Shifting of courts from Fort to Mazgaon creates confusion amongst lawyers, litigants

Though the new court building in Mazgaon housing “a part of civil and a part of criminal courts” was scheduled to start functioning from January 2, confusion and chaos prevailed due to the sudden transfer of eight courts from the Bombay City Civil and Sessions Court (BCC&SC) in Fort to Mazgaon

MUMBAI: Though the new court building in Mazgaon housing “a part of civil and a part of criminal courts” was scheduled to start functioning from January 2, confusion and chaos prevailed due to the sudden transfer of eight courts from the Bombay City Civil and Sessions Court (BCC&SC) in Fort to Mazgaon.

Shifting of courts from Fort to Mazgaon creates confusion amongst lawyers, litigants

Work in the court was also affected on Wednesday due to the fourth day of chain hunger strike by the members of the Bar Association of BCC&SC, who are opposed to the shifting of some civil and criminal courts from Fort to Mazgaon.

“Eight courts have been transferred already. There is a speculation that 20 more courts will be shifted to Mazgaon and another 20 to Vikhroli. The Principal Judge (PJ) has not cared to revert to our demands or the problems we are facing and listing,” said advocate Ravi Prakash Jadhav, president of the association.

He added that the Bar Associations of Bandra, Vikhroli, Kalyan, Borivali and Andheri have also joined the hunger strike to demand the transfer of the PJ. The lack of clarity and detailed notification from the administration has already irked the advocates and their clients.

Advocate MH Nizam said that the advocates were kept in dark and were never consulted before taking such a big decision. “A single paragraph notice about courts being shifted was issued, but without details pertaining to the number of courts being shifted and the number and kind of matters being transferred.”

According to the advocates, the filing of a criminal case is now to be done at Fort and then the case will be transferred to Mazgaon. However, in case of bail bonds, the advocates and litigants must travel back to Fort, which will consume their entire day.

“I missed my matter on Tuesday and Wednesday because I did not receive any notification about it having been shifted to Mazgaon and that it was up for hearing,” said advocate Anamika Tiwari, who has also been a part of the chain hunger strike.

Advocate Roshni Khorana, added, “It was sheer luck that I landed early at sessions court in Fort on Wednesday and happened to know that Mazgaon courts have started functioning. If I landed up just in time, I would have missed the hearing.”

Another advocate Kanchan Kambli narrated how she was forced to shuttle between Mazgaon and Fort for one case on Wednesday, where she could have possibly spent her day appearing for more than one matter. “My case was initially shifted among courts at Fort, which is not unusual. But what happened on Wednesday totally disappointed me,” she added, emphasizing the unnecessary tension and anxiety after traveling the whole day.

“On Wednesday morning, I went to the sessions court at Fort, only to realize that the case was at Mazgaon. When I reached Mazgaon, I was told to go back to Fort because that wasn’t the court that had shifted to the new building . Ultimately, by the time I reached Fort, the courts were already shut for lunch. Post-lunch when the matter was called out, I was informed that the matter will be adjourned because the court staff could not trace the documents submitted by me due to the sudden shifting.”

Advocate Monil Mandavia at the Mazgaon court highlighted the impact of lack of equipment and workforce at the new building. “Many judges have not yet begun their work. There was no intimation on what matters are being shifted and no way to check it,” he said.

Mandavia added that considering the judges had also been reshuffled, the advocates will now have to begin from scratch, elucidating the entire case and the explanation all over again. “This is unnecessarily time consuming. The courts are trying to be elegant, but the planning is pathetic,” he added.

Some litigants too were seen frustrated on Wednesday. “Our entire day is wasted, shuttling between Fort and Mazgaon because we are the last ones to get to know about the shifting. Moreover, we don’t understand legal complications, so we just trust our lawyer’s words. The security here is clueless about new courts,” said a litigant at Mazgaon court who did not wish to be named.

More than 500 advocates are currently protesting the transfer of court and are supporting the chain hunger strike. “The purpose of this bifurcation was to expedite the process. However, matters are getting delayed because the judges have been giving reasons like they are busy with the shifting, or they do not have files, or the software is updating. This defeats the very purpose,” said advocate Rahul Tripathi, committee member of Bar Association of BCC&SC.