invited
criticism of
following a
clandestine
process.
11
BATTING FOR
FAIR PLAY
(Right) Fali S Nariman
raised questions in SC
over conflict of interest
of judges hearing
petitions against NJAC
The question
asked in the
legal circles is
whether the
eminent people
chosen as
members of the
NJAC will be
independent
enough to
deny the
political class
any advantage
in the choice of
judges. This
concern is the
thrust of many
petitions
against NJAC.
12
THATS UNFAIR
The SC made the process of functioning of the
collegium out of bounds to RTI applicants. It
also stayed the Central Information
Commissions directive to it to disclose information about the collegium, and referred it to
a constitution bench, where it has been pending since 2009.
The NJAC aims to broadbase the process of
selection of judges by including in it members
of the judiciary, the executive, eminent persons, and make it transparent. The inclusion of
eminent persons was not envisaged by the constitution-makers for appointment of judges to
the higher judiciary.
Therefore, if these two eminent persons
exercise their veto over a proposed appointee,
who otherwise, has the backing of other four
members of NJAC, it may go against the letter
and spirit of the original constitutional provisions. How the SCs constitution bench considers this change in the consultation process, will
be watched with interest.
The NJAC Act does not say anything on
how it proposes to ensure merit, integrity, ability of the appointees and transparency in the
selection process, leaving everything to rules
and regulations made by NJAC.
The answer to much of the criticism leveled
against the collegium and the NJAC may well
lie in these rules and regulations. IL
SUSTAINING GROUND
(Left) Petitions against
the removal of Justice
JS Khehar from the
bench were dismissed
STOP PRESS
THE Chief Justice of
India, HL Dattu, has
declined to be a part of
the National Judicial
Appointments
Commission (NJAC)
until the Supreme Court
arrives at a decision on
the constitutional
validity of the panel.
Dattu refused to
participate in a meeting
with the PM and the
leader of the opposition
for selecting two
eminent persons as
NJAC members.
Observers feel that his
action may lead to a
constitutional crisis and
trigger a face-off
between the judiciary
and the executive.
13
Sound of Music
The apex court
delivered a landmark
verdict by lifting the
25-year-old ban on the
famous musical drama,
Jesus Christ Superstar,
imposed only in
Kottayam
By Jacob George
14
Freedom of
speech and
expression has
undergone
much change.
I wrote the
said order in
detail in the
particular
context
prevailing at
that time.
namthanam had a personal score to settle
with her. She still believes this. My civil case
with my brother was going on then. Many
people were against me. There might have
been some external influence behind the
ban, says Mary Roy. But Kannamthanam,
now a member of the BJP national executive
committee, says: It is not fair to attribute
motives to a magisterial order.
CHANGE OF HEART
But the years have changed Kannamthanam
and he now has a different perspective on
this issue. Though he doesnt admit that any
extraneous force had influenced
him, he says that the last 25 years
have changed him. Freedom of
speech and expression has undergone much change. I wrote the said
order in detail in the particular context prevailing at that time, says
Kannamthanam.
He is unhappy that he was not
heard before the apex court pronounced its verdict. Neither was he
served with a notice, nor did he
know that the case was going on in
the court. His response to the
Supreme Court verdict? I can very
well see it in the light of new perceptions of freedom of speech and
expression, says Kannamthanam.
Alphons
Kannamthanam,
the then Kottayam
district collector, who
had passed the order
banning Jesus Christ
Superstar in 1990
TRAILBLAZING
CHANGE
(Left) Mary Roy,
principal of Corpus
Christy school, also
fought for Syrian
Christian womens
rights
(Facing page) Jesus
Christ Superstar is a
famous musical drama
performed globally
15
25 YEARS LATER
(Top and above)
Corpus Christy
School, whose
students were to
stage Jesus Christ
Superstar on October
15, 1990
16
SUPREME COURT
Illustrations: UdayShankar
17
SUPREME COURT
Install CCTVs
aking a grim view of the alleged manhandling of a
woman lawyer of the apex court at a police station in
the capital in April 2014, the Supreme Court ordered
the Delhi police commissioner that CCTVs must be set up at
all accessible places inside police stations in Delhi. It set a
deadline of two months for the order to be implemented.
The commissioner was also told to provide comprehensive information on the number of cameras already set up
and those in working condition. The court will hear the matter again on May 11.
The task of investigating the manhandling case was
assigned to the Special Cell of the Delhi Police by the court.
The probe was to be done by an officer of the rank of
deputy commissioner and above, and the report was to be
placed before the court in the next hearing.
18
on the matter.
