Prelim Bits

  The  Supreme Court   has upheld the constitutional validity of the  Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Amendment Act, 2018. The Amendment Act nullified the Court’s 20 th  March, 2018 judgment which had diluted the stringent provisions of the original Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 . Petitions were filed challenging the 2018 Amendment Act on the grounds of violation of the  fundamental right to equality (Article 14)   and  personal liberty (Article 21). Salient Features of the Amendment Act, 2018 It added   Section 18A   to the original Act. It delineates  SPECIFIC CRIMES   against SCs & STs as atrocities and  describes strategies and prescribes punishments   to counter these acts. It identifies what acts constitute  “ atrocities ”  and all off...

  Lord Cornwallis twice held the high post of governor general. His first tenure lasted from 1786 to 1793. For second time , he came to India in 1805 , but died before he could do any wonders again. Major Reforms Introduced by Lord Cornwallis: Permanent Settlement (1793) Cornwallis introduced the  Permanent Settlement   of land revenue in Bengal and other parts of India. Under this system, Zamindars or landlords were made the owners of the land , and the farmers were reduced to the status of tenants . The Zamindars had the right to evict the farmers at any time . The Zamindars had to pay 89% of the land revenue to the British and the remaining was for him. Under this system, land revenue was fixed for a term of ten years . This system accelerated the drain of wealth from India to Britain. Service Reforms To “curb” the corruption in the company, Cornwallis was given sufficient powers and author...

  The Supreme Court in a landmark judgment legalised gay sex by holding that sex between two consenting adults is not a crime. A five-judge bench of the Supreme Court gave the final verdict in 2018. Section 377 Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code 1860 , a relic of British India, states that “ whoever voluntarily has carnal intercourse against the order of nature with any man, woman or animal shall be punished .” This included private consensual sex between adults of same sex. After the recent SC judgement, provisions of Section 377 remain applicable in cases of non-consensual carnal intercourse with adults , all acts of carnal intercourse with minors , and acts of bestiality (intercourse between a person and an animal) . The Verdict SC made it clear that Article 14 of the Constitution guarantees equality before the law and this applies to all classes of citizens thereby restoring the ‘ inclusiveness’ of...

  In a 4:1 judgment , 5-membered constitution bench of Supreme Court, in  Indian Young Lawyers Association vs. the State of Kerala ,  has allowed women of all ages to worship in Sabarimala Temple. The petitions had challenged the Constitutional validity of  Rule 3(b) of the Kerala Hindu Places of Public Worship (Authorisation of Entry) Rules, 1965,   which  restricts the entry of women into the Sabarimala Temple   as being  ultra-vires   Section 3 of the Kerala Hindu Places of Public Worship (Authorisation of Entry) Act, 1965  which states that places of public worship are to be open to all sections and classes of Hindus . Sabarimala Temple Issue Located in the forests of the Western Ghats in Kerala’s Pathanamthitta district , the hill shrine is dedicated to Lord Ayyappa and is managed by the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB). The Sabarimala temple prohibits women aged between 10 and 50 years ...