Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud spoke about the role that the State governments plays in funding digital infrastructure in courts.
CJI however noted that there have been many instances when the State governments have not come forward to providing such funds.
CJI spoke about an incident that took place during the COVID-19 pandemic, where a High Court faced difficulties in getting necessary funds to procure licenses for video conferencing software.
The CJI also affirmed that the Supreme Court had to eventually give some of its software licenses to the High Court, which were “dirt cheap.”
Justice Abhay S Oka, who served as the Chief Justice of the Karnataka High Court during the COVID-19 pandemic, revealed in December 2022 that judges and registry staff paid using their own credit cards for subscribing to Zoom when virtual court (VC) hearings started at the High Court.
The Supreme Court judge also said that it took more than four months for him to obtain reimbursement for such payments he made.