Judges have to follow discipline and ought not to take up any case unless it is specifically assigned by the chief justice, the Supreme Court has said while dealing with an appeal challenging an order passed by the Rajasthan High Court.

Observing that taking up a case not specifically assigned by the chief justice was an “act of gross impropriety”, the top court wondered how a civil writ petition for clubbing First Information Reports (FIRs) could be entertained.

A bench of justices Abhay S Oka and Pankaj Mithal was hearing an appeal against the May order of the high court which had directed that no coercive steps shall be taken against three persons in connection with eight FIRs.

The bench noted the three persons had first approached the high court seeking quashing of the FIRs but no interim relief was granted to them.

It noted thereafter, they filed a separate writ petition on the civil side for clubbing the eight FIRs and consolidating them into one.

Appellant Ambalal Parihar, at whose instance six FIRs were registered against the three persons, claimed before the top court that the method of filing a civil writ petition was invented and it was done to avoid the roster judge who had not granted interim relief.

“This is a classic case of forum hunting by the second to fourth respondents,” the bench observed, adding, “Thus, this is a case of gross abuse of process of law.” It noted in the roster notified by the chief justice, there was a separate roster for criminal writ petitions.

“If the courts allow such sharp practices, the roster notified by the chief justice will have no meaning. The judges have to follow discipline and ought not to take up any case unless it is specifically assigned by the chief justice,” the bench said in its October 16 verdict. It said a judge can take up a case provided either the cases of that category have been assigned to him as per the notified roster or the particular case was specifically assigned by the chief justice.

“Though a civil writ petition was filed, the judge ought to have converted into a criminal writ petition which could have been placed only before the roster judge taking up criminal writ petitions,” the top court said.

The bench said it was sure that this conduct of the three litigants will be considered by the concerned court taking up petitions under section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) seeking quashing of the FIRs.

“This is a fit case where the second to fourth respondents must be saddled with costs. We quantify the costs amount at Rs 50,000,” it said, adding, they would pay the cost to the Rajasthan State Legal Services Authority within a month.

While allowing the appeal, the bench held that action of filing the civil writ petition was nothing but a “gross abuse of process of law” and it was a classic case of forum hunting.

“We direct the registrar (judicial) of the Rajasthan High Court to place a copy of this order in all eight petitions under section 482 of CrPC filed by the second to fourth respondents for quashing First Information Reports,” it said.
 

The foreign ministers of Turkey and Qatar accused the international community of “double standards” today in its reaction to the escalating conflict between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.

Qatar’s top diplomat Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani said the two governments — both Western allies — “reaffirm our complete rejection of responding to the crisis with double standards when it comes to human life”.

“It is not permissible to condemn the killing of civilians in one context and justify it in another.” Al-Thani, who also serves as Qatar’s prime minister, said.

Israel launched its assault on Gaza in response to an unprecedented cross-border attack by Hamas group on October 7.

Gunmen from the Palestinian group poured into Israel from Gaza, killing more than 1,400 people and taking 222 hostages, according to Israeli authorities.

Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry says 6,546 people have been killed in the war so far, many of them children.

Western governments, including Britain, France and the United States, have offered their full support to Israel, asserting its right to defend itself following Hamas’s deadly rampage.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said: “The failure of some American and north European countries to condemn and prevent the destruction and disaster in Gaza constitutes a very serious double standard and plays a destabilising role.

“The operation in Gaza should be stopped as soon as possible. Humanitarian corridors should be opened,” he added.

Both Turkey and Qatar have been strong supporters of the Palestinian cause and have open channels of communication with Hamas, the Islamist rulers of Gaza.

The wealthy Gulf emirate, which hosts the largest US military base in the Middle East, also hosts Hamas’s political office and is the main residence of the Islamists’ self-exiled leader Ismail Haniyeh.

It has used its channels with Hamas, established with US blessing, to play a lead role in the release of four of the more than 200 hostages held by the group in Gaza.

The Qatari minister said the only way to restore peace in and around Gaza was to keep channels of communication open.

He said Doha and Ankara would continue to coordinate with each other and regional partners to de-escalate the conflict.

He condemned criticism of Qatar’s position, saying that such comments “undermine existing efforts, risk lives and cannot be understood except in the context of political blackmail”.

PM Modi to attend Ram Temple’s inauguration on January 22

​ 

India Today | India