HC to restart physical hearings from Aug 2

MUMBAI: The Bombay high court (HC) administration committee on Thursday decided to restart physical hearings after the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and state authorities informed the committee that the number of vaccinations had increased and there was a reduction in number of Covid cases. Physical hearings will start from August 2 and will be held three days in a week, while there will be virtual hearing on one day.

Earlier in the day, citing the need to await the decision of the HC administration committee on whether physical hearings can be started, the court had adjourned hearing of a public interest litigation (PIL) which sought directions to state and civic authorities to relax travel restrictions for fully vaccinated persons and to allow them to travel by public transport modes including suburban local trains.

Physical hearings will be restricted to half days only and not be starting full-fledgedly in 11 districts namely Raigad, Sindhudurg, Ratnagairi, Sangli, Satara, Kolhapur, Pune, Nagar, Beed, Nashik and Palghar. The decision will come into effect from Monday, August 2.

Meanwhile, the division bench of chief justice Dipankar Datta and justice Girish Kulkarni while hearing the PIL filed by Mohan Bhide, a chartered accountant and resident of Vile Parle, was informed that in light of increase in the number of people getting fully vaccinated, the authorities should be directed to permit such persons to use all modes of public transport.

The bench said, “There are media reports that the government is thinking of permitting those who have got two doses of vaccinations to travel. Let a decision be taken (by the government), then we will consider.” It will now be heard on August 2.