All eyes to be on SC judgement on Ayodhya issue, validity of Aadhaar

The Ayodhya title dispute case of Ram Janmabhoomi and Babri Masjid and validity of Aadhaar cards would be the two most important cases whose outcome will be keenly watched in the Supreme Court.

As the apex court is set to reopen on January 4, all eyes would be on it, as a five-judge bench would deliver its judgement delineating the power to be exercised by the AAP-led Delhi government in terms of "obstructions" it has faced from the office of Lieutenant Governor in implementing its decisions.

In the year, a three-judge bench presided over by Chief Justice Dipak Misra would also pass its verdict on the protracted water dispute case between Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and others, pertaining to Cauvery river.

The apex court's five-judge Constitution bench would also pronounce its judgement in the days to come on a plea for recognising "living will" for a terminally-ill patient for withdrawing life support system.

Living will is a written document that allows a patient to give explicit instructions in advance about the medical treatment to be administered when he or she is terminally ill or no longer able to express informed consent.

The court had earlier indicated it might allow execution of 'living will' in cases of passive euthanasia with safeguards like approval by the medical board and where the patient is comatose and his/her condition is irreversible.

A larger bench of the apex court would also consider a crucial question if Jallikattu, bullock cart race and other sports involving bulls or buffaloes can be allowed as part of cultural right guaranteed under Article 29(1) the Constitution.

Besides, a five-judge bench would consider entry of women to the famous Sabarimala temple.

The court would decide a petition filed by a Kerala man, Shafin Jahan, whose marriage with 25-year-old Hadiya in December 2016 was annulled by the high court after terming it as an instance of love jihad.

In the coming months, the Supreme Court's five-judge bench would examine the need to reconsider its previous judgement pertaining to reservation in promotion for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in government jobs.

The matter relating to a re-examination of the apex court's 2006 landmark judgement in the "M Nagaraj Versus Union of India" has been referred to the Constitution bench.