LIJDLR

Volume IV Issue I

COPYRIGHT PROTECTION IN THE MUSIC INDUSTRY: A LEGAL ANALYSIS OF RIGHTS CHALLENGES AND ENFORCEMENT IN THE DIGITAL ERA

Volume IV Issue I /

COPYRIGHT PROTECTION IN THE MUSIC INDUSTRY: A LEGAL ANALYSIS OF RIGHTS CHALLENGES AND ENFORCEMENT IN THE DIGITAL ERA Kanisha Sharma, Final semester student pursuing LLM (IPR) at Amity Law School, Noida, Uttar Pradesh (India) Download Manuscript doi.org/10.70183/lijdlr.2026.v04.78 The rapid digitisation of the music industry has fundamentally altered the nature of creation, distribution, and consumption of musical works, raising complex questions regarding the adequacy of existing copyright frameworks. This paper undertakes a critical examination of copyright protection in the Indian music industry, with particular emphasis on the challenges posed by digital platforms, streaming economies, and evolving ownership structures. While the Copyright Act, 1957 provides a comprehensive statutory framework governing musical works, sound recordings, and performers’ rights, its application in the contemporary digital environment reveals significant gaps. Issues such as digital piracy, opaque royalty distribution systems, and unequal bargaining power between artists and intermediaries continue to undermine the intended objectives of copyright law. Through a doctrinal and analytical approach, this paper evaluates legislative provisions, judicial interpretations, and industry practices. It further undertakes a comparative assessment of international frameworks to identify best practices. The study argues that although India has made progressive reforms, particularly through the 2012 amendment, enforcement inefficiencies and structural imbalances persist. The paper concludes by proposing targeted reforms aimed at strengthening institutional mechanisms, ensuring fair compensation, and aligning copyright law with technological realities.

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VIRTUAL REALITY (VR) AND AUGMENTED REALITY (AR) SEXUAL EXPLOITATION: LEGAL AND ETHICAL CHALLENGES IN REGULATING ASSAULTS IN THE METAVERSE

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VIRTUAL REALITY (VR) AND AUGMENTED REALITY (AR) SEXUAL EXPLOITATION: LEGAL AND ETHICAL CHALLENGES IN REGULATING ASSAULTS IN THE METAVERSE Suruchi Sharma, B.A.LLB (Hons) 8th Semester, Mangalayatan University Jabalpur (India) Download Manuscript doi.org/10.70183/lijdlr.2026.v04.77 The rapid evolution of immersive technologies of Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality has transformed digital interactions, giving rise to the concept of the metaverse. While this technology offers unprecedented opportunities for socialisation, education and commerce, they have simultaneously created new avenues for sexual assault and exploitation. Incidents of non-consensual virtual groping, child grooming and sexual simulation facilitated through haptic devices highlight the pressing need to address these harms. Unlike traditional cybercrimes, VR/AR facilitated assault blurs the boundaries between physical and digital, raising complex legal, ethical and psychological concerns. This paper critically examines the role of technology in enabling sexual exploitation within the immersive digital environment. It analyses the limitations of the Indian legal framework, such as the Information Technology Act, 2000, BNS 2023 and the POCSO Act, 2012, alongside a comparative insight from jurisdictions like the USA and the European Union. The study highlights gaps in recognition of “virtual assault” as a distinct form of harm, jurisdictional challenges in regulating global platforms, and evidentiary hurdles in prosecution.  Further, the paper interrogates ethical dilemmas surrounding consent, anonymity and digital bodily integrity in the metaverse. It advocates a comprehensive international legal framework supported by corporate responsibility measures and technological safeguards. By proposing reforms like a Digital Bodily Integrity Charter and consent-driven design systems, the paper aims to build a safe, inclusive and rights-based metaverse. 

VIRTUAL REALITY (VR) AND AUGMENTED REALITY (AR) SEXUAL EXPLOITATION: LEGAL AND ETHICAL CHALLENGES IN REGULATING ASSAULTS IN THE METAVERSE Read More »

