Place Affidavits/Applications On Record Within 72 Hours Of Their Receipt: Allahabad High Court Asks Registry To Issue Circular

Pulling up the Court assistants, registry on their failure to bring on record the pleadings/affidavits within a reasonable time, the Allahabad High Court on Wednesday directed the Registrar General to issue a proper Circular to all the S.Os. of various sections of the High Court to ensure that various affidavits/applications be placed along with its parent file within 72 hours of its receipt.

The Bench of Justice Rahul Chaturvedi issued this direction while hearing a criminal appeal wherein the complainant submitted that he had filed a counter affidavit way back on July 07, 2021 but the same was not on record.

To which, the Court noted that this was a general complaint by the members of the Bar and that even the Court was also experiencing that this type of practice is rampant nowadays.\

The Court specifically noted thus:

"The hearing of the case is adjourned on the ground that the pleadings/affidavits are not on record, though, they have filed in the Registry 2-3 months back."

Calling this practice as totally unacceptable, the Court further observed that it amounts to creating a hurdle in the administration of Justice and that the hearing of the case should not be adjourned on the ground of laxity of the concerned assistants.

Consequently, the Court directed the registry to issue a circular as aforesaid and also directed that the concerned assistant should also affix proper flagging to the counter-affidavits, rejoinder affidavits, and supplementary affidavits and then, send the same in the Court.

The Court directed that the copy of the order be placed before the Registrar General for making this Circular and its compliance by the concerned S.Os. in its letter and spirit.

With this, the Court put up this matter as fresh on August 13, 2021, and meanwhile, concerned S.O. was asked to trace out the counter affidavit filed by learned counsel for the complainant and place it on record.

Case title - Abdul Kalam v. State Of U.P.And Another

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