India’s courts will begin the new year with a clutch of hearings including a fight to recognize same-sex marriage, a plea against the anti-trust agency’s fine on Google, and petitions challenging the legality of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s 2016 move to ban high-value currency notes.
Any decisions would set the tone ahead of several politically high-stakes matters that will test perceptions of the court’s independence. Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud took charge in November and his two-year tenure — the longest in the job by any judge in a decade — will see India go through general elections in 2024, when Modi seeks a third term.
