This case analysis has been done by Parul Sharma, pursuing BBA LLB from Centre for legal studies Gitarattan International Business School GGSIPU. In this case analysis, she is dealing with the case of Town Area Committee v. Prabhu Dayal.

INTRODUCTION

Town Area Committee v. Prabhu Dayal is one of the leading cases of the maxim ‘Damnum sine injuria’ which means “no action will lie if there is actual loss or damage but there has been no infringement of legal right”. Here, in this case, the plaintiff has to prove that he suffered because of an illegal act of the defendant, along with malice.

Bench

Justice Hari Swarup

Facts

Plaintiff’s case was that he had made the construction of 16 shops on the old foundations of the building and the defendant Town Area Committee illegally demolished these constructions. According to him the notice under Section 186 of the U.P. Municipal Act was bad as it gave to the plaintiff only two hours’ time to demolish the constructions and not a reasonable time as contemplated in Section 302 of the Act. It was also asserted that demolition after this notice was bad as the notice was served at a time when the plaintiff was out of the station. The action was said to be mala fide.

The plea of the defendant was that the constructions had been made by the plaintiff without giving the notice of intention to erect the building under Section 178 and without obtaining necessary sanction under Section 180 of the Act. It was asserted that the notice to demolish the constructions had been given earlier on 18th December requiring the stoppage of further constructions and removal of constructions already made and when it did not comply with an order had been passed by the District Magistrate directing the Town Area Committee to take action under Section 186. Thereafter another notice was given on December 21, which also was not complied with and only then the building was demolished in accordance with the law.

Issues

Can Malice disentitle a person from taking a course of law?
Can the plaintiff suffer legal injury because of an illegal act?

Legal Reasoning

Hari Swarup said, while reasoning, that the plaintiff could get compensation only if he had proved to have suffered an injury because of an illegal act of the defendant and not otherwise. Further, he said Malice does not enter the scene at all. A legal action, though motivated by malice, will not make the actor liable to pay the damage. Mere malice cannot disentitle a person from taking recourse to law for getting the wrong undone and that law does not take into account all harms suffered by a person which caused no legal injury. He recognized the damage that was done as damnum sine injuria and that the damage did not gave the sufferer any right to get compensation.

Damnum Sine Injuria

In respect of legal reasoning given by the bench in this case, the meaning of the soused maxim is important to understand. Damnum sine Injuria refers to as damages without injury or damages in which there is no infringement of any legal right which are vested with the plaintiff. If no legal right has been infringed so no action lies in the cases of damnum sine injuria. The maxim is based on the general principle which is if one exercises his common or ordinary rights, within reasonable limits, and without infringing other’s legal right; such an exercise does not give rise to an action in tort in favour of that other person. Damages can be in any form either in the form of any substantial harm or loss suffered from respect to the money, comfort, health, etc.

This can be better explained in the following case:

Gloucester Grammar School Case ^[1]

The defendant was the schoolmaster intentionally opened the school in front of the plaintiff’s school, causing damage to him. Because of an increase in competition, the plaintiff had to reduce their fees from 40 pence to 12 pence per scholar per quarter. It was held that despite the plaintiff had suffered harm but there was no infringement of any legal right, therefore, the defendant couldn’t be held liable.

Mogul Steamship Co. Vs. McGregor Gow and Co. ^[2]

In this case number of companies trading in steamships, combined their hands with the intention to drove the plaintiff’s company out of the tea-carrying company, by reducing and offering assistance at a reduced price. It was held that the plaintiff had no cause of action as no legal right were infringed by the other companies.

Ushaben vs. Bhagyalaxmi Chitra Mandir ^[3]

In the case, the plaintiff pleaded before the court of law to issue a permanent injunction order on the film named, “Jai Santoshi Maa”. According to her, the film harmed the religious feelings of the plaintiff. It was observed that hurting of religious sentiments did not result in any legal injury, and also that other than the plaintiff no other person feelings were hurt. Therefore, it was held that the defendant was not liable.

Judgement

Justice Hari Swarup held the decision by stating “There is no merit in the contention of the learned counsel that the plaintiff had suffered injuria by the act of the demolition of the building because he had a fundamental right to hold and enjoy the property even though it was constructed without prior sanction from Municipal authorities. There is no right to enjoy property not legally obtained or constructed. A person has been given by law a right to construct a building, but that right is restricted by various enactments, one of which is the U.P. Municipalities Act. If a person constructs a building illegally, the demolition of such building by the municipal authorities would not amount to causing “injuria” to the owner of the property. No person has the right to enjoy the fruits of an act which is an offence under the law. As the plaintiff has failed to prove that he had suffered injuria in the legal sense, he is not entitled to get any compensation”.

Citations

^[1] (1410) Y.B. Hill 11 Hen, 4 of 47, p. 21, 36.

^[2] (1892) A.C. 25.

^[3] A.I.R. 1978 Guj. 13.

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This case analysis has been done by Parul Sharma , pursuing BBA LLB from Centre for legal studies Gitarattan International Business School GGSIPU. In this case analysis, she is dealing with the case of White v. John Warrick & Co. Ltd.

INTRODUCTION

This case was considered the issue of exclusion clauses and whether or not an exclusion clause in a contract involving the hiring of a tricycle could relieve the hiring company from liability in both contracts and therefore, the tort of negligence.

Bench

Lord Justice Singleton

Lord Justice Denning, and

Lord Justice Morris

Facts of the Case

The plaintiff, a newsagent and tobacconist carried a business at Canonbury, entered into an arrangement with the defendants that they should supply him with a tradesman’s tricycle, a tricycle which has a large carrier in front, for the purpose of delivering the newspaper. The arrangement was embraced in a written contract dated Apr. 13, 1948. The contract was on a printed form used by the defendants, on which their name appears in print, and the agreement is stated to be made between them (described as the owners) and the plaintiff, who is described as the hirer.

On Saturday, June 3, a representative of the owners went to the plaintiff’s shop and left a tricycle which was out of order which was supposed to be a spare tricycle. The plaintiff didn’t examine the tricycle but soon rode it to go to his work. When he had gone about a quarter of a mile the saddle went forward in such a manner that he was thrown off the tricycle on the ground, and was injured. He said he got up and pushed the tricycle back to his shop, the saddle then sloping down on to the crossbar, and when he examined the tricycle, he found that the saddle was loose. He was not thought, at first to be badly hurt, but unfortunately, he had suffered an injury to his knee. He was in the hospital for some considerable time suffering from synovitis. PARKER. J. who heard the plaintiff’s claim said that, if he had found the plaintiff entitled to damages, he would have awarded £505. That was a provisional assessment and no more. The plaintiff took the matter to the Court and wanted the defendants to be held liable in tort (for negligence) as well as in contract.

