Delhi high court raps govt over delay in funds for lower courts

New Delhi:

New Delhi:

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The Delhi High Court on Wednesday pulled up the city government for making the subordinate judiciary “run from pillar to post” to get funds sanctioned for the recruitment of supporting staff at courts, which have come to a grinding halt, and asked whether it wanted judicial officers to conduct proceedings from ‘chaupals’.

A bench of Justice Hima Kohli and Justice Subramonium Prasad noted that 150 judicial officers are due to be posted in a couple of months but their courts would not be functional without the support staff. It directed its administrative side to release the requisite Rs 2.52 crore from its budget to the district courts without any delay for the recruitment.

The court also rapped the government for ‘not sanctioning funds; for the basic requirement of district courts, which are generating huge revenues through collection of fines, traffic challans and court fees, saying it wanted to kill golden egg-laying goose. The same bench remarked, “Rs 115 crore collected through virtual traffic fines by district courts. What do you (Delhi government) want? You want to kill the goose that lays the golden egg?”

The court said that since the money is required, it was taking it from the funds provided for the Delhi High Court. However, the amount has to be returned to the HC by the Delhi government on or before December 31.

“150 judicial officers are waiting to be posted in courts. Thanks to no support and no staff. Let the Delhi government send the staff on deputation to district courts. Or you want these judges to conduct proceedings by sitting at chaupals (public space),” the bench said.

It observed that the judiciary was not doing anything in this regard as it was patiently waiting for the Delhi government to release the funds. “You (Delhi government) did not do anything. Probably you took it as a weakness,” it said.

“Thankfully the high court has its own funds. You are making the subordinate judiciary run from pillar to post (for funds),” the bench told the counsel for the Delhi government.

The high court had earlier also directed the Delhi government to process the pending sanctions of other branches of district courts but the sanctions are still pending at the executive’s end.

Delhi government counsel Santosh Tripathi said he had apprised the authorities about the orders passed by the high court in the case and wanted two weeks’ time and that the matter will be placed before the Cabinet.

He said he was not in a position to state the timeline by which the Delhi government will be able to resolve the issue.

Advocate Sanjoy Ghose, representing the Delhi High Court, placed before the bench letters issued by Principal District and Sessions Judge (West) who is the chairman of the recruitment committee, Tis Hazari Courts.

Addressed to the Registrar General, the letters stated that an agency was engaged for conducting recruitments to vacant posts of senior personal assistants, personal assistants, junior judicial assistants and data entry operators in district courts, family courts.

He said written and typing tests were conducted for various posts and the results declared before the Covid-19 lockdown on March 25. Even virtual interviews were conducted in August but the final results have been kept in abeyance in view of the pending petition.

“But due to the absence of funds or revalidation of financial sanction, the whole recruitment process has been brought to a grinding halt,” he said.