Judge rapped for ‘dismiss’ fury

Delhi High Court has taken serious view of a lower court judge’s dismissal of 29 cases in a “fit of fury” and accused him of violating the “basic philosophy of justice delivery system”, reports Harish V. Nair.

Delhi High Court has taken serious view of a lower court judge’s dismissal of 29 cases in a “fit of fury” and accused him of violating the “basic philosophy of justice delivery system”.

HT Image

Additional sessions judge D.C. Anand had last October 3 dismissed 29 cases of electricity theft filed by BSES Rajdhani Power Limited on the ground that no authorised representative from the distcom was present in court.

“The courts are temple(s) of justice where there is no room to radiate vengeance... the citizens expect their judges to decide their cases fairly and impartially with no anger or sense of any biasness or arbitrariness,” said Justice Kailash Gambhir restoring the petitions on an appeal by BSES.

The special judge had dismissed 29 cases in one stroke, unmindful of the basic philosophy of the justice delivery system, the court said. “This court has repeatedly ruled that mere absence of a complainant on the date of hearing on a solitary occasion cannot be a ground to dismiss a case. It is not in the interest of substantial criminal justice. It is only where the complainant adopts dilatory tactics to harass the accused, the power to dismiss should be exercised by a judge and not out of anger,” Gambhir said.