CJI Surya Kant said he asked all High Court Chief Justices to hold online hearings on Mondays and Fridays to cut avoidable expenses amid the West Asia crisis. Earlier, the Supreme Court opted for video hearings on them.
Chief Justice of India Surya Kant that he has asked the Chief Justices of all High Courts to hold hearings online on Mondays and Fridays, for the time being, to help reduce avoidable expenditure in light of the West Asia crisis.
Earlier, On May 15, the Supreme Court decided that cases would be heard exclusively through video conferencing on Mondays and Fridays, and the judges unanimously resolved to promote car-pooling arrangements among themselves to ensure better fuel utilisation.
The decision followed a call by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to cut down on avoidable expenses due to the West Asia crisis.
During the hearing on Monday, senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi praised the CJI’s decision, stating that there was seamless use of technology and that the judges showed extra patience throughout the online proceedings.
“I commend the Chief Justice of India for the online hearings because today, they have gone on smoothly in all the courts,”
Rohatgi said, adding,
“I must commend the Chief Justice for this step. I also urge that all the high courts follow suit”.
He added that the digital format did not disrupt the judicial process, saying that every judge was particularly patient and that “The VC (video conference) hearings went on very smoothly”.
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Solicitor General Tushar Mehta also agreed, saying,
“I join my learned friend in those submissions”.
The CJI further noted that on Friday, he had requested all High Court Chief Justices to adopt the same online hearing arrangement if feasible.
He explained that Mondays and Fridays are usually set aside for miscellaneous matters.