Vedanta Demerger, X’s Appeal Against Sahyog, JioHotstar, Crocs v/s Bata, Liberty & More

“Achieving gender justice is not the responsibility of women alone. It requires an active reimagining of power by men, especially those who occupy positions of authority in our institutions, workplaces, and political systems”

— Chief Justice of India BR Gavai while delivering the Justice Sunanda Bhandare memorial lecture

Supreme Court’s Concern Over Air Pollution Falls Short of Meaningful Action

Delhi-NCR’s air has moved from bad to worse to outright hazardous, in what is being described as one of the worst spells of toxic haze in recent years. While the executive has failed to produce any real impact, the Supreme Court too appears reluctant to demand meaningful action.

Following its permission to burn “green crackers” in the NCR during Diwali, the Supreme Court has scarcely spent judicial time on an air pollution crisis that has only deteriorated since. The government’s attempt at cloud seeding—too little, too late—failed, and citizens who peacefully protested for their right to clean air were met with police resistance. Through all this, the top court has continued to defer hearings or restrict their scope to merely seeking data on government action.

It is ironic that while one bench of the Supreme Court refused an urgent hearing even as GRAP III measures were imposed—signalling hazardous AQI levels—another judge of the same court urged lawyers to argue virtually to avoid stepping out, calling the air quality a “very, very serious” concern.

Such expressions of concern, without enforceable orders, offer little relief to citizens facing increasingly severe health risks while being forced to accept a “new normal” of toxic air.

Given the Delhi government’s ostrich-like approach to pollution, many had placed their hopes on the Supreme Court. But the court’s words are beginning to ring hollow, with no concrete directions, no fixing of accountability, and repeated extensions of time to governments—time that the city and its residents no longer have in the midst of this public health emergency.

Key Rulings:

• In an important elaboration of who falls within the definition of consumer, the Supreme Court has said that companies that purchase software to run their businesses and automate processes cannot claim to be consumer under the Consumer Protection Act

• Top court asks state of Jharkhand to notify the entirety of Saranda Game Sanctuary as a wildlife sanctuary within three months

Courts: 

• Social media X, previously called Twitter, has challenged the Karnataka High Court ruling that upheld the validity of the government’s Sahyog platform before a division bench of the same court

• Youtube content creator Raj Shamani becomes the latest in the growing list of public figures approaching court for protection of their personality rights

• Delhi High Court bars rogue websites from telecasting the India-South Africa cricket series in a relief for streaming platform JioHotstar

• Supreme Court refused to interfere with Delhi High Court’s decision reviving footwear giant Croc’s passing off suit against Bata and Liberty shoemakers

• Delhi High Court bars one ‘American Dream11’ from using the Dream11 trademark and refers the trademark dispute initiated by the Indian company owning the Dream 11 mark to mediation

• Madhya Pradesh High Court seeks response from the union government on petition seeking higher flight connectivity from Gwalior

• Bombay High Court stays FIR registered against Flipkart on an order by a lower court in a copyright case initiated by Shemaroo Entertainment

• In yet another run-in with courts for Yoga guru Ramdev and his Patanjali, the Delhi High Court has restrained him from making denigrating comments against other brands offering Chyawanprash

• Delhi High Court protects Jaya Bachchan’s personality rights

Quasi Courts:

• NCLT reserves judgment in Vedanta’s demerger case

The Big Listings:

• Nov 17: Supreme Court to hear Delhi NCR air pollution matter

• Nov 17: Supreme Court to continue hearing bail pleas by students and activists in Delhi riots of 2020 case

• Nov 17: Supreme Court to hear Sahara’s plea for court’s nod to sell its properties to Adani to raise funds

• Nov 18: Securities Appellate Tribunal to hear appeal by Jane Street challenging SEBI’s move to allegedly refuse access to important documents to the firm in the case against it

• Nov 18: Bombay High Court to hear PIL seeking CBI inquiry into RILover allegation of theft from KG Basin

• Nov 26: Supreme Court to hear a batch of petitions that challenge the validity of the newly passed law that bans online gaming platforms

* The dates of hearing can change and a concrete list is prepared just a day before

Legal Moves: 

• Sambit Swain leaves Coca-Cola as Legal Director to join Vishal Mega Mart as General Counsel

• Vipin Upadhyay joins King Stubb & Kasiva in tax practice

• Arun Mani joins IndiaLaw in Bengaluru

• Akshay Sewlikar joins Michelman Robinson in London

• Raya Hazarika leaves S&R to join Trilegal as partner

• Ashok Lalwani of Baker & McKenzie moves to Greenberg Traurig in Singapore

• Dhwani Rao made General counsel and Head – Legal at Nestle India

• Jagriti Bhattacharyya joins Firstsource as Global General Counsel