New Delhi:
The Delhi High Court on Monday restricted its functioning till March 20 and said only a few vacation benches would assemble to hear only urgent matters.
It said all trial courts would take up only bail matters and no undertrials would be produced before the city courts till March 31 in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.
The decision was taken after an emergency meeting of the administrative and general supervision committee held before the chief justice, other judges of the Delhi High Court and members of the Delhi High Court Bar Association (DHCBA).
The meeting was held after the March 13 directions issued by the committee could not reduce crowding in court.
In Monday’s meeting, it was resolved all matters listed from March 17 to 20 would now be adjourned to April 14, 15, 16 and 17, respectively. The committee said the situation would be reviewed after March 20.
According to the resolution, four division benches, four single-judge benches for civil jurisdiction and three single judge benches each for criminal and original jurisdiction would hear “only urgent matters” on March 17 and March 19 in contrast to 26 benches that assemble on a regular basis unless some judge is not on leave.
On March 18 and 20, three division benches, three single-judge benches for civil jurisdiction and three single-judge benches each for criminal and original jurisdiction would assemble to hear only important matters. The committee resolved that lower courts would take up only bail matters till March 31 and all the other matters would be adjourned.
{{/usCountry}}On March 18 and 20, three division benches, three single-judge benches for civil jurisdiction and three single-judge benches each for criminal and original jurisdiction would assemble to hear only important matters. The committee resolved that lower courts would take up only bail matters till March 31 and all the other matters would be adjourned.
{{/usCountry}}“No undertrial prisoner would be produced before subordinate courts till March 31 and if production of any such person is indispensable, the facility of video conferencing be utilised. For the purposes of extension of remand in remaining matters, the district and sessions judge (HQ) would depute sufficient number of duty of metropolitan magistrate in all jails situated in Delhi or use the facility of video conferencing for the same,” the advisory said.
Meanwhile, a plea has been filed in the Delhi High Court seeking directions to the Registrar General to take steps to schedule court hearings through appointments or distributing case list in time slots to prevent overcrowding.