In 2023, the Bombay High Court delivered several important judgments. Here are ten notable ones:
1. Samir Rajesh Sathe @ Samir Hussain Shaikh v. State of Maharashtra & Anr.: This case involved the acquittal of an individual charged under the POCSO Act. The court set aside a two-year imprisonment sentence, highlighting the prosecution’s failure to prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt.
2. Sayli B Parkhi v. State of Maharashtra: The Court upheld the Municipal Commissioner’s decision to forbid providing hookah or herbal hookah in a restaurant with an eating house license, emphasizing public health and safety.
An eating house licence does not automatically include permission to serve hookah or herbal hookah, the Bombay High Court said while refusing relief to a suburban restaurant facing revocation of licence for serving herbal hookah.
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3. Maherban Hasan Babu Khan v. State of Maharashtra: The Court acquitted an accused of offenses under the POCSO Act and IPC, addressing the issue of determining age in sexual offense cases.
In a judgment, the Bombay High Court has acquitted a man who was convicted under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (POCSO Act), stating that the prosecution failed to establish beyond reasonable doubt that the complainant was a minor at the time of the incident.
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Eruption of Wisdom Tooth Will Not Determine Person’s Minority- Bombay HC
4. Ranjana Pagar-Gawande v. Nivrutti Kashinath Deshmukh (Indorikar) & Ors.: This case involved reinstating charges against a public speaker for remarks about sex determination, highlighting the application of the PCPNDT Act beyond diagnostic centers.
In a judgment, the High Court at Bombay, Aurangabad Bench, dismissed a criminal writ petition challenging the order passed by the Additional Sessions Judge, Sangamner, in a case pertaining to the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection) Act, 1994 (PCPNDT Act).
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5. Sharad Kulkarni v. State of Maharashtra & Ors.: The Court ordered a contractor to deposit a substantial amount before hearing a PIL, focusing on preventing frivolous litigation against public officials.
In a ruling, the High Court of Judicature at Bombay, Bench at Aurangabad, ordered the dismissal of Public Interest Litigation of 2023, filed by Sharad Sadashivrao Kulkarni against the State of Maharashtra and others. The court cited the pendency of multiple cases filed by the petitioner and questioned the genuineness of the intentions behind the PIL.
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6. Shri Nitin Aganda Lade v. State of Maharashtra: This judgment overturned a trial court’s decision, acquitting a man previously convicted of killing a child, underscoring the importance of fair trial procedures.
7. Shabnam Jahan Moiuddin Ansari v. State of Maharashtra: A significant judgment affirming the right of a single working woman to adopt, emphasizing the law’s adherence and decision-making without ‘guesswork’.
The Bombay High Court set aside the impugned order prohibiting a woman from adopting her sister’s child on the ground that she was a single working woman and wouldn’t be able to give personal attention to the child.
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Single Working Woman Can Adopt Child Under Juvenile Justice Act: Bombay HC