The government had already informed
the apex court earlier that it had accepted
the Election Commissions suggestion that
voting rights be given to NRIs. They were to
cast their votes through postal ballots.
Replying to ano-ther query from the
court, the poll body said in its affidavit that
migrants who relocated from a particular
constituency in India couldnt go back to
cast their ballot in the same constituency.
Marriage by law
hile hearing a property dispute,
the apex court ruled that it
didnt matter whether a man
and a woman living together as husband
and wife were actually married. For, they
were a married couple in the eyes of
law, unless there are sound reasons to
question the presumption.
The court also made it clear that
such a woman was entitled to similar
Marines leave
till July
19
COURTS
Train trouble
HE additional district and sessions judge of Una, Himachal
Pradesh, directed the Railways to
cough up around `35 lakh as compensation to two farmers of the district.
The public sector behemoth had acquired their land for the Una-Amb railway track in 1998.
As per the order, the Railways were
supposed to pay the amount by April
15, failing which the Delhi-Una
Janshatabdi Express was to be atta-
Concerned about
air pollution
FTER putting a ban on diesel-run
vehicles more than 10 years old in
Delhi, the National Green Tribunal
(NGT) relaxed its order for two weeks at
the request of the Delhi government and in
public interest. The court order had
come in due to the apathetic attitude of the
Delhi government in improving air quality
in the capital.
The government told the green court
that there were difficulties at the ground
level in carrying out the order and it could
disrupt essential services in the capital.
Truckers associations, unhappy with
the order, had issued a threat that trucks
bringing goods to the capital would stop
doing so unless the order is revoked.
The court also told the Delhi government that it must submit reasoned and
scientifically supported views on a range
of issues that would impact vehicular pollution in Delhi.
In another hearing, the Delhi High
Court abstained from issuing orders while
hearing a petition on air pollution in the
capital. The petition wanted the court to
stop chopping of trees for the time being.
The court observed that it needed to look
at reports from various agencies before
concluding what needs to be done.
Illustrations: UdayShankar
20
Website blues
website cant be held guilty
if a user has been conned
by someone through it, and
a person must go through the
safety conditions listed on it
carefully before registering, the
Bombay High Court ruled.
The court absolved a matrimonial website of allegations of
cheating after going through its
terms and conditions. The charges had been levelled
by a lady from a
Mumbai suburb. She
had come in contact
with a man through the
website, and had plans
to marry him.
But the man duped
her and even made her
Needless information
comprehensive information on the medical
reimbursements of Supreme Court judges
cant be disclosed as it contains personal
details, and revealing it would amount to invasion
of their privacy, the Delhi High Court concluded.
While dismissing an RTI applicants plea for issuing directions for such information, it also took
into account that the information sought did not
serve any public interest whatsoever.
21
THE HIDDEN
INTELLIGENCE
BREAKDOWNS
BEHIND
THE MUMBAI
ATTACKS
American
intelligence
agency NSA and
British GCHQ,
despite their
access to a mine
of data, failed to
stop the terror
attack on the
Indian soil
By Sebastian
Rotella
HEN
Edward
Snowden revealed the governments vast surveillance
programs in 2013,
the Obama administration responded with a defense that
sounded compelling: the high-tech spying
apparatus had stopped terrorist attacks.
In a rush to provide success stories, senior
officials cited the capture of an American terrorist whose case I knew well. I had spent
several years reporting about David Coleman
Headley, whose reconnaissance for Pakistani
spymasters and terrorist chiefs was crucial to
the 2008 terrorist attacks in Mumbai that
22
THE AMERICAN
AGENT
(Facing page) David
Headley, a key
figure behind 26/11
(Above) The burning
Taj in Mumbai
23
24
NEEDED, BETTER
SYNERGY
Mumbai terror
attack happened
because intel
agencies globally
didnt work in sync
back then and had one-to-one meeting with then Attorney general of the
United States, Eric Holder. He was
extremely cooperative and a man in
complete command, willing to take
decisions. And I think in a matter of
15 minutes we got access. But my
job was only limited to the access,
after which I had no occasion to
review the material.
25
26
PERPETUATING
INJUSTICE
Zaki ur-Rehman Lakhvi,
accused in the Mumbai
terror attack, has been
freed by Pakistan
Our reporting
showed that
the NSAs
contributions
were more
modest than
the accounts
offered by the
intelligence
community in
2013.
Courtesy ProPublica
INDIA LEGAL May 15, 2015
27
THE SKY
IS THE
LIMIT
This could well sum up a CAG report on
Robert Vadras land deals in Haryana.
