Making courts secure

The broad-daylight shootout at the Rohini court complex in New Delhi on Friday has again highlighted the poor security arrangements at courts, where judges, staffers, lawyers and litigants are far from safe. The fact that a gang war played out in a court complex in the national capital is indeed appalling. This is not the first instance of violence on court campuses. Ten persons were killed in a blast outside the Delhi High Court on September 7, 2011. In February last year, two advocates were injured when a bomb exploded at a Lucknow sessions court, barely 1 km away from the UP Vidhan Sabha. Four people had died in a series of bomb blasts at the court complexes in Lucknow, Ayodhya and Varanasi on November 23, 2007. Dhanbad District and Sessions Judge Uttam Anand was killed under mysterious circumstances in July this year when a vehicle hit him from behind while he was on a morning walk.

Clearly, lessons haven’t been learnt. The security of court complexes is the responsibility of the state police force. But the manner in which it has been handled by various state police forces doesn’t inspire much confidence. Following violent clashes between lawyers and Delhi Police personnel in the Tis Hazari Court Complex in Delhi, the Supreme Court had in January 2020 asked the Centre to explore the possibility of deploying a separate cadre of the Central Industrial Security Force in some courts for better security. But last month the Centre turned down the suggestion, saying it was neither ‘feasible’ nor ‘advisable’ to have such a national security force to guard judges/courts.

The issue of security of courts/judges is already under the consideration of the top court, which is likely to take it up shortly. A lawyer has filed a fresh plea on the issue as well. People go to courts to get justice and not to fall prey to criminal activities of the worst kind. The top court should issue necessary directions to ensure that the ‘temples of justice’ — the last ray of hope for the common man — remain safe.