Latest news with #JharkhandHighCourt
Indian Express
a day ago
- Politics
- Indian Express
Justice M S Ratna Sri Ramachandra Rao sworn in as Tripura High Court Chief Justice
Former Jharkhand High Court Chief Justice M S Ratna Sri Ramachandra Rao was sworn in as the ninth Chief Justice of the Tripura High Court on Tuesday as Governor Indra Sena Reddy Nallu administered his oath of office at Raj Bhavan in the presence of Chief Minister Manik Saha, his cabinet colleagues, and senior officials. Justice Rao replaced Chief Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh, who was transferred to the Telangana High Court. After earning his BSc (Hons.) Mathematics from Bhavans New Science College, Osmania University, Justice Rao pursued an LLB in the university, which awarded him the CVSS Acharyulu Gold Medal for scoring the highest marks in the final year of the course. He enrolled as an advocate on September 7 in 1989 and later pursued an LLM from the University of Cambridge in 1991. Justice Rao served as an additional judge of the Andhra Pradesh High Court in 2012 and became a judge of the court on December 4, 2013. Rao served as the acting Chief Justice of the Telangana High Court for a brief period and remained a judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court till May 29, 2023. Rao became Chief Justice of the Himachal Pradesh High Court on May 30 in 2023 after his transfer from the Punjab and Haryana High Court. Rao was appointed as Chief Justice of the Jharkhand High Court on September 21, 2024. Rao's father Justice M Jagannadha Rao served as a judge of the Supreme Court from 1997 to 2000 and was a chairman of the Law Commission of India. His grandfather was a judge of the Andhra Pradesh High Court in 1960-1961. The Tripura High Court was established in March 2013 along with the full-fledged high courts in Meghalaya and Manipur. Except Sikkim, all the northeastern states were earlier under the Gauhati High Court.
Hans India
a day ago
- Politics
- Hans India
Justice MS Ratna Sri Ramachandra Rao takes oath as 9th Chief Justice of Tripura HC
Agartala: Justice M.S. Ratna Sri Ramachandra Rao was sworn in as the ninth Chief Justice of the Tripura High Court on Tuesday. His appointment follows the recommendation made by the Supreme Court Collegium in May and the subsequent approval by the Union government on July 14. Governor Indra Sena Reddy Nallu administered the oath to Justice Rao at a simple ceremony in the Durbar Hall of Raj Bhavan. Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha, his cabinet colleagues, important dignitaries, and senior civil and security officials were present in the ceremony. Former Chief Justice of Jharkhand High Court, Justice Rao, replaced Chief Justice Aparesh Kumar Singh, who has been transferred to Telangana High Court. The Tripura HC was set up in March 2013 along with the full-fledged High Courts in Meghalaya and Manipur. All the northeastern states, excluding Sikkim, were earlier under the Gauhati High Court. Born on August 7, 1966, at Hyderabad, Justice Rao studied (Mathematics) from Bhavans New Science College, Osmania University and stood first in the varsity. He passed LL.B. from the same University in 1989 and was awarded CVSS Acharyulu Gold Medal by Osmania University for securing the highest marks in the final year. He enrolled as an advocate on September 7, 1989 and secured LL.M. from the University of Cambridge, UK, in 1991. His father, Justice M. Jagannadha Rao, was a former Judge of the Supreme Court of India (1997-2000) and former Chairman of Law Commission of India. Justice Rao's grandfather was also a Judge of the High Court of Andhra Pradesh from 1960-1961. Justice Rao was elevated as Additional Judge of the High Court of Andhra Pradesh on June 29, 2012 and appointed as Judge of the High Court and assumed charge on December 4, 2013. For a brief period, he was acting Chief Justice of Telangana High Court and was Judge of Punjab and Haryana High Court till May 29, 2023. Justice Rao was administered the oath of office of the Chief Justice of the Himachal Pradesh High Court on May 30, 2023, on his elevation from High Court of Punjab and Haryana. He was appointed as the Chief Justice of the Jharkhand High Court on September 21, 2024 and took oath on September 25, 2024.
