Chief Justice of India, recently orally remarked that he was taking administrative actions to ensure access to hybrid hearings in various High Courts. The remark came upon a mention made by Advocate Siddharth Gupta concerning hybrid hearings.

The counsel made the mention before a bench comprising CJI DY Chandrachud, Justice PS Narasimha, and Justice JB Pardiwala.

Siddharth Gupta submitted that despite the COVID cases being on the rise, many High Courts were not permitting hybrid hearings. He further asked for an urgent listing to hear his plea seeking for hybrid hearings to be resumed in all High Courts.

To this, CJI DY Chandrachud said–

"I am going to Orissa tomorrow to attend the ICT conference. I will be meeting judges of the ICT committee. There is so much that is not done judicially as is done on the administrative side. I'm seized of the matter. I have written to Chief Justices of High Courts too."

"What some of the Chief Justices are doing is, all the money which we have spent, they're just disbanding the technological infrastructure which we have created for virtual hearings. I am very deeply disturbed by some of the High Courts doing this. Irrespective of whether a Chief Justice is technology friendly or not, this is not how you deal with public money. You have to ensure that infrastructure is available", CJI Chandrachud had said, expressing concern about the wastage of public money invested in the e-courts project.

Earlier, CJI while hearing a petition filed by lawyers from Punjab and Haryana High Court regarding the lack of hybrid hearing option and disposed of the matter requesting the Chief Justice of the High Court to look into the grievances.