SC to take up plea on gay sex verdict today
New Delhi: The Supreme Court will on Tuesday take up petitions filed by Centre and rights activists seeking review of its verdict declaring gay sex an offence punishable up to life imprisonment. A Bench of justices Hl Dattu and SJ Mukhopadhaya will take up the petition in chamber to decide whether the verdict needs to be re-looked or not.
‘Focus on developing rural-urban clusters’
New Delhi: Noting that there are about 3,900 clusters in the country which do not fall either in rural or urban category, Union Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh on Monday said his Ministry will undertake projects like water supply, sanitation and improvement of roads through public-private partnership mode in such areas under re-christened PURA (Provision of Urban Amenities in Rural Areas (PURA). Ramesh was speaking after signing of the Concession Agreement and State Support Agreement for the PURA project in Ibrahimpatnam and Kondapalli Gram Panchayat clusters of Krishna District, Andhra Pradesh in Delhi.
Shah report hearing on February 10
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday said it will hear on February 10 the issue raised by the Centre that reports of the Justice MB Shah Commission on illegal mining in Jharkhand and Odisha cannot be placed before the apex court without first tabling it in Parliament. A three-judge forest bench headed by justice AK Patnaik said it will examine whether placing of report first before it would amount to breach of privilege.
head of prosecution: CBi seeks clarity
New Delhi: CBI chief Ranjit Sinha has written to law Ministry seeking an explicit mention in the rules under the DSPE Act that the investigative agency’s director will be part of the appointment process for its Director of Prosecution. Sinha has raised objections to the recently passed lokpal Act, saying that as per the amended Section 4BA(3) in the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act, the Centre shall appoint the Director of Prosecution on the recommendation of the Central Vigilance Commission.