Issues

Whether there was negligence on the part of the defendant?
Whether there was a breach of duty and contracts?

Essentials of Negligence

In an action for negligence, the plaintiff has got to prove the subsequent essentials:

DUTY TO TAKE CARE: One of the essential requirements for liability for negligence is that the defendant owed a legal duty towards the plaintiff. The following case laws can be referred for this essential element.

DUTY TO WHOM: In the case of Donoghue v. Stevenson ^[1], carried the idea further and expanded the scope of duty saying that the duty so raised extends to your neighbour. Justifying so as to who is was the neighbour LORD ATKIN stated that the answer shall be “the persons who are so closely and directly stirred by my act who are needed to be taken in consideration are being so affected once I am directing my mind to the acts or omissions which are called in question”.

DUTY MUST BE TOWARDS THE PLAINTIFF- It isn’t sufficient that the defendant owed a duty to take care. It must also be proved that the defendant owed a duty of care towards the plaintiff.

In Bourhill v. Young ^[2], the plaintiff, a fishwife, alighted from a tram car. While she was being helped in putting her basket on her back, a motor-cyclist after passing the tram collided with a motor car, 15 yards afar on the other side of the tram and died instantly. The plaintiff could see neither the deceased nor the accident because the tram was standing between her and the place of accident. She simply heard about the collision and after the dead body was removed, she went to the place and saw blood left on the road. Resulting in she suffered a nervous shock and gave birth to a still-born child of 8 months. She sued the representatives of the deceased motorcyclist. It was held that the deceased didn’t hold any duty of care towards the plaintiff and hence she couldn’t claim any damages.

BREACH OF DUTY TO TAKE CARE: Yet another important condition for the liability in negligence is that the plaintiff must prove that the defendant committed a breach of duty to take care or he didn’t perform that duty well.

In Municipal corporation Delhi v. Subhagvanti ^[3], a clock-tower in the heart of the Chandni Chowk, Delhi collapsed causing the death of a number of people. The structure was 80 years old but its normal life was 40-45 years. The Municipal Corporation of Delhi having the control of the structure couldn’t take care and be, therefore, liable.

In MCD v. Sushila Devi ^[4], a person passing by the road died because of the fall of a branch of a tree standing on the road, on his head. The Municipal Corporation was held liable.

The last essential requisite for the tort of negligence is that the damage caused to the plaintiff was the result of the breach of the duty. The harm may fall into the following classes: –

physical harm, i.e. harm to the body;
harm to reputation;
harm to property, i.e. land and buildings and rights and interests pertaining thereto, and his goods;
economic loss; and
mental harm or nervous shock.

In Achutrao Haribhau Khodwa v. State of Maharashtra ^[5], a cotton mop was left inside the body by the negligence of the doctor. The doctor was held liable.

Judgement

It was stated by Lord Denning, that there were two possible heads of liability on the defendants, one for negligence, the other for breach of contract. The liability for breach of contract was more strict than the liability for negligence. The defendants could have been liable in contract for supplying a defective machine, even though they were not negligent. Counsel for the defendants admitted that, if the negligence was a completely independent tort, the exemption clause would not avail, but he said that the negligence alleged was a breach of contract, not an independent tort. The facts which gave rise to the tort are the same as those which gave rise to the breach of contract and the plaintiff was not allowed to recover just by framing his action in tort instead of contract.

The claim for negligence, in this case, was founded on tort and not on contract. That could be seen by considering what would be the position if, instead of the plaintiff himself, it was his servant who was riding the tricycle and had been injured. If the servant could show that the owners had negligently sent out a defective machine for immediate use, he would have had a cause of action in negligence. That shows that the defendants owed a duty of care towards the servant. And with more reason, they also owed the same duty to the hirer himself. In either case, a breach of that duty is a tort which was established without relying on any contract at all. The hirer could also rely on a contract if he had wished, but he was not bound to do so, and if he could avoid the exemption clause by framing his claim in tort he was entitled to do so, according to the judgement of the Court of Appeal.

Therefore, it was finally held by The Court of Appeal that the clause only extended to the strict (non- negligent) liability (contract), this would, therefore, allow action in tort for negligence.

Citations

^[1] 1932 AC 562

^[2] 1943 AC 92

^[3] AIR 1966 SC 1750

^[4] AIR 1999 SC 1929

^[5] (1996) 2 SCC 634

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This article is written by Samridhi Sachdeva pursuing BBA LLB from Gitarattan International Business School, GGSIPU. This article tries to explain about the types of offences and focusses more on the socio-economic offences and its evolution.

INTRODUCTION

According to the modern scenario, crimes are increasing day-by-day. The crimes are categorised into two types, one that includes the mens rea and the other one that is without mens rea. The crimes which include mens rea are known as conventional offences and the crimes that are without mens rea are known as non-conventional offences The conventional offences include murder and robbery and the non-conventional offences include the White Collar crime,, socio-economic offences and organisational crimes etc.

Socio-economic offences are generally the ones which affect the society at large. A number of people are affected by the socio-economic offences. And it does not involve Mens Rea.

Concept

Socio-economic offences are the one which affects the social and economic situation of a country. Mens Rea is not included in these type of crimes. And they affect a number of people at a large scale, the crime is committed against a very large number of people and thus affects the whole of society. It affects the morals and social health of the society and the economy of a country is also affected by this type of crime. Some examples of these type of crimes are black marketing, food/drug adulteration, tax evasion etc.

It is believed that White Collar crime and socio-economic offences are the same. But, White Collar crimes and socio-economic offences are different from each other as the White Collar crimes are committed only by the rich and the upper caste people whereas the socio-economic crimes can be committed by anybody whether it is a low caste person or upper-caste person.

It is usually done in the need of money or the greed. The desire for wealth and their lust to gain more money pushes the criminals to commit these crimes. These offences are done deliberately and wilfully and there is no need to prove the intention of the crime committed. If it is found that the crime is committed then the person who committed it will be punished under the competent provisions.

Like other crimes, the criminal may have some relation with the victim, but here there is no emotional relationship between the victim and the criminal. The victim under such crimes is basically the state or the consumers of any goods and services. And everyone together, is affected by the act of the accused.

