The Supreme Court had sought a status report to ensure the facility of ‘toilet’ in all the courts and tribunals of the country. The deadline of four months has passed, but only 5 out of 25 High Court have given a status report on it. The High Court has now given two months more time to the High Court of 20 states.
The bench of Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice R. Mahadevan said that this is the last chance. The bench strictly said that serious consequences will have to be suffered if the report is not filed in the next eight weeks.
What was the order of the Supreme Court?
The apex court had said in its judgment of January 15 that access to proper ‘sanitation’ under Article 21 of the Constitution has been considered a fundamental right. The Supreme Court issued a directive asking the High Court, State Governments and Union Territories to ensure different toilets for men, women, disabled people and transgenders in all court complexes and tribunals.
The court also sought a status report within four months. The bench said on Wednesday that only Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Calcutta, Delhi and Patna High Court have filed affidavits, giving details of the action taken to follow the instructions, while there are 25 High Courts in the country.
Eight weeks for affidavit report
The bench said, ‘Many High Courts have not yet filed their affidavits/compliance reports. We give them the last chance to file a compliance report within eight weeks. We make it clear that if they fail to file a situation report, then the Registrar General of the High Court should appear in the court personally.
The court had said in its judgment of January 15 that the High Court will ensure that facilities are clearly identified and accessible to judges, advocates, litigants and court employees. The decision of the apex court came on a PIL filed by advocate Rajib Kalita.
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