Krishna Kumari Areti prof

ADR APPROACH TO ENVIRONMENTAL LITIGATION

Krishna Kumari Areti — Sun, 23 Sep 2007 22:58:04 PDT

Though in the beginning ADR was restricted to civil litigation slowly it has entered in to the sphere of criminal law. With the changing times, we have to introduce ADR to other areas also, where there is more litigation and where the traditional courts would take time in resolving the issues. One such area is environmental litigation. The nature of the litigation in the environmental sphere is not complex. In case mediation is used as a tool of dispute resolution rather than litigation in the traditional courts, the results would be more fruitful. The unique characteristics of environmental litigation require a change in the application of ADR.

CAPITAL PUNISHMENT AND STATUTORY FRAME WORK IN INDIA

Krishna Kumari Areti — Sun, 23 Sep 2007 22:50:15 PDT

As far as India is concerned, the provisions relating to Capital Punishment are embodied in Indian Penal Code and Criminal Procedure Code. Indian Penal Code is the substantive law, which suggests the offences, which are punishable with death sentence. Criminal Procedure Code is the procedural law, which explains the procedure to be followed in death penalty cases. The substantive law of India viz., Indian Penal Code was enacted in the year 1860. Though very few Amendments are made here and there, in total it remains unchanged, where as Criminal Procedure Code was amended substantially once in 1955 and reenacted in 1972. Though majority of the provisions remain unchanged Section 235(2) and Section 354(3) underwent a major change. The present chapter mainly deals with the substantive and procedural laws pertaining to Capital Punishment. It is also proposed to discuss the power of the executive to grant pardon and commute death into life imprisonment as provided under the Indian Constitution.

Streedhana and Mehr

Krishna Kumari Areti — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 23:59:05 PDT

Streedhana is the exclusive property of woman under Hindu Law. Mehr, which is also known as Dower, is also the exclusive property of woman under Islamic Law. But, both are very different and at the same time not different as both reflect the position of women in Indian society. Both are in monetary form and given at the time of or during the time of marriage or in connection with the marriage.

Role of Theories of Punishment in the Policy of Sentencing

Krishna Kumari Areti — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 23:53:07 PDT

In this article it is proposed to analyze various theories of punishment. Austin considered sanction as an essential ingredient of law. It is only through sanction that obedience to law can be secured. Sanction is nothing but inflicting pain or injury upon the wrong doer. This in a way can be called punishment. The immediate consequence of a criminal act is punishment. The term punishment is defined as, "pain, suffering, loss, confinement or other penalty inflicted on a person for an offence by the authority to which the offender is subjected to." Punishment is a social custom and institutions are established to award punishment after following criminal justice process, which insists that the offender must be guilty and the institution must have the authority to punish. In this article an attempt is made to discuss the policy of sentencing vis-à-vis various theories of punishment and their efficacy and effectiveness in the light of modern penology.

Understanding Sustainable Development

Krishna Kumari Areti — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 23:46:38 PDT

Sustainable Development is often an over-used word, but involves a number of inter-related global issues such as poverty, inequality, hunger and environmental degradation etc., People tend to think that we have to make a choice between environmental protection and development. Development that is sustainable and not damaging to the natural resources is very much possible. To achieve sustainable development the three pillars--economic, social and environmental--must be integrated in a balanced way. Conserving land and water resources, protecting biodiversity and managing agricultural heritage systems are very important for sustainable development. There is no inherent contradiction between environment and development, and that these two concerns should be mutually supportive. Protection of the environment should not be seen as a sectorial interest but as an integrated component in all economic and social development. A sound management of natural resources, energy saving and a population size in harmony with the productive potential of the ecosystems will automatically result in sustainable development.

