ARTICLES

The word ‘Garnish’ is derived from an old French word ‘garnir’ which means to warn or to prepare. It is to serve an heir with notice i.e. to warn of certain debts that must be paid before the person is entitled to receive property as an heir. Garnishee means a judgment-debtor’s debtor. He is a person or institution that is indebted to another whose property has been subject to garnishment. He is a person who is liable to pay a debt to a judgment debtor or to deliver any movable property to him. Garnisher is a judgment-creditor (decree-holder) who initiates a garnishment action to reach the debtor’s property that is thought to be held or owed by a third party. A garnishee order is an order passed by an executing court directing or ordering a garnishee not to pay money to judgment debtor since the latter is indebted to the Garnisher (decree-holder). It is an order of court to attach money or goods belonging to the judgment debtor in the hands of a third person. It is a remedy available to any judgment creditor; this order may be made by the court to holders of funds (3rd party) that no payments are to make until the court authorizes them. The third party is known as garnishee and the court order is known as garnishee order. The purpose of the order is to protect the interest of the creditors. An order served upon a garnishee requiring him not to pay or deliver the money or property of the debtor (defendant) to him and / or requiring him to appear in the court and answer to the suit of the plaintiff to the extent of the liability to the defendant. Order 21 Rule 46 – A to 46 – I, have been newly inserted in the Code of Civil Procedure by the Amendment Act, 1976. They lay down the procedure in garnishee cases. Rule 46-A requires a notice to be issued to a garnishee before a garnishee order is passed against him. If such notice is not issued and opportunity of hearing is not afforded before passing an order, the order would be null and void. In the eyes of the law, there is no existence of such an order and any step taken pursuant to or an in enforcement of such an order would also be void. It empowers the court, in case the garnishee does not appear and show cause against the notice under R 46 A, to order him to comply with the terms of the notice and on such an order, execution may be issued. Such an order is to be deemed to be a decree against the garnishee and in favor of the judgment creditor. The further proceedings are in execution of that decree and against the garnishee36.

Chapter XXXIII of Code of Criminal Procedure,1973 deals with provisions as to Bail and Bonds. The Court while granting bail under this chapter imposes certain conditions on which accused may be released on bail and the accused is mandate to comply with such conditions for such tenure of his release on bail. Some of the condition while releasing person on bail are: to surrender/deposit the passport, if any, with the Police/Court and not to leave the territory India/State without prior permission of the Court and further to give undertaking if the person is not holding any passport. Release of Passport by court: When a person is released on bail and his passport is deposited with the court as one of the condition of bail, he can move an application in a competent court for modification/ alteration/ deletion conditions of bail for releasing his passport.  The Court by taking into consideration of such application, may release a passport of a person when there exists a situation: where passport or visa of a person is getting expired, or the person wants to visit abroad for business, job or religious purpose , to meet his family settled in abroad, or when a person is a member of airlines company and his/her job is of such that they have to visit foreign country frequently, depending on facts and circumstances of each case, court may release the passport of a person. Observations of court while releasing the passport of the applicant: In case of Smt. Anjana Batheja and others Vs. Central Bureau of Investigation, reported in 2003 Crl.L.J.4301, Honorable Delhi High Court while releasing the passport of the applicant has held that “Not only on the face of it but even on the premise of layman’s understanding condition of releasing the passport of the accused subject to deposit of passports of his mother and wife and deposit of Rs.one lac by way of F.D.R appears to be highly irrational, illegal, harsh and difficult to ram down the throat as it is unknown to the criminal jurisprudence”. This Court further stated that “Once passport of the accused was released on the condition of filing FDR of Rs.1 lac, though the legality of such a condition is in serious doubt by imposing of any other condition or order for depositing the passports of his mother and wife was beyond the judicial domain of the court. ” Further, in case of  Ashok Kumar v. State of Kerala reported in [2009 (2) KLT 712], the court has held that even in a case where criminal proceedings are pending against an accused person and his passport has been surrendered, then, he can be permitted to go abroad for a particular period on certain conditions to be imposed for that purpose, and for that purpose the passport also can be temporarily released to him. But the core question arise here is, does Criminal court has power to impose condition of surrendering passport while granting bail? : The Punjab & Haryana High Court on October 9, 2018, in the case of Capt. Anila Bhatia v. State of Haryana has held that the criminal courts cannot order the surrender of passports as a condition for the grant of bail, including anticipatory bail. Justice Daya Chaudhary stated in the order that the authority to impound passports lies solely with the passport authority under Section 10 (3) of the Passports Act, 1967. The Passports Act overrides the general law in the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), 1973. Justice Chaudhary observed that while granting bail, Section 437 of the Cr.P.C did give the concerned court discretionary powers to impose any condition necessary in the interest of justice. However, this general provision could not be interpreted to mean that courts have general powers to impound passports, particularly in view of the special law contained in the Passports Act. Moreover, Justice Chaudhary