Testing time for Kathua case judge
Ravi Dhaliwal
Tribune News Service
Pathankot, August 4
Dr Tejwinder Singh, Pathankot District and Sessions Judge, is juggling his time between pursuing LLD (Doctorate of Law) and presiding over the high-profile Kathua rape-murder case.
The judge was all set to embark on an academic journey when the Supreme Court shifted the trial to Pathankot in May after some political parties and lawyers allegedly created disturbance in Kathua where the case was being heard.
During the day, Dr Tejwinder Singh is hearing the trial, while at night he becomes a student. In 1991, when he was selected in the judicial services, he was the youngest magistrate in the country, a fact which was recorded two years later in the Limca Book of Records.
Dr Tejwinder has already taken permission from the Registrar of the Punjab and Haryana High Court to pursue LLD.
“After I applied for permission on March 8, the Registrar wrote back to me saying that I had been given the green signal to pursue LLD from Lovely Professional University (LPU), Jalandhar, for the academic year 2018-19 onwards. No attendance is required for the course. I am studying and doing research work after court hours so that my work is not affected,” says the judge.
Dr Tejwinder makes optimum use of technology to stay in touch with his guides in Delhi. “LPU has a tie-up with a ‘board of guides’ in Delhi and I am in touch with them through videoconferencing. At a later stage, a permanent guide will be assigned to me,” the judge adds.
