LAW MADE EASY!

The Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act which was passed recently in Parliament provides for maintenance and welfare of parents and senior citizens. All senior citizens who are not able to maintain themselves can prefer an application against their children or against their relatives (only for childless) for maintenance. The Act has made it obligatory on the part of children or relatives to maintain their parents or senior citizens and attend to their day to day needs. The concerned citizens have to apply for maintenance before a Maintenance Tribunal established for this purpose only.

The tribunal is empowered to grant interim maintenance to senior citizens, during the pendency of proceedings before it. An application for maintenance shall be disposed off, in the normal course within 90 days from the date of service of notice and in exceptional cases, the tribunal may extend the said period, once for a maximum period of 30 days.

An application for the maintenance may be filed against one or more persons. The allowance for maintenance and for expenses for the proceedings may be passed from the date of the order or even from the date of filing the application. If the children or relative fails to pay maintenance to a senior citizen, then the tribunal can issue a warrant against them and send them for imprisonment for a term which may extend to one month or until payment, if sooner made which ever is earlier. The proceedings against the children and a relative shall be taken before the tribunal in a district where they resides or resided last.

The Act also provides for a conciliation officer who can try for a negotiated settlement between the parties. Normally the order for maintenance is made on a monthly basis. The maximum monthly maintenance is Rs.10,000/- per month. The tribunal has the power to make alteration in the allowances if there is a change in the circumstances or for other reasons like misrepresentation or mistake of fact done by the applicant before it.

The Foreign Contribution (Regulation)

Act 1976 regulates the acceptance and utilization of foreign contributions or foreign hospitality by people and associations in India. The act prohibits acceptance of foreign contribution by any:

Candidate for election
Correspondent, columnist, cartoonist, editor, owner, printer or publisher of a registered news paper.
Judge, Government servant or employee of any corporation
Member of any legislature
Political party or office-bearer thereof.
Organizations which are not a political party, but which have a political nature can accept foreign contribution only with prior permission of Central Government.
Associations like trust, society, companies etc with a definite cultural, economic, educational, religious or social program can accept foreign contribution, only if they register with Central Government. Further such associations are permitted to receive foreign contribution only through a particular branch of a bank of their choice. Such an association shall give intimation to the Central Government regarding the amount of each foreign contribution received by it, the source and manner of receipt, purpose and manner for which such foreign contribution was utilized.
Every citizen of India who receives any scholarship or stipend from any foreign source shall give intimation to the Central Government regarding the amount, source and purpose of the said scholarship or stipend. If the amount of such scholarship or stipend does not exceed Rs 36,000/- per annum, the recipient is not bound to give intimation to the central government
No member of a legislature, office bearer of a political party, judge, government servant or employee of any corporation shall, while visiting any country outside India, accept any foreign hospitality except with the prior permission of the Central government. This restriction is not applicable for receipt of emergent medical aid during such visits. Further, a member of an Indian delegation is permitted to accept a gift from a foreign source, during a foreign trip, subject to the regulations made by the Central government in this regard.
A foreign hospitality shall mean any offer made by a foreign source, for providing a person with the costs of travel to any foreign country or with free board, lodging, transport or medical treatment. A foreign source does not include NRIs but the same shall include PIOs.
Associations, organizations, trusts, societies etc. receiving foreign contribution shall maintain proper accounts in that regard.
Acceptance of salary, wages or other remuneration by a person, from any foreign source by way of payment in the ordinary course of business transacted in India is not prohibited by the Act.

Courts are empowered for appointment of receivers for the management and protection of any property. The Court can remove a person from the possession or custody of any property and can commit the said property to the custody, management and possession of the receiver, appointed by the Court. Normally the court appoints the receiver for the management of the property, when it appears to the court that the property may be mismanaged or lowered in its worth in the custody of the present possessor. The receiver may be appointed before or after decree is passed in a case pending before the court.

The following are the powers of a receiver appointed by the Court:

To bring and defend suits

To realize, manage, protect, preserve and improve property.
To collect rents and profits and to apply and dispose rents and profits of the property and to execute documents as the owner himself has.

Other powers, the Court deems fit.

The receiver is entitled for remuneration as fixed by the court for the services rendered by him.
The following are the duties of the receiver:

To furnish security if the court thinks fit, duly to account for what he shall receive in respect of the said property.

To submit the accounts.

To pay the amount due from him.

To be responsible for any loss caused to the property by his willful default or gross negligence

A transaction in which property is transferred to one person for a consideration paid or provided by another person is called Benami transaction. The Benami Transaction (Prohibition) Act, 1988, prohibits Benami transactions.
The following are not Benami transactions:
Purchase of property by any person in the name of his wife or unmarried daughter.
The securities held by a depository as a registered owner.
The security held by a participant as an agent of depository.
A person who enters into a Benami transaction is liable for imprisonment for a term which may extent to 3 years or with fine or with both.
A real owner cannot file a suit for the property against the Benami owner. However, a coparcener in a Hindu undivided family can enforce his rights in the property which is held for the benefit of the coparceners in the family.
The government can acquire all properties which are held Benami without any compensation amount being paid.
When a trustee or other person in a fiduciary capacity holds property for the benefit of another person, the same cannot be said to be a Benami transaction.

An agreement which is not enforceable by law is said to be a void agreement. An agreement which can be enforceable by law is said to be a contract. The Indian Contract Act, 1872, enlists the following cases as void agreements.

1.All agreements are void if considerations and objects are unlawful. The consideration or objects are unlawful, if it is forbidden by law, is fraudulent, involves injury to the person or property of another, is immoral, is against public policy or has tendency to defeat the provisions of any law.

2.An agreement without consideration is void unless it is in writing and registered and is made between closely related parties on account of natural love and affection.

3.Agreement in restraint of marriage, other than that of a minor, is void.

4.Every agreement by which any one is restrained from exercising a lawful profession, trade or business of any kind, is to that extend void.

5.Agreement by which any party is barred from enforcing his rights through legal proceedings is void.

6.When there is no certainty in the agreement, the same is void

7.Agreements by way of wager are void

8.Contingent agreements on impossible events are void.

9.Where both the parties to an agreement are under a mistake as to a matter of fact essential to an agreement, the agreement is void.

An agreement which is enforceable by law at the option of one or more of the parties thereto, but not at the option of the other or others is a voidable contract.

When consent to an agreement is caused by coercion, fraud, or misrepresentation, the agreement is a contract voidable at the option of the party whose consent was so caused. However, such a contract is not voidable, if the party whose consent was so caused had the means of discovering the truth with ordinary diligence. Further a fraud or misrepresentation which did not cause the consent to a contract of the party does not render a contract voidable.

When consent to an agreement is caused by undue influence, the agreement is a contract voiadable at the option of the party whose consent was so caused. A contract is said to be caused by undue influence, when one of the parties is in a position to dominate the will of the other and uses that position to obtain an unfair advantage over the other.

Coercion is committing or threatening to commit any act forbidden by the Indian Penal Code or the unlawful detaining of any property with the intention of causing any person to enter into an agreement.

This is a very important piece of legislation giving vital rights to woman employees. It applies to women employed in factories, mines, plantations, shops or establishments in which 10 or more persons are employed.
As per section 4 of the act, employers are prohibited from employing a woman during the six weeks following the day of her delivery, miscarriage or medical termination of pregnancy. Even a woman is not permitted to work in any establishment during 6 weeks following the day of her delivery.

A pregnant woman has a right to take leave on a request to her employer for a period of one month preceding the period of 6 weeks, before her date of delivery, if she is employed in an arduous work, or one which involves long hours of standing, or something adversely affecting her health or the normal development of the foetus.

Every woman is entitled to the payment of maternity benefit at the rate of average daily wage for the period of her actual absence for delivery. The maximum period for which any woman shall be entitled to maternity benefit shall be twelve weeks of which not more than six weeks shall precede the date of her expected delivery.

A woman employee can issue a notice to her employer stating that the maternity benefit to which she is entitled may be paid to her or her nominee and that she will not work for the period of maternity benefit. The said notice shall state the date from which she will be absent, date shall not be earlier than six weeks from the date of her expected delivery.

Every women entitled to maternity benefit is also entitled to receive from her employer a medical bonus of Rs.250/-. In case of miscarriage or MTP, a woman shall be entitled to leave with wages for a period of 6 weeks following the miscarriage or MTP. In case of tubectomy, a woman shall be entitled to leave with wages for a period of two weeks immediately following the day of tubectomy.

A women suffering from illness rising out of pregnancy, delivery, premature birth, miscarriage, MTP or tubectomy shall be, in addition to the normal maternity leave, entitled to leave with wages for a maximum period of 1 month.
Every woman, who has delivered a child, who returns to duty after such delivery is entitled to two breaks for nursing her child, during the daily course of her work, until her child attains the age of 15 months.