also observed that the imposition of such restrictions violates a person’s fundamental rights under Article 21 of the Indian Constitution as it curtails his/her right of movement beyond the country. “…the criminal courts have to take extreme care in imposing such condition. It cannot mechanically, and in every case where an accused has a passport impose a condition for its surrender. Law presumes an accused to be innocent till he is declared guilty. As a presumably innocent person he is entitled to all the fundamental rights guaranteed to him under the Constitution,” the court said. Application for release of passport from court, where to file?: Ordinary, if the passport of the person is seized by the police authority during investigation, he can file an application for release of his passport before the learned magistrate where the passport of the person is produced. When the person is prosecuted and tried in the court and his passport is taken over by the trial Court, then it will be open for the person to file an appropriate application before the concerned trial Court for return of his Passport. But when such trial court rejects the application of a person to release his passport then he may approach to higher court of such trial court. In one of the case of Varshaben Nayankumar Doshi vs State Of Gujarat  decided on 27 October, 2015, honourable Gujarat High Court observed as under: “Once the accused is acquitted, even if the State is contemplating filing of any acquittal appeal, or even if any acquittal appeal is filed, that by itself is not sufficient to retain the Passport. It will be open for the petitioner to file an appropriate application before the trial Court for return of his Passport. If such application is filed, the trial Court shall pass appropriate order returning the Passport to the petitioner. The law in this regard is well settled.” Thus, in my opinion the criminal courts have to take extreme care in imposing condition to surrender the passport while granting bail. It cannot mechanically, and in every case where an accused has a passport impose a condition for its surrender. Law presumes an accused

Section 295. Injuring or defiling place of worship with intent to insult the religion of any class Whoever destroys, damages or defiles any place of worship, or any object held sacred by any class of persons with the intention of thereby insulting the religion of any class of persons or with the knowledge that any class of persons is likely to consider such destruction, damage or defilement as an insult to their religion, shall be punishable with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to two years, or with fine, or with both. Ingredients Section 295 compels people to respect the religious susceptibilities of persons of different religious persuasions or creeds by making destruction, damage or defilement of a place of worship or an object held sacred, with the intent to insult the religion, by a class of persons, punishable. Section 297 extends the principle in Section 295 to places which are treated as sacred. It punishes a person who, with the intent to insult the religion of another or hurt the religiou feelings of a person, commits trespass in any place of worship or of sepulture, or any place of burial or place set apart for burial rites. The essential ingredients of this section are: Intention or knowledge. Destruction, damage or defilement of: A place of worship A place of veneration An object held sacred Trespass into: A place of worship A place of sepulture A place set for performing funeral rites or a depository of remains of the dead. INTENTION OR KNOWLEDGE: The essence of the offence under Section 295 is the intention to destroy, damage or defile a place of worship or an object held sacred. Without the requisite mensrea, mere defilement of a place of worship is not an offence. The intention to insult is a question of fact which can be judged depending on the facts and circumstances of the case. In the case of Jan Mohammed v. Narain Dasthe accused removed some rubble and old building materials belonging to a mosque that was in rotten condition and consequently in disuse. The accused was held not liable under these sections as he had no intention of insulting the Mohammedan religion or any of its practitioners. He also had no knowledge that his actions may cause insult or hurt to any class of people. DESTRUCTION, DAMAGE OR DEFILLMENT: The words destroy or damage usually mean an act physically or materially affecting the property concerned but it should also be understood in the sense of making property dirty, unclean or foul. The word ‘defilement’ would not only mean physical destruction but also situations wherein the place of worship or the object of worship would be rendered ritually or ceremonially impure. PLACE OR OBJECT TO BE SACRED: The essential ingredient of this section is that the destruction caused should be of a place of worship or an otherwise sacred place. Whether or not a particular place or object is sacred is a question of fact and as a general rule, temples, churches, mosques, synagogues, kyaungs are all considered sacred by virtue of them being places of worship. In Joseph v. State of Kerala[viii] the accused got bona fide possession of a hut on agricultural land by a court order. This hut was used as a place of worship by people. The accused took possession and razed the hutment and took down the pictures of the Hindu Gods. He was charged under Section 295. The High Court held that he had the right to use the land as he pleased and had not intended to hurt the religious sentiments of others and hence acquitted him. Books like the Bible, the Koran and the Granth Sahib are all held to be sacred even though they are not worshipped per se. TRESSPASS INTO PLACE OF WORSHIP OR PLACE OF SEPLUPTURE: Section 297 makes any trespass into a place of worship or a place of sepulture a criminal offence. This means that the trespass committed need not amount to criminal trespass for it to come within the scope of Section 297. The word ‘trespass’ has been used in this section to indicate an unjustifiable intrusion upon a property in the possession of another. Sexual intercourse within a place of worship would make the actors liable under this section. INDIGNITY TO HUMAN CORPSE AND DISTURBING