The state government is seen as flouting
all norms to accommodate Sonia
Gandhis son-in-law
By Vishwas Kumar
28
CONTROLLED AREA
In order to avoid haphazard development
around cities, the state government under
Section 4 of the Punjab Scheduled Roads and
Controlled Areas Restriction of Unregulated
Development Act, 1963 (applicable to
Haryana), declares any area outside the limits of the municipal town or any other area
deemed fit for residential, industrial, commercial, institutional or recreational activities to be controlled area. Development plans
for these areas are prepared under Rule 8 of
the Punjab Scheduled Roads and Controlled
Areas Restriction of Unregulated Development Rules, 1965.
UNDER THE
SCANNER
The CAG report has
unearthed questionable
land deals of
Robert Vadra
29
PATRONISING
CORRUPTION?
As CM, Hooda allowed
and even helped private
companies bypass rules
with impunity
UNI
CROREPATIS
COMPANY
Skylight Hospitality Pvt
pany on November 1,
2007.
Its shares had an
authorized capital of
`1 crore and a paid up
capital of `5 lakh.
As per Registrar of
30
TOUGH TIMES
AHEAD?
The Gandhi family will
have to answer many
questions on Vadras
company, raised by the
CAG report
UNI
31
CREDIBILITY
CRISIS?
(Right) Rahul Gandhi
meeting farmers
delegations on NDAs
land acquisition bill
(Below) With the CAG
report, the center can
now turn the tables on
the Congress
Photos: UNI
32
NATIONAL BRIEFS
Judges conduct
THE Supreme Court has put up the in-house
procedure for action against Supreme Court and
high court judges accused of misconduct and
impropriety on its website. These rules had been
adopted in 1999 based on a 1997 report of a panel
of senior judges. It delineates the right steps to be
followed in case of misconduct by high court
judges, high court chief justices and judges of the
Supreme Court coming to light.
AFTER clamping down on diesel vehicles older than 10 years and petrol-run
vehicles older than 15 years in the NCR,
The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has
decided to take on polluting vehicles
across the country. It has issued notices
to the chief secretaries of all states and
Union territories seeking their response
on steps taken to prevent vehicular
pollution in their states/UTs.
At the same time, the NGT has taken
a serious note of polluting industries
around the NCR. According to a
Hindustan Times report, it has issued a
notice to the UP government, directing it
to reply to a petition by Jai Hind NGO,
which claimed that pottery units in
Khurja, located 90 km away from Delhi,
do not have environment clearances and
are detrimental to environment.
The tribunal has also asked the
Gujarat Government to file its reply
regarding the giant Statue of Unity of
Sardar Patel, expected to come up on the
Sadhu Bet Island on the Narmada near
Vadodara, following a petition by
activists that the project will entail largescale construction, including that of
hotels, kiosks, a convention center and
tourism amenities, besides road link, and
cause ecological damage to the river bed.
wanted the bill to be passed in the current budget session of parliament. A full
bench of the Delhi High Court had
already recommended to the central government that pecuniary jurisdiction be
increased from the current `20 lakh to
`2 crore, but there was no progress on
the issue. The bill was tabled and presented in the Rajya Sabha on March 4
but later got deferred for reasons
unknown.
Lawyer killed
over salad
RAJIV SHARMA, a lawyer at the Tis
Hazari Court in New Delhi, was killed
at a dhaba inside the court premises,
when he had an argument with the
person running the dhaba on contract,
Dhana Ram Chaudhary, apparently
over extra serving of free salad.
Chaudhary has been arrested and has
confessed to his crime.
The police are also interrogating the
owner of the dhaba, Manoj Sharma, who
is also a lawyer.
Lawyers at all the six district courts
struck work on April 17 to protest
against the murder, and to demand
better security, including more CCTV
cameras in all the courts.
INDIA LEGAL May 15, 2015
33
UNI
UNI
DEFT DIPLOMACY
(Facing page) PM Modi
and French President
Francois Hollande in Paris
(Top) Rafale aircraft of the
French Air Force
(Above) Serge Dassault,
Chairman and CEO of
Dassault Group
35
36
UNI
SORDID HISTORY
The ripple effect of the
Bofors gun (top) deal
during Rajiv Gandhis
tenure still haunts the
corridors of power
37
STILL IN
CONTENTION
The upgraded version
of Gripen has given it a
new lease of life
PIB
MORE NEWS...
Parliaments prerogative
REFUSING to take cognizance of a PIL that cited incongruencies in
reservation benefits accorded to SCs/STs in the past 64 years, the
apex court ruled that it was a matter for the parliament to decide.