Evidentiary Value of Expert Opinion Under Indian Evidence Act

Krishna Kumari Areti — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 23:41:00 PDT

Law of evidence allows a person –who is a witness to state the facts related to either to a fact in issue or to relevant fact, but not his inference. It applies to both criminal law and civil law. The opinion of any person other than the judge by whom the fact has to be decided as to the existence of the facts in issue or relevant facts are as a rule, irrelevant to the decision of the cases to which they relate for the most obvious reasons- for this would invest the person whose opinion was proved with the character of a judge1. The rule however, is not without its exceptions. “If matters arise in our law which concern other sciences or faculties, we commonly apply for the aid of that science or faculty which it concerns”.2 The expert witness is, thus, an exception to the exclusionary rule and is permitted to give opinion evidence. The Judge is not expected to be an expert in all the fields-especially where the subject matters involves technical knowledge. He is not capable of drawing inference from the facts which are highly technical. In these circumstances he needs the help of an expert- who is supposed to have superior knowledge or experience in relation to the subject matter. This qualification makes the latter’s evidence admissible in that particular case though he is no way related to the case. Because an expert has an advantage of a particular knowledge vis-à-vis a judge who is not equipped with the technical knowledge and hence not capable of drawing an inference from the facts presented before him.

Evolution of Environment Legislation in India

Krishna Kumari Areti — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 23:35:47 PDT

For any country the effective way of control pollution and degradation of resources is to combine traditional laws, with modern legislation. A country should adopt relevant environmental safeguards- designed to protect their limited resources. As far as India is concerned, the Ministry of Environment and Forests is the nodal agency at the Central level for planning, promoting and coordinating the environmental programmes, apart from policy formulation. A number of enforcement agencies assist the Ministry of Environment and Forests, in executing the assigned responsibilities.

Capital Punishment: The Never Ending Debte

Krishna Kumari Areti — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 23:30:00 PDT

Capital Punishment is as old as human history. So as the debate. Some people advocate abolition of Capital Punishment, while some strongly oppose the abolition of Capital Punishment. Those who object the abolition and propagate in favor of retention are called retentionists, and who advocate the abolition of Capital Punishment is known as abolitionists. The specialists of social sciences, criminologists, sociologists, penologists, psychiatrists, doctors and writers on social sciences and criminology are, in their great number abolitionists. The supporters of Capital Punishment, apart from a number of political figures and persons holding high public office, are generally jurists with a traditional training andjudges. Law enforcement and prosecutorial groups tend to be strongly supportive of Capital Punishment. There are three aspects to the question of Capital Punishment: first the moral-humanitarian, religious; secondly, the popular the views, the prejudices and superstitions of a common man in the street; and lastly, the scientific viz., penological, psychiatric, sociological, in short, the accumulated knowledge and experience of various brands.

Genocide- An Offence Against Humanity

Krishna Kumari Areti — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 21:51:58 PDT

This article gives the definition of the crime in generic terms and in legal terms. A definition by UN insists that there must be mental element, meaning the “intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group as such and the physical element which include five acts described in sections a, b, c, d and e. They are killing members of the group, causing serious bodily injury or mental harm to members of the group, deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part, imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group and forcibly transferring children of the group to another group. History of Genocide since 1915, which was targeted against the Armenians till date, is elaborately discussed along with the establishment of International Criminal Court and its jurisdiction. Ultimately, the author suggests that effective prevention of genocide is possible only with the efforts of international community along with the non-governmental organizations.

Incidents of Genocide in India

Krishna Kumari Areti — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 21:07:33 PDT

The author jots down the incidents of Genocide in India from the date of independence till date. India witnessed the first genocide at the time of partition immediately after the independence. The two-nation theory led to the division of the country and the Hindus in India and Muslims in Bengal migrated to their destined homelands. In this process several lives were lost on both sides and women were kidnapped and raped and at times murdered. In this article the mass murders and rapes of thousands of women at the time of partition was elaborately discussed. The then Hyderabad State underwent trauma in the hands of the Razakar who had invaded the villages of Telangana and created havoc. Ultimately the problem was solved with the intervention of the then Home Minister. But, Kashmir remained as an unending and unresolved problem between both the nations. The author suggests for a strong domestic law to safeguard the unity in diversity of India