Three Singapore apex court judges share ceremonial benches at Bombay High Court
Mumbai, Sep 6: In a first, three judges from Singapore's Supreme Court, including its Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon, were part of Bombay High Court benches on Friday.
Chief Justice Menon of Singapore's Supreme Court shared a Ceremonial Bench with Bombay HC's Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya as well as Justices GS Kulkarni and Firdosh Pooniwalla in the historic central courtroom.
The bench briefly heard petitions challenging reservation granted to the Maratha community in Maharashtra.
Justice Ramesh Kannan of Singapore's apex court shared the bench with Justices Nitin Jamdar and MM Sathaye, while Justice Andre Francis Maniam from that nation shared the Ceremonial Bench with HC Justices KR Shriram and Jitendra Jain.
Welcoming Singapore's Chief Justice Menon before the court began proceedings, CJ Upadhyaya said, "I am very glad and happy to announce that amongst us today is the CJ of Singapore Supreme Court. He was here in Bombay in 2015. I welcome him once again."
Advocate General Birendra Saraf, appearing for the Maharashtra government, informed that the bench was assembled in a courtroom where the trial against freedom fighter Bal Gangadhar Tilak was held and where he was convicted.
"Chief Justice Menon shares ideas similar to our own Chief Justice of India (D Y Chandrachud) regarding collaboration of ideas between Singapore and India," Saraf said.
Senior counsel Pradeep Sancheti, appearing for the petitioners in the Maratha reservation issue, said the reservation decision was arbitrary and illegal.
The bench heard the matter briefly. Before leaving, CJ Menon bowed and thanked everyone present in court.
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BESCOM to organise EV expo for Secretariat employees in Jan 2025
Bengaluru (PTI): To encourage the adoption of electric vehicles (EV), Bangalore Electricity Supply Company Limited (BESCOM) announced on Friday that a special EV fair will be organised for the Secretariat employees in January 2025.
During a meeting at the BESCOM office, Managing Director Mahantesh Bilagi said, "The fair is being organised following a directive of Chief Secretary Shalini Rajneesh and will be conducted under the supervision of Energy Minister K J George and Additional Chief Secretary of the Energy Department Gaurav Gupta."
According to him, the event aims to educate attendees about the benefits of environmentally friendly EVs and to encourage the adoption of two-wheeled EVs.
"During the fair, dealer discounts to government employees, particularly those in the Secretariat will also be offered. There will also be opportunities for practical demonstrations of the vehicles at the exhibition site," added Bilagi.
He said the Secretariat employees will also benefit from no down payment and low-interest loans to purchase the EV vehicles.
"EV companies are eager to participate and the sales will extend beyond the exhibition, continuing in the future," the Managing Director said.
The state, particularly Bengaluru, has the highest electric vehicle (EV) users, said Bilagi, adding that to support this, the Energy Department has provided essential infrastructure.
"BESCOM's efforts in promoting EV usage have been recognised with the 'Charge India 2024 Excellence' award. This award is a testament to our commitment to establishing excellent charging facilities. Karnataka has the country's most public electric vehicle charging stations, with a total of 5,765 stations, of which 4,462 are located in the Bengaluru Urban district," said Bilagi.
The Secretariat Employees' Association president Ramesh Sanga and other office-bearers, BESCOM Technical Director H J Ramesh as well as senior officials attended the meeting.
