Wikipedia

Pratibha Rani

Pratibha Rani (born 25 August 1956) is a former judge of the Delhi High Court, in Delhi, India.[1] She gained public attention after writing several controversial judicial orders, including an granting bail to political activist Kanhaiya Kumar, in which she quoted Bollywood song lyrics and described surgical procedures to caution him, and another order describing the offence of rape as a "weapon for vengeance and personal vendetta".[2] She has also written several significant judgments, including the reaffirmation of death penalty to the convicts of the 2012 Delhi gang-rape and murder, and the reduction of sentences and grant of bail to convicted offenders of child sexual abuse on the grounds that the child victim may have consented to the abuse.[3][4][5]

Hon'ble Ms. Justice
Pratibha Rani
Judge of the Delhi High Court
In office
17 October 2011 – 28 August 2018
Nominated byS. H. Kapadia
Appointed byPratibha Patil
Personal details
Born (1956-08-25) 25 August 1956 (age 68)
Alma materUniversity of Delhi

Career

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Trial courts

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Rani qualified into the Delhi Judicial Service and was appointed as a Metropolitan Magistrate, Civil Judge, and Labour Court judge. In 1996 she was transferred to the Delhi Higher Judicial Service. She served as a special judge for offences investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation, and for offences prosecuted under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act. In 2011, she was appointed as a District and Sessions Judge in Delhi.[1]

During her tenure as a trial judge, Rani has tried a number of significant cases, including the conviction a person for providing logistical aid in the 2005 Ram Janmabhoomi attack,[6] a case concerning admissions-related scams at the Delhi College of Engineering,[7][8] the closure of cases against Indian National Congress Minister Satish Sharma for his alleged involvement in the unlawful grant of licenses to operate petrol pumps during his tenure as Minister for Petroleum.[9]

Delhi High Court

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On 17 October 2011, Rani was appointed to the Delhi High Court as an additional judge, and was later confirmed as a permanent judge.[1][10]

As a High Court judge, Rani has made several significant rulings in the field of family law. In 2016 she wrote a judgment establishing the principle that an adult son has no legal right to reside in his parents' home without their consent.[11] In 2012, along with Judge Pradeep Nandrajog, she established that alimony was not payable if a divorced spouse had the qualifications and ability to earn an income but chose to remain unemployed.[12]

Rani has also made significant contributions to the law governing the offence of rape in India. in 2016, along with Judge Reva Khetrapal, she affirmed a trial court's sentence of the death penalty to the four adult convicts of the 2012 Delhi gangrape and murder, in an order that was later affirmed by the Supreme Court before being carried out in 2020.[3][13][14][15] In 2016, Rani also held that the refusal of a woman to consent to sexual intercourse with her husband amounted to "mental cruelty" and was grounds for divorce.[16] Rani has also established judicial precedent allowing the grant of bail and reduction of sentences for convicted child offenders in cases where the child victim of abuse makes a statement indicating that the abuse was "consensual". In 2014, Rani granted bail to a man accused of assaulting a 15 year old child, describing the act as "consensual."[4] In 2017, Rani acquitted a man of kidnapping, and reduced his sentence for rape, after the 14 year old victim made a statement professing her "deep love" for the convict, while affirming the provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act that indicate that children below the age of 18 are not capable of providing consent.[5] In 2017, she passed an order dismissing a case of rape, and stated in her judgement that "...women use the law as a weapon for vengeance and personal vendetta,” when relationships fail.[2]

In 2016, Rani wrote a controversial order granting interim bail to Indian political activist (and then student) Kanhaiya Kumar, in which she included Bollywood song lyrics and references to surgical procedures, and described student protesters as "gangrene" and "infection", going on to say that in such cases, "...amputation is the only treatment".[17][18][19][20] The order was widely criticised, with Supreme Court senior counsel Rajeev Dhavan noting for the Indian Express that the order did not contain sufficient reference to the law on bail,[21] legal scholar Usha Ramanathan criticizing the violent imagery of the ruling,[22] Vice-Chancellor Faizan Mustafa of the NALSAR Academy of Law criticizing the use of "majoritarian rhetoric" in the judgment,[23] and Arghya Sengupta, director of the Vidhi Center for Legal Policy, describing the order as being "in equal parts rhetorical, puerile and incomprehensible."[24] Following objections from Kumar's lawyers, the case was subsequently transferred to another judge.[25]