Incidentally, it was the Supreme Court which had issued notices to
the center and state governments on the issue in 2011.
The PIL had pointed out that socially and economically advanced
SCs and STs received all the quota benefits though they constituted
only a small number among the SCs and STs living in India. It stated
that 99 percent of them were yet to avail the special privileges.
Man attempts
suicide inside
high court
39
WOOING
THE
BABU
ABSOLUTE POWER
(From left) As a taxman, Sudhir
Chandra exposed Madhu Koda,
CM, Jharkhand and handled
Mayawatis case. He was also
questioned for calling private
sleuths to then FM Pranab
Mukherjees office in 2011;
and handled the 2010 CWG
case involving Delhi CM
Sheila Dikshit
41
IN DEMAND
(L-R) Ex-telecom
secretary PJ Thomas
and former CBI
director DR
Karthikeyan
have joined a tax firm
floated by
Sudhir Chandra;
Taxman Ashok Kacker
runs a tax
consultancy firm after
quitting as chief
commissioner,
income tax
42
IN HIGH POSITIONS
(L-R) Former coal
secretaries, Alok Perti
and C Balakrishnan,
are serving as
independent directors
in Coal India;
Retired IRS officer
G Anantharaman is a
special advisor to
the chairman of
Tata Realty and
Infrastructure Limited
43
Photos: UNI
Double trouble?
Will the death of this farmer lead to trouble for the AAP leadership? What
are the implications if his death is confirmed as suicide?
By Shailendra Singh
FERTILE LAND
FOR POLITICS
The AAP rally,
where the tragedy
took place, was
meant to criticize
BJPs land
acquisition bill
44
petition stated:
Farmers are forced to buy seeds every
planting season, which increases poverty and
indebtedness, compelling them to commit
suicide.
Interest rate at which loans are given to
the farmers is very high and they are not able
to repay the same. As per the report, it should
not be more than 4 percent. It also said that
farmers do not know how to cope with the
changing economy and need counseling from
the government or society to survive it.
Absence of counseling from the government or society on how to survive changing
economy is also a reason for their suicides.
There is no crop insurance and rural infrastructure is poor, particularly when it comes
to harvest technology. Youth in villages are
reluctant to continue with their ancestral
occupation of agriculture because of the costrisk-return structure.
While it is still not clear whether Gajendra Singhs death was a planned stunt or a
deliberate suicide attempt, the blame-game
has already begun. IL
DEATH ON
CAMERA
Gajendra Singh
died even as
attention was
focussed on him
If indeed
Gajendra Singh
was instigated to
commit suicide,
it falls within the
ambit of Section
306 of the IPC,
which provides
punishment for
abetment of
suicide.
45
46
A YES MINISTER
(L-R) Devendra Fadnavis
with his political bosses
Narendra Modi and
Amit Shah
47
IMPATIENT
OPPOSITION
(L-R) Congress leader
Sanjay Nirupam, NCP
leader Ajit Pawar and
Shiv Sena leader
Uddhav Thackeray are
questioning Fadnaviss
leadership mettle
What is
uppermost in
peoples minds
is whether
Fadnavis is
capable of
taking
decisions
independently
and what the
hidden agenda
of his
government is.
48
dial. The Sena is being kept out of key decisions and is not consulted even for changes in
the city. Time and again, Uddhav Thackeray
speaks against Fadnavis and Modi.
Senior BJP leaders say Fadnavis lacks
political tact and gets little support from
within or outside the party. As an opposition
party, it suits us if both parties fight against
each other. Of course, we will work it to our
advantage, says Hussain Dalwai, Congress
MP. Sena leaders do not refute the fact that
they are exerting pressure on the Fadnavis
government with the help of the opposition.
When asked about this, Sawant replies: No
comments.
NO POLITICAL TACT
Dalwai criticises Fadnavis for taking direct
orders from his bosses to join hands with the
NCP, despite public perception. All decisions
are being made at the center. This is evident
from the fact that Fadnavis has been asked to
ignore the Sena and take help from the NCP.
I am confident that had Nitin Gadkari or
Gopinath Munde been the chief minister,
they would have treated the Sena
respectably, says Dalwai.
Fadnavis has also come under criticism
for the 40 percent rise in farmers suicides,
not pushing for a higher compensation for
the affected farmers and the killing of
Communist leader, Govind Pansare. This is
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Shobhaa De
HE lessons of Chanakya
have not been lost on
Bihars politicians. The
philosopher learnt his
winning strategy from a
mother who was teaching
her child not to eat a bowl
of hot porridge from the center. Instead, she
said it should be eaten from the periphery
where the porridge was cold. Chanakya
implemented this lesson to defeat the Nanda
empire by winning and segregating peripheral areas before attacking Magadh. And what
we see today in Bihars politics is a glimpse of
this same peripheral politics, where alliances
are being made, existing coalitions are being
poached and a bipolar political axis is being
created as the state goes to polls this year.
