REFUGEE

14 Oct 2009 03:08:00
BANGALORE: The judicial sitting in the first court - presided over by Chief Justice P D Dinakaran - was cancelled on Tuesday with the CJ not turning up, a day ahead of the meeting by the collegium of the Supreme Court to discuss his reply to an 'adverse' report from the Tamil Nadu Government.
Justice Dinakaran's elevation was put on hold after the Tamil Nadu government sent a report to the Supreme Court alleging that the CJ had encroached on vast tracts of government land. Amassing land in excess of the ceiling limit in Tamil Nadu is one of the many charges Justice Dinakaran is facing. He has been asked by the Supreme Court to send his comments on the government's report by Wednesday.
No reason was given for Justice Dinakaran's absence from the court on Tuesday. However, according to the sitting list released by the High Court, Justice Dinakaran is slated to hold court on Wednesday.
The Karnataka Forum for Judicial Accountability has urged Justice K G Balakrishnan, the Chief Justice of India, not to assign any judicial work to Justice Dinakaran until he is cleared of the corruption charges.
Senior advocate Pramila Nesargi urged Justice Dinakaran not to hold court till the collegium takes a decision on the issue. In a resolution sent to the CJI, the Advocates Association of Bangalore (AAB) has quoted its earlier resolution saying that Justice Dinakaran should desist from judicial work.
The advocates fraternity remains divided, with a section of advocates in favour of the CJ conducting sittings till the charges against him are proved.