Nagpur – The issue of repeated adjournments in a case filed by a women’s self-help group drew strong objections from the High Court. During the hearing, it was revealed that the adjournments were due to a shortage of staff at the Government Pleader’s (GP) office. Taking the matter seriously, the High Court had directed the state government to ensure adequate staffing at the GP office.
In compliance, Senior Government Pleader Deven Chauhan, appearing on behalf of the state government, presented a letter dated April 4, 2025, to the court. The letter revealed that the staffing pattern for the GP office had been sent to the Finance Department for approval. Chauhan also requested the court to grant some time for the process to move forward. Following this, the court postponed the hearing to April 21.
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14 April 2025
After reviewing the update, the High Court expressed hope that the Finance Department would approve the staffing proposal soon and directed the government pleader to ensure the department is informed about the court’s concern.
In a previous hearing, the court had remarked that nearly 50% of daily listed cases were adjourned due to the lack of timely instructions from various government departments. It was brought to the court’s attention that, against the sanctioned strength of 64 legal officers (GPs and APPs) in the Nagpur office, there are only 10 stenographers available. This means, on average, one stenographer is expected to serve seven legal officers—an imbalance contributing heavily to the delays.
The court emphasized that despite communications sent to various government departments and ministries, responses are often delayed, causing an average of three adjournments in cases due to lack of instructions. It was also noted that a large number of staff are needed to maintain regular communication with government offices and that legal officers must actively follow up with departments for timely directives.
The court has also asked the Secretary of the Law and Judiciary Department to file an affidavit concerning the restructuring of the staffing pattern in government pleader and public prosecutor offices across the state.
