Top News Headlines 15th March 2021 | Supreme Court issues SOP for hybrid hearings effective March 15

NATIONAL NEWS SUMMARIES

1. Supreme Court issues SOP for hybrid hearings effective March 15

• Finally, after a year the Supreme Court will begin hybrid physical hearing.
• This will be effective from March 15, where the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) would have to be followed.
• The patties can choose the mode of appearance for attending matters listed before the Apex Court.

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2. Action Should Be Taken Against Investigating Officer Who Leaks Private Data Of Accused To Third Parties: Karnataka High Court

• The Karnataka High Court has held that an investigating officer has no right to disclose the private date seized from the smartphones or electronic gadgets of an accused to a third party, without the written permission of the concerned court.
• An investigating officer who leaks such private data to third party should be proceeded against for dereliction of duty or delinquency, the High Court added

3. "Young Lawyers Bring Fresh Perspective To The Table Which Helps In Evolution Of Law And Legal Precepts": Justice Indu Malhotra

• Justice Malhotra, the only woman so far to be directly elevated to Supreme Court from the Bar, was speaking at the virtual farewell organised for her by the Supreme Court Young Lawyers Forum.
• She said that even though she came from a legal background, she did not inherit the practice and worked her way through the profession. This is what made her stand out from the rest.

4. Court judgments should be in language which can be understood not only by lawyers but also citizens who approach courts: Supreme Court

• The purpose of judgments, the top court said on March 12, is to convey the basis and reasons for its decision not only to lawyers but also to citizens who approach courts for remedy.
• Judgments written in incomprehensible language does disservice to the cause of ensuring accessible and understandable justice to citizens, a Bench of Justices DY Chandrachud and MR Shah said.

5. Karnataka High Court orders CBI to release Rs 53.46 lakh seized from associate of DK Shivakumar

• ◦ The Karnataka High Court recently directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to release Rs. 53.46 lakh seized by it from Sachin Narayan, a close associate of Congress leader DK Shivakumar.
• ◦ The CBI has seized the amount during the probe of a case against Shivakumar under the Prevention of Corruption Act (PC Act).

INTERNATIONAL NEWS SUMMARIES

1. UN human rights experts identify 200 extrajudicial killings by Venezuelan police

• UN human rights experts condemned March 10, 2021 several “large-scale” human rights violations in Venezuela that “amount to crimes against humanity.”
• ◦ The United Nations Human Rights Council initiated a fact-finding mission in Venezuela on September 27, 2019, to investigate “patterns of violations, directly and indirectly, affecting all human rights.”

2. Malaysia government uses emergency powers to enforce anti fake-news law

• The Malaysian government enacted Thursday an anti-fake-news law that aims to counter Covid-19 misinformation.
• The Malaysian King (Yang di-Pertuan Agong) has declared a state of emergency for the country, lasting until August. The law was enacted through an executive authority by Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin, which does not require any Parliamentary procedures.