Important cases heard in the Supreme Court on Thursday, March 2
*SC asked SEBI to probe within two months allegations of stock price manipulation by the Adani group and any lapses in regulatory disclosures, and also set up a panel to look into protection of Indian investors after a damning report by a US short seller wiped out more than USD 140 billion of the conglomerate’s market value.
*In a far-reaching verdict, SC ruled that the appointment of the Chief Election Commissioner and election commissioners will be done by the President on the recommendation of a committee, comprising the Prime Minister, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha and the CJI, to maintain the “purity of election”.
*Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde’s faction told SC that pleas related to the June 2022 Maharashtra political crisis fell within the realm of politics and judiciary cannot be asked to adjudicate the issue.
*A heated exchange of words was witnessed in the SC between Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) president Vikas Singh in a case related to allotment of land for lawyers’ chambers with the CJI directing the senior lawyer not to raise his voice and leave the court.
*SC reserved its verdict on the plea by Balwant Singh Rajoana, convicted in the 1995 assassination case of Punjab chief minister Beant Singh, seeking commutation of his death penalty to life imprisonment.