FEAR OF DIGITAL FRAUD: A COMPARISON BETWEEN PERCEIVED EASE OF USE AND ACTUAL ADOPTION IN RURAL UTTAR PRADESH

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FEAR OF DIGITAL FRAUD: A COMPARISON BETWEEN PERCEIVED EASE OF USE AND ACTUAL ADOPTION IN RURAL UTTAR PRADESH Ria Singh, 10th Semester Student at Amity Law School, Lucknow Campus (India). Dr. Arvind Kumar Singh, Associate Professor at Amity Law School, Lucknow Campus (India). Dr Priya Dwivedi, Associate Professor at Institute of Professional Education and Research, Bhopal, MP (India). Download Manuscript doi.org/10.70183/lijdlr.2026.v04.76 This paper examines whether perceived ease of use in digital payment systems actually translates into meaningful and sustained adoption in rural Uttar Pradesh, or whether fear of digital fraud disrupts that transition. The study situates the issue within India’s rapidly expanding digital payments ecosystem, where national growth figures coexist with uneven user confidence at the rural level. It argues that access to internet connectivity and payment interfaces does not by itself establish real digital inclusion. Rather, actual adoption depends upon legal confidence, procedural awareness, and the perceived availability of timely redress. Drawing on the Information Technology Act, 2000, the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, RBI consumer protection norms, and official government data, the paper shows that rural users often experience digital participation under conditions of mistrust, asymmetric information, and structural vulnerability. The contrast between widespread household internet access and much lower capacity to conduct online banking or report cyber fraud demonstrates that interface simplicity alone cannot secure lawful and confident participation. The paper concludes that fear of digital fraud operates not merely as a private hesitation, but as a governance barrier that weakens financial inclusion and requires stronger user-centred legal and regulatory safeguards.

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THE GHOST IN THE CODE: EVALUATING THE EXTRATERRITORIAL REACH OF THE IBC AND THE JUDICIAL VACUUM IN CROSS-BORDER INSOLVENCY RESOLUTION

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THE GHOST IN THE CODE: EVALUATING THE EXTRATERRITORIAL REACH OF THE IBC AND THE JUDICIAL VACUUM IN CROSS-BORDER INSOLVENCY RESOLUTION Kriti Kumari, B.A.LL.B.(H), 8th semester, Student at Amity University, Jharkhand (India) Tahura Wasif, B.A.LL.B.(H), 8th semester, Student at Amity University, Jharkhand (India) Download Manuscript doi.org/10.70183/lijdlr.2026.v04.75 The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 encodes within its text two provisions for cross-border insolvency cooperation, Sections 234 and 235, yet both remain functionally dormant: no bilateral treaty has been concluded under Section 234 as of 2026, and India has not adopted the UNCITRAL Model Law on Cross-Border Insolvency (1997). This paper critically examines the structural vacuum produced by this legislative inaction and maps the judicial improvisation that has occupied it. Drawing upon the Jet Airways parallel insolvency proceedings (2019–2020), the Videocon overseas asset recovery proceedings, and the Compuage Infocom recognition proceedings before the Singapore High Court (2025), the paper analyses how Indian courts have deployed common law comity as a substitute for absent statutory tools and identifies the irreducible structural limits of that substitution. The concurrent proceedings problem and the Centre of Main Interests doctrine, as engaged by Indian Adjudicating Authorities, are examined as the sharpest expressions of those limits. The methodology is critical-doctrinal.

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MOB LYNCHING AND CRIMINAL LIABILITY: A CRITICAL LEGAL ANALYSIS

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MOB LYNCHING AND CRIMINAL LIABILITY: A CRITICAL LEGAL ANALYSIS Aujlaan Hamid, LLM, Scholar at University of Kashmir (India) Download Manuscript doi.org/10.70183/lijdlr.2026.v04.74 Mob lynching has emerged as one of the most disturbing manifestations of collective violence in contemporary societies. It refers to acts of violence committed by a group of individuals against a person suspected of wrongdoing without lawful authority or judicial sanction. Such incidents often arise from rumours, communal tensions, or identity-based prejudice and frequently result in severe injury or death. In recent years, India has witnessed several incidents of mob violence triggered by misinformation circulated through digital platforms and social networks. These developments have generated serious concerns regarding the adequacy of existing criminal law provisions and the ability of the criminal justice system to prevent extrajudicial punishment. This research paper examines the phenomenon of mob lynching from the perspective of criminal law and constitutional governance. The study analyses the doctrinal foundations of criminal liability in cases of collective violence, including the principles of unlawful assembly, common object, and constructive liability. It further evaluates the role of the judiciary in addressing mob violence, particularly the landmark judgment of the Supreme Court in Tehseen S. Poonawalla v. Union of India. The paper also explores recent legislative developments under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, which introduces enhanced punishment for murders committed by groups motivated by identity-based factors. The research argues that although existing legal provisions provide mechanisms for prosecuting offenders, they do not fully capture the complex social and structural dimensions of mob lynching. The absence of a comprehensive statutory framework specifically addressing lynching continues to create challenges for investigation, prosecution, and prevention. The paper concludes that effective responses to mob lynching require a combination of legal reforms, institutional accountability, and broader societal awareness regarding the rule of law and constitutional values.

