July 2025 - Page 2 of 2 - Lawwatch : Legal Resources for Learners

Courts Need not Order DNA Test to Determine Paternity even If Mother Agrees

By K Rajasekharan 9 July 2025Family, Marriage & Divorce

Even if a mother agrees to get done the DNA profiling test of her child to ascertain its paternity, the courts must still act as the 'custodian' of the rights of the child and consider the pros and cons of the said test before calling upon the minor to undergo the test, says the Bombay High Court in SKP v KSP [2025: BHC-NAG:6350].

Uncultivable Paddy Lands can be Removed from Data Bank: HC

By K Rajasekharan 7 July 2025Uncategorized

In Dr Satheeshsankaranarayanannamboothiri v State of Kerala [2025:KER:40084] the Kerala High Court decided that a property that remains irreparably fragmented by government acquisition, lies landlocked by roads and fallow with the scattered vegetation, and continues to remain unsuitable for cultivation, cannot be classified as paddy or wetland under the Kerala Conservation of Paddy and Wetland, 2008 & its Rules.

Arrears of Rent up to Notice Period alone can be Claimed u/s 11 (2) (b) of the Kerala Rent Control Act

By K Rajasekharan 6 July 2025Lease & Rent Control

An order under Section 11(2)(b) of the Kerala Buildings (Lease and Rent Control) Act, 1965 (BRC Act) should specify the period in which the rent fell in arrears till the date of demand notice and the monthly rent payable, says the High Court of Kerala in Thomas Stephen v Fort in Infra Developers Pvt Ltd [MANU/KE/1521/2017].

Sale of Minor’s Property under Guardians & Wards Act

By K Rajasekharan 6 July 2025Property & Succession

Any property or a share in any joint property owned by a minor, cannot be sold or disposed of by other means, by the natural guardian of the minor, without taking permission from the court. The disposal of property of a minor or creating a charge on it, by the natural guardian under Hindu law is governed by Section 8 of HMGA and Section 29 of the HMGA.