While several judges of the Jharkhand High Court have left for their favourite destination to enjoy summer holidays, Chief Justice Virender Singh has chosen to stay back in Ranchi and dispose of criminal cases pending for over 10 years.
The Chief Justice along with newly elevated judge Justice Anant Vijay Singh began to hold the court today. Though a system to hold a vacation court has been in practice earlier too, but it was for the first time in Jharkhand that the Chief Justice has made a division bench functional in the court during summer vacation.
“It is for the first time that a division bench, headed by the Chief Justice, is at place during vacation to hear criminal appeals of such prisoners which are pending for more than 10 years and are lodged in various jails of the State,” said Vice Chairman of Jharkhand State Bar Council Rajesh Kumar Shukla. “It is really a commendable effort made by the Chief Justice where only urgent matters are being heard which requires immediate attention,” he added.
According to Shukla, it will prove to be beneficial for all those people whose matters are pending since years due to which they need immediate attention or they will have to remain in jails for the next one month. “Only urgent criminal matters are being taken up in the court and priority will be given to the pending criminal appeals,” said Shukla.
As many as 332 such cases are scheduled to be heard by the division bench during vacation. Besides, there are hundreds of other criminal appeals which will be heard by a single bench of Justice Anant Vijay Singh.
Both division and single bench will sit during first week of vacation. The Division Bench is sitting in the morning from 9 am to 11 am while from 11:15 am onwards the single bench of Justice AV Singh will hear the other cases.