FUNERAL RITES: Showing any manner of disrespect to a human corpse disturbing the performance of funeral rites is a criminal offence under Section 297. The word ‘disturbance’ means any form of active interference or the hindrance to the performance of the funeral ceremonies. In Basir-ul-Huq v. State of West Bengal the mother of one DhirendranathBera died. He along with others took the corpse to the cremation grounds. In the meantime, the accused filed a complaint with the police stating that Dhirendranath had throttled his mother to death. When the pyre was ablaze, the accused along with the sub-inspector arrived at the crematorium. The accused persuaded the policeman that if the flames were extinguished that the marks of injury would be found on the body. The fire was hence extinguished but no marks were found. Dhirendranath filed a complaint against the accused under Section 297 and stated that a prior enmity caused a mala fide intention to hurt his religious sentiments which caused him to trespass on the cremation grounds and cause the dead body to be desecrated. The accused was convicted and sentenced to three months rigorous imprisonment. OUTRAGING OR WOUNDING RELIGIOUS FEELINGS Section 295A. Deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs Whoever, with deliberate and malicious intention of outraging the religious feelings of any class of citizens of India, by words, either spoken or written, or by signs or by visible representations or otherwise, insults or attempts to insult the religion or the religious beliefs of that class, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to three years,

Anju HarbanshStudent, Fourth Year, Hidayatullah National Law University, Raipur, Chhattisgarh INTRODUCTIONThe term actionable claim is that every kind of claim in a movable property which would be enforced through the courts. But such a wide meaning created confusion. For example, under this meaning all debts whether secured or unsecured were actionable claims whereas a debt secured by mortgage of immovable property is, strictly speaking, an ‘interest in land’. Similarly, under this meaning any claim of money whether the amount was fixed amount or uncertain, was an actionable claim. Because of such confusions there used to be conflicting decisions and the law was neither clear nor uniform. Actionable claim is a claim to any debt, other than a debt secured by mortgage of immovable property or by hypothecation or pledge of moveable property, or to any beneficial interest in moveable property not in possession either actual or constructive, of the claimant, which the civil courts recognize as affording grounds of relief whether such debt or beneficial interest be existent, accruing or conditional or contingent. ACTIONABLE CLAIM As Per Section 3 of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882 Actionable Claim1 is a claim to any debt, other than a debt secured by mortgage of immovable property or by hypothecation or pledge of moveable property, or to any beneficial interest in moveable property not in possession either actual or constructive, of the claimant, which the civil courts recognize2 as affording grounds of relief whether such debt or beneficial interest be existent, accruing or conditional or contingent”. “A person is said to have notice”3 of a fact when he actually knows that fact, or when, but for willful abstention from an enquiry or search which he ought to have made, or gross negligence, he would have known it. Explanation I: Where any transaction relating to immovable property is required by law to be and has been effected by a registered instrument, any person acquiring such property or any part of, or share or interest in, such property shall be deemed to have notice of such instrument as from the date of INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF BUSINESS POLICY AND ECONOMICS Vol. 4, No. 2, (2011): 409-415 410 Anju Harbansh registration or, where the property is not all situated in one sub-district, or where the registered instrument has been registered under sub-section (2) of section 30 of the Indian Registration Act, 1908 (16 of 1908), from the earliest date on which any memorandum of such registered instrument has been filed by any Sub-Registrar within whose sub-district any part of the property which is being acquired, or of the property wherein a share or interest is being acquired, is situated: PROVIDED that-(1) The instrument has been registered and its registration completed in the manner prescribed by the Indian Registration Act, 1908 (16 of 1908), and the rules made there under,(2) The instrument of memorandum has been duly entered or filed, as the case may be, in books kept under section 51 of that Act, and(3) The particulars regarding the transaction to which the instrument relates have been correctly entered in the indexes kept under section 554 of that Act. Explanation II: Any person acquiring any immovable property or any share or interest in any such property shall be deemed to have notice of the title, if any, of any person who is for the time being in actual possession thereof. Explanation III: A person shall be deemed to have had notice of any fact if his agent acquires notice thereof whilst acting on his behalf in the course of business to which that fact is material: PROVIDED that, if the agent fraudulently conceals the fact, the principal shall not be charged with notice thereof as against any person who was a party to or otherwise cognizant of the fraud. Actionable claim means a claim to any debt other than a debt secured under a mortgage or hypothecation or pledge on any immovable or moveable property, possession of which is given to person or institution which gave the loan. An Actionable Claim is a plain unsecured debt which can be claimed by a person against another person and which can be enforced in civil courts according to law. Right to benefit of a contract falls within the definition of Actionable Claim. An Actionable Claim is transferable and inheritable and it is deemed to be a property in the hands of the person who has the claim. Actionable claim,6 a claim to a debt, whether existent, accruing, contingent or conditional (the latter two types being future debt), are capable of being transferred in present. It is recommended that this position be