The act also provides for appointment of inspectors who have wide powers for the enforcement of various provisions of the act. Further there are various penalties imposed on the employers who violate the provisions of the act. In addition, it is the duty of every employer to exhibit an abstract of the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961 in a conspicuous place in every part of an establishment in which women are employed.

A marriage between an Indian citizen and a foreign citizen can be registered in India, under the Special Marriage Act, 1954. The conditions are:

a) The male should complete 21 years and the female should complete 18
years.

b) Both the parties should have soundness of mind to give a valid consent and they should not be having any mental disorder or insanity.

c) The parties should not have a spouse living at the time of the marriage.
The parties shall give a notice of intention of their marriage to the marriage officer within whose jurisdiction, at least one of them reside. The marriage officer will publish a copy of such notice in his office and will also send a copy of the notice to the office of the marriage officer, within whose jurisdiction the other party resides.

Any person having any objection to the marriage should intimate the marriage officer, within 30 days of the publication of the above notice. On receipt of any objection, the marriage officer shall enquire into the same and pass an order in this regard. If the marriage officer upholds objection and refuses to solemnize the marriage, then the aggrieved party has to approach
the district court for an appeal.

If the marriage officer overrules the objections, then the marriage can be solemnized. Three witnesses are required to sign a declaration witnessing the solemnization of the marriage. After the solemnization, the marriage officer will issue a certificate of marriage.

The normal documents required are age proof, address proof and identity proof documents, in addition to photographs.

PROPERTY PURCHASE IN INDIA BY NRIs and PERSONS RESIDENT OUTSIDE INDIA (PART-I)

NRIs and PIOs can purchase residential and commercial property in India. To purchase agricultural and plantation lands, they require special permission of the Reserve Bank of India.
Foreign nationals of non-Indian origin, who are resident outside India, cannot purchase immovable property in India. But they can take a property on lease for residential purpose, for a term not exceeding more than 5 years. A foreign national who is a person resident in India can purchase immovable property, provided they take all the approvals from the concerned state government and other authorities. However, this benefit is not applicable for the citizens of Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Iran and China. Citizens of these countries require prior permission from Reserve Bank of India.

A foreign company which has a place of business in India is entitled to acquire immovable property in India for the purpose of undertaking activities of such a company. Again companies which are incorporated in Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Iran and China having place of business in India need prior approval of Reserve Bank of India to acquire immovable property.

NRIs and PIOs can acquire immovable property in India by way of gift from a person resident in India, NRI or a PIO. However, only residential and commercial properties can be acquired by way of gift. Agricultural and plantation properties cannot be acquired by way of gift.

NRIs and PIOs and can inherit immovable property from a person resident in India, NRI or a PIO. However citizens of Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Iran and China need prior permission of the Reserve Bank of India in this regard.

For NRIs and PIOs, the payments required for purchasing immovable property in India shall come through funds remitted through normal banking channels or from funds in NRE, NRO, FCNR (B) accounts of the person held in India. No payment can be made outside India for this purpose.

The funds required for the property purchase by a foreign company having a place of business in India shall come through foreign inward remittance. After the purchase of the property, necessary intimation shall be given to the Reserve Bank of India in this regard. The sale proceeds of such a property can be repatriated only with the permission Of Reserve Bank of India.

With the Stamp Duty on various instruments in Karnataka being on the higher side, people have a tendency to undervalue the market value of the properties for the sake of saving the stamp duty and registration fee. This is particularly in the case of instruments of conveyance, gift, exchange etc.

The Deputy Commissioner of Stamps can on his own call for and examine an instrument to check the correctness of the market value of the property and also the duty payable on the market value. This suo moto power can be exercised by the Deputy Commissioner only within two years, from the date of registration of the instrument. Even if, the market value of the property shown in the instrument is equal to or slightly more than the guidance value, the Deputy Commissioner has the power to call for and examine the instruments.

The registering officer who has the power to register a document has the power to communicate the esteemed market value of a property to the parties. If the parties are not ready to pay the communicated market value, he has the power to keep pending the process of registration and refer the matter to Deputy Commissioner for determination of the market value and the stamp duty.

Any person aggrieved by the order of the Deputy Commissioner may prefer an appeal before the District judge within 2 months from the date of communication of the Deputy Commissioner's order provided; he has deposited 50% of the difference in the amount of duties as determined by the Deputy Commissioner.

All duties required to be paid by a person under the Karnataka stamp act along with the interest thereon may be recovered by the Deputy commissioner by distress and sale of the movable property of the person from whom the same are due or by any other process for the time being in force for the recovery of arrears of land revenues.

The Service tax for construction of residential complex was introduced for the first time by the Finance Act 2005. Prior to this Service tax was being imposed on construction of commercial and industrial purposes. Service tax is imposed only on the amount charged by the Service provider for the construction of residential complex. Cost of the land, stamp duty, registration charges etc are normally excluded from the purview of Service tax. The present rate of Service tax imposed is 10.2%.

For a residential complex to be eligible for levy of Service tax, it should have the following three essential features:
a) Should have more than 12 units
b) Should have a common area
c) Should have common facility or services like park, community hall, lift etc.

There are several cases where a person can avail exemption from the imposition of Service tax. Service tax is not applicable, in the following cases.
i.If the residential complex is shaving only 12 or less than 12 units.
ii.If the residential complex is constructed by an individual for his personal use.
iiic) Direct purchase of residential unit from a builder without availing the service of a building contractor.

Post construction services pertaining to residential complex are also treated as construction activity for the purpose of Service tax.

If the builder constructs a residential complex without engaging the services of a contractor (service provider), then he cannot claim the service tax from the apartment purchasers. Similarly, it is the primary duty of the contractor to pay the service tax, and not the builder or the apartment purchaser. If the condition to pay the service tax is not mentioned in the sale agreement, then the apartment purchasers need not pay the service tax to the builder.

The natural guardian of a Hindu minor in respect to his/her person as well as in respect of his/her property are:
a. in the case of a boy or unmarried girl - The father and after him, the mother, provided that the custody of a minor who has not completed the age of 5 years shall ordinarily be with the mother
b. in the case of a illegitimate or an illegitimate unmarried girl - the mother and after her the father
c. in the case of a married girl - the husband
Provided that no person shall be entitled to act as the natural guardian of a minor:
a. if he has ceased to be a Hindu or
b. if he has completely or finally renounced the world by becoming a hermit or an ascetic
The natural guardianship of an adopted son who is a minor passes, on adoption, to the adoptive father and after him to the adoptive mother.
The natural guardian of a Hindu minor has power to do all acts which are necessary or reasonable and proper for the benefit of the minor or minor's estate. However the natural guardian cannot mortgage, charge, sell, gift, or exchange or lease for a term exceeding 5 years, the minor's immovable property without the previous permission of the court.

A Hindu father can appoint a guardian by a will for his minor legitimate children in respect of the minor's s person or property. Such a guardian is known as testamentary guardian. However, if the mother is alive at the time of father's death, then the appointment of the testamentary guardian will have no effect.

A minor is a person who has not completed the age of 18 years. A minor cannot act as a guardian for the property of another minor. When a court appoints a person as a guardian of a Hindu minor, the welfare of the minor shall be of major consideration.

Where a minor has an undivided interest in joint family property and the property is under the management of an adult member of the family, no guardian shall be appointed in respect of such undivided interest, expect with the intervention of the High court.

Several property related litigations that crop up now a days are due to the reason that on many occasions, the minor's interests in properties are transferred by their guardians during their minority without the permission of the court. This happens particularly when the minor has interests in undivided Hindu joint family properties.

A Muslim husband can divorce his wife whenever he desires without assigning any specific reasons. Divorce petition initiated by a Muslim husband is called Talak. The Talak may be oral or in writing. A divorce by Muslim husband through spoken words is oral Talak. When it is through a written document, it is called a Talaknama. For an oral Talak there are no specific words prescribed. The words of Talak should be clear and it should convey the intention of divorce. The Talak need not be pronounced in the presence of the wife.

A deed of divorce by a Muslim husband is called a Talaknama. Normally Talaknama is executed in the presence of Kazi or the wife's father or other witnesses. The Talak may be effected by a simple pronouncement or by three pronouncements. A husband may delegate the power to divorce to the wife or to a third party and such a delegate may pronounce the divorce.

In general the Talak is a divorce proceeding that is initiated by a husband wherein the wife has no say in the proceedings. A Muslim marriage may also be dissolved by an agreement between the husband and wife. There are two types of divorces by mutual consent: Khula and Mubarat.

In Khula divorce, the proceedings are at the instance of the wife wherein the wife agrees to give a consideration to the husband to release her from the marriage.

Mubarrat is another form of consent divorce between a Muslim husband and wife. Here the initiative may be taken from either husband or wife. This also takes place with an agreement.

A Muslim wife may file a suit for the dissolution of marriage before the competent court under the dissolution of Muslim Marriage Act 1939. The following are the grounds under which a Muslim wife can obtain a decree for the dissolution of her marriage.

1) that the whereabouts of the husband have not been known for a period of four years.

