Introduction of e-filing in Allahabad High Court is a Welcome Decision

Parmanand Pandey

It is bizarre and surprising to learn that Advocates of Allahabad High Court are up in arms over the e-filing initiative of the High Court from all districts of Uttar Pradesh. It is beyond any logic that when the whole world is moving with science and technology, why lawyers are opposed to this welcome decision? It is also learnt that a Special Leave Petition (SLP) has also been filed in the Supreme Court against the introduction of e-filing. It hardly needs to be stated that the e-filing system in High Courts in India offers several benefits that streamline the legal process and make it more accessible. The key advantages are:

   Time and Cost Efficiency: E-filing saves significant time and money for both advocates and clients by eliminating the need to physically visit the court for filing documents.

Convenience: It allows for the online submission of cases and documents, making the process more convenient and less time-consuming.

Reduced Physical Meetings:

The need for in-person meetings between clients and advocates can be reduced, as much of the communication and document exchange can happen online.

Automatic Digitization:

As documents are filed electronically, they are automatically digitized, which helps in creating a more efficient record-keeping system.

 Environmental Impact: By reducing the reliance on paper, e-filing has a positive impact on the environment.

Accessibility: The system is designed to be bilingual (English and local languages), which makes it accessible to a wider group of advocates and litigants.

Portfolio Management:

Litigants and advocates can manage their cases more effectively with an online Portfolio and planner tools provided by the e-filing system.

Online Payments: Court fees and other payments can be made online, which adds to the convenience and efficiency of the process. E-filing represents a significant step towards modernizing the judiciary and making the legal process more efficient and user-friendly. In this regard, the Supreme Court in general and the Chief Justice in particular deserve kudos for the use of greater technology including the increased use of Artificial Intelligence

(AI) in the country. The Advocates are considered to be forward-looking persons in society and if they behave in such a manner, then it can only be condemned and chastised. The use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Indian courts is an evolving area, with several applications being explored and implemented to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the judicial system. Here are some key points on the use of AI in Indian courts: AI in Legal Research and Administration: AI is currently being used for tasks like automated contract review, legal research, and transcription services. It helps in processing information and making it available to judges for decisions.

Translation Services: The Supreme Court of India uses an AI tool called SUVAS (Supreme Court Vidhik  Anuvaad Software) for translating legal documents between English vernacular languages. Case Analysis: In some instances, AI tools like ChatGPT have been used to provide a wider perspective on legal matters, such as in the case of Jaswinder Singh v. State of Punjab, where the Punjab & Haryana High Court sought input from ChatGPT for a bail petition. 

Transcription of Hearings:

The Supreme Court has utilized AI for the live transcription of proceedings, which aids in streamlining the administration of justice and could significantly benefit the district judiciary with increased efficiency.

Future Prospects: There is potential for AI to be used for case prioritization, categorization, scheduling, docket management, and even predicting outcomes based on records in the future. It’s important to note that while AI can assist in various administrative and research tasks, it does not participate in the court's decision-making process. The human element remains crucial, especially in matters that involve complex legal reasoning and interpretation of laws. Integrating AI in the judiciary aims to complement the work of legal professionals, not replace it.

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The conduct of Kejriwal and AAP Leaders is Repulsive and Lowest of the Low

 

 Twenty days have elapsed from the incarceration of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, firstly in ED’s custody and thereafter in judicial custody. L’ affaire Aam Adami Party and Arvind Kejriwal have been controversial for over a year. He and his party have been claiming from housetops for the purity and transparency in public life. But nobody ever imagined that AAP and particularly its leader Kejriwal would plumb to such an unfathomable depth of immorality and opacity. Now leaders of AAP are saying that Kejriwal will continue to run the government from jail. However, the question is how will it be feasible? Will it not be a gross violation of constitutional propriety?

Mr Kejriwal had cocked the snook to the summons of the ED nine times and at long last he appeared at the directions of the court. If he had nothing to conceal in the liquor gate scam, he could have appeared at the first call but always avoided appearing by saying that the summonses of the ED were nothing but tools of harassment. Instead of assisting the ED in investigating the multi-crore liquor scam, he started thumping his chest by blaming it (ED) for working at the behest of a political party in power at the Centre.

In fact, in law, while the prosecution must prove the accused person to be guilty of the crime at the same time it is also the onus on the accused to prove his innocence. Kejriwal and other leaders of his party are in the dock, and it is a general perception that they have made money by illegal means. Their recent acts and insistence on running the government from jail further reinforce the perception of the public that the AAP government consisted of a bunch of criminals and corrupt persons. After all, jails are meant for criminals and not for constitutional functionaries. Seeing the conduct of Kejriwal and his party one finds that even Lalu Yadav, Hemant Soren and Jayalalithaa have been far better than these lumpen elements.