clarified by virtue of an amendment to the Transfer of Property Act. Simply stated7, an actionable claim means a claim to any unsecured debt or a claim to any beneficial interest in movable property, not in the possession of the claimant. The debt or beneficial interest may exist, accruing, conditional or contingent. For example, A borrows Rs. 5000/- from B at 12% per annum interest on 1st April, 2006 and promises to pay back the amount with interest on 1st July, 2006. Till 1st July, 2006, the debt is an accruing debt and is an actionable claim. Actionable Claim 411 It may be noted that a person can have a actionable claim, even without consideration. Further such person’s claim will not be affected by claim of a subsequent transferee with consideration. CONDITIONS OF ACTIONABLE CLAIMTwo conditions of actionable claim is that— (1)Unsecured Money Debt: A debt is an obligation8 to pay a liquidated or definite sum of money. Such debt may me: (1) existent, (2) conditional, (3) contingent. If it is now due and owing it is existent. If it is a present debt but payable in the future it is accruing. A debt which will be due only if a condition be fulfilled or if a certain specified thing happens is a conditional debt9. Contingent debts are debt which are payable on a certain contingency, e.g., an

Ansari Solicitor Firm: Expert legal services within the framework of the law Among a number of assistances, legal assistance is said to be one of the most crucial aids being offered. It has the potential to make or break someone’s life, career, prospects, etc. Considering this, one should always look out for a seasoned law firm for a trustworthy legal assistance. Today we are going to talk about one such law firm which has been a preferred choice for individuals in Gujarat. We are talking about none other than Ansari Solicitor Firm. When it comes to experience, it has a seasoned expertise of almost one and a half decades. The law firm was founded in 2006 by A.A. Ansari. Ansari solicitor firm (ASF) is one of the leading Indian law firms in Ahmedabad. They work with their clients by understanding their requirements and offer expert legal services within the framework of the law. It has emerged as a one-stop solution in Gujarat state for the local and global clients. It has become the most preferred law firm among the people of Gujarat. Talking about the biggest strength of the company, the company puts in powerful and logical mindset.“I have developed my mind in a way that it makes me think about the logic of every aspect and what would an ordinary person do in that given circumstance and how and why would he act that way”,. Moreover he also keep on studying the reasoning of particular provisions of law. As far as the goal of the company is concerned, it aspires to provide ingenious solutions to every legal situation. Moreover, it aims to serve clients by trust, excellence and collaboration. Apart from this, it aims to become a global law firm by becoming preferred partner of its clients. Engaging experienced lawyers to litigate better To become a preferred partner of its clients, it has taken a path consisting of the support of latest technology. They are working for digitalization of each matter, keeping past records advices, solutions given to the clients. Moreover, they also try to engage experienced lawyers to litigate better. For many years, ASF was handling more than 1000 matters per year. They were overburdened and had less space in the office. Taking this into consideration, they have shifted to new office having space of 3000 square feet and engaged 16 lawyers/ para legal staff to overcome the said challenge. At ASF, they engaged experts of different area of practice to become full service law firm. They have experts for criminal matters, civil matters, labor laws, IPR, corporate laws, DRT matters, and consumer cases etc. Talking about the USP that makes his firm different from the other businesses in similar domains, it is the ingenious solution to every legal situation and to think out of box. Talking about his outside interests, they also pertain to his profession. He works on to learn the legal psychology, its need and impact on society. Apart from this, reading books suggested by Harvard Law School are some of his core interest areas. The seed of law sown quite early Talking about the idea of starting his law firm, he started attending the Court when he was in 11th standard. He would visit the court with a friend of his father. The environment fascinated him a lot and encouraged him to make his career in this field. After completing his solicitor from Bombay Incorporated Law Society, he soon started his law firm. Having got the idea of legal discourse at such of young age prepared him for the field quite early. It helped him develop the mindset like lawyer. He made some really good contacts at college etc. Apart from this, he has emphasized upon the creative thinking within his organization since the inception of the company. He always embraces new technology, whenever a technology updates or new software comes, he tries to make the most out of it. Most of the time technology pays you back. Apart from this, in his leisure time, he studies the landmark decisions of various High Courts or Supreme Courts. Nowadays, people discuss these judgments as they are aware of them by social media or news portals. And they like to have healthy and accurate discussion. “There are no hard and fast rules to success in this field. You just need to work for those who need legal assistance. Your commitment towards the litigation and documentations would lead you to become a successful lawyer. Every lawyer is great lawyer. One just need to believe in consistency, reading a lot, and keep reading the matters, relevant sections, its ingredients, purpose of particular legal provisions etc.”, he says. About Mr. Ansari He started attending Court in 1999 when he was in 11th standard. In 2006, he became a lawyer and completed his LL.M. from corporate law. Mr. Ansari is solicitor from Bombay Incorporated law society, Bombay. He litigates at Gujarat High Court and there are 30 reported judgments to his credit. Many of his cases are reported in local and national newspapers. There are more than 12 TV episodes in which he was called to answer live questions on topics like, land laws, criminal laws, negotiable instrument act etc. He was also appointed as Special Public Prosecutor, Income Tax Department in the year 2017 and he is representing Income tax department in various court of Gujarat. He is also working for Waqf Board, Gujarat State; Official Liquidator, Gujrat High Court; Agricutural University, Govenrment of India, New Delhi, Directorate of Groundnut Research, Gujarat State. At ASF, his team along with him is handling briefs of HDFC Standard Life, Amazon, SBI Life, Elder Pharma etc. Source : https://businessviewmagazine.in/the-league-of-elite-law-firms/ansari-solicitor-firm/

