New Delhi: The Delhi High Court Monday said it expected full cooperation from the Delhi government, police and lawyers on safety and security in courts. The high court suggested strictly regulating entry to judicial complexes by deploying an appropriate number of personnel and devices based on a security audit.
A Delhi High Court bench headed by Chief Justice DN Patel, hearing the suo motu case concerning the September 24 shootout that killed three persons in a courtroom in Rohini Court, proposed that the city government be made accountable for allocation of budget for the purchase of security devices and as the police has the expertise, it should buy them under intimation to the government and the court.
The bench, which also comprised Justice Jyoti Singh, clarified that it will issue appropriate ‘directions’ to the authorities after the stakeholders have perused the suggestions ‘summarised’ by it.
The court said that based on the suggestions received from Delhi Police and various lawyers’ bodies, it made its own ‘short summary’ which may be put into practice. The police commissioner will put together a team of experts for a security audit of courts and deploy an appropriate number of personnel, the court said.
It added that the entry of all, including advocates, would be subject to frisking – which is quick and efficient—and going through metal detectors, and no baggage be allowed inside courts without scanning.
The court also suggested placing all court complexes under round-the-clock CCTV monitoring, issuing ‘stickers’ to vehicles that may be permitted entry inside a court complex and installing under vehicle scanning system as well as automated gates to tackle crowd.
The court further said that the Bar Council of Delhi should devise a mechanism to issue non-transferable identity cards having a QR-code or a chip to lawyers. It also said that wherever possible, high-risk undertrials should be produced virtually or else, in vulnerable witness rooms or in jails.
“The Registrar General of this court shall make a report on these aspects and the concerned district judges shall decide the number of entry and exit points in their respect court complexes,” the court added.
“This court expects full cooperation of the government, police and the Bar. Mainly, these are the things. Once an order is passed, an amendment (to the directions) will come after 2-3 months,” the court said.
During the hearing, Additional Solicitor General Chetan Sharma said the police has already conducted a safety audit and the Security Unit of Delhi Police has taken over the responsibility of courts.
ASG Sharma highlighted that during Diwali, certain lawyers in Rohini court raised objections to being subjected to security checks.
“You (Bar bodies) should pass a resolution on this point that there may not be any negative reaction. Lawyers should have faith in leaders otherwise no work will be done,” the chief justice responded.
The police had told the court earlier that it has installed more metal detectors in all the seven district courts here — Tis Hazari, Rohini, Karkardooma, Saket, Patiala, Dwarka and Rouse Avenue.