Though the crime is committer against a large part of the society, there can be scenarios like, when some of the commodities are adulterated or hoarded, then though there will be a single victim but the act has the capacity to harm the large part of the society.

Evolution

The concept and idea of socio-economic offences emerged from the transformation between ancient and modern times. Industrial evolution plays a greater role in the occurrence of socio-economic offences. As in the early times, the country was totally agricultural-based and coping up with the new trend of industries led to a drastic change in the offences committed. The business and technology during this period transformed and developed a lot. New business opportunities came with more competition and the new technology reduced the belief and faith in God which increased the greed and desire for money in people.

The fear of judgement or what others will say disappeared, the morals declined and thus increased the fraud, hatred and different types of non-conventional crimes amongst the public. The state decided to leave things as they were and lack of public resentment resulted in grave consequences which are now noticeable in our country. But the crimes can be dealt with, if proper experimenting and thorough study are done upon the psychology of people and the basic nature of the crime.

Laws on Socio-economic offences

With the increase in a number of crimes, the authorities and the government made different types of laws to assure that the social and economic condition of the country is sustained. There are many bare acts that deal with the socio-economic offences in our country and each of them has different provisions related to the crimes identified in the modern period. Some of them are:

The Drugs and Cosmetic Act, 1940
The Foreign Exchange Regulation Act, 1947
The Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954
The Essential Commodities Act, 1955
The Wealth Tax Act, 1957
The Income Tax Act, 1961
The Customs Act, 1962
The Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988

Conclusion

With time and increasing technology and competition, the malpractices were introduced. In earlier times, the malpractices practised by the people were very simple but now in the modern era, the malpractices practised by the people became even more harmful, complex and advanced.

People think that conventional offences are the only important one and the criminal in that cases needs to be punished. But they should also know that punishing the guilty person of the non-conventional offences is equally important. Conventional crimes like murder, robbery etc.is known to everyone but no one thinks about saving the social and economic structure of the country.

Socio-economic crimes affect a large part of society and not just one person. The shareholders or anyone holding any type of securities also get affected. The breach of contract, tax evasion and black marketing are the crimes in the trend that people commit to gain more money. People agree to do all this just for their desire for more money.

Everyone should think about securing the social and economic structure of society. The laws and the provisions made for every socio-economic offence should be followed and psychology of the criminals should be taken under consideration to determine the nature of the act. And like, every other resource of our country, the social and economic resource is important as well and people should think of securing them as well.

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This article is written by Gaurav Lall pursuing BBA LL.B. (Hons.) at United World School of Law. The article speaks about the brief explanation of cyber hacking and the laws for the protection of humans from hackers.

INTRODUCTION

Cyber Hacking is identifying weakness in computer systems or networks to exploit its weaknesses to gain access. Example of Hacking: Using password cracking algorithm to gain access to a system. Computers have become mandatory to run a successful business. It is not enough to have isolated computers systems; they need to be networked to facilitate communication with external businesses. It is ironical to see that the most trusted source of information and a store for data can turn out to be a wide platform for some to steal information. It means using computers to commit fraudulent acts such as fraud, privacy invasion, stealing corporate/personal data, etc. Cybercrimes cost many organizations millions of dollars every year. Businesses need to protect themselves against such attacks.

Unlike the majority of computer crimes which are regarded as clear cut in terms of legality issues, computer hacking is somewhat ambiguous and difficult to define. In all forms, however, computer hacking will involve some degree of infringement on the privacy of others or the damaging of a computer-based property such as web pages, software, or files.

As a result of this definition, the impact of computer hacking will vary from a simple invasive procedure to an illegal extraction of confidential or personal information.

Different forms of Cyber Hacking

One of the most frequent threats of hacking is those faced by the websites. It is very common to see a particular website or online account being hacked open intentionally using unauthorized access and its contents being changed or made public. The web sites of political or social organizations are the frequent targets by groups or individuals opposed to them. It is also not uncommon to see governmental or national information website being hacked. Some of the well-known methods in website hacking are:

Phishing

This implies replicating the original website so that the unsuspecting user enters the information like account password, credit card details, which the hacker seizes and misuses. The banking websites are the frequent target for this.

Virus

These are released by the hacker into the files of the website once they enter into it. The purpose is to corrupt the information or resources on the website.

UI redress

In this method, the hacker creates a fake user interface and when the user clicks with the intent of going to a certain website, they are directed to another site altogether.

Cookie theft

Hackers access the website using malicious codes and steal cookies which contain confidential information, login passwords etc.

DNS Spoofing

This uses the cache data of a website or domain that the user might have forgotten about. It then directs the data to another malicious website.

Laws on Hacking in India

Section 43 and Section 66 of the Information Technology Act (IT) Act cover the civil and criminal offences of data theft or hacking respectively.

Under Section 43, a simple civil offence where a person without the permission of the owner accesses the computer and extracts any data or damages the data contained therein will come under civil liability. The cracker shall be liable to pay compensation to the affected people. Under the ITA 2000, the maximum cap for compensation was fine at Rs 1 crore. However, in the amendment made in 2008, this ceiling was removed. Section 43A was added in the amendment in 2008 to include corporate shed where the employees stole information from the secret files of the company.

Section 66B covers punishment for receiving stolen computer resource or information. The punishment includes imprisonment for one year or a fine of rupees one lakh or both. Mens rea is an important ingredient under section 66A. Intention or the knowledge to cause wrongful loss to others i.e. the existence of criminal intention and the evil mind i.e. the concept of mens rea, destruction, deletion, alteration or diminishing in value or utility of data are all the major ingredients to bring any action under this Section.

The jurisdiction of the case in cyber laws is mostly disputed. Cybercrime does not happen in a particular territory. It is geography less and borderless. So it gets very difficult to determine the jurisdiction under which the case has to be filed. Suppose a person works from multiple places and his data gets stolen from a city while he resides in some other city, there will be a dispute as to where the complaint should be filed.

CONCLUSION

It can be seen that the threat of computer crime is not as big as the authority claim. This means that the methods that they introduce to combat, it represents an unwarranted attack on human rights and is not proportionate to the threat posed by cyber-criminals. Part of the problem is that there are no reliable statistics on the problem; this means that it is hard to justify the increased powers that the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act has given to the authorities. These powers will also be ineffective in dealing with the problem of computer. The international treaties being drawn up to deal with it are so vague that they are bound to be ineffective in dealing with the problem. It will also mean the civil liberties will be unjustly affected by the terms of the treaties since they could, conceivably, imply that everybody who owns a computer fitted with a modem could be suspected of being a hacker. The attempts to outlaw the possession of hacking software could harm people who trying to make the internet more secure as they will not be able to test their systems. The cyber hacking is protected under the IT Act which performs as prevention not cure.

