Advocate Tests Covid Positive- Manipur HC To Stay Closed Till 21st September [READ LETTER]

The High Court of Manipur has suspended the normal operations/ sitting of the Court till 21st September keeping in view that one of the advocates was tested COVID positive within the High Court premises. The Registrar of the high court had mentioned in the Notification issued on Thursday, 17th September that no further cause list will be published for the said period until the Court resumes its functioning from 21st September. 

However, if there is a case of “extreme urgency” then a suitable bench will be constituted on 21st September to address the matter by the Chief Justice on the demand made by the party or the counsel. The adjournment of the functioning of the High Court was requested by the Manipur High Court Bar Association on 17th September, Thursday to the Chief Justice of Manipur High Court so as to adjourn the working of the High Court for a period of at least 1 week. 

In the letter, the Manipur High Court Bar Association stated, “an unprecedented situation has been created in the last few days as it was reported that an Advocate who visited the High Court of Manipur and argued a case in Court no. 2 on 10/9/2020 and 11/9/2020 has been detected COVID positive. As a precautionary measure, all the employees have been tested and the results are awaited.” 

Further, the letter stated that if the court work continued in its normal manner then it might pose a risk to the lives of Advocates, aggrieved parties, employees of the High Court. The letter mentioned, “In view of the unprecedented situation and also concerning the suggestion of Health Department, on behalf of members of Bar, it is requested to the Hon’ble Chief Justice of High Court of Manipur to assess the above serious situation and to request his Lordship to kindly adjourn Court proceedings for at least a week.”

It may also be noted that numerous courts had to adjourn or limit their regular functioning due to the positive cases being spotted on their sites. Lately, even the Gujarat High Court had decided to remain closed from 12th September till 15th September as 12 employees of the Court had tested positive on 9th September, Wednesday. 

Even the substantial increase in the number of corona patients in the High Court of Madhya Pradesh at principal bench Jabalpur, the Hon’ble Chief Justice had ordered that the Judicial and Administrative functioning of the High Court of Madhya Pradesh, Jabalpur, and its Registry will remain closed for a period of 4 days from 16/9/2020 to 20/9/2020 to guarantee proper sanitization of the premises and to break the chain of COVID-19, and even the physical and E-filing will be stopped from 5 pm of 15/9/2020 to 10 am of 21/9/2020. 

[READ LETTER]