Do not lie to the court, SC tells lawyers

"What will happen if the judges become wary of lawyers' statements made across the Bar. In the apex court, we trust the advocates for they and the judges are equal partners in administration of justice. How can we carry on with the job if we start distrusting the lawyers," the Bench said.

Girls above 18 entitled to live with or marry anyone

India is a free country where girls after attaining the age of 18 years have the freedom to live with or marry anyone they like. Parents, if not happy, could at the worst severe their ties with her but cannot threaten, coerce or torture her.

Testimony of criminal can be accepted

"Therefore, the criminal background, in our opinion, would not be of much consequence, though while appreciating their evidence, that fact has to be borne in mind," a bench of Justices V S Sirpurkar and Cyriac Joseph observed in a judgement.

SC wants criminal cases on fast track

Awarding death penalty to be made tougher

It took note of the concern of legal commentators that while the rich and powerful never got the extreme penalty, “it is invariably the marginalised and destitute who suffer extreme penalty ultimately”.