Delhi HC hears 700+ cases on second working Saturday

The Delhi High Court heard over 700 cases on its second designated working Saturday, despite DHCBA's request to revert to the traditional schedule.

The Delhi High Court on its second working Saturday, following the decision to designate the first and third Saturdays as working, heard more than 700 cases. Notably, the Delhi High Court Bar Association (DHCBA) recently wrote to chief justice DK Upadhyaya and other judges urging them to withdraw the decision and restore the traditional court working schedule.

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On January 15, the Delhi High Court decided to function on the first and third Saturdays of every month following a request by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, who had urged chief justices of all high courts to dedicate two Saturdays each month to judicial work. The decision was taken during a full court meeting held on December 22 and was later communicated through a notification issued by Registrar General Arun Bhardwaj.

However, on February 4, the DHCBA wrote a letter requesting the judges to withdraw the decision stating that it had caused considerable resentment among its members and that the additional workload on Saturdays does not, in practical terms, lead to any lasting or systemic benefit. The DHCBA said the move would cause physical and mental fatigue among lawyers, undermining efficiency, and would also increase the judicial workload for the Bench.

Despite the letter, the day witnessed judges assembling not only in their regular notified rosters but also in special rosters, with some judges sitting separately after being part of division benches to hear additional matters and address the mounting pendency to and ensure effective case disposal. Lawyers, including senior advocates, appeared physically to argue their cases and the benches heard at least 70 cases more than 10 years old.

Out of the nine notified division benches, eight assembled and collectively heard 60 cases, of which 25 were over 10 years old. On the civil side, judges heard approximately 520 cases, while 102 criminal cases and 76 original side matters were taken up collectively. To be sure, the original side deals with commercial matters, including intellectual property rights, arbitration, and cases where the suit value exceeds ₹2 crore.

The day also saw the pronouncement of six judgments.

Although this marked the second officially designated working Saturday after the decision, benches had assembled on earlier Saturdays as well. On January 24 and January 31, benches assembled to hear cases; while three matters were taken up on January 24, more than 400 cases were heard and 24 judgments were delivered on January 31.

HT had earlier reported that the High Court, on its first official working Saturday following the January 15 decision, had heard more than 500 cases on January 17.