Daily News Capsules
1. SC junks parts of tribunal law, cites ‘override’
The Supreme Court on Wednesday struck down multiple provisions of the Tribunal Reforms Act, 2021, holding that Parliament had effectively resurrected statutory provisions earlier invalidated by the court and thereby committed an impermissible act of “legislative override”, in a sweeping reaffirmation of constitutional supremacy and judicial independence. It also sought the creation of a National Tribunals Commission to appoint people to tribunals. The provisions struck down included the four-year tenure for tribunal members and the minimum entry age of 50. Delivering a detailed and strongly reasoned judgment, a bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) Bhushan R Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran held that the 2021 law “merely repackaged” what was struck down in the Madras Bar Association (MBA-V) case in July 2021, without curing any constitutional defects identified earlier. “This amounts to a legislative override in the strictest sense: an attempt to nullify binding judicial directions without addressing the underlying constitutional infirmities. Such an approach is impermissible under our constitutional scheme,” declared the bench. The court’s 137-page judgment underscored that India’s constitutional framework does not recognise parliamentary supremacy in the British sense. “The Indian Constitution subscribes to constitutional supremacy,” said the court, adding that once judicial pronouncements identify constitutional defects and lay down binding directions, Parliament cannot simply re-enact the same provisions under a new label.
Possible Question
Critically examine how legislative override threatens constitutional supremacy. What institutional mechanisms are needed to ensure judicial independence while enabling effective tribunal administration?
2. Despite probe into Al Falah, students sign up for seats to study medicine
On November 13, even as investigators had identified the connection between Faridabad’s Al Falah Medical College and the November 10 blast near Delhi’s Red Fort that claimed at least 12 lives, the last round of counselling for filling up 15 seats in the college’s MBBS programme was going on. It has filled all 150 MBBS seats for the 2025-26 academic session, college officials said on Wednesday even as a cloud hangs over it. The National Medical Commission (NMC) officials said that the apex medical regulator will provide its required inputs to the investigating agencies after they examine everything related to the incident and decide the next course of action based on their findings. On the possibility of withdrawing approval or scrapping affiliation, a senior NMC official said it was too early to speculate. Al Falah School of Medical Sciences & Research Centre under Al Falah University received NMC approval to admit its first batch of MBBS students in 2019.
Possible Question
Discuss the regulatory and ethical challenges involved in overseeing private medical education institutions in India, particularly when law-enforcement investigations intersect with academic accreditation and student safety.
3. Apex court asks Hindu women to make wills, ensure property rights
The Supreme Court on Wednesday urged all Hindu women to execute wills to ensure their self-acquired and other properties devolve according to their wishes, even as it refused to decide a challenge to Section 15(1)(b) of the Hindu Succession Act, 1956 — the provision that prioritises a woman’s husband’s heirs over her parents if she dies intestate without children or a spouse. The bench said the recurring succession disputes reaching courts and the “heartburn” caused when a woman’s self-acquired property bypasses her parents made it imperative for women to proactively safeguard their interests through wills. “We appeal to all women and particularly all Hindu women, including those who may fall within Section 15(1) of the Act, to take immediate steps to make a testament or will. This is to avoid further litigation and to ensure their properties, including self-acquired ones, devolve according to their wishes,” the bench said. It also directed that whenever parents — or their heirs — of a Hindu woman dying intestate make a claim under the Act, the parties must first undergo pre-litigation mediation before instituting any suit.
Possible Question
Evaluate whether India’s personal law framework adequately safeguards women’s property rights. Should legislative reform of the Hindu Succession Act be prioritised, or are behavioural and institutional interventions—such as legal literacy and mandatory mediation—more effective?
4. Curacao, home to just 156k, make Fifa history
Curacao, the tiny island in the Caribbean Sea, has qualified for the 2026 World Cup, the smallest nation to have ever to have done that. Curacao’s population is about 156,000, making it one of the smallest countries on the planet and comfortably bettering the record Iceland (population 350,000) had by making the 2018 World Cup. Curacao became a self-governing country in the Kingdom of Netherlands in 2010. In the current squad, former Manchester United academy player Tahith Chong is the only player born in the island. The rest, including five green lit by FIFA in August, are from Holland. The players are allowed dual nationalities. Tapping into Curacaoan footballers of Dutch heritage began in 2004. “Before that, it was with the local players who were not professional. From that moment, we have seen an enormous growth in the team,” Gilbert Martina, the Curacao Football Federation president, told “The Athletic”. This World Cup will have Uzbekistan, Jordan and Cape Verde (another team that has successfully tapped into its diaspora) also as first-time entrants, Haiti back after 52 years and the possibility of Iraq joining them after ending a 40-year wait. But it will take some beating what Curacao have achieved. “What an adventure,” Dick Advocaat, who at 78 will be the oldest manager in a World Cup, has said.
Possible Question
Curaçao’s historic World Cup qualification highlights how small nations leverage dual citizenship, diaspora networks, and overseas training ecosystems to compete globally. Analyse how sports governance, migration policy, and talent pipelines shape international sporting performance. What lessons can India draw for building competitive depth in football and other team sports?
