Blast effect: Bombay High Court for visual aid for proceedings

Can the proceedings of the Bombay High Court be videographed? The court has asked the advocate general and the chairman of the bar council to file a reply by September 26 on the issue.

The court raised this query in wake of the recent bomb blast outside the Delhi high court. It has directed the registrar (information technology) and (legal) to verify the feasibility of the proposal and inform the court on the next date.

A single-judge bench of RC Chavhan was hearing an application filed by social worker Indur Chhugani.

The bench observed, “Incoming crowds can be controlled if proceedings are recorded and telecast in a waiting room on the court premises or at citizens’ homes. Considering what happened outside Delhi high court, this method can ensure smaller crowds.”

“Every action of the court should be recorded. This would also involve scrutiny of the conduct of all present in court. If proceedings are recorded, the judges would also be happy, because then there would not be any allegations against them,” the court said.

Chhugani alleged that some judges were showing undue bias towards Congress MP Priya Dutt, and the hearing in his election petition, which sought revocation of Dutt’s election , was not being conducted properly. He filed the application seeking video-recording of the hearing in the petition.

The application made by Chhugani stated that the proceedings should be video-graphed in the interest of transparency, fair play and justice.