While in jail, Kejriwal will be kept as per jail manuals, then how can he hold the cabinet meeting from the prison cell? This shows that he and his party have no sense of shame in harping on running the government from the prison cell. This also reflects insecurity and the mens rea of Kejriwal otherwise he could have pleaded for the appointment of any person to be his successor as the Chief Minister of Delhi.

It is more shocking that why Lieutenant Governor is keeping silent over the constitutional breakdown of this magnitude.  Why is he allowing the wife of the Chief Minister to sit on his chair to read out his letters and messages without any constitutional obligations? Kejriwal should have been dismissed, if he declined to resign, on the day he was put in judicial custody.

The less said about the non-sensical speech of another AAP leader Sanjay Singh after his release on bail the better. His speech contained no substance; it was all froth and fury. It was hilariously ridiculous from beginning to end. His logic was full of the bravado of a dishonest politician.

Nobody had thought that a party which started with claims of upholding high moral virtues in public would go down in history with the abominable low level of immorality.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Comical Behaviour of Arvind Kejriwal

  'Absurdity' has no limits as far as Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal is concerned. Just to avoid his appearance before the Enforcement Directorate, he is saying that there was no fault of his and yet why the ED has been sending notice after notice to him. Even a layperson cannot avoid appearing before the court or any authority on the grounds of the notice being sent wrong. Therefore, he cannot judge his case. Everybody knows that if any notice has been received by him/her from the court or any authority, it is for him/her to prove that he/she was not at fault. Nobody can prejudge himself/ herself. The summoned person has to prove innocence, but he/she cannot refuse to appear in the court or before the authority. But Kejriwal is an altogether different person, and he has already claimed himself to be ‘not guilty’ even without appearing before the ED.

  When Anna Hazare’s movement was at its peak at Jantar Mantar of New Delhi, I also used to go there as it was very near to my office in Connaught Place. Arvind Kejriwal used to make tall claims from the podium, most of them were laughable, to make Bharat a corruption-free country in a few months, if he was given the chance. People fed up with explosive corruption, provided him the opportunity to be at the helm of affairs. Strangely, he took the support of the same Congress Party, against which he had launched his agitation, to form his government for the first term because his party -AAP- had obtained a few seats less than what was needed to form the government. Such immoral, unethical compromises in politics are very common but Kejriwal had promised for a new discourse in politics and the people lapped him for it.

  His understanding of the Constitution is hilarious, to say the least. When Sushil Kumar Shinde was the Home Minister of India, he threatened to get him arrested as he happened to be the elected Chief Minister of the Union Territory of Delhi. Sushil Kumar Shinde had then rightly laughed at him in derision over his insanity.

  Kejriwal had many times openly accused Lalu Prasad Yadav of being a corrupt man. This was the reason that he even avoided talking to him on the stage during the swearing-in ceremony of Nitish Kumar at the time of his first alliance government with Lalu Prasad Yadav. But he has no such qualms nowadays as he has been regularly sharing a dais with him and is now an active partner in allying with disparate groups of people and parties across India. This shows Arvind Kejriwal is no different from others. He has shown his true colours. 

 

Karpoori Thakur Fired with Casteism than Idealism. His Personal Honesty was Above the Board

 The late Karpoori Thakur, who has been posthumously conferred Bharat Ratna, was a quintessential socialist. But this Award has come to him more because of political considerations and not for his contributions to society or the country. He was indisputably honest to the core but had no idea how to take the country to the path of progress. The decline of industries and the education system of Bihar, which started during the sixties gained momentum during his time. He was the promoter of the extreme and nefarious form of casteism. Instead of working for the abolition of landlordism and acceleration of industrialisation, he paid more attention to driving a wedge between the castes.

 Dr Ram Manohar Lohia was, no doubt, an exceptional thinker with very high grades. He had a huge understanding of Indian culture, values and traditions but he was also the father of casteism in northern India. Strangely, it was all done in the name of 'Jaati todo' or annihilation of caste. The dominant Middle backward castes like Yadavas, Kurmis etc. found expression through him but Mahadalits continued to remain exploited and were thus deprived of the benefits even after independence.

 Persons like Mulayam Singh Yadav, Lalu Prasad Yadav, Nitish Kumar, Sharad Yadav and George Fernandes have been the disciples of Dr Lohia, but they used their brand of socialism for more corrupt activities and accumulation of wealth and accentuation of power.  Thus, the conferring of Bharat Ratna on Karpoori Thakur is to be appreciated only more for his honesty and simplicity rather than for his novelty or newness of ideas.

