Keywords – Gift ,Judges , Judicial Officers, Visit.
The Madras High Court has made news issuing a notification that provides directions to judicial officers in Tamil Nadu State judicial services and the Puducherry judicial services. The notification instructs the judicial officers to stop the practice of presenting gifts and souvenirs at the time of meeting judges of the High Court, the notification also instructs judicial officers to not stand on the outskirts of the town to receive judges during official visits or visit the residence of the judges requesting favors such as promotions or transfers.
The court has also told the judicial officers to only receive judges of the High Court at the airport, railway station or the accommodation as the deputed officer for protocol duty if and only if the visit happens outside the court hours. In case the visit of the judges is during court hours then only a member of the court staff shall receive the judges, even during official visits only the highest judicial officer shall receive the judges only outside court hours.
The instructions are also specific to even state that a senior staff member will be nominated by the principal District Judge or a unit head of the district and they alone shall receive or send off judges at the railway station or the airport or at the judge’s accommodation no other judicial officer is needed to be present during the receiving or sending of judges during court hours.
The instruction even go as far to say that the judicial officers shall not leave the court during court hours at any cost, there are also instructions in this circular to not address any communication directly to the judges but write them to the registry and the registry will place them before the chief justice or the portfolio of judges for necessary action. Judicial officers also have been directed to not receive hospitality from advocates or litigants and to not arrange a guard of honor for private visits of judges but only make security arrangements judicial officers have also been directed to not seek any help from persons in connection to defray the expenses during private visits.
The officers were also instructed to avoid wearing black coats and ties outside the court premises and declared that there is no compulsion on the part of the judicial officers to be present during the visit of the judges of high courts unless their presence is warranted officially or in a courtesy call the instructions clearly are an attempt to standardize a protocol for visits by the High Court judges in other places across the states.
Written by – Drishti Pandey, College – University of Allahabad, Semester – 4th an intern under legal vidhiya
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