In a setback to opponents of capital punishment, the Supreme Court has enlarged the scope of the penalty, saying killing of more than one innocent or killing through organised crime could attract the sentence.

"A murder committed due to deep-seated mutual and personal rivalry may not call for death penalty. But an organised crime or mass murder of innocent people would call for imposition of death sentence," a bench of justice Arijit Pasayat and justice Mukundakam Sharma said.

The judges scrapped a verdict of the Allahabad High Court reducing to life term the death sentence given by a trial court to two persons for killing six members of a family in 1994.

The state government’s new licence initiative will be a people friendly one. Sources in the state government claimed that the new system will help reduce the time it takes a licence holder to pay fines and various taxes and fees such as the fee for renewal of licence. The new digital licence will have a microchip which will contain all relevant information about the licence holder. This information will be made available online to various traffic authorities such as the police and the RTO.

Sydney  - An Australian woman accused of suffocating her father with a pillow after binding him to his bed with cling wrap was exonerated by a Sydney court Monday.

Daniela Beltrame, 55, was found not guilty of murdering her 70-year-old father despite testimony from her daughter.

Romina Beltrame, 29, told the court that when she tried to free her grandfather her mother said: "What are you doing? It's taken me hours to Glad Wrap him."

Thane resident P Sarnaik nails Ghodbunder Road toll impropriety

Authorities behind the toll collection at Ghodbunder Road in Thane were issued notices by the Bombay High Court on Thursday.

Justice Swatanter Kumar in this notice has asked the parties to submit the reports of concerned account within 15 days. Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC), Ideal Road Builders (IRB) and the state government have been held accountable in this petition.

Earlier this year, Shiv Sena leader Pratap Sarnaik had petitioned the high court to stop the collection of toll and also recover the excess amount from IRB.

Civil rights organisation the Jan Sangharsh Manch (JSM) has demanded that the Justice Nanavati Commission be dissolved and that IPS officer Rahul Sharma be appointed as part of the Special Investigation Team (SIT).

Briefing the media on Friday, JSM convenor Mukul Sinha said, “The Supreme Court and the Gujarat high court have upheld the opinion of the Central Pota Review Committee that there had been no conspiracy involved in the burning of coach S-6 of the Sabarmati Express and that the Prevention of Terrorism Act (Pota) could not be invoked in the case. The Supreme Court also refused to grant a stay on this judgement of the Gujarat high court.”

Petitioner alleged that UDF collection by BIAL is illegal as only AAI can collect a fee

The Karnataka High Court on Friday ordered that the collection of user development fee (UDF) by Bengaluru International Airport Limited (BIAL) from domestic passengers is subject to the final order of the court.

A division bench headed by Justice Deepak Varma disposed the application challenging the collection of UDF and stated that if the court judges in favour of the petitioners, then BIAL will have to refund UDF to all passengers who have made the payment till date.

BIAL also voluntarily accepted the court’s decision.