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This article is written by Darshika Lodha, a BBA.LLB(Hons.) student of Unitedworld School of Law, Karnavati University. This article deals with the Partition and division of rights and property at the time of partition.

INTRODUCTION

Partition is the division and division of the Hindu Joint Family, which brings the life of a coparcenary to an end. According to Mitakshara School, partition means two things,

Severance of status or interest
the actual division of property by the shares so specified, known as division by metes and bounds. According to the Dayabhaga School of Hindu Law, partition means only the division of property by metes and bounds. At least two coparceners are required to be partitioned.

Subject Matter of Partition

Only the coparcenary can be separated into the partition. Separate resources can not be subject to partitioning. To determine which property is available for partition, the following provisions must be made for joint family debts;

the personal debts of the father, not contaminated by immorality.
Maintenance of dependent female members and disqualified heirs.
Marriage of unmarried daughters.

Kinds of Property Partitioned

1. Self-Acquired Property

Self-acquired property is the property that a person acquires from his own hard-earned money and is not inherited from his forefathers. Any land obtained by donation or may also be deemed to be a self-acquired land. Self-acquired property can not be partitioned during the lifetime of the person who acquired it. A person who has acquired the property may, in his lifetime, make a Will to whom he wants to give his property. If the owner of the property dies without leaving a will, the property is transferred to the heirs of Class 1.

2. Ancestral Property

Any property acquired by the forefathers of a person shall be regarded as ancestral property. This property must be four generations old.

A person who is born in that family has a vested interest in the land, which means that, by his birth in the family, he has inherited the land and that property can be divided.

Property Liable for Partition

Indistinguishable property, i.e. property which comes down to one member only, either by custom or by any provision of law or by terms of the grant.
Indivisible property by nature, e.g. ponds, stairs, passageways.
Family idols and trusts that are the object of a warship
Separate property of a member
Places of worship and devotion or land devoted to religious and charitable purposes.
The ornaments and the clothing materials are given to the wives of the coparceners.

Deductions and Provisions

Certain provisions must be made on the partitionable property before any partition is affected.

Debts incurred by the joint family.
Personal debts of the father have not been incurred for illegal or immoral purposes.
Maintenance of female dependents and disqualified heirs.
Marriage of unmarried daughters of the last male holder, but not of collateral.
Expenses for the funeral ceremony of the widow and mother of the last male holder.

Common Misconception related to Property Partition

The very first myth in people’s minds is that there might be a Will in the case of Ancestral Property that is not real. In the case of Ancestral Property, a person has a vested interest in it, that is, by giving birth to him in that family, he has the right to property. This kind of property is divided according to the laws of that particular religion. A Will can not be made in such cases, Will shall be made in the case of self-acquired property
The second misconception borne by people is that the nominee becomes the owner of the property once it is transferred to the nominee. This is not the case, however. The candidate is the trustee of the house.

Persons who have a Right to Partition and Share

The following persons may claim partition and have the right to participate in the partition-

Father– In Mitakshara school, the father not only has the right to partition, but also the power to divide the sons. The father may also impose a partial division between the sons, but he must act bona fide and not unfair to anyone. A re-opening suit, a partition can take place in the event of partiality or an unfaithful partition by the parent.
Son, grandson, great-grandson– Under Mitakshara school, son, grandson, and great-grandson have the right to seek a partition.
Son born after partition – According to Vishnu and Yajnavalkya, the partition should be re-opened to give a share to the son born after partition. However, Gautama, Manu, Nerada had a different view of the same thing.

Before the 2005 amendment, females could not be coparceners, but some females, such as the mother, the father’s wife, and the grandma, had the right to share at the time of the partition.

Case Law

In Pachi Krishnamma v. Kumaram, in this case, the daughter asserted his share as equal to that of the son in the division of joint family property, but failed to prove her claims that the daughter should have the same share as the son. However, following the 2005 amendment to the Hindu Succession Act, it gave the power to a daughter to have the right to seek partition and to claim an equal share as a son in the partition of the joint family property.
In Danamma, Ors. V. Phulavati & Ors, in the case of 1 February 2018, the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India held that: “Filles have equal rights in ancestral property even though they were born before the enactment of the Hindu Succession Act.”

CONCLUSION

It can, therefore, be concluded that partition is a tool that performs the function of bringing the common Hindu family to an end. Through, a partitioning process, the joint family property is the self-acquired property of each coparcener based on its shares. Partition may be rendered either by dividing the property by metes and bounds or by the division of the joint status or by both. Precisely, the division takes place in the true sense only when the collective status of the Hindu Undivided Family comes to an end.

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This article is written by Darshika Lodha, a BBA.LLB(Hons.) student of Unitedworld School of Law, Karnavati University. This article deals with Vicarious Liability in Gaurdian Ward Relationship.

INTRODUCTION

Vicarious liability is a condition in which a party is partly or wholly liable for the unlawful conduct of a third party. The third party is also part of this obligation. Vicarious liability may arise in situations where one party is held responsible (and the third party has control) and is negligent in carrying out that responsibility and in exercising that control. In the case of vicarious liability, this is the responsibility of a person who is liable for the act of another person. The common example of such liability is:

Liability of principal for the tort of his agent.
Liability of partners of each other tort.
The company and its directors.
Owner and Independent Contractor.
Parent’s liability for the tort of their ward.
Liability of the master for the tort of his servant.

Liability of Parents in Children’s Tort

Parents have a fundamental right to care for their children, as recognized by the Supreme Court, the right comes with a responsibility to supervise and monitor the activities of the child. Courts have consistently held that States have a legitimate interest in fostering public health by keeping parents responsible for failing to perform that responsibility. This is the basis on which the courts comply with the laws on parental responsibility. As a general rule, a parent or guardian can not be held liable for the wrongdoing of a child. There are two exceptions to this rule:

When the child is the servant or agent of the father, the father is vicariously responsible for the act of the infant. It must be taken into account that, in such a situation, the father is liable for the wrong of his son, not as his parent, but as employer or principle.

In the case of Hagerty v Powers (1885), in Haggerty, an eleven-year-old boy shot and wounded another child. The plaintiff argued that the father “leave his youngest child to suffer the loss of a pistol” due to negligence and carelessness in handling the pistol. Despite these terms, the court also found that the parents were not financially liable for their son’s actions.

