Ayurveda practitioners not entitled to same pay as MBBS doctors, says SC

From Gujarat HC's order on Ayurveda practitioners to same-sex marriage case, here are the important cases that the Supreme Court heard today

The Supreme Court on Wednesday set aside a Gujarat High Court order which had held that Ayurveda practitioners working in government hospitals should be treated at par with allopathy doctors and entitled to equal pay. 

The court while hearing a batch of appeals recognised the importance of Ayurveda practitioners and the need to encourage alternative or indigenous systems of medicine. It further said that the court cannot be oblivious to the fact that both categories of doctors are not performing equal work to be entitled to equal pay.

Here are some other cases heard by the apex court today: 

In an important verdict, the Supreme Court said that an investigating agency cannot file charge sheet in court without completing probe to deprive default bail to an accused. "Without completing the investigation of a case, a charge sheet or prosecution complaint cannot be filed by an investigating agency only to deprive an arrested accused of his right to default bail under Section 167(2) of the CrPC," a bench of Justices Krishna Murari and C T Ravikumar observed.

Amid the hearing of pleas in the same-sex marriage case, the Centre urged the court to consider leaving questions raised in the pleas seeking legal sanction for same-sex marriages to Parliament, saying the court is dealing with a very complex subject having a very profound social impact and which would also require going into 160 provisions of different laws.

The Karnataka government told the top court that it has taken a conscious decision to not continue with the reservation on the sole basis of religion, and therefore the state government has scrapped a four per cent quota in favour of the Muslim community. On Tuesday, the apex court directed that the earlier regime of the state government, which granted four per cent reservations to Muslims will be continued till May 9, a day before the assembly elections in the state.

The court on Wednesday also modified its 2022 order which stated that each protected forest such as national parks and wildlife sanctuaries must have an eco-sensitive zone (ESZ) of one kilometre. The court was hearing the Central government's plea, which argued that if the directions aren't modified, severe hardship would be inflicted upon the millions of people living around ESZ.

After the Kerala High Court stayed the conviction of Lakshadweep MP Mohammed Faizal, a plea was filed in the apex court, challenging the notification of the Lok Sabha Secretariat restoring Faizal''s membership.

Chhattisgarh moved the apex court challenging the constitutional validity of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The state government accused the investigating agencies of being misused to intimidate, harass, and disturb the normal functioning of non-BJP state government.

A man who was convicted of raping his nine-year-old daughter has been ordered by the apex court to undergo 20 years of imprisonment without remission. The court observed that the sanctity of this very relationship has been destroyed by the 'debauched and devastating acts'.

The court was informed on Wednesday by Delhi Police that a preliminary probe was needed before the cops can proceed with the registration of an FIR over sexual harassment allegations levelled by women wrestlers against WFI chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.