Let justice be done though heavens may fall: CJI SA Bobde speaks of Justice amid COVID-19 during inauguration of "Nyay Kaushal"

Chief Justice of India (CJI) SA Bobde on Saturday inaugurated an e-resource centre, Nyay Kaushal and a virtual court for the Maharashtra Transport and Traffic Department at Nagpur. the premises of Judicial Officers Training Institute, Nagpur and a virtual court for the Transport and Traffic Department, Maharashtra.."Nyay Kaushal", a first of its kind e-resource centre in India, will facilitate electronic filing of cases in the Supreme Court, High Courts and district courts across the country..The inaugural ceremony was held at the Nagpur Bench of Bombay High Court and telecast live..CJI Bobde began his keynote address at the inaugural event by acknowledging that video conferencing and the internet was allowing him to address a crowd through virtual medium. .He said that the opening of the e-resource centre is a significant event in the history of the judiciary which will lead to a movement..The CJI also recounted how the Supreme Court tried to continue physical functioning in a restricted manner in the initial period when the pandemic hit. ."But one walk around the Supreme Court building with my colleagues showed (that) it was not safe to continue like that. So, I called Dr. Chandrachud (Justice DY Chandrachud) immediately. We chalked a plan to have virtual hearings", he informed. .He went on to observe that the pandemic hit the country like “heavens fell”. All the same, it was resolved that the administration of justice must continue..“Let justice be done though heavens may fall.”CJI SA Bobde.However, the CJI admitted that switching to virtual court brought its own problems. “... while justice continued to be uninterrupted, the access became technologically dependent," he noted. .He went on to remark that it was important to make justice affordable and accessible and it would be a huge failure for the courts if justice was not accessible in all ways possible..“It should not be like Ritz hotel, (rather, it should be) open to all", he said. .The e-resource centre will be a step towards that direction, he said while also expressing surprise at the fact that every court in the country will be accessible from the centre..“I don’t know why would one want to access every court, but if that is what one wants, it is possible”, the CJI added jovially. .The event also saw CJI Bobde express concern over the possible rise in pendency of case once the COVID-19 pandemic has subsided. “I can imagine that after the pandemic situation, we are going to face a glut of litigation. The pendency will be so high and with new filings, I don’t know how we will manage," he said..He encouraged the teams involved in successfully setting up the e-resource centre to consider something in terms of alternate dispute resolution mechanisms as well..Supreme Court Justice BR Gavai, who was present physically for the ceremony, spoke about how the judicial system has managed to implement the right to justice by making it affordable and accessible..“Virtual hearings have given opportunity to lawyers to argue from their plush chambers outside India or sitting in farm houses, hill stations to appear before us,” he said..Supreme Court Justice Dr DY Chandrachud, present virtually in the meeting from Delhi, gave a short presentation explaining the role of e-courts in speeding up justice for litigants and advocates. ."No other country in the world could have managed to clock the figures for hearings and filings during the lockdown, the way India has managed to, with the help of technology."Justice DY Chandrachud.He concluded his address by requesting State governments and the judiciary to ensure that courts continue to function adding that the purpose of starting them in the first place would be lost if the virtual courts are shut down..Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court, Dipankar Datta observed that the “e-resource centre will pave way for virtual availability of justice in more corners of the country.”."You cannot go back and change the beginning, you can start where you are and change the end."Chief Justice of Bombay High Court, Dipankar Datta.Justices NM Jamdar, Chairman, Computer Committee of Bombay High Court, Justices RK Deshpande and SB Shukre from Bombay High Court also spoke during the function. .Other dignitaries who were present included former judge of the Bombay High Court and vice-chairman of the E-courts committee, Justice RC Chavan and Bombay High Court judges, Justices AA Sayed, SS Shinde, PB Varale and ZA Haq.