The first noticeable example of peripheral
politics is the recent amalgamation of six
political parties from different states to form
a Janata Parivar. Although it seems like the
combined group will be a role player in Bihar
NO CAKEWALK
The Nitish-Laloo
combine will have
to guard against
the Mahadalit
card played by
the opposition in
the coming polls
Photos: UNI
50
BULWARK
AGAINST
THE BJP?
Leaders of the
Janata Parivar
(from left) Nitish
Kumar, Laloo
Prasad Yadav,
Deve Gowda,
Sharad Yadav and
Mulayam Singh
51
A BOND TO
LEVERAGE
(Clockwise from
above) Mulayam and
Laoo have extended
their family relations
into politics by coming
under one banner;
Sushil Kumar Modi and
CP Thakur of the BJPs
Bihar unit
52
Sushil Kumar Modi, as deputy chief minister in the JD (U)-BJP government, was, till
recently, Nitishs man in the saffron party.
Upper caste state leaders like Shatrughan
Sinha and CP Thakur do not get along with
Sushil. In this state of affairs, identity politics
is counterproductive and could backfire, if
pursued in public discourse. To top it all, the
BJP became instrumental in cementing the
bond between Laloo and Nitish. Alliances
which were supposed to be a matter of convenience became a matter of compulsion to
carve out an anti-Narendra Modi space.
STRATEGIC TIES
(Clockwise from top left)
Ram Vilas Paswans
support will help the
BJP in Bihar; former
Bihar CM Jagannath
Mishra with Jitan Ram
Manjhi; rivals Modi and
Nitish
53
Biased Business?
EFFORT UNDONE
IHCL, which built and ran
Hotel Taj Mansingh, now
loses rights over it
April 2, 1976, wherein it accepted joint participation in construction and running of the
hotel by IHCL.
The attorney
general of
India, as well
as experts
hired as
consultants,
advised
NDMC to
renegotiate
the contract.
But the MHA
officials have
taken just the
opposite
stance.
55
BE THE
CHANGE YOU
WISH TO SEE
FLIGHT OF
BUSINESS
International
players like Nokia
have shut shop
and are relocating
to better business
climes abroad
56
SHOWCASING INDIA
Prime Minister Narendra Modi
at a meeting with French
CEOs on Infrastructure in Paris
in April
57
CLAMOR FOR
CHANGE
(From left) B Prasada
Rao, Managing Director,
Bharat Heavy Electrical
Limited; Adi Godrej,
chairman, Godrej Group
Maximum Governance.
There were numerous industry concerns
about how the 2013 Act had numerous cumbersome procedural requirements related to
private companies and closely-held unlisted
public companies. It related to transactions;
corporate social responsibility; amounts
treated as deposits; loans to employees; criminalization of offences; certification of internal financial controls; consolidation of
accounts; cost accounting and audit; alignment with SEBI regulations and so on. One
of the changes wanted was companies needing the consent of 50 percent of the minority
shareholders present.
SIMPLIFY PROCEDURES
As provisions of the Act have a huge impact
on corporate functioning, it must ultimately
end up boosting business and not be an
impediment. Industry captains want private
companies to be exempted from filing of
board resolutions, disclosures in board
reports and consolidation of financial statements. They want simplified procedures to
carry out corporate social responsibility projects and want a say in what kind of projects
they should do.
They are against cumbersome procedural
requirements for private companies like
making a detailed offer letter with elaborate
disclosures in connection with preferential
58
59
No childs play
G
60
TIMELY AMENDMENT
However, in the budget session of parliament, Union Minister for Women and Child
Development Maneka Gandhi introduced
the Juvenile Justice Amendment Bill, 2014,
in the Lok Sabha, thereby repealing the 2000
act. Sections 16 and Section 19 (3) of the bill
empower the Juvenile Justice Board to determine whether a juvenile above 16 years
should be sent to a reformatory home or be
tried in an adult court, to act as a safeguard
to juveniles. For this, there will be categorization of the crime as petty, serious and
heinous. The court, however, cannot sentence him to death or to life imprisonment.
The bill was referred to a standing committee. The panel, in its report released in
February this year, rejected the governments
proposals to prosecute adolescents below 18
years as adults. It contended that the move
was discriminatory, violated the provisions of
the UN Rights of Child and was in contravention of Article 14 of the constitution.
