The Supreme Court of India is set to reopen on Monday after its 'partial working days' summer vacation, with a packed docket that includes several high-profile cases. Among the matters listed for hearing are petitions seeking a CBI investigation into alleged misappropriation of donations at the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, a plea for regulation of unpredictable airline fares, and a challenge to the non-selection of riders for India's dressage team in the Asian Games.
Ram Temple Donation Probe
A three-judge bench led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant will hear three public interest litigations (PILs) demanding an independent probe into the finances of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust. The first PIL, filed by petitioner-in-person Narendra Kumar Goswami, seeks a CBI investigation under the Supreme Court's direct supervision and a Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) audit of the Trust's finances.
The second PIL, by advocates Ajay Kumar Rai and Dinesh Kumar Yadav, requests a fair and time-bound probe by a CBI-led multi-disciplinary Special Investigation Team (SIT) into allegations of donation misappropriation. They also want the SIT to investigate alleged financial irregularities and other purported illegalities concerning the Trust's affairs and administration.
The third PIL, filed by Rashtriya Janata Dal MP Sudhakar Singh, seeks transfer of the ongoing probe to the CBI under the top court's direct supervision. Singh demands a comprehensive forensic audit of all donations, transactions, and assets of the Trust by an independent agency, and urges the court to direct the Trust to publish audited financial statements and donation records on its official website for public transparency.
Airfare Regulation
The Supreme Court is also expected to hear a PIL seeking regulatory guidelines to control unpredictable fluctuations in airfares and ancillary charges imposed by private airlines. The bench led by Justice Vikram Nath will hear the plea filed by activist S Laxminarayanan, who also calls for a robust and independent regulator to ensure transparency and passenger protection in the civil aviation sector.
On May 15, the court had observed that there should be some rationalisation of airfares and asked the central government to provide relief to flyers. The bench noted that on the same day, one airline flying in the same sector charges a particular fare while another charges a different fare, highlighting the lack of uniformity.
Dressage Team Selection
A bench led by Justice PS Narasimha will hear a petition challenging the Delhi High Court's refusal to interfere with the non-selection of riders Anush Agarwalla and Sudipti Hajela in India's dressage team for the upcoming Asian Games in Japan. The petitioners argue that the selection process was flawed and seek a review of the decision.
Sahara-SEBI Matter
The Chief Justice-led bench is scheduled to take up a plea by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) challenging a part of the Securities Appellate Tribunal order that granted relief to managers and the company secretary of Sahara India Commercial Corporation Ltd (SICCL). In addition to SEBI's plea, all pending Sahara matters, including the return of money to investors, are also listed for hearing.
