India’s courts will start the brand new yr with a clutch of hearings together with a battle to acknowledge same-sex marriage, a plea in opposition to the anti-trust company’s effective on Google, and petitions difficult the legality of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s 2016 transfer to ban high-value forex notes.

Any choices would set the tone forward of a number of politically high-stakes issues that may check perceptions of the courtroom’s independence. Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud took cost in November and his two-year tenure — the longest within the job by any choose in a decade — will see India undergo a nationwide vote in 2024, when Modi seeks a 3rd time period.