Allahabad HC Defers Re-Opening Of Lucknow Bench For Physical Appearance

Both the benches of the High Court were scheduled to open from May 8, 2020, "in shifts". It was intimated by way of a notification dated May 4 that the High Court benches will open from May 8, 2020 "in two different shifts having different sessions for criminal as well as civil matters."

The Chief Justice has now deferred this order so far as the bench at Lucknow is concerned.

A letter intimating the same was addressed by the Registrar General of the High Court to the Oudh Bar Association, High Court, Lucknow, today.

"Ld. Registrar General, High Court Allahabad, vide letter no.PS(RG)/ 56 / 2020 Allahabad dated 06.05.2020, has informed that vide order dated 06.05.2020, Hon'ble the Chief Justice has been pleased to defer the order dated 04.05.2020, regarding opening of Hon'ble High Court at Lucknow from 08.05.2020, for the time being," the letter states.

On a related note, the Allahabad High Court will hear a letter petition contesting the decision to re-open courts for physical appearance, tomorrow.

In light of "worsening" of the COVID-19 pandemic situation, Advocate Shashwat Anand had made a representation before Chief Justice Govind Mathur urging him to rather increase the strength of Benches sitting in Virtual Courts until the lifting of the nation-wide lockdown and the normalization of the pandemic situation.