New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Monday asked district judges here to submit a report disclosing the details of judicial officers who are not complying with its direction to conduct hybrid or virtual proceedings at the request of parties.
A bench of Justices Vipin Sanghi and Jasmeet Singh passed the order on being informed that some of the judicial officers in subordinate courts were not permitting hybrid hearings despite the directions of full court.
The high court called for a report from all the district judges within two weeks disclosing the details of the judicial officers who are not complying with its direction of permitting hybrid proceedings at the request of the parties.
It listed the matter for further hearing on January 20.
The court was hearing an application informing that despite its November directions given to subordinate courts to permit hybrid and video-conferencing hearing facilities when requested, it was not being considered.
The application was filed by lawyer Anil Kumar Hajelay in his pending petition seeking various prayers, including conducting hybrid hearings in district courts on physical hearing days because of the COVID-19 threat.
The counsel submitted that despite sending email, messages and requests to the staff of concerned trial court for hybrid hearing, it was neither considered nor responded to and the case was dismissed for want of prosecution.
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The court issued notice on the fresh application and also directed the metropolitan magistrate concerned to respond to it, observing that this conduct was a clear and direct contempt of the high court's orders.
The high court had on November 17 said that subordinate courts are bound to follow the directions passed by its full court which permitted trial courts to hold hybrid or video conferencing hearings at the request of parties.
Besides Hajelay, lawyer Manashwy Jha has also filed a petition seeking similar prayers, including conducting hybrid hearings in district courts on physical hearing days.
The court had earlier said there was an apprehension of a rise in COVID-19 cases and the infrastructure for hybrid hearings in district courts and other quasi-judicial bodies here must be in place.
It had said that it was "rather curious" as to how a "revised estimate" of over Rs 79 crore was arrived at by the PWD officials and then forwarded to the Finance Department of the Delhi government without the involvement of experts from the field of information technology (IT).
It had noted that an earlier estimate of over Rs 220 crore, which was submitted by the high court registry to the Delhi government, was brought down to Rs 79.48 crore on account of lowered specifications of the infrastructure proposed to be installed for hybrid hearings.
The court had earlier sought to know the exact time when the system would be set in place in trial courts, saying that the purpose of the exercise was to ensure that no inconvenience is caused to advocates and litigants in case a third wave of COVID-19 pandemic comes.
It had made it clear to the Delhi government that if the proposal to set up infrastructure for hybrid hearings in trial courts and quasi-judicial bodies is turned down on grounds of expenditure, it will examine expenses incurred by it on subsidies and public advertisements from April, 2020.
It had also directed the Delhi government to take expeditious steps to provide proper infrastructure for the purpose and said it was mindful that the authorities incur huge money on subsidies and advertisements.
The court had in March asked its registrar general to assess the infrastructure requirements at the earliest to facilitate hybrid hearings in trial courts and forward the details to the Delhi government.
PTI