When a father, by his own negligence, gives his child the opportunity to commit a wrong, he is liable.

In the case of Bebee v. Sales, the father supplied his son, who was 15 years old, with an airgun. Also, after so many allegations of negligence caused by the gun, he allowed the gun to stay with the boy who unintentionally wounded the complainant. That’s what the father held responsible for.

A teenager who brutally and negligently smashed his car into someone’s vehicle committed an offence under common law, but his parents would not have been held liable if they had no reason to know that he was driving negligently. Yet this left the injured without a means of redress for their losses. Today, all 50 US states have laws of some kind that keep parents responsible for damages incurred by their children’s abuse. Under many of these laws, a parent’s lack of knowledge of the child’s conduct is irrelevant, and the parent is liable for the harm caused by the child’s negligence or wrongdoing. This is a form known as a vicarious obligation.

Parent’s Civil Liability towards their Child

Each state in the US has its own law on the civil liability of parents for the acts of their children. Parents may be held responsible for the harmful actions of their children in the same way that employers are responsible for the harmful actions of their employees. This concept of law is commonly referred to as vicarious liability. Parents are therefore indirectly or vicariously liable for damages incurred by their child. There are different parents’ civil liability and ways in which parents can be forced to pay damages for their children’s actions.

Liability for Compensating the Victim

Several states rule that parents are financially responsible for damages incurred by their children. When the child reaches the age of 18 years (no longer a minor) the parents will not be responsible for any damages due to their civil wrongs. Upon entering the age of majority, the rights of parents over a minor are revoked, the parent can no longer be held responsible for the act of the child because the legal relationship between the child and the parent has ended. In certain US states, the government has placed a cap on the amount that parents will be liable for. Civil liability varies from state to state. Many of these are actions that require the liability of parents. They are:

Vandalism of government or school money.
Destruction of national and state flags, cemetery headstones, public buildings or historic landmarks.
Property destroyed in crimes of hatred based on race or religion.

Personal damages incurred in connection with such acts shall result in the parent being liable for damages.

Negligent Supervision

The parent shall be liable for the negligent act of the child if the parent clearly knows or has reason to know the civil wrong that is necessary to control the child and the parents have played a negligent role in their part by failing to take reasonable measures to prevent the child from doing so. In the case of Robertson v. Wentz, the Court held that “the capacity to influence the child rather than the relationship as such is the basis for a finding of liability on the part of the parent. Failure to do so is fatal to the claim of legal responsibility. The capacity to regulate is derived from the relationship between the parent and the minor child, as is the relationship between the custodian and the custodian; nevertheless, the circumstances surrounding the specific case can be disproved.

CONCLUSION

In particular, we recognize the different situations in which a minor can be prosecuted. As discussed, a minor must be regarded on the basis of his or her age of rationality. The parent, guardian or others who are in the custody of the child shall be held liable for the civil wrong done by him or her and for the damages and injuries caused by him or her. A parent may be liable for penalties or compensation for damages. If the child is less than 18 years of age, the parents will be held liable for their civil wrongs. If the child has reached the age of majority, the parents will not be liable for any damages wrongfully incurred by the child.

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This article is Preeti Bafna I’m doing BBA L.L.B from Unitedworld School of Law, Karnavati University. The doctrine of comes into the picture when there is a conflict between the different subjects in different lists. There is an interpretation of List 1 and List 2 of the Constitution of India. Pith and Substance mean the true nature of law. The real subject matter is challenged and not its incidental effect on another field.

INTRODUCTION

Pith means ‘true nature’ or ‘essence of something’ and Substance means ‘the most important or essential part of something’. The doctrine of Pith and Substance says that where the question arises of determining whether a particular law relates to a particular subject (mentioned in one List or another), the court looks to the substance of the matter. Thus, if the substance falls within Union List, then the incidental encroachment by the law on the State List does not make it invalid. This is essentially a Canadian Doctrine now firmly entrenched in the Indian Constitutional Jurisprudence. This doctrine found its place first in the case of Cushing v. Dupey. In this case, the Privy Council evolved the doctrine, that for deciding whether impugned legislation was intra vires, regard must be had to its pith and substance.

Need for the Doctrine of Pith and Substance in the Indian Context

The doctrine has been applied in India also to provide a degree of flexibility in the otherwise rigid scheme of distribution of powers. The reason for the adoption of this doctrine is that if every legislation were to be declared invalid on the grounds that it encroached powers, the powers of the legislature would be drastically circumscribed.

“It is settled law of interpretation that entries in the Seventh Schedule are not powers but fields of legislation. The legislature derives its power from Article 246 and other related articles of the Constitution. Therefore, the power to make the Amendment Act is derived not from the respective entries but under Article 246 of the Constitution. The language of the respective entries should be given the widest scope of their meaning, fairly capable to meet the machinery of the Government settled by the Constitution. Each general word should extend to all ancillary or subsidiary matters which can fairly and reasonably be comprehended in it. When the vires of enactment are impugned, there is an initial presumption of its constitutionality and if there is any difficulty in ascertaining the limits of the legislative power, the difficulty must be resolved, as far as possible in favour of the legislature putting the most liberal construction upon the legislative entry so that it may have the widest amplitude.”

Important Supreme Court Judgments on the Doctrine of Pith and Substance

There are hundreds of judgments that have applied this doctrine to ascertain the true nature of the legislation. In the present post, I will discuss some of the prominent judgments of the Supreme Court of India that have resorted to this doctrine.

1. The State of Bombay And Another vs F.N. Balsara – This is the first important judgment of the Supreme Court that took recourse to the Doctrine of Pith and Substance. The court upheld the Doctrine of Pith and Substance and said that it is important to ascertain the true nature and character of legislation for the purpose of determining the List under which it falls.

2. Mt. Atiqa Begam And Anr. v. Abdul Maghni Khan And Ors. – The court held that in order to decide whether the impugned Act falls under which entry, one has to ascertain the true nature and character of the enactment i.e. its ‘pith and substance’. The court further said that “it is the result of this investigation, not the form alone which the statute may have assumed under the hand of the draughtsman, that will determine within which of the Legislative Lists the legislation falls and for this purpose the legislation must be scrutinized in its entirety”.