2) that the husband has been sentenced to imprisonment for a period of seven years or upwards

3) that the husband has neglected or has filed to provide her maintenance fir a period of two years.

4) that the husband has failed to perform without reasonable cause his marital obligations for a period of three years.

5) that the husband was impotent at the time of marriage and continues to be so
that the husband is suffering from leprosy or virulent venerable diseases.

6) That she, having been given marriage by her father or other guardian before she attain the age of fifteen years, repudiated the marriage before attaining the age of eighteen years.

Another ground for a Muslim wife to approach the court of law for dissolution of marriage is cruelty from the part of her husband. The court will consider cruelty as a ground to dissolve the marriage if the husband habitually assaults her or makes her life miserable by cruelty of conduct even if such conduct does not amount to physical ill-treatment
b) associates with women of evil repute or leads an infamous life
c) attempts to force her to lead an immoral life
d) disposes her property or prevent her exercising her legal rights over it,
e) obstructs her in the observance of her religious profession or practice
f) if he has more wives than one, does not treat her equitably in accordance with the instructions of the Quran
After the divorce proceedings are completed, the parties have the right to enter into another marriage. If the marriage was consummated the wife has to wait for the completion of iddat before her remarriage. If the marriage is not consummated, she may marry immediately. On divorce being completed the amount of dower due to a wife becomes immediately payable.

In calculating the period of limitation for which a notice has been given or for which the previous sanction of the government or any authority is required, the period of such notice or the time required for such consent shall be excluded.

In computing the period of limitation of any suit the time during which the defendant has been absent from India shall be excluded. If a person who has the right to institute a suit or make an application dies before the right accrues, then the period of limitation will be computed from the time when there is a legal representative of the deceased.

In the case of any suit or application which is based upon the fraud of the respondent or is based on the consequences of a mistake the period of limitation shall begin from the point the applicant has discovered the fraud or mistake. Where after the institution of the suit, a new plaintiff or defendant is substituted or added, the suit shall as regards him be deemed to have been instituted when he was so made a party.

In the case of a suit for compensation for an act, which does not give rise to a cause of action unless some specific injury actually results there from, the period of limitation shall be computed from the time when the injury results.

REVISED BUILDING RATES

The Department of Stamps and Registration of the government of Karnataka has revised the valuation of building rates throughout the state. The new rates are applicable from 1-03-08. The increase in the rates has been almost double in some cases. The same rates have to be used as guideline values while registering transactions in buildings and the stamp duty and registration fee has to be paid on the basis of the new revised rates.

The rates range from Rupees 100 to Rupees 950 per square feet. The buildings have been classified as per their locations like those coming under the jurisdiction of BBMP, other corporations in Karnataka, other Municipalities, other TMCs, other Town Panchayaths and other areas of the state. Different rates have been fixed for different areas. Further there is variation in the rates for Ground and Upper Floors. All upper floors within the same area have same rate.

The revisions in the building rates will cause a major setback to genuine home purchasers looking for a shelter. The increase in building rates will set a chain reaction, further increasing the market rates of properties and the registration and stamp duty expenses. This will further burden the overpriced property market in Karnataka.

CRIMINAL COMPLAINTS IN MATRIMONIAL MATTERS

There are various legal safeguards for women to rely on, in case they are subjected to cruelty and harassment by husband or in-laws pertaining to matrimonial matters. The teeth of law are very much sharpened to protect the interests of fair sex.

If a wife reports the incidents of cruelty, mental or physical, or the demand of dowry by her husband or in laws, a police officer is bound to register an FIR and investigate the matter. The police authorities in such cases act in a very mechanical manner. Even if there is no requirement to arrest the accused persons, they tend to immediately arrest the accused persons and put them behind bars. This, many times result in the torture of innocent persons, just because the legal system is weighed in favor of women. There are several instances when women misuse the benefits of law and lodge false complaints to settle personal scores. Though, in the end a court of law may acquit the accused, the trauma in carrying on with the case for three to four years cannot be underestimated.

The accused in matrimonial offences can avail the benefit of anticipatory bail to avoid arrest and resultant torture in the hands of the police. If they sense the possibility of filing of false criminal case by the wife or her relatives, then they are advised to approach the Sessions Court or the High Court for an order of anticipatory bail. As a matter of right, a person cannot ask a court for the grant of anticipatory bail. The court will look into the facts of the case and grant bail in appropriate cases. Once anticipatory bail is granted, the police officials cannot arrest and detain the accused. They can arrest him, but they have to release him immediately.

CYBER OFFENCES

Information Technology Act 2000 enlists various cyber offences and their punishments. The Acts gives serious punishment for tampering with computer source documents. Whoever intentionally conceals, destroys or alters any computer source code is liable for punishment with imprisonment up to 3 years or with fine which may extend up to Rs.2 lakh or with both.
The Act views hacking with utmost seriousness. Whoever with intension to cause a wrongful damage to the public or any person destroys, deletes or alters any information residing in a computer resource commit hacking. Whoever commits hacking shall be punished with imprisonment up to 3 years or with fine which may extend upto Rs.2 lakh or with both.
Whoever publishes information which is obscene in electronic form shall be punished with imprisonment which may extend to 5 years and with fine which may extend to Rs.1 lakh. In the event of a second conviction for a similar offence, then imprisonment may extend to 10 years and with fine which may extend to Rs.2 lakhs.

A certifying authority or any employee of such authority who fails to comply with an order of the controller may be punished with imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 years and also with fine not exceeding Rs.2 lakhs or both. If the subscriber or any person in-charge of any computer resource fails to assist any agency of the government when ordered to intercept any information transmitted through any computer resource, he may be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 7 years. Similarly any person who secures access or attends to secure access, to a protected system will be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 10 years and also be liable to fine.

Whoever makes any misrepresentation to or suppresses any material fact from the controller or the Certifying Authority for obtaining any license or Digital Signature Certificate, may be punished with imprisonment which may extend to 2 years or with fine which may extend to 1 lakh or with both.

Whoever knowingly creates, publishes or otherwise makes available a Digital Signature Certificate for any fraudulent or unlawful purpose shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 2 years or with fine which may extend to 1 lakh or with both. The Information Technology Act also applies to an offence or contravention committed outside India by any person if the act or conduct constituting the offence or contravention involves a computer, computer system or computer network located in India.

Any computer, computer system, floppies, compact discs, tape drives or any other accessories related thereto, in respect of which any provision of the Information Technology Act, rules, orders or regulations made there under has been or is been contravened, shall be liable to confiscation.

A Valid passport is a very essential document for a person to depart from India.

1.There are three types of Passports.
a. Ordinary passport
b. Official passport

2.A passport authority may refuse a passport in the following cases:
a. If an applicant has been convicted by a Court during a period of 5 preceding years.
b. If any criminal proceedings are pending against said person

3.A passport authority may impound a passport in the following cases:
a.If a passport was obtained on the basis of wrong information or suppression of material information.
b.If the holder of the passport has been convicted by a Court in India, for any offence involving moral turpitude.
c.If any criminal proceedings are pending against the passport holder.

4.The Court convicting the holder of a passport for any offence under the Passport Act or the rules made hereunder may also revoke the passport or travel document.

5. There are various offences under the Passport Act which provide punishment for the violation of various provisions of the Act. It is an offence to furnish false information or suppress any material information while applying for a Passport. Similarly using passport issued to another person, allowing another person to use one's passport are all offences under the Passport Act. Customs officers, Police officers, and Emigration officers are authorized to arrest people who commit offences under the Passport Act.

6. An ordinary passport for persons other than children below the age of 15 years, containing 36 pages or 60 pages, shall be in force for a period of 10 years or 20 years as the case may be, from the date of its issue. An ordinary passport for a child below the age of 15 years, containing 36 pages shall be in force for a period of 5 years, from the date of its issue or until the child attains the age of 15 years, which ever is earlier.

7. An application for passport may be submitted personally or through a representative carrying an authority letter, all original documents should be shown and self attested copies attached.

8. Any person having an ECR stamp put on his passport have to get a clearance from the Protector General of Emigrants, before they leave the Country. But the passport rules specify a list of persons for whom ECR stamping is not required. These include all Gazetted governmental officials, all income tax payers, all professional degree holders, all people with educational qualification of matriculation and above, all persons above the age of 50, all children up to the age of 18 etc.

The sale agreement holder of a property is not entitled to sell the property to another person for the reason that he does not have absolute rights over the property. In such a case it is very common to enter into an assignment agreement to transfer the rights of the sale agreement holder to another person.

The person who transfers his rights is called assignor. The person who obtains rights through the assignment agreement is called assignee. Normally an assignment is done for some consideration.

Let us take an example. Assume A enters into a Sale agreement with B for the sale of a property, for, say Rs.100/- Here A is the vendor and B is the purchaser. Now B wants to assign his rights to C for a total consideration of Rs.120/-. Here B is the assignor and C is the assignee. The net profit got by B is Rs. 20/-.