5. US Congress approved release of Epstein files
The Republican-controlled US Congress voted almost unanimously on Tuesday to force the release of justice department files on the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, an outcome President Donald Trump had fought for months before ending his opposition.Two days after Trump’s abrupt about-face, the House of Representatives passed the measure with a vote of 427-1, sending a resolution requiring the release of all unclassified records on Epstein to the Republican-majority Senate, which swiftly approved it. The bill could now go to Trump for his signature as soon as Wednesday. Trump plans to sign the bill when it reaches his desk, a senior White House official said. The Epstein scandal has been a political thorn in Trump’s side for months, partly because he amplified conspiracy theories about Epstein to his own supporters. Many Trump voters believe his administration has covered up Epstein’s ties to powerful figures and obscured details surrounding his death, which was ruled a suicide, in a Manhattan jail in 2019. Epstein was a New York financier who fraternised with some of the most powerful men in the country.
Possible Question
The US Congress’s near-unanimous vote to declassify Epstein-related files underscores legislative assertiveness in demanding transparency from federal investigative agencies. Discuss the constitutional and democratic significance of legislative oversight over law-enforcement bodies.
Editorial Snapshots
A. Diluting green protection
The Supreme Court’s recall of its May 2025 Vanashakti judgment, which barred ex post facto environmental clearances (EC) — a mechanism to regularise violations “in exceptional circumstances” — weakens environmental regulation in the country. The majority decision to recall the judgment not only buttresses the acceptability of regularising environmental non-compliance but also undermines the deterrence value of the regulatory regime. The majority decision leans heavily on the costs of dismantling projects that violated the environmental clearance regime; it cites financial costs — especially public finances in the case of some projects — and environmental costs in terms of increased pollution following demolition. It also says that the State can’t be totally denuded of its power to grant relaxations. However, it is difficult to see how these considerations outweigh the costs of ex post facto EC. The mechanism, instituted through an environment ministry notification in 2017 as a one-time reprieve, effectively diluted the precautionary principle in environmental regulation that ensured a regime oriented towards prevention of harm rather than compensation and atonement under the “polluter pays” principle. Regularising past breaches meant legitimisation of non-compliance and diminishing of environmental safeguards that deterred projects ill-suited to the ecology of their proposed sites. Given that it drew on environment ministry office memorandums (OMs) from 2012 and 2013, both of which had been struck down by the courts, it also ran contrary to the established jurisprudence on the need for prior environmental approval. Despite government assurances in 2017 that this was a one-time mechanism — with the window for seeking clearances ending six months after the date of notification — and that future clearances would require public hearings, a 2021 OM reversed this stance. This, and the top court’s recall, create a moral hazard where project proponents don’t see the prior approval regime as a deterrent.
Possible Question
Should India codify a uniform and binding statutory framework for ex-post facto environmental clearances to avoid recurring litigation? Analyse its implications for the precautionary principle, federalism, and investor certainty.
B. What Bihar needs, what Nitish must do
Nitish Kumar begins his fifth consecutive term as chief minister of Bihar on the back of the NDA winning the assembly election with an enhanced majority. The results suggest a high level of public trust in Kumar that he will transform Bihar, currently distinguished by high male migration in search of work. This hope flows from his record in enforcing the rule of law in Bihar, and improving physical infrastructure in the state. But with the electorate starting to look beyond just caste, Kumar has his task cut out: Bihar’s economy has been growing at a healthy rate (8.64% for FY 24-25) though it remains one of the poorest states in India. His gendered welfare schemes — cycles for girl students to Jeevika and cash handouts — have helped expand capacities. This provides a foundation to launch initiatives that go beyond welfare measures and basic infrastructure such as highways. Jobs are scarce in Bihar, and remittances a major source of revenue for the state. At some point, the demographic shift will happen with disastrous consequences. The NDA’s manifesto emphasised rebuilding Bihar’s urban infrastructure and promised ₹1 lakh crore investment in agriculture, building industrial and food parks, and special missions for pulses, fox nuts etc. The state will be stretched for funds since welfare promises weigh heavily on the treasury. That apart, the administration’s mindset must change from perceiving people, including women, as mere labharthis (beneficiaries) to citizens whose capabilities need to be enhanced by the state. Politics completely free of primordial sentiment and patronage is near-impossible, but Bihar seems poised at that moment where breaking free of the old governance paradigm looks possible.
Possible Question
Critically evaluate whether Bihar’s governance model can shift from welfare-centric delivery towards capability expansion and productive job creation. What structural reforms in agriculture, urbanisation, and industrial policy are required to break the cycle of out-migration?
Fact of the day
Govt to bring new app to push e-Aadhaar: The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) will soon launch a new Aadhaar app as part of the authority’s effort to curb misuse of physical Aadhaar cards and strengthen the offline verification ecosystem, officials familiar with the matter said. The app will come with two major features. First, paperless electronic ID sharing and second, the ability for Aadhaar holders to update their registered mobile number directly through the app, they added. To be sure, there already exists an Aadhaar app — mAadhaar — which the government will merge with the new app. UIDAI CEO Bhuvnesh Kumar told HT: “The idea is that when people give their Aadhaar to an establishment physically, many people keep their photocopies, which is not very safe. And that is why one should be able to carry their Aadhaar card in electronic form in mobile itself. Just like when one makes a UPI payment, everything is happening from a mobile phone. Then why not have Aadhaar also on the mobile?” Kumar added that electronic sharing would also prevent tampering. “Another important thing is that when people take physical copies, they don’t generally verify. They just take the physical copy, and there is always a possibility that someone can make manipulations. People use image editing softwares to alter the details. How does one check on the physical copy that it is genuine? So this is to avoid the misuse of Aadhaar.” He clarified that the physical Aadhaar card is not being phased out, noting that many people in India still do not have smartphones. The electronic version is meant only as a convenience option, and not a mandatory replacement.
