Business
No restaurant can charge 18% tax on products, says complaint

No restaurant can charge 18 per cent tax on products, a complaint by Chandigarh-based advocate Ajay Jagga said on Monday.
He said some of the eateries in Himachal Pradesh were charging 18 per cent GST on products.
Jagga, in a communication to the Central Goods and Services Tax, Shimla Commissionerate, said an eatery in Parwanoo town in Himachal Pradesh was charging 18 per cent GST instead of 5 per cent on its premises, which was incorrect.
“The rate of GST on sales by eateries is five per cent whereas on visit to the restaurant of Timber Trail Resorts, Pawanoo, on last May 27, it has been found that this taxable person is charging GST at rate of 18 per cent i.e. nine per cent under the state GST and equal per cent under the Centre GST, whereas the rate of five per cent i.e. 2.5 per cent state GST and 2.5 per cent under Centre GST,” Jagga said in a complaint.
“The charging of GST at the rate 18 per cent instead of five per cent in the premises of a restaurant appears to be not in accordance with law and needs probe, as lakhs of tourists are paying bills in Himachal Pradesh every day.”
Jagga had earlier made several complaints to the Consumer Affairs Department and the Excise and Taxation Department of the Chandigarh administration.
“It is a clear case of imposition of unjustified costs on the consumers and if someone does it then it is tantamount to restrictive and unfair trade practice,” he said.
“Higher rate of tax (in an arbitrary manner) from commercial point of view should not overrule the consumer interest,” Jagga added.
Earlier, in a letter to Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, he had said the Centre should issue necessary advisory to all states that restaurants should stop charging unjustified extra cost, which was being imposed on consumers for items such as pastry, cake, etc.
Crime
Mere recovery of blood-stained weapon matching deceased’s blood group not sufficient to prove murder: SC

suprim court
New Delhi, June 27: Upholding the acquittal of an accused, the Supreme Court has ruled that mere recovery of a blood-stained weapon bearing the same blood group as that of the deceased would not be sufficient to prove the charge of murder.
A bench of Justices Sandeep Mehta and P.B. Varale was dealing with a criminal appeal filed by the Rajasthan government challenging a judgment of the Rajasthan High Court, which had acquitted the respondent-accused of the offence of murder.
In its impugned order, a division bench set aside the judgment passed by the Additional Sessions Judge in December 2008, which had convicted the respondent for the offence punishable under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 and sentenced him to undergo life imprisonment and pay a fine of Rs 100, and in default of payment of fine, to further undergo 3 months simple imprisonment.
During the trial, the respondent was charged with the murder of Chotu Lal, which took place on the intervening night of March 1 and 2, 2007.
Initially, an FIR was filed against unknown assailants, and at a later stage, the respondent was arraigned in the case on the basis of suspicion and circumstantial evidence.
The prosecution led circumstantial evidence in the form of motive, alleging the respondent was having an evil eye on the wife of the deceased; recovery of the weapon of offence and the FSL report indicating that the blood group on the weapon matched with the blood group of the deceased (B +ve).
Contrary to the findings of the trial court, the Rajasthan High Court opined that the prosecution could not prove the complete chain of circumstances required to bring home the guilt of the accused in the case, which was based entirely on circumstantial evidence, and proceeded to acquit the respondent.
Concurring with the view taken by the Rajasthan HC, the Justice Mehta-led Bench said: “We find that the incriminating circumstances relied upon by the prosecution, i.e., the motive and the recovery of the blood stained weapon, even taken in conjunction cannot constitute the complete chain of incriminating circumstances required to bring home the charges against the accused.”
“The High Court seems to have overlooked the FSL report, which fact was stressed upon by learned counsel for the appellant (state government). However, in our view, even if the FSL report is taken into account, then also, other than the fact that the weapon recovered at the instance of the accused tested positive for the same blood group as that of the deceased (B +ve), nothing much turns on the said report,” it added.
The apex court, relying upon a previous judgment of the apex court, opined that mere recovery of a blood-stained weapon even bearing the same blood group of the victim would not be sufficient to prove the charge of murder.
It discarded the theory of motive, saying the evidence in that regard seems to be very vague and vacillating.
The Justice Mehta-led Bench added that the law is well settled by a catena of apex court decisions that in an appeal against acquittal, interference can only be made if the only possible view based on the evidence points to the guilt of the accused and rules out his innocence.
Dismissing the appeal of the state government, the Supreme Court said: “In the present case, we are duly satisfied that the prosecution failed to lead clinching evidence to bring home the charges. The only possible view is the one taken by the High Court, i.e., the innocence of the accused.”
National
BJP accuses Congress of opposing voter verification to shield fake votes in Bihar