Rani retired from the Delhi High Court on 24 August 2018.[1]

Post-judicial appointments

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In 2019, Rani was appointed by the Delhi High Court to manage the affairs and functioning of the Sai Baba Temple on Lodhi Road, in Delhi, during on ongoing case about mismanagement of temple funds by officials of the managing trust of the temple.[26][27] In the same year, the National Green Tribunal in Delhi appointed Rani to head a committee to investigate the running of industrial units in residential areas in Delhi, in an effort to address pollution in the city. Following the submission of the committee report, the Tribunal shut down over 4000 industrial units in Delhi.[28][29]

Personal life

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Rani completed her graduate education at the University of Delhi, earning an undergraduate degree at Lady Shri Ram College, and an LL.B. degree at the university's Faculty of Law.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e "Former Judges: Justice Pratibha Rani". Delhi High Court.
  2. ^ a b "When relationships break, some women use law for vengeance: Delhi HC". The Indian Express. 5 August 2017. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  3. ^ a b "Delhi High Court upholds death penalty of three youths for rape, murder of girl". The Economic Times. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  4. ^ a b "Delhi High Court grants bail to youth accused of raping minor, says relationship was consensual". DNA India. 3 November 2014. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  5. ^ a b "Delhi High Court says 14-year-old gave consent, convict's rape term reduced". The Indian Express. 30 September 2017. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  6. ^ "Ayodhya attack: Bengal resident held guilty - Indian Express". archive.indianexpress.com. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  7. ^ "DCE scam kingpin, accomplice surrender; sent to CBI custody". Outlook India. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  8. ^ "DCE scam: Custody of Dahiya, Hooda extended; new names come up". Zee News. 5 August 2005. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  9. ^ "Court reprieve to Capt Satish Sharma in petrol pump scam". Outlook India. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  10. ^ "Three judges sworn into High Court, lawyers stay away in protest - Indian Express". archive.indianexpress.com. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  11. ^ "Son has no legal right in house owned by parents: Delhi High Court". The Indian Express. 30 November 2016. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  12. ^ "Delhi HC denies interim maintenance to working wife". The Indian Express. 12 September 2016. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  13. ^ "Delhi gang rape: Death penalty for four men upheld". BBC News. 13 March 2014. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  14. ^ "Nirbhaya case: Four Indian men executed for 2012 Delhi bus rape and murder". BBC News. 20 March 2020. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  15. ^ "India court upholds 2012 Delhi gang rapists' death penalty". BBC News. 5 May 2017. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  16. ^ "Denying sex to husband for long period ground for divorce: Delhi High Court". The Indian Express. 12 October 2016. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  17. ^ "JNU row: Kanhaiya Kumar gets bail and a lesson on thoughts that 'infect… (like) gangrene'". The Indian Express. 3 March 2016. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  18. ^ "IN THE COURT OF LAW: What judge said while granting bail to Kanhaiya". www.telegraphindia.com. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  19. ^ "'Like An Infection In A Limb': Court On Kanhaiya Kumar's Alleged Offence". NDTV.com. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  20. ^ "Kanhaiya's Bail Judgement Begins With 'Mere Desh Ki Dharti'". HuffPost India. 2 March 2016. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  21. ^ "Decode this: Delhi HC must explain Kanhaiya bail order". The Indian Express. 14 March 2016. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  22. ^ "The Necessity Of Dissent". The Indian Express. 1 May 2017. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  23. ^ "Strange and Arbitrary Bail Orders: Are Indian Judges Going Too Far?". The Wire. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  24. ^ "An unseemly judicial cure: Unsound reasoning and thoughts of amputation behind Kanhaiya Kumar's bail". Times of India Blog. 5 March 2016. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  25. ^ "Pleas for cancellation of bail to Kanhaiya referred to HC Chief Justice". The Indian Express. 17 March 2016. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  26. ^ Staff Reporter (30 October 2019). "Former judge to manage affairs of Sai Baba Temple". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  27. ^ "HC appoints retd judge as administrator to manage affairs of Lodhi Road's Sai Baba Temple". Business Standard India. Press Trust of India. 29 October 2019. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  28. ^ "Shut down 4,774 industries in residential areas immediately, NGT directs Delhi govt". Outlook India. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  29. ^ "Shut down 4,774 industries running in residential areas: NGT to Delhi govt". Business Standard India. Press Trust of India. 25 November 2019. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
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