Noise pollution: Abhay Oka now heads a larger bench

Three days after she transferred all noise pollution cases from Justice Abhay Oka to another bench, over the state government’s allegation that he was biased and hence the cases should be transferred to another bench, Manjula Chellur, Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court, on Sunday reconstituted a larger bench with Oka at the helm. The three-judge bench will now hear the cases on Monday.

Senior advocate Rajeev Chavan, president of the Advocate Association of Western India (AAWI), said the bench that also comprises Justices Anoop Mohta and Riyaz Chagla, would take up the cases in the second session.

Earlier, despite the state government’s allegations that he was biased, Oka had refused to recuse himself and expressed shock, saying “this is for the first time in 14 years that such an allegation is being levelled against me.”

Later, advocate associations expressed their solidarity with Oka while condemning the government’s stance. 

The AAWI urged the Chief Justice “to take appropriate action leading to defibrillate the honour of Oka”.

Relying on an amendment brought in by the Union Government, the power to notify silence zones was given to the state government and deemed silence zones around 100 metres of hospitals, educational institutions and courts were to be re-notified until there were no silence zones in Maharashtra.