A Supreme Court Judge, presiding over a public suit on telemarketing on Friday expressed his anguish saying that even he was not spared from receiving unsolicited calls selling various merchandise, insurance policies and credit cards.

When the PIL to ban unsolicited calls came up for hearing before a two-judge bench, Justice A K Mathur said last week he even received a call at 2.30 pm from a private bank soliciting customer to buy its insurance policies while he was in his chamber.

“It has become a menace. Where are the regulations to rein in such nuisance?” the court asked the government. Expressing solidarity with the predicament of the Judge, Additional Solicitor General P P Malhotra narrated his side of story by saying that he even received a call during vacation when he was in the US asking him to take a loan. He was disturbed as it was during the night and he was fast asleep. “I had to pay for the call at international charges,” he said.

The government submitted that the ‘National Do Not Call Registry’, in the line of western countries, would be operational from September 5 which would check the unsolicited calls to the cell phone subscribers.

While seeking suggestions for punitive actions for the offenders, the court commented the “regulations submitted in the reply are toothless.” Citing a news report, the bench said recently a court in the US had directed for the payment of a compensation of 11,000 dollars to a person who had lodged a complaint against a company for sending some unsolicited calls on his mobile despite seeking a ban.

The people would have to register with the registry by making a call or sending an SMS for screening the unsolicited commercial calls to his mobile phones. Even after registration if a call came, the company would be imposed a fine of Rs 1000 and the second offence would lead to the disconnection of the telephone, said Senior Counsel Sundaram.

It said that instead of asking people to contact the Registry for not receiving unsolicited calls, the government should ask the people who wanted commercial calls to contact for receiving calls.

SC STAYS bullfight in TN
New Delhi, dhns: The Supreme Court on Friday stayed the bullfight, popularly known as Jallikkattu in Tamil Nadu, terming the dangerous game as a cruelty on animals.

After the preliminary arguments on the petition filed by the Animal Welfare Board of India, a bench headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishan directed the authorities to ban organising bullfight during the Pongal festival in the state. The court also asked the Tamil Nadu government and district authorities of Madurai to file their replies to the petition which alleged that not only many people were gored to death, but also a docile domesticated animal was made to suffer with fatal injuries.

Seeking direction to quash the Madras High Court order, the petition said the bulls were hit by the people and subjected to cruelty during the fights.

A Nagarajan of Tamil Nadu had approached the High Court on December 1, 2006, seeking ban on bullfight as his 18-year-old son was trampled to death while watching such a show in Madurai district during pongal.

On January 16, 2007, at least 65 people were injured during the bullfight at Palamedu and 35 at Avaniapuram.