3. Zameer Ahmed Latifur Rehman Sheikh v. State of Maharashtra and Ors.

– Pith and Substance has been beautifully explained in this case:

“This doctrine is applied when the legislative competence of the legislature with regard to a particular enactment is challenged with reference to the entries in various lists. If there is a challenge to the legislative competence, the courts will try to ascertain the pith and substance of such enactment on a scrutiny of the Act in question. In this process, it is necessary for the courts to go into and examine the true character of the enactment, its object, its scope and effect to find out whether the enactment in question is genuinely referable to a field of the legislation allotted to the respective legislature under the constitutional scheme.

This doctrine is an established principle of law in India recognized not only by this Court, but also by various High Courts. Where a challenge is made to the constitutional validity of a particular State Act with reference to a subject mentioned in any entry in List I, the Court has to look to the substance of the State Act and on such analysis and examination, if it is found that in the pith and substance, it falls under an entry in the State List but there is only an incidental encroachment on any of the matters enumerated in the Union List, the State Act would not become invalid merely because there is incidental encroachment on any of the matters in the Union List.”

Conclusion

The doctrine has been applied in several instances to hold the true spirit of the law framed by the state government while preserving the sovereignty of the Central government. It thus helps maintain the federal balance in the Indian scheme of things.

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This article is written by Gaurav Lall pursuing BBA LL.B. (Hons.) at United World School of Law. The article speaks about the dissolution of the partnership firm and the ways of dissolution. The significant consequences of dissolution are also specified with respective sections of the Indian Partnership Act, 1932

INTRODUCTION

Dissolution of partnership firm is different from the dissolution of partners which is defined under Section 39 of the Indian Partnership Act, 1932. It defines the dissolution of partnership among all the partners of a firm. When all the activities regarding business discontinue and all the activities related to profit and loss are settled among the partners by paying off the debts is called dissolution of the firm. When a partner agrees to continue the same company even after the retirement of a partner then it is called dissolution of partners. As the firm is still continued by the partner but the partnership between the partners are finished. Dissolution of the firm leads to the dissolution of partners. It is a contractual relationship among the partners which works with the firm. If the firm gets dissolved then the partnership among the partners is also dissolved.

The Indian Partnership Act, 1932 states dissolution of partnership firm in different ways:

Section 40 defines dissolution by agreement.

Section 41 defines compulsory dissolution.

Section 42 defines dissolution on the happening of certain contingencies

Section 43 defines dissolution by notice of partnership at will.—

Section 44 defines dissolution by the Court

Important Consequences of Dissolution

1. Continuing liability of partners after dissolution (Sec. 45)

According to the Section 45, the partners stay accountable as such to third parties for any act achieved by means of any of them which were an act of the organization if completed before the dissolution, until public notice is given of the dissolution.

In the absence of public notice of dissolution, however, the property of a partner, who dies, or who is adjudicated an insolvent, or in case of a retiring partner, who isn’t regarded to the outsiders a partner, is not liable for the acts executed after the date on which he ceases to be the partner.

2. Continuing authority of partners for purposes of dissolution (Sec. 47)

After the dissolution of the corporation or the firm the authority of every partner to bind the company, and different mutual rights and responsibilities of the partners, continues to the point as may be necessary for the following two purposes:

(a) To wind up the affairs of the company, e.g., eliminating the assets, realising amount due from borrowers and paying to lenders and so on; and

(b) To complete transactions begun however unfinished at the time of the dissolution, e.G., taking shipping of the goods ordered before dissolution and paying to buy them.

The firm, however, is not always bound through such acts of a partner who has been adjudicated insolvent.

3. Right of partners to implement or enforce dissolution (Sec. 46)

On the dissolution of a company, every partner or his representative is entitled to have the assets of the firm realised and applied in payment of the money owed and liabilities of the company, and to have the surplus distributed among the partners or their representatives in accordance of their rights.

4. Liability to share personal profits (Sec. 50)

As long the affairs of the dissolved company are in the process of winding up, it is nevertheless the duty of each partner now not to make any personal earnings out of transactions regarding the firm. A partner, therefore, must account to the company for every benefit so derived through him and have to proportion or divide it with different partners.

5. Return of premium after dissolution (Sec. 51)

Where a partner has paid a premium on entering into a partnership for a fixed term, and the firm is dissolved earlier than the expiration of that term, that partner shall be entitled to repayment of ‘rateable amount of premium’ for the unexpired period except wherein the dissolution has been caused:

(a) By the loss of life of a partner;

(b) By the misconduct of the partner so admitted, or

(c) By mutual agreement of all the partners containing no provision for the return of premium.

6. Settlement of accounts after the dissolution of the company

Section 48 of the Indian Partnership Act defines the approaches to settling the accounts of the company. The company will pay all the losses inclusive of the deficiency of the capital out of the earnings or extra profit and then from the partner’s capital and then by the partners individually in their profit sharing ratio.

The company applies its assets inclusive of any contribution to make up the deficiency for paying to the third party and then for paying any loan or advances by the partner and lastly for paying back their capitals and if any surplus left after all this then it will be divided between the partners in their profit sharing ratio.

7. Agreements in restraint of trade

Section 54 of the Indian Partnership Act defines the agreement in restraint of trade. It means that when one party agrees with the other party to restrict his liberty to carry on the specific trade even in the present or in the future. This section defines that partners in expectancy of the dissolution of the firm make an agreement or settlement that few or all the partners will not carry any business similar to that of the company even for a particular period or within specific local limits.

CONCLUSION

This article concludes that the Indian Partnership Act, 1932 provides provisions regarding the dissolution of the firm. Dissolution of a partnership firm means dissolution of the relationship between all the partners of the firm. That means it’s the end of the existence of the firm and no further business shall be done by the company apart from the activities related to the closure of the firm. With the dissolution of the firm, there are certain effects regarding the same as the company have to close the books of account, all the liabilities must be settled by the partners and the profit and losses to be shared by the partners as per the terms of the agreement.

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This article is written by Ishika Gupta pursuing BBA L.LB from Gitarattan International Business School. This article aims to discuss in detail the general rules of succession of Hindu male as per Hindu Succession Act,1956.

INTRODUCTION

The two main systems for inheritance under Hindu law are Dayabhaga and Mitakshara. Both had different rules for inheritance of the property. While Dayabhaga was prevalent in Bengal and its adjoining areas Mitakshara was prevalent in the rest of the country. To bring uniformity in the application of general rules The Hindu Succession Act was applied on June 17, 1956. The main aim was to bring the changes in the rules of succession that were long demanded due to a change in social and economic perspectives of the people.

