Trial judges struggle due to hundreds of cases listed everyday; mistakes not always suspicious: Allahabad High Court

The Allahabad High Court recently said that when hundreds of cases are listed each day before judges in district courts, every mistake during the judicial proceedings may not always be due to any ulterior motive [M/S Pawan Garments And 2 Others vs State of UP]..Justice Mohd. Faiz Alam Khan made the comment while hearing a case in which it was alleged that there had been a manipulation in the order passed by a Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) in Lucknow in a property dispute caseThe Court was told that an inquiry has already been initiated in the matter by the District and Sessions Court after it was suspected that “some mischievous person” may have made the manipulation in the order sheet for ulterior motives..However Justice Khan expressed a different view.“This Court is of the considered opinion that every mistake committed during the pendency of judicial proceedings before the trial court may not be attributed to any ulterior motive and should not be seen with suspicion. Those, who are conversant with the affairs of the trial court, would recall that in District Courts, especially in the Court of Chief Judicial Magistrate, hundreds of cases listed every day and due to this reason sometimes it becomes impossible for the Judicial Officer of that Court to get a track of each of the case of his court and he will have to depend on the clerk(s) deputed in his office,” the judge said..In the present case, it was stated that the trial court had initially fixed April 8 as the next date of hearing but the same was later mischievously changed to April 3.The date was advanced without any information to the counsel representing the petitioners and the order dated April 3 was passed in absence of the counsel, the High Court was told..On May 13, the Court had asked the CJM to submit a report on the alleged discrepancy and ordered status quo in the matter. However, in view of the ongoing inquiry, the Court on May 30 decided to not touch the aspect further.“Keeping in view the fact that an enquiry has already been initiated by the District and Sessions Judge in the matter and the issue of alleged manipulation of the order-sheet may very well be looked into on administrative side, in the considered opinion of this Court, nothing further requires to be done for the said purpose in this petition and the issue of alleged manipulation of order-sheet shall be taken care of in the enquiry initiated by the District Judge, Lucknow,” it said..Advocate Anas Sherwani represented the petitioners.Advocate Vijay Dixit appeared for the High Court.[Read Order]