Ensure appearance of advocates is properly recorded: Delhi High Court to District Courts

The Delhi High Court recently directed the district courts in the national capital to ensure that appearances of advocates are properly recorded in the order sheets [Ranjeet Kumar Thakur vs UOI & Ors]..Justice Sanjeev Narula suggested that a mechanism similar to the ‘drop-box’ system for advocates appearing in person, or the ‘chat box’ used in video conferencing hearings at the High Court, could be implemented to facilitate the process.“The present petition is disposed of with a direction to the Principal District and Sessions Judge (Headquarters) to issue necessary instructions to all District Courts, ensuring that the appearances of advocates appearing before the court are properly recorded in the order sheets,” ordered the Court..The Bench was hearing a plea moved by an advocate against the exclusion of his name in orders passed by the Patiala House Court in the cases he had appeared in. Despite several attempts to get his appearance recorded, the district courts continued to omit his name from the order sheets.On the contrary, the Principal District and Sessions Judge, Patiala House Court, in a report before the High Court said judges in Patiala House Court are recording the attendance of the counsel in order sheets..However, the Court noted that there was a need to formalize the practice of recording the names of advocates representing the parties in court proceedings. “Such records serve as acknowledgment of an advocate’s attendance and participation in the hearings and also forms the foundation for the eligibility requirement for allotment of chambers in district courts. Furthermore, court appearances are often a prerequisite for eligibility in District Bar Association elections, whether as candidates or voters. The apparent absence of a uniform protocol across District Courts in this regard, calls for immediate rectification,” the Court said. .Accordingly, it directed to standardize this practice across all district courts in Delhi.This would streamline the submission of names of advocates present during court proceedings, an accurate and consistent record across all District Courts which will further ensure transparency and protect professional interests of advocates, the Court reasoned..Advocates Krishna Murari and Naresh Kumar represented advocate Ranjeet Kumar Thakur, who also appeared in person.Central Government Standing Counsel Nidhi Raman with advocates Zubin Singh, Rashi Kapoor and Seema Singh represented the Union of India.Advocates T Singhdev, Tanishq Srivastava, Abhijit Chakravarty, Sourabh Kumar and Anum Hassain represented the Bar Council of Delhi.Advocates Tushar Sannu, Sahaj Karan Singh and Manoviraj Singh represented the Court.Advocates Preet Pal Singh, Madhukar Pandey, Unmukt Bhardwaj, Tanupreet Kaur and Akanksha Singh represented a respondent.New Delhi Bar Association Secretary ON Sharma also appeared in the matter. [Read Order]