  Situation: A maintenance order was passed in favour of the wife under Sec 125(1)(a) of CRPC in 2016. Due to the prevailing COVID-19 circumstances, the husband lost his job and is no longer is a position to comply with the order and has defaulted in the payment of maintenance for a few months now. The husband and wife also have a major son who is an earning member of the family and resides with the wife. What are the solutions available for the husband? There is no provision for appeal available against an order of maintenance therefore in this case, the party aggrieved by the order has an option to file for revision of the order. The power of revision is vested in the High Court and the Sessions Court under Section 397 of CRPC. The section states that, “The High Court or any Sessions Judge may call for and examine the record of any proceeding before any inferior Criminal Court situate within its or his local jurisdiction for the purpose of satisfying itself or himself as to the correctness, legality or propriety of any finding, sentence or order,- recorded or passed”.  When the High Court or the Sessions Court call for records from the inferior court under the aforementioned section, it causes an indirect stay in the proceedings of the inferior court as they are no longer in possession of records of the proceedings, and hence can not proceed with the case. If the order was passed by the Family Court then revision application would lie before the High Court under Section 397, read with Section 401 of CRPC as the Family Court is presided by a Sessions Judge. Section 401 of CRPC lays down High Court’s power to revision. If there is no family court in an area, the Magistrate is vested with the power of a Family Court. Then in such a situation, when the Magistrate has passed an order of maintenance, the revision would lay before the Sessions Court under Section 397 read with Section 399 CRPC and not before the High Court. Section 399 of CRPC lays down Session’s Judge’s Power of Revision. Now in this case a revision application cannot be sought nor can the order of maintenance be challenged as the order was passed in 2016 and the husband did not raise any objections at the time the order was passed instead he complied with the order for four years till he lost his job. Further, for an order to be challenged, there must be some error or fault in the order by the Judge. Since the loss of job was in response to an unforeseeable situation, it fails to provide for a valid ground to challenge or revise the order of maintenance.   Since the circumstances have changed owing to loss of job in response to the pandemic, the husband has an option to file for an alteration of maintenance under Section 127 of CRPC. Sec 127(1) reads,  “On proof of a change in the circumstances of any person, receiving, under section 125 a monthly allowance, or ordered under the same section to pay a monthly allowance to his wife, child, father or mother, as case may be, the Magistrate may make such alteration in the allowance he thinks fit”. However, a prerequisite of filing an application under Section 127 is that the arrears of unpaid maintenance needs to be cleared till date of filing of the application. As the judge will ask for compliance of previous order given by the court before it can entertain a application for alteration. Another option is also available to the husband, that is to file a claim for  maintenance as a parent against his son under section 125(1)(d). To avail this section, it must be proved that the son has sufficient means to maintain his father and has no liabilities or debt on his name. Written By: Natasha Menon (5th Year BA.LLB, Maharaja Sayajirao University Baroda)

Things are changing fast and couples have started living together in a single household even without being married. Such relationship may be brief or may continue for a considerable period of time. If the cohabitation continues for a prolonged period, it is termed live-in relationship. Live-in relationship may be defined as “Continuous cohabitation for a significant period of time, between partners who are not married to each other in a legally acceptable way and are sharing a common household.” Live-in relationship, that is, living together as couple without being married to each other in a legally accepted way, is considered a taboo in India. But recently, such relationships are being increasingly common due to a variety of reasons. In absence of any specific legislation, rules, or customs on the subject, the Supreme Court has issued certain guidelines in its judgment for regulating such relationships. Recently: The Punjab and Haryana High Court has said live-in-relationships are morally and socially unacceptable, an observation which runs contrary to the Supreme Court stand recognizing them. The High Court made the observation while dismissing a petition filed by a runaway couple seeking protection. In their petition, Gulza Kumari (19) and Gurwinder Singh (22) said they were living together and intended to get married shortly. They apprehended danger to their lives from Kumari’s parents. In his May 11 order, Justice H S Madaan said, As a matter of fact, the petitioners in the garb of filing the present petition are seeking seal of approval on their live-in-relationship, which is morally and socially not acceptable and no protection order in the petition can be passed. The petition was dismissed. “It concerns life and liberty:” Supreme Court orders protection to couple in live-in relationship after Punjab & Haryana High Court denied relief A Division Bench comprising Justices Navin Sinha and Justice Ajay Rastogi directed that since the issue is one affecting life and