Given the restricted functioning of Courts amid the second wave of Covid-19, a Full Bench of the Gauhati High Court has extended the interim orders passed by it, its outlying Benches and other subordinate Courts and Tribunals till June 1, 2021. The Court has further said that interim bails, anticipatory bail expiring in this period shall stand extended till May 31. In a suo moto...
Given the restricted functioning of Courts amid the second wave of Covid-19, a Full Bench of the Gauhati High Court has extended the interim orders passed by it, its outlying Benches and other subordinate Courts and Tribunals till June 1, 2021.
The Court has further said that interim bails, anticipatory bail expiring in this period shall stand extended till May 31.
In a suo moto case instituted for this purpose, the Bench comprising of Chief Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia, Justices N. Kotiswar Singh and Manash Ranjan Pathak said,
"By our own orders we have restricted the functioning of all Courts, which are now functioning to deal with extremely urgent matters alone. Under these circumstances, there may be cases where great and irreparable harm may be caused due to the obvious hindrance to the access to justice."
In order to avoid such hindrance to litigants, the Court directed thus:
- In all matters where interim orders of this Court and of the Courts and Tribunals subordinate to it were in force till April 19; 2021, but have expired since then or are likely to expire by June 01; 2021, such orders shall unconditionally stand extended, and/ or deemed to have been extended till June 01;2021. This shall include all such orders of the Outlying Benches and the Courts and Tribunals subordinate therein.
- We make it clear that this shall be subject to any order on vacation of stay which may be passed in an individual case in an extremely exceptional situation for which the litigants and parties may approach the concerned Court.
- It is also made clear that any decree for eviction/ dispossession or demolition which was passed by any Court, Tribunal or authority during this period, shall remain in abeyance subject to any specific orders which may be passed in a given case.
- We also direct that in all cases where the accused/ convict is on an interim bail, short term bail, or anticipatory bail which expires meanwhile (i.e. before April 19; 2021 to June, 01; 2021), he/she may not surrender and his/her bail orders shall be effective till May, 31; 2021, with all the other conditions stipulated in the order.
Case Title: In Re: PIL (Suo Motu) Covid-19 Pandemic
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