Prime Minister Modi placed the matter in
front of a Group of Ministers in early April to
confabulate and delve into areas of concern
raised by the standing committee. After the
GoM had examined the issue, the Union
INDIA LEGAL May 15, 2015
61
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PLUMMETING
THE DEPTHS
The Germanwings air
crash has spurred
calls for psychometric
tests and psychological
examination of pilots.
Similar demands had
been raised after the
fatal Mangalore crash
too, but no one paid
heed then
By Shobha John
64
indeed a good idea. Are these tests 100 percent reliable and is it worth the trouble for
airlines, already in the red, to have them as
part of mandatory requirements?
Experts reveal that after the Mangalore
crash in May 2010, the DGCA had issued an
advisory for airlines to employ aviation medicine specialists who could do aero medical
training of flight and cabin crew (see
http://dgca.nic.in/circular/general/gac01_
2011.pdf. However, since this was not
mandatory, most airlines didnt follow this
recommendation.
WEAKNESS IN AIRLINES
It is a fact that airlines and regulators are not
doing anything to address mental health
Experts reveal
that after the
Mangalore crash,
the DGCA had
issued an
advisory for
airlines to employ
aviation medicine
specialists for its
crew. However,
airlines didnt
follow this
recommendation.
INDIA LEGAL May 15, 2015
65
66
pilot. Though he had been treated for depression, he seemed fine. So when does depression, a normal phenomenon many people go
through, become severe mental illness? That,
indeed, is a thin line. But the signs of depression would be thereLack of interest in
activity and friends, insomnia, poor appetite,
poor posture and low volume of speech.
The mental make-up of pilots has increasingly come into focus (see box). Shockingly, a
study done by Dr Hatters Friedman and
Dr Chris Kenedi, a psychiatrist at Duke
University, found that of the 85 aircraft suicides from 1965 to present, 18 appeared to be
murder-suicides, 15 perpetrated by pilots.
Pilots are naturally wary of disclosing any
mental illness as it could jeopardize their
careers and lead to stigma. However, in 2010,
the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
allowed them to take certain antidepressants
Psychometric
tests are a good
idea to weed out
unwanted
elements. In
flying, we cant
have below
average
candidates as
they become
a liability.
A senior
commander
INDIA LEGAL May 15, 2015
67
DOOMED TO DEATH
(Below) Debris of the
crashed Germanwings
Airbus 320
(Bottom) Family
members of the
victims killed
in the crash
Pilots come with different attitudes, temperaments and age differences, all leading to
communication problems. Not to mention
egotism, aggression and machismo. Many
pilots still shake their head in amazement at
an incident in 1988 when two senior pilots,
who couldnt get along, were flying a B737.
The glacial atmosphere in the cockpit was
such that when the commander forgot to put
his landing gears down, the co-pilot kept
mum. The plane landed on its belly in
Kolkata, damaging it. Both pilots were taken
off flying.
PERSONALITY ISSUES
One commander revealed that some senior
pilots are so domineering that theyre like
mothers-in-law in the cockpit whom no
one wants to fly with. They are the I-memyself types. Co-pilots wriggle out of flights
with them by simply calling up and saying
they are sick. The roster team of airlines too
knows the psychology of pilots and adjusts
them according to their temperament. Two
weak pilots, both in terms of skill and attitude, should never be put together. It could
jeopardize flight safety. Flying, after all, is all
about attitude, he said.
In fact, NASA has identified deficient
interpersonal communication as a causal factor in 70-80 percent of accidents. These are
often ironed out in mandatory Crew Resource Management training and are meant
to focus on resilience, coping with stress,
enhancing positive thinking and interpersonal relations. They are conducted once a
year by airlines.
But who can take on commanders who
behave like demi-gods, brooking no disagreement? This January in Chennai, a pilot and
an engineer came to blows when the flight
Questions Galore
Questions have been raised over
these crashes:
In 1997, a SilkAir Boeing 737 crashed in
68
NO LESSONS LEARNT
After the Mangalore
plane crash in 2010,
airlines were advised to
employ aviation
medicine specialists
69
BUYING A
NUNS
SILENCE
Sexual misdemeanors by the clergy
in Kerala are nothing new. But for the
first time, the Church has paid
`12 lakh to a former nun who
was sexually abused
By TK Devasia
70
71
WHY SUFFER
SILENTLY?