Meaning

Succession in general means the act of following or passing the objects, places etc in a particular series. As per the Indian law, succession means the succeeding or passing of rights over property and other things from one person to another. When a person is alive he is the master of the property vested in him but after his demise, it has to be passed to someone else. However, this passage or redistribution of property among the other family members is subject to many rules under The Hindu Succession Act,1956.

Types

Generally, there are two types of succession mentioned below:

1. Testamentary Succession: Whenever a person dies leaving behind his will he is free to choose the

2. Intestate Succession: It is the opposite situation i.e. when the person dies without making a will the property will be distributed among the members as per the law of inheritance. As per Section 3(g) of HSA, “a person is deemed to die intestate in respect of property of which he or she has not made a testamentary deposition capable to taking effect”. The law related to intestate succession deals with matters like who is entitled to property i.e. who are the heirs, if there is more than one heir then how will the property be distributed. Heir has been defined in Section 3(f) as a person who is entitled to succeed to the property intestate under the act.

Section 8 to Section 13 lay down the general laws of succession to the property of a Hindu male dying intestate. Section 8 talks about the rules of succession that are applicable when a Hindu male dies intestate after this act came into force.

Rules of Succession

Section 8 says that the dissolution of the property of person dying intestate must be as per the series laid down below. It is to be noted that property under HSA could be the separate or coparcenary property of the person, joint family property.

1. Firstly, it will pass upon the person who is mentioned in the list of Class 1 heirs of the act,

2. Secondly, if no person from class 1 is present it will pass onto persons mentioned in Class 2,

3. Thirdly, if no one from any of the class is there to succeed the property it will be distributed to the agnates as mentioned in Section 12,

4. Fourthly, if none of the people mentioned in the above three lists is present then it will devolve to cognates as mentioned in Section 13.

Class I Heirs

In simple words, if Hindu male dies intestate, the property entrusted in him is distributed among the members mentioned in class 1 equally and there is no preference order. The members mentioned in class 1 schedule are deceased person’s son, daughter, widow, mother, son of a predeceased son, daughter of predeceased son, son of a predeceased daughter, daughter of a predeceased daughter, widow of a predeceased son, son of predeceased son of a predeceased son, daughter of predeceased son of a predeceased son, widow of predeceased son of a predeceased son. Under this, the adopted child is also deemed as a natural child and the children born are out of the void or voidable marriage are also considered as legitimate children. Since the widows are also class 1 heirs but if there are more than 1 heir then the widows will inherit the property jointly. Married daughters are also eligible to inherit. Mother is always entitled to inherit the property, she can be divorced or remarried also as mentioned in Jayalaxmi v Ganesh Iyer.

Class II Heris

If at the time of distribution none of these people is there in the family then the members of class 2 are looked upon. But there is preference order among these and the people in one order are given property equally. As held in Karumaswami v Nanjappa the class 2 heirs are divided into 9 entries and all of them inherit cumulatively. If there are more than 1 brother or sister they inherit simultaneously. However full blood is preferred over half-blood whereas uterine blood is not counted.

Agnates

If none of the heirs under class 1 and class 2 are available then the property moves towards agnates. Agnates are the person who by blood or adoption are wholly related through males. Hence it is clear that the people are related by blood or adoption and not by marriage as mentioned in Section 3(g). There is no degree of the relationship under agnates and both male and female can be agnates. Also, there is no difference between full or half-blood.

Cognates

If agnates are also not present for dissolution then the cognates come into the picture. Cognates, as explained earlier, are related through females. Hence it does not matter how many women are there in the series, once one female is there the descendants are recognised as cognates. Similar to agnates cognates are also related through blood and adoption and not marriage.

While Section 8 and 9 discuss the preference order of class 1 and class 2 heirs, Section 10 talks about the share of each person when there are more than one persons to inherit simultaneously.

Section 12 lays down some rules for distribution of property among agnates and cognates:

Rule 1. Whenever there are more than 1 agnate or cognate the one who has less or few ascent degrees is preferred i.e. among descendants, ascendants and collaterals the descendants are preferred and so on.

Rule 2. When there are people with same degree of ascent the one with less degree of descent is preferred over the other.

Rule 3. If none of the heirs matches above rules then both will inherit the property equally.

CONCLUSION

Hence it is clear from the above information that the order of succession of Hindu male dying intestate is class 1 heir, class 2 heir, agnates and cognates. However, among these categories, there are different rules according to which the property is distributed among them.

Whenever there is no will made by the deceased he is said to dying intestate and in such case, the Hindu Succession Act comes in place and court checks the heirs as per the act and distributes the share to the heirs as per the rules.

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This article is authored by Pankhuri Pankaj, a 3rd year student pursuing BA-LLB (Hons.) from Vivekananda Institute of Professional Studies, affiliated to GGSIPU. She is currently interning with Lexpeeps. This article summarises certain key provisions of “Human Trafficking”.

INTRODUCTION

Human Trafficking is the illegal practice or action of transporting people from one country to another or to a different area for the purposes of forced labour or sexual exploitation. According to the definition of Human Trafficking in the Trafficking in Persons Protocol, there are three constituent elements in trafficking: the Act which means ¨what is done¨ and it includes recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipts of persons, the Means which means ¨how it is done¨ and it includes the threat or use of force, coercion, abduction, fraud, deception, abuse of powers or vulnerability, or giving payments or benefits to a person in control of the victim, and the Purpose which means ¨why it is done¨ and it includes the exploitation of the persons of others, sexual exploitation, forced labour, slavery or similar practices and the removal of organs.

Article 3 of the Trafficking in Persons Protocol provides consistency and consensus around the world on the phenomenon of trafficking in persons. Article 5 of the Protocol requires that the conduct set out in Article 3 should be criminalized in domestic legislation. It is not necessary that the domestic legislation should follow the language of the Protocol precisely, but it should be adapted in accordance with the domestic legal systems to give effect to the concept contained in the Protocol.

History of Human Trafficking in the World

According to the definition of Human Trafficking, if any person, of whatever gender or age, is taken somewhere against his or hell will, without full information about what that person may be getting into, it is human trafficking.

To understand the history of human trafficking, one can understand it through the following tiers:

1. African Slave Trade

The earliest form of human trafficking that can be traced leads to the ¨African Slave Trade¨. Different African groups served as both, an item of trade and middlemen, for the American and European continents that were involved as buyers. This trade is the earliest memory in the history of human kind to prove human trafficking.

This trade was both legal and government-tolerated, prior to the first law against slavery by the British in 1807 followed by the United States suit in 1820 which banned slavery over 40 years before the American Civil War.