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THE CLASSIFICATORY CRISIS IN ADOLESCENT JURISPRUDENCE: CONSENT, CULPABILITY AND AGENCY IN INDIAN LAW

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THE CLASSIFICATORY CRISIS IN ADOLESCENT JURISPRUDENCE: CONSENT, CULPABILITY AND AGENCY IN INDIAN LAW Dr. Prabodh Kumar Garg, Assistant Professor, Faculty of law, Shia PG College, Lucknow (India) Chhaya Singh, Research Scholar, faculty of law, University of Lucknow (India) Download Manuscript doi.org/10.70183/lijdlr.2026.v04.73 The adolescent in Indian law is a paradox, a person defined not by their own evolving mind but by the state’s contradictory demands. This paper argues that India’s legal framework is trapped in a fundamental classificatory crisis which can be understood as juridical ‘three-body problem’. Just as three celestial bodies pull each other into chaotic orbits, the legal concepts of consent, culpability, and agency exert mutually destructive gravitational forces on the adolescent subject. The first part of the paper argues that the Prevention of Children from Sexual Offences Act. 2012 constructs the adolescent as passive victim, legally incapable of sexual consent thereby criminalizing their romantic relationships and weaponizing the law for social control. The second part confronts the contrasting rationale under Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act 2015 which attributes adult-like culpability to adolescents accused of heinous offences. This rationale presumes a standard of maturity that the same legal system denies them in the intimate realm. Finally, it explores the void of agency in personal autonomy, where the adolescent is rendered a legal non-entity in matters of contract and healthcare, their will is subordinated to parental authority. Trapped in this legal triple-blind: too vulnerable to consent, mature enough for culpability, and too incompetent for self-governance; the adolescent is fragmented into three irreconcilable legal personas. This paper concludes that until the law moves beyond its rigid paternalism to embrace a functional, context-sensitive assessment of capacity, it will continue to manufacture injustice, ensuring that the young person remains a legal paradox, never recognized as a whole human being.

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FROM COMPLIANCE TO ALGORITHMIC GOVERNANCE: THE FUTURE OF AI-DRIVEN CORPORATE REGULATION UNDER INDIAN COMPANY LAW

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FROM COMPLIANCE TO ALGORITHMIC GOVERNANCE: THE FUTURE OF AI-DRIVEN CORPORATE REGULATION UNDER INDIAN COMPANY LAW Amritanshu Upadhyay, BBA LL.B (Hons), 6th Semester, Student at Amity Law School, Amity University Uttar Pradesh, Lucknow (India) Download Manuscript doi.org/10.70183/lijdlr.2026.v04.72 The rapidly advancing integration of artificial intelligence into corporate decision-making processes offers both transformative opportunities and fundamental regulatory challenges to the existing company law framework in India. While existing literature has largely focused on questions of legal personhood and its implications on corporate liability, a far more critical and pertinent concern has received limited attention: how existing architecture for corporate compliance under the Companies Act, 2013, can be reconceptualized to accommodate, regulate, and hold accountable AI-driven systems of corporate governance that already exist across Indian corporations. This paper contends that India is currently at a critical juncture in its corporate law regulation, wherein a passive model of corporate compliance grounded on human agency and reactive enforcement is gradually being supplanted by an emerging model of algorithmic governance, wherein AI systems conduct audits, monitor transactions, and undertake risk assessments autonomously. In this regard, this research, drawing on the doctrinal research on the Companies Act, 2013, SEBI regulations, and the national AI policy space, and informed by a comparative analysis of the EU, UK, and Singaporean regimes, seeks to develop a normative framework on AI-driven corporate regulation in India, and in this regard, argues that accountability in algorithmic governance must be rethought in terms of three key pillars: the mandatory explainability of AI systems in governance roles, a recrafted duty of care for directors in AI-driven decision-making, and the AI audit mechanism in corporate compliance law.

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A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF EDUCATIONAL POLICIES BETWEEN US AND INDIA