Normally, the approval of the original vendor is required for an assignment. For this original owner may be made as a consenting witness. Some builders/owners may insist for a transfer fee for an assignment. The assignee gets all the rights and obligations of the assignor after the assignment agreement is signed and he steps into the shoes of the original agreement holder (assignor). An assignment agreement shall be carefully drafted with the assistance of an experienced advocate.

A Sale Agreement is a very common deed that one executes in transactions pertaining to immovable properties. In this article, let us see, the major ingredients of a normal sale agreement.

a) A sale agreement should contain the name, father's name, age and address of the seller and purchaser.

b) It shall also contain the date of the agreement as well as the place where the agreement is executed.

c) A brief description of the property which is the subject matter of the sale shall be given in the body of the agreement and the detailed description of the same shall be given in a separate schedule which is at the last portion of the sale agreement. As a normal convention, the property which is the subject matter of a sale agreement is referred in the agreement as schedule property.

d) The sale agreement shall contain a clause, to the effect that the seller has offered the property for sale, to the purchaser and the purchaser has agreed to purchase the property from the seller.

e) There shall be a mention ofthe total sale consideration amount, as well as the amount which is paid at the time of entering into the agreement.

f) The period of the agreement shall be clearly spelt out in the agreement. It is the duty of the purchaser to pay the balance sale amount before the date of registration and get the property registered in his name.

g) The purchaser will have a right to appoint a nominee on his behalf for the purpose of registering the property.

h) It is ideal to give a brief description of the history of the property.

i) Normally, a penalty clause is provided in the sale agreement with an intention to derive commitment and seriousness from the parties to the agreement.

j) If there is any outstanding loan over the schedule property, the details of the same shall be mentioned in the sale agreement and the manner in which the seller shall clear the said loan has to be mentioned in the sale agreement.

k) If there are any other documents to be procured by the seller or any things to be done from the side of the seller before the date of registration, then the same shall find a place in the agreement.

l) Normally, all the expenses towards the drafting of the sale agreement, sale deed, stamp duty, registration charges etc shall be borne by the purchaser.

m) The possession of the property shall be handed over to the purchaser on the day of the registration. If the possession is handed over at the time of sale agreement, then the stamp duty on the sale agreement will considerably vary.

n) The original documents are normally handed over by the seller to the purchaser at the time of registration.

o) The sale agreement shall be signed by both the seller and purchaser and the same shall be witnessed by two witnesses.

p) Only advocates and registered deed writers are authorized to draft a sale agreement.

There is a trend world over, in particular among companies and corporate not to drag disputes into long drawn courtroom battles. There comes the significance of Arbitration, Mediation, Conciliation and such alternate disputes resolution mechanisms. Here is the added advantage of savings in time as well as the cost of proceedings. Moreover the parties settle the matter in a win- win spirit.

The Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 governs the law relating to domestic arbitration, international commercial arbitration and enforcement of foreign arbitral awards in India. Further it governs the law relating to conciliation. This act has taken into account the UNCITRAL Model Law on International Commercial Arbitration adopted by UN in 1985 and the UNCITRAL Conciliatory Rules (1980).

As per the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, an arbitration agreement is an agreement by the parties to submit to arbitration all or certain disputes which have arisen or which may arise between them in respect of a legal relationship, whether contractual or not. An arbitration agreement may be in the form of an arbitration clause in a contract or it may be a separate agreement. Further an arbitration agreement shall be in writing.

If either of the disputing parties approaches a Court for adjudication of the dispute, in spite of the presence of an arbitration agreement, then the Court has the power to refer the parties to arbitration. The parties to an arbitration proceeding are entitled to approach the jurisdictional court for urgent and interim measures of protection.

The parties are free to determine the number of arbitrators; however the same shall not be an even number. The arbitrator may be a person of any nationality. If there is any justifiable doubt as to the independence or impartiality of an arbitrator, then, he shall not become an arbitrator.

The arbitrational tribunal is also entitled to pass interim measures of protection or to order a party to provide appropriate security. In arbitration proceeding, the parties shall be treated with equality and each party shall be given full opportunity to present his case.

Parties are free to fix the place of arbitration. If there is a disagreement between the parties regarding the place of arbitration, the same shall be decided by the arbitrational tribunal. The proceedings can be conducted in any language as determined by the parties.

With the average life span of Indians on the rise and the mortality rate coming down drastically along with the advancement of modern medicine, the number of senior citizens in the population is on rise. Coupled with this, the disintegration of social fabric, the disappearance of joint family system and the fast pace of modern life, have left many senior citizens economically and socially vulnerable during the fag end of their lives.

With the idea to provide some social security measure to senior citizens, the Finance Minister formally introduced the concept of Reverse Mortgage in India in the last Union Budget. National Housing Bank has issued certain guidelines in this regard. Many banks like State Bank of India have already introduced this concept.

As per the scheme, the senior citizens who own a house can mortgage their property to a banker. The banker will make periodic payments (say monthly) to the borrower, during his life time. The borrower need not repay the loan amount during his life time. After the borrower's death, the house property is sold and the loan amount together with the interest
accumulated is recovered by the bank. If the heirs of the borrower can repay the loan together with interest thereon, then they can release the mortgage and inherit the house property.

The scheme is available for senior citizens who are above 60 years of age. Married couples can jointly borrow under this scheme. The borrower shall use the property mortgaged as permanent primary residence. The amount of loan that the senior citizens can avail depends on factors like market value of the property, age of the borrower, rate of interest etc.
The loan amount may be periodic (monthly, ½ yearly) or it can be one lump-sum payment. Normally periodic payments are made for monthly maintenance of senior citizens, while lump-sum payments are made for special purposes like medical expenses, home improvement etc. The maximum period of loan is 15 years. Commercial properties are not eligible under this scheme.

The senior citizens are also given a "right of rescission", ie, they can cancel the scheme availed within 3 business days of finalizing the scheme. In such cases, the entire loan amount will have to be paid by the senior citizens within this 3 days period.

The loan amount will became due and payable when the last surviving borrower dies or intends to sell the home or when the borrower permanently moves out of the home. The borrower has the right to prepay the loan at any time during the loan tenor, which shall not carry any penalty or charge.

Joint development of property is a type of development venture wherein one person who has land, ties up with another person who has money to invest, to promote a project. Normally the land owner provides the land for development and has a passive role. The execution of the project and the investment is normally taken care of by the builder.

A Joint Development Agreement is signed between the parties to develop the project. The Joint Development Agreement should have the following essential features.

a) Description of the parties to the agreement

b) Description of the property which is being developed. Separate description of land and the building to be erected must be found.

c) The time period for completion.

d) The security deposit usually given by the builder to the landowner. This may be refundable or non refundable after the term of the agreement.

e) The ratio in which the land and building is to be shared between the owner and the builder. This is very important as there are chances that towards the completion of the project disputes creep up between the landowner and the developer.

f) Normally, possession of the land is given to the builder to effect the development work. The land owner shall not object for the workers, engineers, etc of the builder entering the land and undertaking the construction work.

g) The landowner shall give the necessary permission to the builder to interact on his behalf with various Governmental and non-Governmental authorities so as to obtain the necessary permission, licenses etc. Normally a registered GPA is simultaneously entered into at the time of entering into a Joint Development Agreement. The GPA is given by the landowner to the developer giving various powers to the developer to attain the various objectives of the Agreement.

h) Sometimes a separate sharing agreement is entered into between the landowner and the developer which clearly speaks about the shares of the respective parties after the completion of the project. However, instead of a separate agreement, sharing of the constructed portion can be made as a part of the Joint Development Agreement itself.

i) Both the landowner and the developer should have a clear idea about the approximate market value of the constructed portion and the land after the completion of the project. Moreover, the builder should also take into account the monitory investment made by him as well as the quantum of efforts, put in by him in developing the project. Both the parties should also get a reasonable profit by selling their respective shares at the end of the project. These factors should be kept in mind by the landowner and the developer at the time of deciding their shares in the completed projects.

j) It is ideal to include an arbitration clause to settle the disputes between the parties that may crop up during the period as well as after the completion of the project. Success of a Joint Development Agreement ultimately lies in the careful drafting of a Joint Development Agreement which prevents disputes and ill will between the parties.

A Hindu undivided family, firm or other association of persons is said to be resident in India in any previous year in every case expect where during that year, the control and management of its affairs is situated wholly outside India.

A company is said to be a resident in India in any previous year if-it is an Indian company or during that year, the control and management of its affairs is situated wholly in India.

A person is said to be "not ordinarily resident" in India in any previous year

i) if such a person is an individual who has been a non resident in India in 9 out of 10 previous years preceding that year or

ii) An individual who has during the seven previous years been in India for a period of 729 days or less.

An individual, being a citizen of India or a person of Indian origin who is not a resident is a non-resident Indian. We have seen the definition of resident earlier.

A person is deemed to be of Indian Origin (PIO) if he or either of his parents or any of his grand parents was born in undivided India.

