"No Logic To Restrict Working Only To Hear Urgent Matters': GHCAA Prez Writes To CJ Requesting To Commence "Full-Fledged" Functioning [Read Letter]

President of the Gujarat High Court Advocates' Association, Yatin Oza has addressed a letter to Chief Justice Vikram Nath, urging him to let the High Court function "full fledgedly" via video conferencing and allow all matters to be heard.

"I find no logic or reason to restrict the working only to hear urgent matters and that too after such a rigorous procedure to be followed for getting the matters listed. My request to your Lordship is to start the functioning of the court full-fledged via videoconferencing and all the matters whether new or pending be taken up for hearing," Oza wrote while requesting the Chief Justice to immediately withdraw the Circular issued by the High Court on Friday.

Through the said Circular, the High Court had intimated that in matters requiring immediate attention, the counsel concerned will file only "urgent note" at the first instance. The same will then be examined by the Judges and if urgency is prima facie found to be genuine then the Advocate concerned will be informed.

Opposing this circular, Oza wrote,

"The said circular is going to end up with lots of miseries to several advocates, who are either facing difficulties, grave difficulties or are at the verge of economic ruination."

He said that when such "rigorous procedure" is already in place then the court should consider resorting to full-fledged functioning via video conferencing.

He pointed out that the restrictive functioning of courts had resulted in grave misery to the litigants, especially those involved in cases of detention who have been "languishing in jail for want of their bail application being heard though filed long back and in large number of matters notice or rule having been issued and the date fixed for hearing by the Hon'ble Court."

He further informed the court that the lawyers had drawn his attention towards over 50 instances whereby the High Court Registry "goofed up" in terms of filing procedure, etc. that further aggravated the difficulties being faced by the litigants/ lawyers.

He thus urged the court that since procedure of hearing of fresh as well as pending matters is already in place the High Court should withdraw the impugned Circular and consider resorting to regular functioning via video conferencing.

Picture Courtesy: India Today

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