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A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF EDUCATIONAL POLICIES BETWEEN US AND INDIA Akhilesh Nilkanth Kulkarni, LLM Student (India) Download Manuscript doi.org/10.70183/lijdlr.2026.v04.71 This study undertakes a comparative analysis of educational policies in the United States and India, two major democratic nations with distinct socio-economic, cultural, and institutional frameworks. The research problem centers on understanding how differing policy structures, governance models, and implementation mechanisms influence educational outcomes, particularly in terms of access, quality, equity, and innovation. The study employs a doctrinal and comparative research methodology, relying primarily on qualitative analysis of key policy documents such as India’s National Education Policy 2020 and Right to Education Act 2009, and the United States’ Every Student Succeeds Act, supplemented by secondary data from government reports and international organizations. The scope of the study is limited to primary and secondary education, with selective references to higher education where relevant. It critically examines dimensions such as curriculum design, assessment frameworks, inclusivity measures, digital education policies, and regional disparities in implementation. The paper argues that while the U.S. system emphasizes decentralization, flexibility, and innovation, the Indian system has historically been more centralized, though recent reforms indicate a shift towards holistic and multidisciplinary learning. Preliminary analysis suggests that both countries face persistent challenges in bridging equity gaps and ensuring effective policy implementation, despite well-articulated frameworks. The study highlights that policy success is contingent not merely on design but on contextual adaptability, administrative capacity, and socio-economic realities. It concludes by suggesting the need for cross-learning between the two systems, particularly in areas of inclusive education, teacher training, and technology integration, to enhance overall educational outcomes.

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INVISIBLE WITHIN BORDERS: THE LEGAL VACUUM OF REHABILITATION RIGHTS FOR INTERNALLY DISPLACED PERSONS IN INDIA

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INVISIBLE WITHIN BORDERS: THE LEGAL VACUUM OF REHABILITATION RIGHTS FOR INTERNALLY DISPLACED PERSONS IN INDIA Febin P, LL.M. Student at National Law Institute University, Bhopal (India) Download Manuscript doi.org/10.70183/lijdlr.2026.v04.70 There is already extensive literature on internal displacement in India, yet this paper surveys all forms of forced relocation conflict, communal violence, development projects, and natural calamities to expose gaps in existing law and missing protections. It examines constitutional guarantees under Articles 14, 15, 19, and 21 alongside the Disaster Management Act 2005, the Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act 2013, and the National Policy on Resettlement and Rehabilitation 2007, demonstrating that definitions remain vague, entitlements unclear, and implementation inconsistent. Case studies from Jammu and Kashmir, Manipur, Gujarat, and Delhi, as well as large infrastructure projects displacing millions and recent crises like the Himachal Pradesh floods and the 2023 Manipur ethnic violence, reveal the state’s persistent failure to secure timely shelter, restore livelihoods, or ensure durable solutions. A review of leading judicial rulings between 2023 and 2025 on property restitution and compensation shows that courts have reaffirmed a duty to rehabilitate displaced populations but stopped short of creating enforceable rights without a dedicated law. Comparative analysis of Colombia’s land restitution law, Uganda’s reintegration policies, and the African Union’s Kampala Convention highlight comprehensive protection frameworks that India has yet to adopt, despite endorsing the UN Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement. The study concludes that scattered policies and executive orders cannot replace a unified statute. It recommends enacting a clear legal definition of internally displaced persons, establishing enforceable rights to restitution, compensation, and psychosocial support, and creating institutional mechanisms such as a national IDP registry, participatory social impact assessments, time-bound targets for durable solutions, and judicial oversight. Only a coherent, rights-based national law aligned with international standards can enable India to fulfil its constitutional and humanitarian obligations to protect its displaced citizens.

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CASE ANALYSIS: KARNAIL SINGH AND ANOTHER V. DARSHAN SINGH AND OTHERS (1995) SUPP (2) SCC 281 (SC)

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CASE ANALYSIS: KARNAIL SINGH AND ANOTHER V. DARSHAN SINGH AND OTHERS (1995) SUPP (2) SCC 281 (SC) Senthamizh Vijayakumar, 3rd Year, Student at VIT School of law (India) Satvik Keyan, 3rd Year, Student at VIT School of law (India) Dr.Saji Sivan S, Associate Professor at VIT School of law (India) Download Manuscript doi.org/10.70183/lijdlr.2026.v04.69 The case of Karnail Singh and Another v. Darshan Singh and Others (1995) relates to the powers of the State Government in reorganizing and amalgamating the Gram Sabhas as per the Punjab Gram Panchayat Act, 1952. The case arose when the Haryana Government issued a notification for the amalgamation of two Gram Sabhas as a single unit for administrative purposes in the district of Kurukshetra. The respondents challenged the government’s decision before the Punjab and Haryana High Court, which set aside the government’s decision on the basis that the functioning of the Gram Sabhas should not be interfered with merely due to the abuse of power by local government officials. The case was later referred to the Supreme Court of India. The Supreme Court was called upon to examine the question of whether the government had the powers to reorganize the Gram Sabha areas as per the relevant statutory provisions and whether such decisions could be interfered with by the judiciary. The judgment reiterated the discretionary powers of the government in reorganizing the local self-governments for the better administration of the regions.

CASE ANALYSIS: KARNAIL SINGH AND ANOTHER V. DARSHAN SINGH AND OTHERS (1995) SUPP (2) SCC 281 (SC) Read More »