Gujarat High Court Bar writes to CJI BR Gavai seeking Chief Justice Sunita Agarwal's transfer

The Gujarat High Court Advocates' Association (GHCAA) has written a letter to the Chief Justice of India (CJI) BR Gavai for transfer of Chief Justice Sunita Agarwal, stating that her posting at the High Court has resulted in problems for lawyers and litigants.

The latest demand for Chief Justice Agarwal's transfer comes over delay in clearance of filings by the registry after a recent instruction against overwriting or interpolation in the case files.

"We request your Lordship to also consider transferring the current Hon'ble Chief Justice of Gujarat High Court to any other High Court, as it was only after her Ladyship was elevated as Chief Justice of Gujarat High Court that the problems escalated, resulting in the current situation and the main sufferers are litigants and Advocates - especially Junior Members of the Bar," the GHCAA President Brijesh Trivedi said in a representation to the CJI.

The controversy has its origins in an instruction issued on September 15, by the Registrar (Judicial) of the High Court

"As directed by Honourable Chief Justice, all the Litigants, Stakeholders and Party-in-Person are hereby informed that if any interpolation/correction/ overwriting/ deletion by using whitener/ striking of is found in the Petition/Application, without initials of the Petitioner/Applicant and the Notary concerned, at the time of filing, the same shall not be accepted by the Registry," the instructions said.

A subsequent instruction said that "minor corrections, alterations or deletions can be done by filing draft amendments under the signature of the Advocate/Party-in-Person, as the case may be, which shall be subject to approval by the Registrar (Judicial)."

According to the GHCAA, the instructions have resulted in major delays in filing and clearance of cases. The letter to CJI states that the Bar association had attempted to meet Chief Justice Agarwal for resolution of the issue but was informed to instead write a letter explaining the issues.

After a detailed letter was sent, the Bar members are stated to have also met a committee of three senior-most judges. However, the GHCAA said the problems persisted.

"We had a very fruitful and positive meeting and certain directions were issued...We hoped that now, at least when we will file the matter in the Registry, a filing number will immediately be generated and when the objections like above would be raised, the Advocates were permitted to seek corrections by filing a simple Draft Amendment by signature of learned Advocates. But that hope turned into a nightmare and thousands of matters have piled up and not even given a filing number and in many matters, though such Draft Amendment came to be filed, they got rejected due to the approach of the Registrar Judicial (Shri Pranav Dave), without any order of rejection in most of the cases and the files are to be searched frantically by the clerks and Advocates," the communication to CJI Gavai said.

GHCAA in the letter further stated that though they have been again assured a redressal to the issues, many original files are lost and the lawyers or their clerks have to beg even to get a filing number for their matters.

"But the problem is much bigger, as the Diwali Vacation is falling from 17th October and the Advocates are not able to get even the Bail Applications or Quashing Petitions or any urgent Civil matters registered ... as the numbers are not generated by Registry and no proof of filing is available, many original files are also lost and no one is ready to take responsibility, resulting in great injustice to litigants, for whom this institution is created and the clerks and learned Advocates have to virtually beg to get the matters registered to get even a filing number, resulting in no new and fresh matters being placed before four Hon'ble Courts yesterday (October 07)," the letter states.

In the history of Gujarat High Court of more than 65 years, such issues never cropped up, as is the situation today, the GHCAA said.

GHCAA President has now requested the CJI to give him and other members of the GHCAA Managing Committee a personal audience and solve the problems, created by such SOPs which has the effect of stalling all new filings.