Punjab Advocate General Maninderjit Singh Bedi has directed State law officers to avoid delays, reduce adjournments and assist courts for quick disposal of service-related cases. The move aims to ensure timely justice for government employees and curb unnecessary litigation by the State.
Punjab Advocate General Maninderjit Singh Bedi has issued detailed instructions to his office to speed up the delivery of justice and reduce unnecessary government litigation, especially in service-related cases involving government employees pending before the Punjab and Haryana High Court.
In a clear message to all Additional, Deputy and Assistant Advocate Generals, the Advocate General has asked State law officers to follow a more employee-friendly, practical and court-supportive approach while dealing with service matters. The focus, he said, must be on early justice and not on prolonging disputes through delays.
The instructions clearly state that litigation caused only due to delay will no longer be accepted. Law officers have been told to come fully prepared in cases where advance copies of petitions have already been served on the State.
As specifically directed,
“There should be no occasion for seeking time on the ground of lack of instructions,”
making it clear that excuses for unpreparedness will not be entertained.
The Advocate General’s office has also stressed that adjournments should be kept to the bare minimum. Departments have been warned against making routine or mechanical requests for time, which only increase pendency and burden the courts.
The State has been instructed to assist the Bench properly by placing all relevant documents, records and factual details at the very first hearing so that cases can be heard in a focused and meaningful manner.
To ensure that cases are argued and decided on the scheduled dates, the AG has directed that replies and affidavits must be filed well in advance. Copies should also be supplied to the opposite parties beforehand.
Seeking adjournments on the ground of filing replies has been clearly discouraged, with a firm direction that pleadings should be complete before the matter is taken up for hearing.
In order to reduce repeated and similar litigation, the Advocate General’s office has also started identifying cases of the same nature, particularly those already settled by judgments of the Supreme Court.
Such matters are to be clubbed together and placed before the Bench at one time so that they can be disposed of together, saving valuable judicial time and effort.
These directions are in line with the State’s litigation policy, which aims to reduce the growing number of pending cases involving government departments. Departments have been advised to resolve disputes at the administrative level wherever possible so that unnecessary matters do not reach the High Court.
The Advocate General has further instructed his office to identify old and long-pending cases, especially those where delay itself may result in denial of justice. Such cases are to be treated as priority matters.
Law officers have been told to be fully prepared with both facts and legal position whenever these cases are listed, ensuring that they are not adjourned due to lack of readiness.
The overall aim behind these steps, as stated by the AG’s office, is to avoid wastage of precious court time, encourage responsible litigation by the State, and ensure timely justice—particularly for government employees whose service disputes often remain pending for many years.
With these directions, the Punjab Advocate General’s office has clearly indicated a shift towards a more efficient, fair and accountable litigation system, ensuring that the State does not become a cause of delay in the justice delivery process and that pending matters are decided as quickly as possible.
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