The High Court of Telangana, today declared the suspension of all regular judicial and Administrative work in the High Court till 14th April 2020, in the wake of complete lockdown of 21 days declared by the Government of India throughout the Country from 24th March 2020.
The High Court will be taking up urgent matters every week on Monday, Wednesday and Friday through video conferencing or skype. These urgent matters will be taken up by the Court after the Advocates submit their matters through an email to the Registrar General, along with the reasons for why the matter be taken up urgently. The Registrar General will then scrutinize the matter and submit the same before the Chief Justice of the High Court. The final decision regarding being heard as an urgent matter will be with the Chief Justice, who will decide the urgency involved in the matter and accordingly permit the Registry to list the matter before a High Court Bench. On grant of permission by the Chief Justice for listing, the date and time of listing will be published in the website of the High Court and intimated to the concerned Advocate through SMS.
The Advocated will make their submissions through video conferencing or skype to the Hon’ble Bench, who will take up the cases from their home-offices.
The detailed procedure for filing the cases online and making submissions through video conferencing or skype will be published by a separate circular in the High Court’s website.
The staff members will not be required to attend the office, except those who are required for urgent judicial work, but will be available on phone, and not leave the headquarters to ensure that they are available to attend whenever their services are required.
The Registrar General in his Notification has also cited the order of the Supreme Court in Suo Moto Writ Petition No. 3/2020 in Re: Cognizance For Extension of Limitation, where it has been held that, “To obviate such difficulties and to ensure that lawyers/litigant do not have to come physically to file such proceedings in respective Courts/Tribunals across the country including this Court, it is ordered that a period of limitation in all such proceedings, irrespective of the limitation period prescribed under the general law or Special laws whether condonable or not shall stand extended w.e.f. 15th March 2020 till further order/s to be passed by the Supreme Court in the said proceedings.”
The Registrar General in his notification has also cited the Orders passed by High Court of Telangana in Suo Motu Writ Petition No. Urgent 1/2020, on 27.03.2020 where it has been held that, “…in all matters pending before this court, and courts subordinate to this court, wherein such interim orders issued were subsisting as on 20.03.2020 and expired, or will expire thereafter, the same shall stand automatically extended till 07.06.2020 or until further orders, except where any orders to the contrary have been passed by the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India in any particular matter, during the intervening period. … … … Needless to clarify that in case, the aforesaid extension of interim orders causes any hardship of an extreme nature to a party to such proceeding, they would be at liberty to seek appropriate relief, as may be advised. … … … Any orders of the Executing Court passed after 15.02.2020 for executing the decrees and dispossessing the Judgment Debtors shall be kept in abeyance and shall not be executed till further orders.”
-Srishti Ojha