 Look at the enormous wealth and nepotism of socialists like Mulayam Singh Yadav. He and his family must have garnered property worth thousands of crores even by a rough estimate. No member of the near or distant family of Lalu Prasad Yadav, Mulayam Singh Yadav, Ram Bilas Paswan or Sharad Yadav was left, who did not enjoy some or other posts of profit and pelf, thanks to the open and unabashed patronage of these so-called champions of socialism.

 Karpoori Thakur was, without doubt, much better than these shameless socialists. One wonders why Mulayam Singh Yadav was honoured with Padma Vibhushan by the Modi government although he was the embodiment of lawlessness, rabid nepotism, rank opportunism and disdainful corruption. Lalu Prasad Yadav has been, head and shoulder, above Mulayam Singh Yadav in corruption and nepotism. He continued to rule the state through his illiterate wife and is promoting almost illiterate son to be the next Chief Minister of the state. Nitish Kumar and George Fernandes have been certainly better than these shameless persons, but they also failed to inspire the young generation. Most of the socialist leaders have been blots on society and they deserve to be discarded. History bears ample testimony to the fact that they got more recoiled and entangled in the deleterious web of casteism. 

 

One Nation , One Election Will be Immensely Desirable

    The country had successfully seen the Parliamentary and assembly elections simultaneously till 1967. The problem arose only after then when some of the elections threw hung assemblies. The poll of the Parliament was held in 1971, a year before its full term was to expire because Prime Minister Indira Gandhi dissolved the parliament to seek a fresh mandate on the issue of Garibi Hatao (Remove Poverty). Thereafter, Parliamentary elections used to be held on time after five years except in 1980, 1991 and 1998. Assemblies have also been dissolved before completing their terms resulting in their elections either ahead of or after the parliamentary elections.

 The biggest disadvantage of holding elections almost yearly in some or other parts of the country is the heavy financial burden on the exchequer. The concept of ‘one nation, one election’ is to synchronise elections for the Lok Sabha and all state assemblies. The idea is to hold these elections simultaneously, either on a single day or within a specific time frame. Over the years, Prime Minister Modi has pushed strongly for the idea of simultaneous Lok Sabha and state assembly polls, and the decision to task former {resident of India Ram Nath Kovind Kovind to look into it underscores the government's seriousness as a host of elections approach. The assembly polls in five states were held in November and December last year i.e. 2023. It will be followed by the Lok Sabha elections which are likely to be held in May-June 2024.

 ‘One Nation One Election’ will reduce the cost.

The main benefit of ‘One Nation, One Election’ is the reduction in the cost of conducting elections as each separate election requires a huge amount of financial resources. Having simultaneous elections would ease the burden on administrative and security forces, who otherwise are engaged multiple times in election duties. With the implementation of 'One Nation, One Election', the government can focus more on governance rather than being in an election mode, which often hampers policy implementation. Simultaneous elections will increase voter turnout because it will be easier for people to cast many votes at one time. The main difficulty in implementing the ‘One Nation, One Election', would need the Constitution to be suitably changed and approved by the assemblies.

 Therefore, it is the considered view that simultaneous elections will keep alive the enthusiasm of the voters but will also result in huge savings to the public exchequer as well as avoid repetition of administrative efforts. It is also bound to control the expenses of political parties. Simultaneous elections will also avoid repeated enforcement of the Model Code of Conduct which affects administrative actions by the government.

 In South Africa, elections to national as well as provincial legislatures are held simultaneously for five years, and municipal elections are held two years later. In the U.K., the term of the Parliament is governed by the Fixed term. Frequent elections lead to disruption of normal public life and impact the functioning of essential services. If simultaneous elections are held, this period of disruption would be limited to a certain pre-determined period.

 If simultaneous elections are held, then for the first time what happens to Assemblies whose scheduled tenure either ends before or after the proposed date of holding elections? In such cases, terms of some assemblies may be advanced and for some assemblies, it can be postponed by imposing presidential rule for the time being.  If, following a general election, none of the parties can form a government and another general election becomes necessary, the term of the House in such case after the fresh election should be only for the remainder of what would have been the original term. Similarly, if the government has to resign for some reason and an alternative is not possible, then provision can be considered for a fresh election if the remainder of the term is a comparatively longer period (to be specified) and in other cases, rule by the Governor or President's Rule could be considered.  Two windows of one-and-a-half months each may be fixed for holding all bye-elections that become due in a particular year. If it is considered that the above proposals for having uniform and synchronised terms for Lok Sabha and Legislative Assemblies are not feasible, an alternative proposal would be to consider provisions to have all elections, falling due in a year together in a particular period of the year. In this arrangement, the advantage would be that the general elections to various Legislative Assemblies falling due in a year will be held together and not at different periods in the year. In the year in which the Lok Sabha election is due, all the Assembly elections of that year may also be held.