TV grab of Anitha, who
raised the issue
of sexual
harassment in
the Church
72
(Peace to the One filled with Grace), an autobiography of Sister Marty Chandy, another
former nun, speaks about nuns who got pregnant by priests and aborted fetuses and other
scandalizing stories.
Even worse was Oru Vaidikante Hrudayamitha (Here is the Heart of a Priest), a
memoir by Father Shibu Kalamparambil,
who quit his Vincentian order after 14 years
due to frustration. His book alleges that
priests and nuns had converted convents and
nunneries into brothels.
He has now joined a movement against ill
practices in the Church called the Kerala
Catholic Church Reform Movement
(KCRM). He says a number of priests and
nuns had been caught red-handed but the
Church had hushed up the matter.
Reji Njallani, national convenor of
KCRM, says sexual misdemeanors by the
clergy is a serious threat to the church in
Kerala and wants the Vatican to review
celibacy law. He says that KCRM has already
submitted a representation in this regard to
Pope Francis.
However, noted writer Paul Zachariah
laughs at the suggestion. This will never
happen. Many of todays priests dont want to
marry. When they can get sex easily within
the confines of the Church, why bother to
maintain a wife and bring up children? You
dont need to open a tea shop to drink tea, he
says. Also, the Catholic Church, unlike other
Sex and
corruption
scandals do
not bother the
Catholic
Church much
as it has the
money and
muscle
power to
cover
them up.
INDIA LEGAL May 15, 2015
73
BREWING STORM
(L-R) Father Shibu
Kalamparambil quit his
Vincentian order after 14
years out of frustration;
Reji Njallani, national
convenor of KCRM,
wants the Vatican
to review celibacy law
to stem the rot
When the
priests can get
sex easily within
the confines of
the church,
why bother to
maintain a wife?
You dont need
to open a tea
shop to
drink tea.
Paul Zachariah,
writer
74
INTERNATIONAL BRIEFS
Indian subsidiary in
legal tangle
A GERMAN wind turbine manufacturing company, Enercon, is taking its Indian subsidiary,
Enercon India Ltd (EIL), to the International
Arbitration Court in London for wresting control from the parent company, reports
www.rechargenews.com.
In the mid 90s, Enercon and Mehra Group
of India had come together to form EIL. While
the German company was to have 56 percent
stake, the Mehra Group was given effective
Holocaust trial
Googles
monopoly
75
When
Rupesh
became
Rudrani
Here is a personal account of
the trauma and pain a boy went
through as he fought for his
identity as a woman. Today,
she is working for the
empowerment of
transgenders and hijras
By Khalid Shah
76
Lalan Ram
Javed Sultan
MILES TO GO
(From left) A glamorouslooking Rudrani believes
that law alone cant end
the discrimination faced
by her community
77
Photos: UNI
STARRY SHOW
(Above) Conchita Wurst, the bearded transgender winner of the Eurovision Song
Contest before her concert at the European parliament on October 8, 2014
(Top right) Kamala Kinnar, a eunuch, going to file her nomination from the
parliamentary constituency of Varanasi in 2014
(Right) LGBT rights activist Lauren McNamara in San Francisco, a city where her
community has deep roots
78
transgenders and hijras. Along with two others, she co-founded a peer-based organization which takes the responsibility to protect
themselves and their sexual partners from
legal hassles, sexually transmitted infections
and diseases.
However, its main motive is to protect the
rights and dignity of the transgender population; advocacy efforts for the constitutional
recognition of transgenders as equal citizens
with equal rights and awareness against dis-
Anil Shakya
LEGAL SUPPORT
(left) A landmark ruling
by the Supreme Court
last April recognized
transgenders as the
third gender
Whats in a name?
A list of gender terms:
BISEXUALITY: A person attracted to two sexes, but since there many
genders, this definition is not totally inaccurate.
CROSSDRESSER: Someone who wears clothes associated with another
gender. This term has replaced transvestite, which is now considered
outdated and offensive.
DRAG: The act of dressing in gendered clothing and adopting that behavior
as part of a performance. It does not indicate that persons sexuality or
gender identity.
GAYS: Men attracted to men. Colloquially used to include all LGBTIQ
(Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex, Queer people).
GENDER IDENTITY: An individuals internal sense of gender, which may or
may not be the same as that assigned at birth. It is often confused with the
sex one is born with, but they are separate concepts.
HETEROSEXUALITY: Sexual, emotional, and/or romantic attraction to a sex
other than ones own.
HOMOSEXUALITY: Attraction to the same sex.
INTERSEX: A medical condition involving congenital anomaly of the reproductive and sexual system. Such people are born with sex chromosomes,
external genitalia or internal reproductive systems that are not considered
standard for either male or female.