Every criminal case registered in a police station, will be treated as a state case and in the ordinary course, it will be the government which will take up the case on behalf of the complainant. The public prosecutors conduct such criminal cases in the courts on behalf of the Government and the Complainant.

For every high court there will be a Public prosecutor as well as Additional Public Prosecutors who will be appointed by the Central Government as well as the state Government to conduct their cases. For every district, the state Government shall appoint a Public prosecutor as well as Additional public prosecutors. Only an advocate with a practice of a minimum of seven years can be appointed as a Public prosecutor.

In sensational criminal cases, the State Government may appoint an advocate as a Special public Prosecutor. The said person shall have a minimum practice of 10 years as an advocate.
The State Government shall appoint in every district, one or more Assistant Public Prosecutors for conducting prosecutions in the Courts of Magistrates.

Normally only advocates and licensed deed writers are permitted to draft deeds. However on many occasions general public draft common deeds relying on the models they have. A lease agreement or a rental agreement is a very common document used by the public. In many cases the real estate agents themselves take upon the role of a deed writer. However, let us see the essential requirements of a lease agreement.

The person who lets out a premise for lease is known as Lessor. The person who takes the premises for his use is known as the Lessee. The premise which is the subject matter of the lease is the Leased premise.

A lease agreement shall contain the time period of the lease. A lease agreement for a period of more than 1 year need to be registered in the state of Karnataka. Hence the usual practice is to go for a lease of 11 months and then renew the same for further periods. The lease agreement shall be properly stamped.

The lease agreement shall mention the rent reserved for the premises as well as the date of payment of the same. Similarly it shall contain the details of the security deposit paid. Normally the security deposit shall not bear any interest.

There should be a proper description of the premises leased. Further the responsibility of payments of electricity bills, water bills, telephone bills etc, is on the Lessee. However, it is the duty of the Lessor to pay the land and building taxes.

The mode of termination of the lease shall be clearly spelt out in the lease agreement. Similarly there should be a provision for the issuance of notices to each party.

The terms Lessor and Lessee shall be deemed to include their successors, executors, legal representatives and permitted assigns. In the schedule, the leased premises should be described properly including the municipal number, the area and floor of the leased premises.

It shall contain the mention of the nature of activity permitted in the premises. Further there should be a mention that the Lessee is not permitted to sub-let or sub-lease the premises.

Normally, there is one clause to the effect the Lessor will have the right to inspect the leased premises after giving sufficient notice to the Lessee. Few agreements provide for a 'Lock-in-period' where neither of the parties can terminate the agreement.

Usually, late payment of the rent attracts interest at 18% per annum. It is a duty cast upon the lessee to deduct TDS if applicable and to furnish TDS certificate to the Lessor in time.

In case of apartments and shopping complexes a separate maintenance charge is also demanded for the maintenance of the common areas. There should be an understanding as to whether this is included in the rent or not.

If a person makes or publishes any imputation, concerning another person, with an intention to harm the reputation of the other person, then he is said to have defamed the other person. This imputation may be by words, spoken or intended to be read or by signs or by visible representations.

A dead person can also be defamed. If the deceased person is alive, and the imputation harms his reputation, and is intended to be hurtful to the feelings of his family or other near relatives, then it will amount to defamation of a deceased person.

Not only an individual, but also a company, or an association or collection of persons may also be victim of defamation. To qualify for defamation, the imputation shall, in the estimation of others:

(a) lower the moral or intellectual character of the victim, or

(b) lower the character of the victim in respect of his caste or calling,

(c) Or lower the credit of that person.

If a person makes an imputation for the public good then it will not amount to defamation. Further if a person makes an opinion regarding the conduct of a public servant, in the discharge of his public functions, then it will not amount to defamation.

Similarly there are few other exceptions for the act of defamation, which are listed below:

a.If a person expresses in good faith any opinion respecting the conduct of any person, touching any public question, and respecting his character, so far as his character appears in that conduct, then it does not amount to defamation.

b.If a person publishes substantially true report of the proceedings of a court of justice, or the result of any such proceedings, it does not amount to defamation.

c.If a person expresses in good faith any opinion regarding the merits of any case, which has been decided by a court of justice, or regarding the conduct of any person, as a party, witness or agent, in any such case, or respecting the character of such person, as far as his character appears in that conduct, then it does not amount to defamation.

d.Similarly it is not defamation to express in good faith any opinion respecting the merits of any performance, which its author has submitted to the judgment of the public, or regarding the character of the author so far as his character appears in such performance.

e.If a person having authority passes in good faith any censure on the conduct of another person in matters to which such authority relates, then it does not amount to defamation.

f.If a person makes an accusation in good faith, against another, to a person who has a lawful authority over the second person, then it does not amount to defamation.

g.Similarly if a person makes an imputation in good faith, for protection of his or other's interest then it does not amount to defamation.

Every employee working in a factory or an establishment with twenty or more persons employed is entitled for a bonus from his employer, provided he has worked in the establishment for not less than 30 working days in that year. Even if an employer has no allocable surplus in an accounting year, he is liable to pay a minimum bonus to every employee, which shall be 8.33% of the salary or wage earned by the employee during the accounting year. The bonus entitled by an employee may go to the maximum limit of 20 % of his salary or wages.

For a new establishment, for the first five years, the employer is liable to pay the bonus only for those years where the employer derives profit. The bonus to an employee shall be paid by the employer within a period of eight months from the close of the accounting year. Where any dispute arises between an employer and his employee, with respect to the bonus payable, then it shall be treated as an Industrial Dispute and the provisions of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1974 shall apply. If any employer fails to pay bonus to his employees, then he shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months or with fine up to one thousand rupees or with both.

Employees of LIC, universities, educational institutions, hospitals, RBI, NABARD, UTI, IDBI, SIDBI, NHB etc., are not entitled for Payment of bonus.

The Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest Act 2002, was a remarkable peace of legislation with an objective to regulate securitisation and reconstruction of financial assets and enforcement of security interest and for matters connected thereto.

As per Sec 13 of the said Act any security interest created in favour of a secured creditor may be enforced with out the intervention of the court or tribunal. Where any borrower makes any default in repayment of any secured debt or any installment thereof and his account is a non performing asset, then the secured creditor may require the borrower, by notice in writing to discharge in full, his liabilities to the secured creditor within 60 days from the date of the notice.

If on receipt of such a notice, the borrower raises any objection, the secured creditor shall consider such representation or objection and if the secured creditor finds that such objection is not acceptable, he shall communicate within one week of such objection the reasons for non-acceptance of the objections.

In case the borrower fails to discharge his liability within 60 days period, the secured creditor may: -

a) take possession of secured assets of the borrower including the right to transfer by way of lease, assignment or sale, for releasing the secured assets.

b) Take over the management of the business of the borrower including the right to transfer by way of lease, assignment or sale, for releasing the secured assets.

The secured creditor may, by notice in writing, require any person who has acquired any of the secured assets from the borrower and from whom any money is due to the borrower to pay the secured creditor so much of the money as is sufficient to pay the secured debt. All costs, charges and expenses incurred by the creditor for the purpose of taking possession of the secured assets shall be recoverable from the borrower.
If the dues are paid by the borrower, at any time before the date of sale, the secured assets shall not be sold or transferred by the secured creditor. If the dues of the secured creditor are not fully satisfied with the sale proceeds of the secured assets, the creditor may file an application to the DRT for recovery of the balance amount from the borrower.

The regularization of unauthorized constructions and developments proposed by the Government of Karnataka is going on from 16-09-07 and it is to be completed by 14-12-07. Though the Government has made extensive arrangements for the successful realization of the objectives of the scheme, the public is left unanswered pertaining to many of their queries and clarifications. Here are some facts about the regularization scheme.

1. The regularization scheme is applicable all over Karnataka.
2. Regularization is required for formation of sites, land use violation, setback violation, and FAR violation.
3. Land use violation will be regularized by BDA, or the concerned planning authority.
4. For setback and FAR violation BBMP (in Bangalore) and local authorities in other areas are authorized to regularize.
5. The application forms are available from Bangalore One centers, post offices and Apex bank branches.
6. For residential buildings setback violation is permitted up to 50% and for Non-residential buildings up to 25%.
7. The usage of basements for residential or commercial purpose cannot be regularized under the scheme.
8. Many Banks are providing loans to pay the regularization fees. Some of them include SBI, SBM, Indian Overseas Bank, Bank of India, Axis Bank, HDFC Bank and Canara Bank.
9. BBMP has also provided hotline services from 12 am to 2 pm to give clarifications about the scheme. The numbers are 080-32440101, 32446161, and 32448181.
10. So far, around 1.6 lakh applications have been sold by BBMP. But only around 2,500 filled applications have been received.
11. BBMP has made some tie-ups with Institute Of Engineers for assistance to fill up the regularization application forms.
12. For properties coming within the purview of BDA, applications forms can be collected from the office of BDA.
13. Developments made in agricultural zone or green belt cannot be regularized under the scheme.
14. Constructions below high-tension electric lines, on civic amenity sites, land abutting storm water drain, tank bed, river course or canal cannot be regularized under the scheme.
15. The regularization fee cannot be paid in installments. The entire fee has to be remitted in the form of DD at the time of filing the application.

