SC Lawyer Writes To Rajasthan High Court Registrar Aggrieved By Lack Of Virtual Access To Court Proceedings At Jaipur

Advocate on Record Shobha Gupta has made a representation to the Registrar General of Rajasthan High Court at Jaipur Bench, demanding the rectification of faults in virtual court access, due to which she was unable to appear in a case in which she was engaged as the arguing counsel.

Missing a posting date can turn out to be detrimental in many cases, the counsel said adding that the glitch had happened twice with her.

She cited the apex court decision in Sarvesh Mathur v. Registrar General, High Court of Punjab & Haryana, 2023 LiveLaw (SC) 871 wherein the three-judge bench of Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, Justice J.B. Pardiwala and Justice Manoj Misra directed that all High Courts must ensure that no member of the bar is denied access to video conferencing facilities or hearing through the hybrid facility.

In the complaint dated 01.11.2023, the counsel said virtual access does not merely mean ‘permission/access in one’s own case’ but to the ‘entire court proceedings’. She wrote that this principle has been applied adopted by the Jodhpur Bench, which reduces the probability of advocates missing out the opportunity of getting admitted in the courtroom. 

The counsel claimed while she tried to appear virtually in a case, she was kept in the lobby indefinitely without being able to enter the video conferencing. According to the counsel, all she could see was a message on the screen that said ‘you can join the meeting after the host admits you’. However, as per the court master/moderator, the counsel was not found in the lobby at the relevant time and hence the matter was adjourned.

On the other hand, the counsel asserts that she was still waiting in the lobby when the above-said information from the court master was intimated by the local counsel present there. She has annxexed relevant screenshots in this regard.

The counsel has therefore urged to immediately resolve any technical glitches or upgrade the virtual court system if it needs upgradation.