The Hindu
3 days ago
- The Hindu
Jharkhand High Court delivers split verdict on death sentence given to 2 Maoists in murder of six policemen
A division bench of the Jharkhand High Court (HC) delivered a split verdict while hearing appeals against the death sentence given to two Maoists for the 2013 attack on a police team, in which six personnel, including Pakur SP Amarjit Balihar, were killed. Justice Rongon Mukhopadhyay was in favour of acquitting the convicts, while Justice Sanjay Prasad upheld the death sentence. The HC was hearing a criminal appeal filed by Pravir Murmu alias 'Pravir Da' and Santan Baskey alias 'Tala Da'. The trial in the case was conducted at the Dumka sessions court, which gave a death sentence to the convicts on September 26, 2018. Thereafter, the convicts filed their respective appeals before the HC. The division bench of the HC delivered a 197-page judgement on July 17. The police team, led by SP Balihar, was attacked by Maoists on July 2, 2013. The Maoists opened fire on two police vehicles, claiming the lives of six personnel -- Rajiv Kumar Sharma, Manoj Hembram, Chandan Kumar Thapa, Ashok Kumar Srivastava, Santosh Kumar Mandal and Balihar. Constables Lebenius Marandi and Dhanraj Maraiya, who were part of the team, had survived the carnage. Mr. Marandi and Mr. Maraiya gave statements as eyewitnesses and claimed that they heard the names of Pravir and Tala being called out by the attackers. The prosecution examined 31 witnesses, including the two eyewitnesses. While delivering his judgment, Justice Mukhopadhyay held that the statements of the eyewitnesses were not reliable. They had deposed that they had become unconscious after the attack and therefore could not have heard the names of the appellants, he noted. 'Though both Mr. Marandi and Mr. Maraiya were witnesses to the occurrence, they had not seen the convicts participating in the mayhem,' he observed. Justice Mukhopadhyay set aside the order of conviction and the death sentence given in the case. Justice Prasad took a divergent view and held that the eyewitnesses had identified Pravir and Tala in court to be present at the place of occurrence. He further held that the gruesome murder of an IPS officer along with his team during the discharge of their official duty does not evoke any sympathy. Affirming the death sentence, Justice Prasad directed the state government to provide a compensation of ₹2 crore to the kin of the deceased SP and give a job in the rank of DSP or deputy collector to his son or daughter. Also, a compensation of ₹50 lakh each should be provided to the family members of the five policemen who died in the incident, he directed, asking the state government to also give class IV jobs to them on compassionate grounds. The case is expected to be taken up by the HC's chief justice for further legal procedures.
New Indian Express
3 days ago
- New Indian Express
Jharkhand HC delivers split verdict on death sentence given to two Maoists in murder of six policemen
RANCHI: A division bench of the Jharkhand High Court delivered a split verdict while hearing appeals against the death sentence given to two Maoists for the 2013 attack on a police team, in which six personnel, including Pakur SP Amarjit Balihar, were killed. Justice Rongon Mukhopadhyay was in favour of acquitting the convicts, while Justice Sanjay Prasad upheld the death sentence. The HC was hearing a criminal appeal filed by Pravir Murmu alias 'Pravir Da' and Santan Baskey alias 'Tala Da'. The trial in the case was conducted at the Dumka sessions court, which gave a death sentence to the convicts on September 26, 2018. Thereafter, the convicts filed their respective appeals before the HC. The division bench of the HC delivered a 197-page judgement on July 17. The police team, led by SP Balihar, was attacked by Maoists on July 2, 2013. The Maoists opened fire on two police vehicles, claiming the lives of six personnel -- Rajiv Kumar Sharma, Manoj Hembram, Chandan Kumar Thapa, Ashok Kumar Srivastava, Santosh Kumar Mandal and Balihar.
New Indian Express
5 days ago
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Jharkhand HC slams government over delay in local body elections; summons Chief Secretary on July 25
RANCHI: Expressing strong displeasure over the state government's approach towards holding the urban local body elections in the state, the Jharkhand High Court on Friday directed the Chief Secretary to appear it in person during the next hearing. The court by Justice Ananda Sen, in strong words, stated that the state government is bypassing judicial orders and strangling the rule of law in the state. The court was hearing a contempt petition, filed by outgoing municipal councilor Roshni Khalkho, over the delay in holding the urban local body elections in the state. The court has fixed the date of July 25, 2025 for the next hearing. Notably, the Jharkhand HC, while hearing a writ petition on January 4, 2024 had directed the State Election Commission to announce dates for conducting Municipal Elections within three weeks, but the urban local body elections are still pending. Therefore, the contempt petition was filed by Roshni Khalkho in the Jharkhand High Court.
