The massive traffic jams due to the ongoing Kumbh Mela in Uttar Pradesh have disrupted court proceedings at the Allahabad High Court. Several cases, including journalist Mohammad Zubair’s plea, were adjourned as lawyers and parties struggled to reach the court. Despite video conferencing options, hearings continue to be postponed, with interim relief granted in some cases. Thousands of devotees remain stranded on highways as traffic chaos intensifies in Prayagraj.
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UTTAR PRADESH: The ongoing Kumbh Mela in Uttar Pradesh has caused heavy traffic jams, making it difficult for people to reach the Allahabad High Court. Because of this, many court cases have been delayed in the past few weeks.
On Monday, the Court postponed the hearing of a case involving Alt News journalist and fact-checker Mohammad Zubair. He had filed a plea to cancel a criminal case against him. This case was filed by supporters of Yati Narsinghanand, a priest from Ghaziabad’s Dasna Devi Temple, who accused Zubair of creating enmity.
The bench, consisting of Justice Siddhartha Varma and Justice Yogendra Kumar Srivastava, delayed the hearing, saying that people could not reach the Court because of the Kumbh Mela traffic in Prayagraj.
“Today, no adverse order is being passed due to traffic restrictions. All parties were unable to reach the court for the same reason,”
-a counsel appearing in the matter.
Since the hearing could not take place, the Court extended the protection from arrest for Zubair until February 17, when the next hearing will take place.
The lawyers have also requested that the judges do not pass any strict orders against them if they are unable to appear in court due to the traffic situation.
“Today Bar has requested for no adverse order owing to traffic restrictions,”
-the bench of Justice SD Singh and Justice Dr Gautam Chowdhary said in an order passed on January 27, while adjourning a criminal appeal.
Because of the traffic problem, the Court has delayed several other cases in the same way. This is happening even though the High Court has provided a video-conferencing option for lawyers.
The Webex links for virtual hearings are available on the High Court website.
According to media, on Monday, thousands of devotees traveling to the Maha Kumbh got stuck on highways because of the huge traffic jams.
The traffic stretched for hundreds of kilometers on the roads leading to Prayagraj.
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