TRANSGENDER: An umbrella term for transsexuals, cross-dressers (transvestites), transgenderists, gender queers and people who identify neither as
female nor male and are neither man nor woman.
TRANSSEXUAL: A person who experiences a mismatch of the sex they
were born with and the sex they identify with. They sometimes undergo medical treatment to change their physical sex to match their sex identity.
TRANSVESTITE: Individuals who regularly or occasionally wear the clothing
socially assigned to a gender not their own, but are fine with their anatomy.
Source: Gender Equality Resource Center, a University of California, Berkeley initiative
79
MAKING A MARK
(Right) Isabella Santiago
of Venezuela after she
was crowned Miss
International Queen
2014 in Pattaya on
November 7, 2014
UNI
male or female.
2011: Census shows the official count
of third gender in India as 4.9 lakhs.
2014: Justice KS Radhakrishnan (left)
declares transgenders as the third
gender, saying: It is the right of every
human being to choose their gender.
AUGUST 2014: Padmini Prakash
(above) becomes Indias first transgender to anchor daily TV news; Delhi
University has application forms introducing a column for third gender.
JANUARY 2015: A transgender
woman, Madhu Bai Kinnar, wins the
municipal election in Raigarh.
80
1. A costermonger
sells .
A: Knick-knacks
B: Utensils
C: Fruits
D: Bangles
2. Smaller word for
valetudinarian.
A: Villager
B: Sickly
C: Magician
D: Statistician
3. Fear of dogs.
A: Cynophobia
B: Canophobia
C: Pussyphbia
D: Bonophobia
4. Diminutive for goose.
A: Geese
B: Gosling
C: Duckling
D: Gooselet
5. Cause clbre.
A. Main cause
B. Biggest challenge
C. Famous quote
D. Famous case
6. Bullfight is also
called .
A: hornwar
B: corrida
C: Tauruso
D: Spainish
7. Ticking of clock,
hissing of steam but
of skirts
A: rustling
B: swishing
C: swashing
D: crinkling
8. Drapetomania is the
urge to .
A: run away from home
B: dress differently
C: change curtains
D: wash clothes
9. To blackball.
A: To ban
B: To highlight
C: To fail
D: To die
10. Fuddy-duddy.
A: Quarrelsome
B: Old-fashioned
C: Fraudulent
D: Childish
11. Tellurium.
A: An element
B: Tank for turtles
C: True story
D: Long talk
12. One mans meat is
another mans .
A: malt
B: pickle
C: puzzle
D: poison
13. He asked: WYMM?
A: When Youll Meet Me?
B: Will You Marry Me?
C: Wheres Your Mad
Mom?
D: Will You Meet Me?
ANSWERS
14. Whats :-X?
A: Cant meet
B: Not coming
C: Big wet kiss
D: Boss is not there
15. Dogsbody.
A: Drudge
B: Dog lover
C: An NGO
D: No such word
16. Respectful behavior.
A: Curtesy
B: Courtsey
C: Courtesy
D: Curtsey
17. Used incorrectly.
A: Misused
B: Disused
C: Ill-used
D: Unused
18. A contemptible
person.
A: Braggart
B: Hoofer
C: Merchant banker
D: Snoozy
19. Whats the correct
spelling?
A: Dysentery
B: Dysentry
C: Dyscentery
D: Disentery
20. To get ones dander
up.
A: To do ones best
B: To make last attempt
C: To become angry
D: To reveal intention
1. Fruits
2. Sickly
3. Cynophobia
4. Gosling
5. Famous case
6. corrida
7. swishing
8. run away from home
9. To ban
10. Old-fashioned
11. An element
12. poison
13. Will You Marry Me?
14. Big wet kiss
15. Drudge
16. Courtesy
17. Misused
18. Merchant banker
19. Dysentery
20. To become angry
Y
L
D
R
WO ISE
SCORES
0 to 7 correctYou
need to do this more
often.
8 to 12 correctGood,
get the scrabble
board out.
Above 12Bravo!
Keep it up!
textdoctor2@gmail.com
81
BROKEN PIECES
A collapsed house in
Siliguri
PLEADING TO
ALMIGHTY
Women chant
hymns during a
prayer ceremony
at a temple in
Ahmedabad, for
victims of the
earthquake
SNUFFED OUT
A temple bell
amid the
rubble
SHATTERED RUINS People survey a damaged site
in Kathmandu
THE UNKIND
JOLT
The body of a
victim trapped in
the debris speaks a
tale of deep sorrow
Photos: UNI
Compiled by Kh Manglembi Devi