Newlyweds Aditi Rao Hydari and Siddharth made their first appearance since their wedding earlier this week. The two were seen arriving hand-in-hand at the airport. Aditi looked lovely in a simple pink salwar suit while Siddharth opted for a denim shirt paired with jeans and a cap.

Aditi and Siddharth smiled at and interacted with the paparazzi as they congratulated the happy couple. Watch the video here:

Check out the photos here:

The Supreme Court on Friday rebuked the Central Bureau of Investigation over the wording of a plea asking that cases related to violence after the 2021 Bengal election be heard outside the state.

The CBI had filed a petition in December to transfer these cases citing concern over the possible intimidation of witnesses. However the language of that petition – which included references to a “hostile environment prevailing in the courts (in Bengal)”, irked the top court.

A bench of Justice Abhay S Oka and Justice Pankaj Mithal took exception to the federal agency casting aspersions against the “entire judiciary in Bengal”. “… you are talking as if there is a ‘hostile environment’ in the whole of Bengal…” the court told Additional Solicitor General SV Raju, appearing for the federal agency, “Mr Raju, what kind of grounds are taken in this plea?”

“How can you say this… how can you say ‘hostile atmosphere prevails in Bengal courts’? Your officers may not like the judicial officers but don’t make such statements,” the CBI was told.

The agency was warned of contempt of court proceedings but after Mr Raju apologised, and acknowledged the petition had been “loosely drafted”, the court allowed its withdrawal.

A fresh petition will be filed, Mr Raju told the court.

The CBI had been mandated by the Calcutta High Court to investigate, with help from a special police team, “heinous crimes of rape and murder” and other complaints of violence after the results of the 2021 election were declared.

The Assembly poll saw Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress retain power despite a strong challenge from the Bharatiya Janata Party, but the election period and that after were marred by shocking reports of violence across the state; multiple videos and images of atrocities, that each party claimed had been perpetrated by the other, flooded social media.

The High Court, in its directions, had criticised the state police for not filing complaints when presented with possible major crimes, such as rape or murder, and sometimes displayed a “predetermined mindset to take a case in a particular direction”, apparently to favour the accused who, in many cases, were identified as workers or supporters of the ruling party.

The BJP has welcomed the judgment, calling it “historic” and a vindication of its claims, while the Trinamool expressed unhappiness over the CBI being summoned.

The Supreme Court today sought a report from the Karnataka High Court over controversial remarks made by Justice Vedavyasachar Srishananda during a recent court hearing. Justice Srishananda, while addressing a landlord-tenant dispute, referred to a Muslim-majority area in Bengaluru as “Pakistan” and made a misogynistic comment involving a woman lawyer. 

A five-judge bench led by Chief Justice of India  DY Chandrachud, along with Justices S Khanna, B R Gavai, S Kant, and H Roy, expressed the need for establishing clear guidelines for constitutional court judges regarding their remarks in court. The Supreme Court bench said that when social media plays an active role in monitoring and amplifying courtroom proceedings, there is an urgency to ensure judicial commentary aligns with the decorum expected from courts of law.

“Attention has been drawn to media reports to the comments made by Justice…of Karnataka High Court during the court proceedings. We request the Karnataka High Court to submit a report after seeking instructions from the Chief Justice of the high court,” Chief Justice Chandrachud said. We may lay down some basic guidelines.” 

Chief Justice Chandrachud ordered the report to be filed and submitted within two days. The hearing of the matter is scheduled for Wednesday, next week. 

Videos of Justice Srishanananda have gone viral on social media.

 In one video, he refers to a Muslim-dominated locality in Bengaluru as “Pakistan” and on another video he was seen making objectionable comments against a woman lawyer. In the second incident, Justice Srishanananda can be heard telling the woman lawyer that she seemed to know a lot about the “opposition party”, so much so that she might be able to reveal the colour of their undergarments.