New Delhi, June 27: Following Congress’ objection to the Election Commission of India’s special revision of the state’s voter list ahead of the upcoming Assembly elections in Bihar, the BJP has launched a sharp counterattack, accusing the grand old party of attempting to protect fake voters.
BJP state president Dilip Jaiswal defended the ECI and called Congress’ objections baseless.
“The Election Commission is an independent body which works independently. It is its responsibility to ensure that elections are conducted with complete transparency. If any political party opposes this, it is wrong. Fake voting can be prevented by the revision of the voter list. Voters who have died will be identified. This process will also make it clear whether the voter is actually in Bihar or voting somewhere else. This is a very necessary step for transparency. I congratulate the Election Commission for this,” Jaiswal said.
Bihar Congress president Rajesh Kumar on Thursday criticised the ECI for initiating the voter list revision process in a limited time frame.
He alleged that the move is part of a conspiracy to suppress the electoral rights of marginalised communities.
Reacting strongly to these allegations, BJP leader and Minister Nitin Nabin questioned Congress’ intent behind opposing the exercise.
“I say that Congress should clarify what exactly they are objecting to. If genuine voters are being verified and fake voters are being removed, is Congress sitting here to commit fraud? I want to ask the opposition members who are opposing this, are you trying to gain power through fake votes? Such fake voters will definitely be stopped, and the parties doing fraud will also be taught a lesson,” Nabin asserted.
The ECI has issued instructions for holding Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Bihar, where polls are to be held by year-end. This means electoral rolls for the state will be prepared afresh.
The special voter list inspection has been undertaken by the ECI as a standard pre-election procedure to ensure the accuracy of electoral rolls.
Officials have stated that the process will help remove deceased or duplicate voters and correct errors, ensuring a fair and transparent election.
Crime
Kerala HC judge files complaint of theft at his residence, police probe on

Kochi, 27 June: The Kochi police have received a theft complaint from Kerala High Court Judge, Justice A. Badharudeen, according to officials on Friday, stating that six sovereigns of gold were missing from his residence.
The complaint, which was filed on Thursday, mentions that the gold has been stolen from the judge’s bedroom. The police have registered an FIR under Section BNS 305.
What has surprised many is that the thief has decamped with gold from a high-security guarded house located in the heart of the commercial capital of the state.
The judge registered the complaint with the Kalamassery police under which his residence falls.
After the preliminary probe, the police are now planning to prepare a list of those who need to be spoken to, as this incident occurred in the bedroom of the senior judge.
More details are awaited.
The incident has raised concerns regarding the security situation in the state. The Congress-led UDF has been accusing the state government of failing to curb the crimes.
It has been found that Kerala is a haven for organised gangs hailing from neighbouring states who specialise in robbing homes, and the cases against non-Keralaite thieves are also on the increase.
According to information prepared by the home department, which was placed before the Assembly last year, it showed 192 cases of theft involving non-Keralites were registered in 2021, and the numbers have been steadily increasing. This rose to 360 in 2022.
In 2023, the number increased further to 519, and by September 2024, a total of 307 such cases were registered. But the image of the Kerala Police got a boost when over 1,350 thieves during this period were put behind bars.
However, with regards to the case being registered in the burglary at the home of a judge, the police appear to have a tough job ahead.
Likewise, with other crimes also on the increase, the Ernakulam Police have come out with a directive to landlords who are seeking to rent out their properties. The police have urged the landlords to get a police clearance certificate from the prospective tenants from their local police station where they stayed.
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