 

A book on spiritualism worthy to be chewed and digested

 Pithily written book ‘Dharma, Yoga aur Aadhyatm’ by Supreme Court Advocate Shri Radha Krishna Kumar is indeed like food for thought for each and everyone; regardless of his/her being a deeply religious, non-religious or even an atheist. One is amazed to find the gems of knowledge in the book. It is not merely a painstaking collection of axioms by a researcher, but it reflects the uncanny understanding, nay the subtle practices of dharma and yoga in life by the writer. The book contains four independent chapters. The first one deals with different religions of the world, and the rise of faiths.  The crux of all major religions has been given in the most succinct manner and astonishing style. The description of the Buddhist theory of Pratityasamutpad (cause and effect), Astaang Marg (eightfold path), Panchasheel(five codes of conduct) and four Arya Satya (noble truths) are like eye-openers for the human being steeped in ignorance.

  It may be noted here that births and rebirths have been the foundation of almost all religions except Islam. While Buddhism says that there is sorrow in the world, and there is a reason for it. The sorrow can certainly be overcome because there is a way to it. Jainism tells us that as long as Kashayas (passions) are not eschewed, it is difficult to get Kaivalya (liberation). Those passions are Avidya(ignorance) Krodh(anger) Ahankar (ego or false pride), Maya (illusion) and Lobha (Greed). More or less, the same canon has been said or propounded by all indigenous religions.

  The second chapter is centred on Yoga and its different forms like Bhakti Yoga, Gyan Yoga and Karma Yoga as preached by Lord Krishna, enunciated by rishis like Patanjali and Kapil. There is no dichotomy between Gyan Yoga, Karma Yoga and Bhakti Yoga. Goswami Tulsidas was of the view that human being was a mere puppet. So, he/she must make total surrender to God, but it is not so easy. Lord Krishna says: Chanchalam hi manah krishna pramathi balvaddridham. Tasyaham nigraham manye vayoriv sududskaram i.e. mind is very fickle but determined and strong. Therefore, to control the mind is as difficult as controlling the air. Sant Kabir says: ‘Man ke mate na chaliye, man ke mate anek. Jo man par aswar hai, soi sadhu koi ek’. (Do not go by the dictates of mind because it is very capricious, and only rarest of the rare can keep the mind under control’).

  The third chapter is on the Aadhyatm or spiritualism. It has navigated us through the Saguna and Nirgun form of God, which exists in every scintilla of the creation. Sant Kabir has rightly said: ‘jaise til men tel hai, jyon chakmak men aag, tera sai Tujh men hai, jaan sake to jaan’ (As oil is found in seeds, stone has fire in itself, similarly God is within you, so He needs to be realised). A person performs his Karmas(deeds) in three ways namely;mun, vachan and sharir (mind, words and body). While good deeds change the fortune of the person for good, bad karma spoils his/her fate. The writer has explained the etymological meaning of the word ‘GURU’. ‘Gu’ stands for darkness and ‘Ru’ means remover. Thus, one who removes the darkness and enlightens life is a real Guru.    

  The fourth chapter contains 18 spiritual stories. The very first story and the best among all (in my consideration) narrates the reality of life. The gist of the story is that a person while going to the town had to pass through difficult terrain and dense forests.  On his way, at some distance, he found a mound of bones. He thought that any violent animal must have killed all those travellers who passed through the intractable path. To his surprise, he found that a lion was chasing a man. The man jumped on a banyan tree. The lion also climbed on the tree. Then he saw that a rope was suspended with the tree towards the deep lake, and the man caught hold of the rope. There were two crocodiles in the lake waiting for the man to fall to devour him because the rope was being nibbled by two rats. In the meantime, he started enjoying the drops of sweat and delicious honey falling in his mouth.

Then a person in the crowd quipped how foolish he was. Upon it, Lord Buddha smiled and said it was none but you and explained that mounds of bones exemplify the mortality of human beings. Lion denotes Yamraj (the God of death). Two crocodiles were like two enemies- lust and anger. Two rats were day and night busy in shortening their life. Drops of honey were like momentary pleasure. Therefore, the human being must come out of ignorance to realise the realities.

  The absorbing book has been written in a very lucid style. However, there are some printing and spelling mistakes causing eyesores.