A Visit To High Court Of Gujarat

 

AN EPITOME OF JUSTICE

Date: 18 October 2023. Ahmedabad. The journey from school to the High Court of Gujarat was exciting and suspenseful for me. As my classmates and I got off from the school bus which safely dropped us there, I was mesmerized by the greenery outside. The main entrance of the court had a big emblem on top and below it, ‘Satyamev Jayate’ was written in our official language-Hindi. After all the classes gathered, we went to study a typical day of the court. While going there, we saw many advocates wearing their official dress code which is cloaks, which are known as ‘Black Robes’ along with the ‘Barrister’s Band’ or the ‘Advocate Band’. Few policemen were also seen there.

The first court room that we visited was that of chief justice and that was a division bench with 2 judges. As we settled down quietly, I saw that on the wall behind to where the judges sat, something was written below the Emblem. It was: ‘LAW IS KING OF KINGS, NOTHING IS MIGHTER THAN LAW BY WHOSE AID EVEN THE WEAK MAY PREVAIL OVER THE STRONG.’ Microphones were placed before the judges as well as lawyers. Both the lawyers’ arguments were heard by the judges carefully. The judge along with the lawyers mentioned many articles and sections. CCTV cameras were placed before the lawyers, and judges as well as scattered around the room and footage was visible on a TV screen placed there. The advocates and the judges were surrounded by plenty of files. The court room had many fire extinguishers, calendars, clocks and speakers. Numerous numbers of bookshelves were placed on both the sides of the court room which were filled with thick books.

After some time, we went to another court room which was rather smaller than the previous one. It was a single-judge bench. The cupboards placed at the back of this courtroom consisted of many thick and light brown covered books named ‘Supreme Court Cases’. Many volumes under the same title were kept there. The judge heard both the lawyers’ arguments and referred to the documents and evidence given by them. Many particular and precise dates, days as well as years were mentioned. Respect was given to the judges by everyone by calling them ‘My Lord’. 

 We were lucky to have a quick informative Q&A session with Public Prosecutor Adv. Hardik Brahm Bhatt along with Secretary of Gujarat High Court Bar Association Adv. Hardik Soni in between their busy schedules. They explained the overall process of the judicial system. They even told me that within 5 to 10 years there will be no need to carry files around, as the processes will be paperless by then and everything will be on computers. That was good news because on our way back to our school buses we went through an alley with racks filled with files on both the sides, which thankfully won’t be seen in the years ahead. 

After this visit to Gujarat High Court, I’m sure many of my friends will now want to be a part of the judicial system of India in future. I’m thankful to all the people who made this educational trip wonderful, exciting and informative.