liberty, police should act expeditiously in view of the threats faced by the couple. The Supreme Court of India has ordered police to grant protection to a couple in live-in relationship who were denied relief by the Punjab & Haryana High Court (Gurwinder Singh v. State of Punjab). A three-judge bench of the apex court held in May 2018 that an adult couple had the right to live together even without marriage. It had made this clear while asserting that a 20-year-old Kerala woman, whose marriage had been annulled, could choose whom she wanted to live with. The apex court had also referred to its decision in Lata Singh v. the State of UP. That judgment had said a live-in relationship between two consenting adults did not amount to any offence, with the obvious exception of adultery, even though it may be perceived as immoral. A major girl is free to marry anyone she likes or “live with anyone she likes”. Notions of social morality are inherently subjective and the criminal law cannot be used as a means to unduly interfere with the domain of personal autonomy. Morality and criminality are not co-extensive, the court said. Live-in relationship between two consenting adults is not considered illegal and if the couple present themselves to the society as husband and wife and live together for a significant period of time, the relationship is considered to be a relationship “in the nature of marriage” under the Prevention of Domestic Violence Act, 2005. Consequently, the female partner is entitled to claim alimony under its provisions. Children born out of such relationships are considered legitimate and entitled to get share in the self-acquired property of their parents, though they are not entitled for a coparcener share in the Hindu undivided family property. Legality of Live-In Relationships: As early as 1978, in Badri Prasad V. Deputy Director Consolidation, observation was made that “If man and woman who live as husband and wife in society are compelled to prove, after half-a-century of wedlock by eye-witness evidence that they were validly married fifty years earlier, few will succeed. A strong presumption arises in favor of wed-lock where the partners have lived together for a long spell as husband and wife. Although the presumption is rebuttable, a heavy burden lies on him who seeks to deprive the relationship of its legal origin. Law leans in favour of legitimacy and frowns upon bastardy.” SPS Balasubramanian V. Suruttayan, (AIR 1992 SC 756) in which it was observed that where a man and a woman live together as husband and wife for long time, presumption under the law would be in favor of their being legally married to each other unless proved to the contrary and children born out of such live-in relationship would be entitled for inheritance in the property of the parents. Live-in relationship between consenting adults is not considered illegal under the Indian law. In 2006, in the case of Lata Singh v. State of U.P, it was held that a live-in relationship between two consenting adults of opposite sex, though perceived as immoral, does not amount to any offence under the law. In 2010, Khushboo v. Kanaimmal and another, Supreme Court observed “Though the concept of live-in relationship is considered immoral by the society, but is definitely not illegal in the eyes of the law. Living together is a right to life and therefore it cannot be held illegal.” If such relationship is only for sexual reasons, neither of the partners can claim benefits of a legal marriage. Indra Sarma v. VKV Sarma (15 SCC 755) was another landmark case on the matter of live-in relationship in which implications of different types of relationships were examined. To get recognized as “in the nature of marriage,” certain conditions were set by the Supreme Court in D. Velusamy and D. Patchaimal (5 SCC 600) The couple must hold themselves out to society as being akin to spouses. They must be of legal age to marry. They must be otherwise qualified to enter into a legal marriage, including being unmarried. They must have voluntarily cohabited

What is illegal & unauthorised construction? The Commissioner has authority to approve any plan, section, description, structural drawings or structural calculations for making construction within city limits. Permission of the Commissioner has to taken by every person whoever has intention of making any new construction on a site or; reconstructing: Any building of which more than one-half of the cubical contents of the building above the level of the plinth have been pulled down, burnt, or destroyed, or Any masonry building of which more than three-fourths of the superficial area of the external walls above the level of the plinth has been pulled down, or Any frame building of which more than three quarters of the number of the posts or beams in the external walls have been pulled down; or Even conversion of any building into a stall, shop, warehouse or godown; making structural alteration two or more tenements into greater or lesser number; conversion of single dwelling house to more; roofing or cover an open space between walls or buildings; etc. will be taken as constructing a property. A notice is needed to be sent to the Commissioner, containing all the required & necessary information as prescribed by the laws, by every person who wants to: Construct a building within city limits[Section 253 of the Gujarat Provincial Municipal Corporations Act, 1949]; or Make alterations to already existing building within city limits. [Section 254 of the Gujarat Provincial Municipal Corporations Act, 1949] If a person fails to provide required documents as per the directions given by the Commissioner (while approving any plan, section, description, structural drawings or structural calculations for purpose of constructing a building), then such non-compliance would be considered as a failure to not serving the required notice to the Commissioner under Section 253 or Section 254. [Section 256 of the Gujarat Provincial Municipal Corporations Act, 1949] The Commissioner has authority to decline any plan, section, description, structural drawings or structural calculations which are not provided in a lawful manner.