Jupiter, Saturn 'merge' in rare cosmic event
Kolkata, Dec 21: Space enthusiasts had the opportunity to watch a rare celestial event on Monday evening as the Jupiter and the Saturn appeared to merge and looked like a single bright star, in what is called a conjunction.
People gathered to watch the phenomenon, which took place after about 400 years, on rooftops and open grounds in different parts of Kolkata and West Bengal though the winter fog partially hindered the view.
Hundreds of sky gazers assembled at the Birla Industrial and Technological Museum in the city as the leading science museum has made an arrangement for them to view the cosmic event at the south-western part of the sky through a telescope, a BITM spokesman said.
The two planets have never been so close since 1623, Director of M P Birla Planetarium, Debi Prasad Duari, said.
He said, "If two celestial bodies visually appear close to each other from the Earth, it is called a conjunction. And such conjunction of the Saturn and the Jupiter is at times called a great conjunction" if it happens once in a lifetime.
The planets will again appear to come as close as this from the Earth on March 15, 2080.
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SC frowns upon Jharkhand HC for not pronouncing verdict in criminal cases, seeks report from all HCs
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New Delhi (PTI): The Supreme Court on Monday expressed surprise that the Jharkhand High Court has not pronounced verdicts in 67 criminal appeals after reserving judgement and asked all high courts to submit report in a month on cases where judgements are pending.
A bench of Justices Surya Kant and N Kotiswar Singh termed the development as "disturbing", and said it will law down some mandatory guidelines on the issue.
"This cannot be allowed to happen," the bench said, as it sought reports from all the high courts in four weeks on cases where judgement has been reserved on or before January 31, 2025 but verdict has not been pronounced till date.
The top court passed the directions after perusing the report filed by registrar general of the Jharkhand High Court in which it said in 56 criminal appeals heard by division bench from January, 2022 till December, 2024, the verdict has not been pronounced despite order being reserved.
It also noted that before the single bench judge, judgement has not been pronounced in 11 criminal appeals despite order being reserved.
The top court was hearing a plea of four life convicts, who have approached through advocate Fauzia Shakil, claiming that the Jharkhand high court had reserved orders on their appeals against conviction in 2022 but did not pronounce verdicts due to which they were not able to claim the benefit of remission.
