COVID-19 cannot be ground to hold up judicial work which is already plagued by delays; adapt to digital platforms: Kerala High Court

The Kerala High Court on Monday dismissed a plea filed by two accused in the infamous 2011 hand chopping case, seeking postponement of trial in the case citing COVID-19 pandemic situation (Sajil Vs. National Investigating Agency, Kochi Zone). .A Division Bench of Justices K Vinod Chandran and Ziyad Rahman AA noted that the offences were charged a decade ago in 2011 and declined to grant any further adjournments stating that the precautions taken by the special NIA Court to implement physical distancing protocols were sufficient "Though we are yet to find proper treatment protocol for Covid-19 which has further aggravated the pandemic situation; it cannot be a reason for postponing and delaying every human activity more so in the judicial arena when we are already plagued with laws delays," the Court said. .The Court further stressed upon the advantages of using digital platforms for the purpose of continuing the trial and participating in the judicial process effectively..The plea was filed by two of the accused in the hand chopping case which was originally registered against 31 persons in 2011. Trial had been conducted and several accused persons were already convicted or acquitted. However, the petitioners had been absconding for a while before they were apprehended and trial against them began. They filed the petition challenging the order of the special NIA Court which refused to adjourn their trial..Advocate Sunny Mathew, appearing for the petitioners, submitted that the first petitioner has a co-morbidity which increases his chances of adverse reactions if he contracts Covid-19. As far as the second petitioner is concerned, he said that his place of residence falls within a D category area with a Test Positivity Rate of over 18 percent where a triple lockdown has been imposed as well. Pertinently, he contented that there would be numerous accused and the courtroom itself would be crowded if the trial were to go on which would violate Covid-19 protocol.Further, he argued against the use of video conference as well alleging that the identity of those appearing through it would not be accurately discernible..Advocate Arjun Ambalapatta, standing counsel for the NIA, submitted the preparations made by the Court and the NIA to proceed with the trial and contended that the same is in compliance with social distancing norms.He stated that only two of the accused are now in custody and others are on bail, who can appear through video conference. Therefore, he asserted that there is no question of difficulty arising in discerning the identity of accused, which, even if it does arise, would be appropriately ascertained and dealt with by the NIA..The Bench agreed with Ambalapatta and registered its appreciation for the elaborate arrangements made by the the Special Court to avoid clusters within the court and to schedule the trial on a day when no other cases are posted. The Court further noted that the special NIA Court is operating according to the guidelines issued by the Kerala High Court on June 18 which permits limited physical hearing at trial courts at the discretion of the Presiding Officer at each court and strictly adhering to Covid norms. .Kerala High Court permits limited physical hearing in District Courts after govt relaxes lockdown restrictions [Read Guidelines].As far as the specific issues faced by the petitioners, the Court once again stressed upon the use of digital platforms to continue with the course of justice without any more undue delays. The Division Bench stated in its judgement,"As is rightly observed by the trial Court, the human community has been exploring ways and means to get on with life, in the midst of the pandemic situation. The digital platform offers a viable proposition to avoid physical contact and arrest the spread of the pandemic. There would definitely be initial glitches, which would crop up in any new system introduced which has to be got over by constant use and adapting to whatever change is required. We once again appreciate the measures put in by the trial Court to ensure that there is no Covid clusters created only because of the trial scheduled of a case".It, therefore, dismissed the petition..[Read Judgement]