The year, which began with a path-breaking verdict in the cash-for-query scam by the Supreme Court, witnessed a road block at the fag end when one of its benches was critical of the over-reach shown by it in the domains of executive and legislature.
The apex court in its verdict on the scam laid down that all laws of Parliament were amenable to judicial scrutiny but got the rude shock when a two-judge bench held that the judiciary, including the apex court, in the past had encroached into areas that belonged to the other two wings.
The stinging observation that judges behaved like emperors, created a sort of confusion in the judiciary on hearing of public interest litigations. The controversy was, however, put to rest by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan who decided to frame guidelines for entertaining such litigations.
During the outgoing year, the turf war between the judiciary and legislature continued with the apex court scrutinising the Centre's decision on OBC quota issue and holding that laws put in the Ninth Schedule of the Constitution for blanket protection were not beyond judicial scrutiny.
Members of Parliament raised the issue of former Chief Justice Y K Sabharwal's orders on the sealing of illegal premises in the capital and alleged that they smacked of favouritism.
On the issue of Sethusamudram project, the Centre made faux pas questioning the 'existence' of Lord Ram and other characters in Ramayana leading to a wave of protests that led an embarrassed government to withdraw its affidavit in the apex court. The court directed a review of the project.
The issue that troubled the UPA-Left government most through the year in the Supreme Court was the law on 27 per cent quota for Other Backward Classes in Central educational institutions, the implementation of which was stayed by an interim order. Repeated attempts by the Centre to get the stay lifted turned futile and the matter finally reached to a five-judge Constitution Bench, which after marathon hearing spread over nearly three months reserved its verdict.
While the spat with legislators was on, the executive was on collision with the judiciary when on more than one occasion it questioned the apex court for over-stepping into its domain in forest matters by accusing it of interfering with the constitution of Forest Advisory Body and seeking to scrap its Central Empowered Committee.
The apex court's decision to hear the petition against the Tamil Nadu government's call for bandh in the state in protest against the orders on Rama Setu, took everyone by surprise.
The UPA-Left government also had moments of worry when nomination of Pratibha Patil as their candidate for the presidential election was challenged. However, after couple of days, the apex court cleared the air by rejecting the plea.
Two years after it decided the Parliament attack case, the matters relating to it kept knocking the doors of the apex court, which dismissed the plea by convict Mohd Afzal to review the death sentence awarded to him.
It also rejected the plea to expunge some scathing observations against S A R Geelani, the Delhi University College lecturer who was acquitted in the case. However, Shaukat Hussain Guru, who is serving 10 years jail term, got some relief when the apex court decided to hear his plea that he was convicted for the offence which was never registered against him.
Between these events, Bollywood also had its share of limelight and among the high-profile matters was the grant of bail to Sanjay Dutt, who was sentenced to six years imprisonment in connection with the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts case.
The relief to Dutt was welcomed by the film industry as around Rs 300 crore was at stake involving 'Munnabhai.'
Under the scanner of the apex court also came the West Bengal government's role in the indiscriminate firing on innocent people in Nandigram. The state government faced some embarrassment when the court pulled it for opposing the compensation awarded to the victims and indirectly opposing CBI inquiry into the incident.
Political battles were also fought allegedly by using the forum of apex court and those who hogged the limelight were Gujarat Chief Minister Narender Modi, former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav and his successor and bete noire Mayawati.
Modi, who had a tough time in the apex court as his government which was embroiled in series of cases relating to post-Godhra riots and killing of Sohrabuddin Sheikh in a fake encounter, was slapped with a contempt notice for speaking on the pending case in an election rally while responding Congress President Sonia Gandhi's merchant of death remarks.
Much serious was the outcome of case against the Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav against whom the apex court ordered preliminary inquiry by CBI in a case of alleged disproportionate assets against him and other members of his family.
The drama did not end as one of the judges of the bench, Justice A R Lakshmanan (since retired), broke down claiming he received a threatening letter after it delivered it.
However, there was a relief for Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati, as the apex court declined to interfere with the decision of Uttar Pradesh Governor refusing to grant sanction for her prosecution in Heritage Corridor Scam.
For Congress, the ghost of Bofors resurfaced when the Centre and CBI were accused of 'deliberately' failing in getting Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi, an accused in the case, extradited from Argentina after he was detained there on the basis of a Interpol Red Corner notice.
Anxious moments for Congress were also witnessed when the issue of Party president Sonia Gandhi's foreign origin was again raked up in the Supreme Court, which decided to examine the issue of persons of foreign origin holding public offices saying it was an important Constitutional matter.
Another Constitutional issue that made headlines was the petition challenging the appointment of Navin Chawla as Election Commissioner. BJP withdrew the petition after the EC took the stand that CEC has the power to suo motu initiate action against his colleague.
The legal battles between Union Health Minister Anbumani Ramdoss and noted All India Institute of Medical Sciences cardiologist P Venugopal also reached the apex court, which pulled up the Centre for removing the doctor from the post of director of AIIMS in an unceremonious and humiliating way.
In the midst of events, Railway Minister Lalu Prasad and his wife Rabri Devi approached the apex court with their appeal against the Patna High Court deciding to hear the Bihar government's petition challenging their acquittal by the trial court in the disproportionate assets case, an off-shoot of the fodder scam.
The NGO, whose functioning came under the scrutiny of the top court, was Medha Patkar's Narmada Bacchao Andolan, which got a clean chit on the allegation that it was receiving funds from abroad and its support groups were involved in illegal activities.
While high-profile matters were making news, the apex court put its seal of approval on making registration of marriages compulsory irrespective of the religion.
Just like it had approved guidelines for curbing money and muscle power in students union elections, the Supreme Court this year brought into force the regulations recommended by the Raghavan Committee to check ragging in campuses by directing the authorities to register criminal cases against students indulging in such activities.
While allegations were levelled against the former Chief Justice Sabharwal that his orders on sealing issue favoured his near and dear ones, the apex court was undeterred and raised questions regarding Delhi's Master Plan 2021, which was aimed at regularising 1500 unauthorised colonies.
Some high-profile criminal cases which reached the apex court this year were -- Priyadarshni Mattoo and Jessica Lal murder case.