[Section 255 of the Gujarat Provincial Municipal Corporations Act, 1949] So if any construction is made without the approval or against the directions of the Commissioner then it will be said to illegal and unauthorised. How does the authority ensure that lawful constructions taking place within city? During any time of an ongoing construction or at any time within three months after the completion of it, the Commissioner by written notice can specify any matter in respect of which such construction is contravening the law &; direct the person to follow the required lawful steps.[Section 262 of the Gujarat Provincial Municipal Corporations Act] It is duty of every person who has completed the construction of a building within city limits to inform about the same to the Commissioner[Section 263 of the Gujarat Provincial Municipal Corporations Act] The owner of such property has to apply for the permission by serving a notice to the Commissioner within period of one month from the date of completion of the work. The notice has to include the necessary certificate & all the documents prescribed under the law so that the Commissioner can inspect the building before granting his permission to the owner for occupying its premises & making use of it. If no refusal has been expressed to the notice served by the owner of the property from the office of the Commissioner within period of twenty-one days then the owner is free to occupy & start making use of it. What is the proceeding for unlawful construction? If the construction of any building has started & on-going, contrary to the laws, the Commissioner can by written notice ask the person to: Show sufficient cause why such building or work shall not be removed, altered or pulled down; Attend personally or by an agent duly authorized by him to show sufficient cause why such building or work shall not be removed, altered or pulled down, on specified date and time. [Section 260(1) of the Gujarat Provincial Municipal Corporations Act, 1949] If such person fails to show sufficient cause, the Commissioner may remove, alter or pull down the building or work and the expenses will have to be paid by the said person. [Section 260(2) of the Gujarat Provincial Municipal Corporations Act, 1949] What steps does the authority take in case unlawfully construction is carried on? 1)  The Commissioner can require, by a written notice with the approval of the Standing Committee, for necessary alterations in the construction or pulling down any part of the construction to the permissible extent, from the person who has: Done anything contrary to any provision of this Act or of any rule or by-law or; Failed to comply with any provision of this Act or of any rule or by-law or; Done the construction is far too advanced to permissible under the law. [Section 261(1) of the Gujarat Provincial Municipal Corporations Act, 1949] If any loss or damage has been suffered by the person due to making changes in the existing construction required by the commissioner & it is found that no unlawful work has been done or is been carried out then such aggrieved person will be provided with the compensation for the same by the Commissioner. [Section 261(2) of the Gujarat Provincial Municipal Corporations Act, 1949] 2) If the Commissioner is satisfied that unlawfully work is carried on then he may direct to stop such construction by serving a written notice to the builder [Section 267 of the Gujarat Provincial Municipal Corporations Act, 1949]; 3) If even after such notice has been served but the construction is still carried on & has not been stopped by the builder then the Commissioner can order removal of such a person from such premise by any police officer who is not ready to comply with the notice [Section 267 of the Gujarat Provincial Municipal Corporations Act, 1949]; 4) Also, the Commissioner can take necessary steps to prevent the re-entry of such person on the premises without his

Adoption under Muslim Law When there is a direct proof of marriage and a child born out from such marriage, the question of acknowledgement does not arise because in such cases the legitimacy is ipso facto (by that very fact or act) established. If there is no such direct proof of legitimacy so legitimacy may be proved by indirect proof which is called acknowledgement. Islam does not identify adoption; however it recognizes is ‘Acknowledgment of Paternity’. Muslim Law only recognises the concept of Ikras (acknowledgement). Such an Acknowledgement has to be made by the father only and not mother. Therefore, this only doctrine applies when there is case of uncertainty about the legitimacy of a child. The father (acknowledger) and the mother of the child must have been lawfully joined in marriage at the time when the child was conceived. It is essential to show that the child is not the fruit of an adulterous intercourse; otherwise the issue will be illegitimate and the acknowledgement will be ineffective. The acknowledger must be an adult and of sound mind i.e., competent to make a contract. Also, the acknowledgement must not be made casually. However, a person can always adopt on the order of Court under the Guardianship and Wards Act, 1890. Muhammad Ali Khan vs Muhammad Ibrahim Khan (1929) PC The father had made the acknowledgement of child casually and had not intended his acknowledgement to have serious effects. The Privy Council held that the mere act of the father is not sufficient to confer the status of legitimacy on the child. Council further stated that acknowledgement of paternity under Muslim Law is the nearest approach to adoption. Under Adoption the child who is adopted is identified as the son of another person, while in paternity the essential of acknowledgment is that the Acknowledgee must not be known son of another.    