The Jurisdiction, powers and authority of the Commission may be exercised by Benches which shall be constituted by the Chairperson. The Bench shall consist of not less than two members.
On receipt of a complaint or a reference from the Central Government, or a Statutory authority or on its own knowledge or information, the Commission is of the opinion that there exists a prima facie case, then it shall direct the Director General to cause an investigation to be made into the matter.
The Commission can levy penalty for contravention of its orders, failure to comply with its directions, making of false statements or omission to furnish material information, etc. Further the Commission can levy upon an enterprise a penalty of not more than 10% of its average turnover for the last three financial years. It can also order division of dominant enterprises. It will also have power to order demerger in the case of mergers and amalgamations that adversely affect competition.

The act provides for a fund called the Competition fund. The grants given by the Central Government, fees received under the Act and costs realized by the Commission and application fees charged will be credited into this Fund.

The Bangalore Mahanagara Palike has notified the following roads for road widening and for granting transfer of development rights vide a notification dated 18-01-05.

1. Bellary Road: From Hebbal Flyover to Minsk square;
2. Palace Road: From Mysore Bank Circle to High Grounds Police Station;
3. Sheshadri Road: From Central Jail Cross to KR Circle;
4. Nrupatunga Road: From KR Circle to Hudson Circle;
5. Vidhana Veedhi: From Gopalgowda Circle to KR Circle;
6. Mission Road: From NR Road to KH Road;
7. Devanga Hostel Road: From Hudson Circle to Mission Road;
8. Sankey Road: From Cauvery Theatre to Yeshwanthpura Circle;
9. Jayamahal Road: From Mekhri Circle to Cantonment railway station;
10. Hosur Road: From Central Silk Board to Yenkay Factory.
11. Hosur Luskar Road: Yenkay Factory to Richmond Road;
12. Victoria Road: D'Souza Circle to Airport Road;
13. Lower Agaram Road: Hosmat Hospital to National Games, Koramangala;
14. Sarjapura Road: Kendria Sadana Road to Agaram Road, Ring Road cross;
15. Hosur Road: Lalbagh main gate to Yenkay Factory via Dairy Circle;
16. Dickenson Road: MG Road to Ulsoor Road;
17. Ulsoor Road: Dickenson Road to Kensington Road;
18. Kensington Road: MG Road to Murphy Road;
19. Murphy Road: Ulsoor lake to Old Madras Road;
20. Old Madras Road: Trinity Circle to Murphy Road via Ulsoor;
21. Airport Road: Trinity Circle to Airport Helicopter Division.

The Bangalore Mahanagara Palike has notified the following roads for road widening and for granting Transfer of Development Rights:
1. Cottonpet main road (from Kempe Gowda bus station to Mysore Road)
2. Avenue road (from KR Market to KG Road (SBM Circle)
3. Mysore road (from Sirsi Circle to Ring Road)
4. Mahalakshmi Layout and Nandini Layout Main Road via Ayyappa temple & Singapore Layout (from West of Chord Road to Outer Ring Road in Nandini Layout)
5. KR Road (from Subbaram Chetty Circle to M.M Industries behind Yediyur tank)
6. Sultan Road (from Royan Circle to Brigand Square)
7. 1st Main Chamrajpet (from Royan Circle to 3rd Cross Chamrajpet)
8. 3rd Cross Chamrajpet & Bull Temple Road: from BHS School to 1st Main Chamrajpet
9. Link Road: from Gitanjali Theater to 1st Main Seshadripuram
10. Padarayanapura Main Road: from Pipeline Road Vijayanagar to Binny Mill Tank Bund Road
11. Bull Temple Road via NR Colony Channamma Tank Bed & 30th Main BSK 3rd stage: from BMS College to Ring Road in BSK 3rd stage petrol bunk near junction of Ring Road & Puttalingaiah Road
12. KG Road: from Mysore Bank Circle to Elite Hotel and Upparpet police station
13. Dr. Ambedkar Road (Tannery Road): from Madhava Mudaliar Road (Madras railway line) to Ring Road
14. Hennur Road: from Pottery Road to Ring Road
15. Banaswadi Road & Wheeler Road: St. John’s Church Road to Ring Road
16. Magadi Road: from Housing Board colony to Ring Road near Beggars Colony
17. Kurabarahalli Main Road in ward 16: from Shankar Mutt to Pipeline Road
18. 17th Main J.C Nagar in ward 13: from Pipeline Road to bridge in Outer Ring Road
19. 5th cross road Malleshwaram: from Mohammaden Block to Geetanjali Theatre
20. Commissariat Road: from Mayo hall Jn to D’Souza Circle
21. Racecourse Road: from Ananda Rao Circle to Basaveswara Circle
22. Kasturba Road: from Siddalingaiah Circle to Queens Statue Circle
23. Suranjan Das Road: from Kuvempu Circle (Airport Road) to Old Madras Road
24. Infantry Road: from Ali Askar Road to Main Guard cross road.

The Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act 1971 was enacted by the Parliament to provide for the termination of certain pregnancies by Registered Medical Practitioners and for matters connected therewith.

Accordingly, a pregnancy may be terminated by a Registered Medical Practitioner, if the length of pregnancy doesn't exceed more than 12 weeks and he is of the opinion that the continuation of the pregnancy would involve a risk to the life of the pregnant woman or of great injury to physical or mental health or that there is a substantial risk that if the child were born it would suffer from such physical or mental abnormalities as to be seriously handicapped.

If the pregnancy exceeds 12 weeks, but doesn't exceed 20 weeks, the opinion in good faith as above, of two Registered Medical Practitioners is required for the termination of pregnancy. Where any pregnancy is alleged to have been caused by rape, the anguish caused by such pregnancy shall be presumed to constitute a grave injury to the mental health of the pregnant women. Similarly where any pregnancy occurs as a result of failure of any device or method by any married women or her husband for the purpose of limiting their children, the anguish caused by such unwanted pregnancy shall be presumed to constitute a grave injury to mental health of the pregnant women.

No pregnancy of woman who has not attained the age of 18 years or having attained the age of 18 years who is a mentally ill person shall be terminated except with the consent in writing of her guardian.

The Government of Karnataka has amended the Karnataka Town & Country Planning Act, 1961 as well as the Karnataka Municipal Act, with a view to regularize certain unauthorized developments and constructions. For violations pertaining to buildings, setbacks and floor areas, the Screening Committee constituted under BBMP will process the applications. For regularizations of unauthorized layouts and sites or for change in land use, BDA is the authority to regularize the same and subsequently the Screening Committee of BBMP will regularize the building violations therein.

Applications for regularization are of three types. The yellow color application is for regularization of unauthorized layouts and plots; pink application form is for change in land use; the green application form is for applying for regularization of building violations. The present scheme is available only for a limited period of three months. It has commenced from September 15th 2007 and will be in force till 14th December 2007.

Under this scheme, setback violations, up to 50% percent in case of residential buildings and up to 25% in case of non-residential buildings can be regularized. Similarly FAR violations up to 50% in case of residential buildings and up to 25% in case of non-residential buildings can be regularized. Similarly buildings with land use violations and violations pertaining to sites in both converted and non-converted land and buildings constructed on non-converted lands can be regularized using this one time opportunity.

The Handbooks containing details for regularization are available at Bangalore One Centers, Post Offices and Apex Bank branches. The applications come along with the handbook. There are worked examples in the Handbook for various types of regularization. If the building that is to be regularized has more than two floors, a structural engineer has to certify that the building is structurally safe. The application should be accompanied by the required documents and respective fees.

After 14th December 2007, the applications will be processed for their corrections and if the violations are within permissible limits, then the screening committee will recommend for regularization. The competent authority will issue a certificate in this regard.

The BBMP has set up information kiosks at their 8 Zonal offices, various Citizen Service Centers, BBMP complexes, various BDA Complexes, KSRTC and BMTC Bus stands. If one fails to apply for regularization within the prescribed time, then supply of water and electricity to the building will be liable for disconnection.

Encroachments on government lands, on neighbor's lands, constructions on basements, land reserved for civic amenities, land below high tensions wires, developments in the agriculture zone or the green belt areas etc. cannot be regularized.

