Disposal of Case Not Our Agenda, Have To Ensure That Parties Get Justice: Madhya Pradesh High Court

Deciding two separate requests by trial court judges seeking extension of time to conclude the trials, the Chief Justice of High Court of Madhya Pradesh observed that - "Even if there is a little bit of delay in the trial, it's alright. At the end of the trial the parties must feel, they must be convinced that justice has been done." The division bench comprising of Chief Justice Ravi Malimath and Justice Pranay Verma was essentially dealing with two review petitions collectively, wherein two trial court judges were seeking extension of time granted by the High Court vide two different orders to conclude the trials. The first review petition was preferred by the Additional Sessions Judge, Kannod, District Dewas, seeking extension of time granted by High Court in M.CR.C.- 43884/2021, vide order dated 28.09.2021, whereby he was directed to conclude the trial preferably within a period of three months from the date of receipt of certified copy of the respective order. The second review petition was preferred by IVth Additional Sessions Judge, Mandsaur, District Mandsaur, who also sought for extension of time granted by the High Court in R.P.-1195/2020, vide order dated 21.01.2021, whereby the court had extended the period to conclude the trial by one year. In both the cases, the time bound orders to conclude the trials had stemmed from bail applications preferred before the High Court. After perusing the records, the division bench allowed both the petitions. The common portion in the two orders, stated- 'Having considered the same, we are of the view that there is no need to put pressure on the trial Judge for concluding the trial. Only because the bail application has been dismissed does not mean that the trial has to be concluded at an earlier date. We do not find any special circumstances that warrant an early disposal off the trial. Having considered the request of the trial Court Judge for extension of time, we direct him to dispose off the trial as expeditiously as possible without fixing any time frame.' After dictating the orders, Chief Justice Malimath opined that- "Ultimately, what we have to ensure is that justice is done in every case… Disposal of a case is not our agenda. We have to ensure that the parties get justice from us." Mr. Aditya Garg, Government Advocate, appearing for the state assured the bench that "From now, if any such order is requested to be passed, my Lords, we'll apprise the Hon'ble Judges with regards to this."Case Title: IN RE. EXT. OF TIME SOUGHT BY ASJ DISTRICT DEWAS IN HON. CO. DT. 28/09/2021 PASSED IN MCRC 43884/2021 (MADHYA PRADESH) v. STATE OF MADHYA PRADESH Citation: 2022 LiveLaw (MP) 10 Click Here To Read/Download Order

Disposal of Case Not Our Agenda, Have To Ensure That Parties Get Justice: Madhya Pradesh High Court

Zeeshan Thomas

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