Succession under Muslim Law Muslim law does not recognize the concept of separate property, governed by Shariyat laws. If a Muslim individual happens to die without making a will, then after his/her death the property under his/her ownership would be distributed among the legal heirs. There are two schools under the Muslim law, the Shia and the Sunni school of law. Under the Shia law, the property of the deceased person is divided per strip which means per relationship their share in the family, while under the Sunni law, the property is divided as per capita which means per head according to which they get equal share in the heritable property. Offspring of Zina An offspring of Zina means a child born either out of marriage or; from a mother who is married wife of another man or; of void marriage. Such child cannot be acknowledged by the man who has committed Zina. Notion of All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) AIMPLB believes that adoption cannot be allowed due to fear of sexual relations between adopted child and mother or an adopted son with a biological daughter and likewise situations. AIMPLB member Kamal Faruqui, “In Islam, all relations are ordained by Allah. Physical intimacy with a person with whom nikah and sexual relations are possible, is not permissible. So an adopted son cannot live in the same house as the mother or a biological daughter. What if a 60-year-old man has a young wife and they adopt a son, who soon grows up? What will his relationship with the mother be?” Rights of Adopted Person in the Ancestral Property of the Biological Parents under the Muslim Law Acknowledgement produces all the legal effect of a natural paternity and vests in the child the right of inheriting from the acknowledger. Shabnam Hashmi v Union of India, (2014) 4 SCC 1 Ms. Shabnam Hashmi (Petitioner) had approached court back in 2005 after she was told that she had only guardianship rights over a girl she had adopted. She was subject to the Muslim Shariyat Law which does not recognize an adopted child on par with a biological child. The Supreme Court extended the right of adoption to Muslims also, under the provisions of Juvenile Justice Act which is to prevail over all personal laws and religious codes in the nation. The Three judge bench (Chief Justice P. Sathasivam and Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice Shiv Kirti Singh) stated that personal laws would continue to govern any person who chooses to submit himself/herself until such time that the vision of a uniform civil code is achieved. The Hon’ble Court also stated that adoption is a matter of personal choice and there is no compulsion on any person to adopt a child. Juvenile Justice Act, 2002 In India, although adoption is allowed under a secular Juvenile Justice Act (Care and Protection of Children) Muslim Laws prohibit inheritance rights or giving one’s name to an ‘adopted’ child. Prospective parents have option to employ the provisions of S. 41 of JJ Act, 2000 to adopt a child or they can choose otherwise and submit to their Personal Laws. However, Personal Laws cannot dictate the operation of this Act and cause hindrance to the person who chooses to adopt a child. Following are the related significant provisions of Act: Section 2(aa) of the Act defines Adoption as: “The process through which the adopted child is permanently separated from his biological parents and become the legitimate child of his adoptive parents with all the rights, privileges and responsibilities that are attached to the relationship.” Section 2(k) of the Act defines Child as: “A person who has not completed eighteenth year of age Section 41(2) of the Act provides that: “Adoption shall be resorted to for the rehabilitation of the children who are orphan, abandoned or surrendered through such mechanism as may be prescribed.” Therefore, this Act gives the adoptive parents and the child all the rights, privileges and responsibilities which are attached to a normal parent-child relationship. With this adults who would like to go for adoption, irrespective of their religious background, would be free

Government only recognizes & verifies caste and religion which is provided by a person by self-declaration, mainly for the purposes of taking affirmative action; it does not seek to determine the caste or religion of any Indian citizen. It is of personal preference whether people want to disclose their caste or religion on any application form. If any person wants a ‘No caste, No religion’ certificate, he/she can follow the example PIL submitted by G. Balakrishnan to the High Court of Madras wherein it is ruled that people who do not wish to reveal their caste or religion must not be forced or compelled to do so. Sneha Parthibaraja, an advocate and resident of Tirupattur, Tamil Nadu, became the first Indian to obtain an official ‘No Caste, No Religion’ certificate on February 5, 2019. It took her nine years to obtain it.[1] The Sub-collector & Tehsildar issued her the certificate. She has been stating that she does not belong to any caste or any religion and when she had first applied for a certificate, the officials had rejected her application on ground that no such precedent had existed in the country that time. Parthibaraja justified her plea for ‘No caste No religion’ certificate on the following two grounds: She had not availed any benefits that involved the caste certificate and; She also stated that she has the means to live without it.[2] The Tamil Nadu district authorities have issued ‘No caste & No religion’ certificate and it has not got challenged in any court of law yet, therefore others can also get the certificate in same manner by approaching the collector of their residence. If denied and a person still wants a certificate then an application for ‘No caste & No religion’ certificate can be made to the court on the basis of Sneha Parthibaraja’s precedent. And even if there is resistance then a person can always opt to not disclose his/her caste or religion, as no citizen can be forced to disclose their caste or religion. If a proper legal recourse for obtaining the certificate ‘No caste & No religion’ gets well established then it will be a step in advancement of making India a casteless and a religion-less nation. Written by Advocate Monika Thakkar [B.A.LL.B.(Hons.); LL.M. (Business Laws)] References: “Tamil Nadu Woman Becomes First Indian To Get ‘No Caste, No Religion’ Certificate After 9-Year-Long Battle” by Raka Mukherjee, News18. Dated: February 16, 2019.  URL: https://www.news18.com/news/buzz/no-caste-no-religion-tamil-nadu-woman-becomes-first-   “It’s official: Tirupattur woman gets ‘no caste, no religion’ certificate” by Serena Josephine M, The Hindu. Dated: February 14, 2019.February 14, 2019 February 14, 2019 URL:  https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/its-official-tirupattur-womangets-no-caste-no-religion-certificate/article26262132.ece February 14, 2019