Karnataka State Commission For Women was set up by an Act of 1995 with an objective for achieving all round development of the women. The commission consists of a chairperson and members who are nominated by the Government and few ex-officio members. The chairperson and other members hold office for a period not exceeding 3 years. The functions of the Commission includes:
(a) Investigate and examine all matters relating to the safeguards provided for women under the Constitution and other laws;
(b) Present to the Government, annually and at such other times as the Commission may deem fit, reports upon the working of those safeguards;
(c) Make in such reports recommendations for the effective implementation of those safeguards for improving the conditions of women by the State;
(d) Review, from time to time, the existing provisions of the Constitution and other Laws affecting the women and recommend amendments thereto so as to suggest remedial legislative measures to meet any lacuna or inadequacies or shortcomings in such legislations;
(e) Take up the cases of violation of the provisions of the Constitution and of other laws relating to women with the appropriate authorities;
(f) Look into complaints and take suo-moto notice of matters relating to:-
(i) Deprivation of women's rights;
(ii) Non-implementation of laws enacted to provide protection to women and also to achieve the objective of equality and development;
(iii) Non-compliance of policy decisions, guidelines or instructions aimed at
mitigating hardships and ensuring welfare and providing relief to women and take up the issues arising out of such matters with appropriate authorities.

The other functions of the Commission are:
(a) Call for special studies or investigation into specific problems or situations arising out of discrimination and atrocities against women and identify the constraints so as to recommend strategies for their removal;
(b) Undertake promotional and educational research so as to suggest ways of ensuring due representation of women in all spheres and identify factors responsible for impending their advancement, such as, lack of access to housing and basic services, inadequate support services and technologies for reducing drudgery and occupational health hazards and for increasing their productivity;
(c) Inspect or cause to be inspected a jail, remand home, women's institution or other place of custody where women are kept as prisoners or otherwise and take up with the concerned authorities for remedial action, wherever found necessary;
(d) Fund litigation involving issues affecting a large body of women;
(e) Participate and advice on the planning process of socio-economic development of women;
(f) Evaluate the progress of the development of women under the State,
(g) Make periodical report to the Government on any matter pertaining to women and in particular various difficulties under which women toil;
(h) Involve with voluntary organizations in the State, more particularly women's organizations besides governmental departments and its agencies in the discharging of its functions;

For many people buying a home is a dream wish. For some, especially employed with huge pay packets, it is a means of saving on the taxes.

The Income Tax Act allows a person to deduct the total interest paid on the home loan from his or her taxable income, subject to a maximum of Rs 1,50,000. This is available only if you are staying in the house in which you took the loan.
If you have rented out your house property, then the Act allows you to deduct the interest amount from the rental income from the house.

Further a home loanee is entitled to a rebate, to a maximum of 20%, with a ceiling of Rs 20,000/-. However if your gross total income exceeds Rs, 5,00,000/- then you are not entitled for a rebate. The rebate is calculated on the principal amount paid towards loan clearance.

However it should be kept in mind, the tax benefits will not accrue to an assessee, if the property is located in another state. If the property is located in another city, then the benefit on rebate will not be applicable. For a plot of land tax benefits are nil.
The maximum limits of tax benefits are per assessee. So couples, who are joint applicants/joint owners for home loans, can claim respectively, benefits up to the maximum limits.

The Hindu succession Act 1956 has been amended in the year 2005. This amendment has brought in revolutionary changes, in the rights of women, in Hindu property.

Sec 6 of Act has been changed almost totally conferring rights on the daughter on par with the son. As per Sec 6, on and from the commencement of the Hindu succession (Amendment) act, 2005, in a joint Hindu family governed by the Mitakshara law, the daughter of a coparcener shall,

a)Bybirth become a Coparcener in her own right in the same manner as the son.

b)Have the same right in the coparcenery property as she would have had, if she had been a son;

c)Be subject to the same liabilities in respect of the said coparcenery property as that of the son.

And any reference to a Hindu Mitakshara coparcener shall be deemed to include a reference of a daughter of a coparcener. Earlier under section 23 of the Act, female heirs had some limitations to claim partition of the dwelling house occupied jointly by the members of the family. This section has been totally omitted by the 2005 Amendment, and now female heirs are entitled to claim partition. Further Sec 24, which prohibited share to an interstate's heir's widow if she remarried as on the date of succession opens, has been, omitted by the 2005 amendment.

Digital Signature Certificates are digital /electronic equivalent of paper/physical certificates. A digital certificate can be presented electronically to sign e forms. It can be used to prove your identity, to access information on the Internet or to sign certain documents electronically.

Persons who are authorized under Indian I T Act- 2000 are authorized to issue digital signatures. There are two types of digital signatures issued: class 2 and class 3. Class 2 is usually issued after verifying the identity of a person from a trusted database. Class 3 is of the highest degree and is usually issued after the person is present personally, before the issuing authority. The time to obtain a digital signature may take from 7 to 10 days and the cost of the process may vary from issuing authority to authority. Digital signatures are legally admissible in a court of law.

The digital signatures are usually issued for a period of 1 or two years. It is not mandatory to obtain a Director Identification Number before obtaining a digital signature. A person seriously desiring to start a Company shall posses the Director Identification Number and a Digital Signature.

DIN (Director Identification Number) is a unique identification number for a person who is a director of a company or who intends to become the director of a company. It is mandatory for e- filing of certain company related documents. It is even mandatory for directors of Indian companies who are not citizens of India. Hence this is the first pre-equisite for a person intending to set up a company. However a single DIN is enough for a person who is a director of several companies.

The Ministry of Company Affairs grants DIN to individuals. The application can be obtained online. Initially a provisional DIN will be given to an applicant. The provisional DIN can be used for e-filing until DIN is approved and activated by MCA DIN Cell. Once a provisional DIN is obtained, the applicant shall apply to MCA in the prescribed application form along with photographs and duly attested photocopies of identity and residence. The MCA Din Cell will process the form and on approval the DIN confirmation and activation letter will be sent to the applicant. An email will also be sent to the applicant in this regard. The status for the DIN application can be checked in the MCA portal, online.

Any marriage solemnized under the Special Marriage Act shall be null and void and may on a petition presented by either party thereto against the other party, be so declared by a decree of nullity if-

(i)any of the conditions of section 4 has not been fulfilled; or

(ii)the respondent was impotent at the time of marriage and at the time of institution of the suit.
Any marriage solemnized under the Special Marriage Act, shall be voidable and may be annulled by a decree of nullity if

(i)the marriage has not been consummated owing to the willful refusal of the respondent to consummate the marriage; or

(ii)the respondent was at the time of marriage pregnant by some person other than the petitioner; or

(iii)the consent of either party in the marriage was obtained by coercion or fraud, as defined in the Indian Contract Act, 1872:
Provided that, in the case specified in clause (ii), the court shall not grant, a decree unless it is satisfied-

(a)that the petitioner was at the time of marriage ignorant of the facts alleged;

(b)that proceedings were instituted within a year from the date of the marriage; and

(c)that marital intercourse with the consent of the petitioner has not taken place since the discovery by the petitioner of the existence of the grounds for a decree;
Provided further that in the case specified in clause (iii), the court shall not grant a decree if-

(a)Proceedings have not been instituted within one year after the coercion had ceased or, as the case may be, the fraud had been discovered; or

(b)The petitioner has with his or her free consent lived with the other party to the marriage as husband and wife after the coercion had ceased or, as the case may be, the fraud had been discovered.

If there is a valid objection to the marriage, the marriage officer shall make an enquiry within 30 days from the receipt of objection and arrive at a decision. If he finds the objection valid, he shall refuse to solemnize the marriage. If it appears to the marriage officer that the objection is not reasonable, he may go ahead by solemnizing the marriage and even impose a cost, on the person making such objection.

Before the marriage is solemnized the parties and the three witnesses shall, in the presence of the marriage officer, sign a declaration, which is to be countersigned by the marriage officer. The parties of the marriage before solemnization shall say to the other, in the presence of the marriage officer and three witnesses, in any language understood by the parties;

"I. (A), take thee (B), to be my lawful wife (or husband)."
When the marriage has been solemnized the marriage officer shall enter the details in the marriage certificate book, which shall be signed by the parties and three witnesses. The certificate shall be the conclusive evidence of the marriage.

Karnataka Rent Act 1999 provides various grounds, on which a tenant can be evicted from a premises by the Landlord. Every such eviction shall be in pursuance to an order from the competent Court. The Court can order the eviction of a tenant on the following grounds:
a)If a tenant has not paid the whole of the arrears of the rent, within two months from the date on which a notice of demand for payment has been served on him by the landlord.
b)If a tenant, without the consent in writing of the landlord, sublets, assigns or otherwise parts with the possession of the whole or any part of the premises.
c)If a tenant has used the premises for any purpose other than that for which they were let, without the consent of the landlord.
d)If the tenant or any members of his family has not been in occupation thereof for a period of six months.
e)If the tenant has not been in occupation thereof without a reasonable cause for a period of two years.
f)If the premises have become unsafe for human habitation and are required by the landlord for carrying out repairs which cannot be done with out the premises being vacated.
g)If the premises are required by the landlord, for the purpose of immediate demolition, as ordered by the Government or any local authority.
h)If the premises or any part thereof are required by the landlord for carrying out any repairs which cannot be done without the premises being vacated.

