'We Are Happy To See You All' : Justice Chandrachud On Lawyers Coming For Physical Hearing

"We are happy to see you all. You cannot imagine how lonely it is to see the screen every morning," Supreme Court judge Justice DY Chandrachud said on Thursday expressing happiness at seeing lawyers coming for physical hearing.

Today the Supreme Court opened for complete physical hearing, for the first time since March 2020 when the Court switched to the virtual mode due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Later, the Court adopted the hybrid mode of functioning, with the options for both physical and virtual appearances. However, majority of lawyers opted for virtual appearances. Following repeated demands by the Supreme Court Bar Association for complete physical hearings, the Supreme Court on October 7 decided to have mandatory physical hearings on Wednesdays and Thursdays of every week.

The judge made the remark while hearing a case challenging the implementation of OBC-EWS quotas in NEET-AIQ. While the case was being adjourned, Advocate VK Biju, appearing for one of the parties, requested that the matter be heard on a physical hearing day.  Advocate Biju submitted that junior lawyers are suffering due to virtual functioning.

Large crowds of lawyers, missing for nearly one and a half year, were visible in the Supreme Court premises, with the familiar bustle back in the corridors.