E-Paper
Mumbai courts never stop: Madras Chief Justice raps lawyers cribbing over rain
The bench granted adjournments in several cases after the advocates were unable to reach the court due to flooded streets.
Madras High Court Chief Justice SV Gangapurwala on Wednesday while presiding over a hearing observed that courts in Mumbai do not stop functioning even for a single day despite waterlogging due to heavy rainfall during every monsoon.
During the court proceedings on Wednesday, a woman advocate complained about the waterlogging in her residential area in Chennai and the travails she had to face to reach the court due to Cyclone Michaung, according to Bar and Bench.
On this, Chief Justice Gangapurwala, who was presiding the session along with Justice Bharatha Chakravarthy, said, “It is a common thing in Bombay every July during the monsoon season. The whole city sees waterlogging but courts do not stop working even for a single day, even if court staff are not able to reach.”
He, however, asked the lawyer for details of her residence and asked State Government Pleader (SGP) P Muthukumar to direct civic workers to address her concern.
The bench granted adjournments in several cases after the advocates and legal counsels were unable to reach court or attend hearings in virtual mode due to flooded streets and interrupted power connectivity across Chennai due to Cyclone Michaung.
Adjournments were also sought in cases where judges were present claiming that their homes and offices were flooded which prevented them from accessing the case materials.
Chief Justice Gangapurwala said blaming the flooding of the city for the inconvenience was "the easiest thing to say today."
The capital city witnessed an incessant spell of showers under the influence of Cylcone Michaung this week. The state government has announced a holiday for all schools and colleges in Chennai, Tiruvallur, Kancheepuram, and Chengalpattu on Thursday due to severe flooding in several parts of the districts in the aftermath of the cyclonic storm.
The railway authorities cancelled as many as 15 trains including the Chennai Egmore-Tirunelveli Vande Bharat Special and Tirunelveli-Chennai Egmore Vande Bharat Special amid heavy rainfall and waterlogging in Chennai.
Meanwhile, the Indian Air Force (IAF) continued relief operations in the city, dropping 2,300 kg of relief material in the flood-affected areas on Wednesday.
The cyclonic storm made landfall in Andhra Pradesh's Bapatla on Tuesday, causing heavy rainfall in the state.
