The Week That Was: The Bombay High Court

This week, the Bombay High Court had only three working days, with the ongoing Ganesh Utsav leading to a number of court holidays. Interestingly, the court was also seized of a matter concerning safer beaches in Mumbai during festivals. The NEET found its way to the Bombay High Court, as did the State CET for law.

. Here is a look at all that happened in the Bombay High Court this past week.

. Tuesday, September 6

. PIL seeks a fund for victims of possible lead poisoning due to Maggi

. Sumedha Rao , an advocate filed a PIL seeking the constitution of a consumer protection fund for those who may suffer from lead poisoning after consuming Maggi noodles. VM Kanade and Swapna Joshi JJ issued notice to the Food Safety Standards Authority of India, while also directing the deletion of Nestle India from the list of respondents. This matter will now come up for hearing on October 10.

. Lawyer’s PIL in Bombay HC seeks consumer protection fund for Maggi “victims”

. Wednesday, September 7

. NEET: Petition challenges domicile rule in Maharashtra

. A writ petition was filed by Mahatma Gandhi Vidya Mandir Trust, which runs a dental college at Nashik challenged the rules framed under the Maharashtra Unaided Private Professional Educational Institutions (Regulation of Admissions and Fees) Act 2015 [pdf] .

. The lead petition argues against a state-administered centralised admission process; the admission process must be conducted by the individual private colleges. Vijay M Thorat is appearing for the trust whereas Vineet Naik appears for one of the petitioners. While former AG Shreehari Aney is appearing for the state. The hearing will continue on Wednesday .

. Thursday, September 8

. 350 Lifeguards to be deployed for beach safety during Ganesh Utsav

. The state government informed Abhay Oka and RD Dhanuka JJ that around 350 lifeguards (both permanent and contractual) will be deployed at various beaches/immersion points in Mumbai. The bench has now asked the state to ensure such safety during navratri as well. The matter will now come up in three weeks.

. Orders reserved in PIL regarding safety of women prisoners

. VK Tahilramani and Mridula Bhatkar JJ reserved orders in a suo motu PIL regarding the state of women prisoners in Maharashtra. Amicus Manjiri Shah brought to the notice of the court the case of an undertrial in Thane prison who was 15 weeks pregnant. The undertrial wanted to terminate her pregnancy however the the permissible limit for undergoing an abortion as per the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act is 12 weeks. The bench had directed prison authorities to seek a medical opinion from the civil hospital. After taking the opinion from two doctors in the civil hospital, termination of pregnancy was carried out.

. BCI’s role in legal education challenged

. A petition filed by law students of SNDT University in Mumbai not only questions the power of the Bar Council of India to approve law colleges, but also challenges BCI’s role in legal education itself . Chief Justice Manjulla Chellur has sought the BCI’s response, with the matter listed for the coming Wednesday.

. This PIL could completely change the Bar Council of India’s powers over legal education

The Week That Was: The Bombay High Court

Nitish Kashyap

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