2. White Slavery

White slavery can be defined as the procurement of a white female against her will for prostitution, by use of force, deceit, or drugs. It came into the picture after the African Slave Trade and gained attention after which the government began to cooperate to fight it. The International Conference against white slavery was organized in the year 1899 and 1902 in Paris and in 1904, the International Agreement for the Suppression of the ¨White Slave Traffic¨, was signed, yet the criminalization of white slavery was not legalised until 1910.

3. World War I

Much needed attention was drawn towards the efforts against white slavery with the first world war crisis. However, the first international organization of nations, the League of Nations, arose out of the First World War, and it was the first time agreements could be made within a set of organizations.

The mandates given to the various Allied Powers over nations in Africa and the Middle East brought attention to the international trafficking in all women, not simply white women; and additionally in children, both male and female. In 1921, 33 countries at a League of Nations international conference signed the International Convention for the Suppression of Traffic in Women and Children. At this time, human trafficking only covered trafficking for purposes of sexual exploitation and prostitution.

4. MODERN HUMAN TRAFFICKING

United Nations criminalized trafficking under the protocol of Transnational Organized Crime in 2000, still, at the very least 510, known trafficking flows all over the world. In recent years forced labour mitigations have been increasing which in turn has decreased the share of trafficking for sexual exploitation. In the year 2007, 32% of trafficked persons were forced labour migrants, and 4 years later, the share reached 40%. At the same time, trafficking in women is decreasing steadily, from a 74% share in female victims in 2004 to 49% in 2011. Unfortunately, it is matched by an increase in trafficked girls, from 10% up to 21% in 2011.

Development of Human Trafficking

In the past decades, human trafficking was carried out in various forms on various magnitudes, from African slave trade to Modern human trafficking, the growing international phenomenon of human trafficking has most certainly walked a long path and unfortunately, still continues to exist even in the year 2020.

After existing for decades, this illegal activity is usually seen to have originated from countries in Southeast Asia, Eastern Europe, and Sub-Saharan Africa, and the main cause of human trafficking in these origin countries stems from adverse circumstances like religious persecution, political dissension, lack of employment opportunities, globalization, poverty, wars, and natural disasters. Here, the recruiters seek migrants through various mediums, like the internet, employment opportunities, agencies, media, and local contacts, and the migrants view the services of the smuggler as an opportunity to move from impoverished conditions in their home countries to a more stable and developed environment. Although these victims often leave their destination country voluntarily, the majority are unaware that they are being recruited for a trafficking scheme. Some may be kidnapped or coerced, but many are bribed by false job opportunities, passports, or visas, for various types of exploitations like sex slavery, bonded labour, forced labour, prostitution, child labour, organ transplant etcetera.

Although this inhumane practice unfortunately not very new to the world, concerted efforts specifically to curtail human trafficking started to emerge in the mid-1990s, when public awareness of the issue also emerged, and the first step taken to eradicate this problem was to convince multiple stakeholders that human trafficking was a problem warranting government intervention. Soon the first comprehensive federal legislation specifically addressing human trafficking, the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (TVPA) was passed and many federal agencies were given the oversight of human trafficking, including the Departments of Justice, Homeland Security, Health and Human Services, and Labor and the U.S. Agency for International Development. The primary U.S. agency charged with monitoring human trafficking is the State Department’s Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (also called the trafficking office).

In addition, many governmental entities throughout the world started getting actively engaged in the attempt to stop or at least slow the activity of trafficking in humans, and in 2000 the UN finally established the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress, and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, which provided a commonly accepted working definition of human trafficking and called upon countries to promulgate laws to combat the practice, to assist victims, and to promote coordination and cooperation between countries.

Magnitude of Human Trafficking

Currently, 12.3 million adults and children are forced into labour, bonded labour, and forced prostitution, and out of this number, 56 per cent consist of Women. 1.8 person per 1000 persons worldwide is a victim of human trafficking today and this number is increasing to 3 persons per 1000 persons in Asia and the Pacific. These victims are trafficked both within and outside the international borders and these victims consist of both migrants and internally displaced persons.

Till date, there still exist 62 countries which are yet to convict a trafficker under the U.N. Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, 2000 and 104 countries are yet to establish laws or regulations regarding human trafficking in the country. According to estimates, internationally 32 billion dollars are generated every year through human trafficking concluding that every year 32 billion dollars get traded illicitly in the world with no taxes being paid. According to the US Department’s Annual Trafficking in Persons Report, 2013 and the State Department’s Annual Trafficking in Persons Report, the global financial crisis has increased the worldwide trade in trafficked persons, especially in Africa and slaps six African nations on the blacklist of countries not meeting the minimum standard of combating trafficking.

According to the report mandated by Congress, data and statistics from 175 countries around the world show that the amount of human trafficking goes on within their own borders, which amounts to modern slavery. It has been found that 79% of the women trafficked are subjected to sexual exploitation, and these victims are usually trapped by women from their own village and known persons on the facade of giving them a better life.

The huge number that illustrates the illegal trade of human trafficking quite efficiently portraits the magnitude of human trafficking in the world but unfortunately, that is not where this ghastly act end. According to many reports, many countries do not report the exact number of trafficking in their country as they fear that their country may be ranked in the list of defaulting countries. Until the government submits its exact statistics on the extent of trafficking and the conviction statistics, it becomes difficult not only to assess the magnitude of trafficking in the world and in each country but also to take measures to check the problem.

Human Trafficking in India

Although the practice of Human Trafficking has been strictly banned under the Indian Law, yet this illegal activity exists in quite a shameful magnitude in the country. The most prominent practice of human trafficking in the country where women are considered goddesses is the trade of women and girls for the purpose of commercial sexual exploitation or forced marriages.

According to estimates, 20 to 65 million people get affected by human trafficking in India and this trade takes place both in and out of the country. A most common sight is women getting transported from neighbouring countries for sexual exploitation and girls from the country getting trafficked to the Middle-East for the same purposes.

Although the country is home to the largest democracy in the world, the reason for these illicit activities is found to be the widespread poverty in the country and lack of proper education. These shortcomings have resulted in a myriad of human rights violations, especially against the women and girls in the society where patriarchy prevails.

Even though this unjustified unfair practice of human trafficking still continues to exist in the world as a social stigma and as a blot on the developing society, but through time this illicit activity has gone through many folds of recognition and has been able to achieve a worldwide awareness, with appropriate laws enforced against it, which can possibly help erase this practice of unnecessary exploitation of the vulnerable and make the world a better place to exist in.