Cool temperature or temper?
Humidity or Humility?
DEFECTIVE air-conditioners caused a mild temperamental turbulence in a High Court recently. Place: Court No. 24 of the Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court. Date: 26.08.2014
The Court noticed that 5 out of the 7 air conditioners installed in the Court were not working. Members of the Bar have been regularly making complaints. Due to non-functioning of 5 ACs, the atmosphere of the Court is very harm (warm - a spelling mistake, but maybe no mistake in meaning) and humid. The ACs were in such a bad condition that the panel of one of them fell on the head of a litigant, but fortunately, he sustained minor injuries. Divine Judgement?
On the previous day, the Court summoned the Senior Registrar and asked him to look into the matter and to get all ACs repaired so as to ensure that judicial functioning of the Court shall not be hampered due to non-functioning of the ACs installed in the Court, otherwise, stern action be taken against him.
But nothing happened.
The Court observed,
"To our dismay, it is found that despite the oral warning given to the Senior Registrar of this Court yesterday i.e. 25.8.2014, the Senior Registrar failed to make sincere efforts to ensure proper functioning of the ACs.
Taking serious note of the facts, we summoned the Senior Registrar again today and asked him as to why ACs are not properly repaired, despite oral direction given by this Court yesterday. The answer of the Senior Registrar is not as such which may impress us.
It would be apt to mention here that functioning of the constitutional body should not be adversely affected on account of certain lacuna of the administrative side in our judicial system. Tradition or practice which affects the administration of justice without any reasonable cause should be removed. The highest constitutional body on judicial side of the State should be made functional to its optimum level. In other words, Courts should function at all costs but on account of non-functioning of ACs and humidity and warmness in the Court, it becomes very difficult to discharge the judicial functions. It may be added that Sri …. (Registrar), when appeared before us, instead of giving assurance for speedy repair of ACs, uttered
And the Court promptly directed the office to register a criminal contempt case against the Senior Registrar and issue a notice to him as to why a proceeding under the Contempt of Courts Act should not be initiated against him.
We hope the court is cool by this time.