Pulling up the State government and the police for failing to prevent protestors from entering its premises on Monday, the Madras High Court has called upon the authorities to take immediate steps to declare its premises a ‘high security zone’ and provide security cover by the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF).
The order comes in the backdrop of a few agitations resorted to by advocates on court campuses.
On Monday, a dozen advocates staged a sit-in protest in the First Bench demanding that Tamil be declared as the High Court’s official language in Tamil Nadu.
Initiating suo motu proceedings, the Bench comprising Chief Justice S.K. Kaul and Justice T.S. Sivagnanam called upon the authorities to immediately take steps for handing over the security of the High Court to the CISF or any other similar force.
“This is necessary for a smooth functioning of the High Court, as continuance of such incidents as we are witnessing today, are not only destructive and disrespectful towards the court, but also affect the very ability of the court to dispense justice. It sets a bad example for the other litigants who attend in person and dilutes the authority of the Court,” the Bench said.
Observing that despite informing the police about the possibility of a protest by lawyers, “the police could not even prevent the entry of people not in robes and children,” the Bench said.
Referring to a circular by the Ministry of Home Affairs, which framed guidelines for the security of High Courts and District or Subordinate Courts in the country, the judges said there was a dire need to bring the High Court campuses in Chennai and Madurai under CISF cover. “ The Central Government may be addressed through the State Government for providing the above mentioned security cover to the High Court,” the Bench said and posted the matter for September 18.
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