The other grounds by which, a tenant can be ordered to be evicted from the rental premises, by a competent court are:

a) If the premises consists of not more than two floors, and the same are required by the landlord, for the purpose of immediate demolition, to rebuild the same.
b)If the tenant, his spouse or dependent living with him, has built or acquired a premises.
c)If the premises were let to the tenant for use as a resident during his employment under the landlord and the tenant has ceased to be in such employment under the landlord.
d)If the tenant has caused substantial damages or alteration to the premises which has the effect of changing its identity or diminishing its value.
e) If the tenant has been convicted with causing nuisance or annoyance to a person living in the neighborhood.
f)If the tenant has been convicted for using the premises for illegal or immoral purpose.
g)If the tenant has used the premises in a manner contrary to any condition imposed on the landlord by the government or the local authority while giving him a lease of the land on which the premises are situated.

The other grounds by which, a tenant can be ordered to be evicted from the rental premises, by a competent court are:

That the tenant in his reply having denied the ownership of landlord, has failed to prove it or that such denial was not made in a bonafide manner;
That the person in occupation of the premises has failed to prove that he is a bonafide tenant,
That the tenant after having agreed with or having informed the landlord in writing the date to vacate the premise, does not do so on or after the date so agreed or informed;
That the premises let are required, whether in the same form or after reconstruction or rebuilding, by the landlord for occupation for himself or for any member of his family if he is the owner thereof, or for any person for whose benefit the premises are held and that the landlord or such person for whose benefit the premises are held and that the landlord or such person has no other reasonably suitable accommodation;
Further, when a Government servant or employ of local authority is provided with official quarters and if such servant owns a premises in his work place and he is asked to vacate the quarters on that ground, then he is entitled to immediate possession, of that premises, within 60 days from the date of eviction order.
The members of armed forces are also entitled to recover immediate possession of the premises. The person who has served in the defense and who has let out his house to the tenant is entitled to recover immediate possession of the same.

Part Two of the Constitution of India deals with citizenship. As per Article 5, at the commencement of the Constitution, every person who has his domicile in the territory of India and who was born in the territory of India or either of whose parents are born in the territory of India or who has been ordinarily resident in the territory of India for not less than five years immediately preceding such commencement shall be a citizen of India.

As per Article 6, a person who has migrated to the territory of India from the territory now included in Pakistan shall be deemed to be a citizen of India at the commencement of this Constitution if: -

a) he or either of his parents or any of his grandparents was born in India as defined in the Government of India Act, 1935;and

b) (i)In the case where such person has so migrated before the nineteenth day of July, 1948, he has been ordinarily resident in the territory of India since the date of his migration, or

(ii) In the case where such person has so migrated on or after the nineteenth day of July 1948, he has been registered as a citizen of India by an officer appointed in that behalf by the Government of Dominion of India on an application made by him therefore to such officer before the commencement of this Constitution in the form and manner prescribed by that Government.

Notwithstanding anything in Articles 5 and 6, a person who has after the first day of March 1947, migrated from the territory of India to the territory now included in Pakistan shall not be deemed to be a citizen of India. Provided that nothing in this article shall apply to a person who, after having so migrated to the territory now included in Pakistan, has returned to India under a permit for resettlement or permanent return issued by or under the authority of any law or every such person shall for the purposes of clause (b) of Article 6 be deemed to have migrated to the territory of India after the nineteenth day of July 1948.

Every criminal case registered in a police station, will be treated as a State case and in the ordinary course, it will be the government which will take up the case on behalf of the complainant. The public prosecutors conduct such criminal cases in the courts on behalf of the Government and the Complainant.

For every high court there will be a Public Prosecutor as well as Additional Public Prosecutors who will be appointed by the Central Government as well as the State Government to conduct their cases. For every district, the State Government shall appoint a Public Prosecutor as well as Additional Public Prosecutors. Only an advocate with a practice of a minimum of seven years can be appointed as a Public Prosecutor.

In sensational criminal cases, the State Government may appoint an advocate as a Special Public Prosecutor. The said person shall have a minimum practice of 10 years as an advocate.

The State Government shall appoint in every district, one or more Assistant Public Prosecutors for conducting prosecutions in the Courts of Magistrates.

RIGHT TO INFORMATION

The information sought under the Right to Information Act, shall be provided expeditiously and in any case within 30 days from the receipt of the request. If the information sought for, concerns the life or liberty of an individual, the same shall be provided within 48 hours of the receipt of the request. If a decision is not passed by the information officer within the time period of 30 days, or if the persons seeking the information is not satisfied by the decision of the officer, then the aggrieved person has the right to appeal against such a decision within 30 days of the receipt of the decision. The appeal against the decision of the information officer shall be disposed within a period of 45 days. The aggrieved person has also got a right of second appeal if he is not satisfied by the decision in the appeal. Such a second appeal has to be field within 90 days from the order of the First appellate authority.

The act also imposes penalties on information officers, who refuse to receive request for information or refuses to give information within the specified time. The penalty shall be Rs 250/- per day, till application is received or information is furnished, subject to a maximum of Rs 25,000/-. Further, disciplinary actions can be taken against the concerned officials, under the service rules applicable to them.

The Act is not applicable to intelligence and security organizations of the Central Government and information furnished by such organizations to the Central Government are also not coming within the scope of this Act.

The Right to Information Act, 2005 is a very powerful piece of legislation available to the citizenry of this nation. The Preamble to the Act says that, the Act intends to secure access to information under the control of public authorities to citizens, to promote transparency and accountability in the working of every public authority, as our democratic set up requires an informed citizenry and transparency of information, which are vital to its functioning.

Subject to the provisions of this Act, all citizens shall have the right to information. Further, all public authorities are required to maintain its records duly catalogued and indexed which facilitates the right to information under the Act and also to publish the particulars of facilities, available to citizens for obtaining information, also the names, designations and other particulars of the Public Information Officers.

A person who desires to obtain any information, shall make a request in writing or through electronic means in English, Hindi or in the official language of the area in which the application is made, accompanying such fee as may be prescribed, to the designated Public Information Officer of the concerned Public authority. The applicant need not give any reason for the request of information, as well as need not give any other extra personal details, more than what is necessary for contacting him. If, the information asked for, is held by another public authority, then the receiving public authority shall transfer the said application to the concerned public authority within 5 days of the receipt of the application.

This Act attempts to control the aged old practice of child marriage, which was and even today, prevalent in many parts of India. According to this act, a male has to complete 21 years and a female 18 years to legally marry.

The Act provides punishments to those who contract a child marriage. If a male between 18 years and 21 years, contracts a child marriage, he may be punishable with imprisonment, which may extend up to 15 days or with fine, which may extend to 1000 rupees or with both. If a male, above 21 years of age, contracts a child marriage, he shall be punishable with imprisonment, which may extend up to 3 months and also shall be liable to fine. Whoever performs or conducts any child marriage shall be punishable with imprisonment, which may extend up to 3 months and also shall be liable to fine. Even the parents or guardians, who support child marriage, are liable to be punished as per this Act. It is interesting to note that women offenders are not liable for punishment by imprisonment, under the Act.

The courts are also empowered to issue orders of injunction against persons who are going to perform a child marriage, prohibiting such marriages.

(For personal and confidential advice on any legal matter Sri Mento Issac can be contacted on 9845426225, 22455453, Email: mentoassociates@rediffmail.com or at his office at # 378, II Floor, 9th Main, 5th Block, Jayanagar, Bangalore-41)

ADDRESSES OF NEW SUB-REGISTRAR OFFICES IN BANGALORE

Given below are the addresses of some of the new sub-registrar offices in Bangalore:

1) Anekal: Mini Vidhana Soudha, Taluk Office compound, Bangalore-562 106

2) Sarjapura: No. 964/1015,Vidhya Nagar, 60th Cross, Sarjapura, Anekal, Bangalore-562 125

3) Attibele: No.430, Anna Building, Hennagara Gate, Bommasandra Industrial Area, Hosur Main Road, Bangalore- 560 099

4) Jigani: House No. 459/39/2, Bannerghatta Village, Opp. Police Station, Bannerghatta, Bangalore-560 083

5) Basavanagudi: 3rd Main Road, Sri Rameshwara Swami Commercial Complex, Chamarajpet, Bangalore-560 018

6) Gandhinagar: # 32, Jamuna Complex, 5th Main Road, Gandhinagar, Bangalore-560 009

7) Jayanagar: # 26, House No. 2722, 12th Main Road, 4th Block, Jayanagar, Bangalore-560 011

8) Rajajinagar: # 1034, 5th Block, Rajajinagar, WOC Road, Bangalore-560 010

9) Shivajinagar: BDA Complex, Domlur, Bangalore-560 001

10) Srirampuram: Srirampura Venkateshwara Complex, Vidhyapeeta, Vijayanagar, Bangalore-560 040

11) Kacharakanahalli: No.111, 9th Main, 3rd Stage, Pillanna Garden, Kacharakanahalli, Bangalore

12) Hebbal: No.69, Cholanayakana Halli, RT Naga