MARGAO
In an unprecedented situation, city-based lawyers under the banner of South Goa Advocates Association stayed out of the Margao Civil and Criminal Court building on Wednesday, saying the building is unsafe not only for the lawyers, but the litigants, Judicial officers as well as the court staff.
After Law Minister Nilesh Cabral rushed to Margao to assuage the sentiments of the lawyers and his promise to take up the repairs on a war footing, the lawyers have decided to attend the court on Thursday. They, however, hastened to add that the lawyers will have no option than to stay out from the court building on Thursday as well if there’s a heavy downpour.
Given that two courtrooms are vacant in the South Goa District and Sessions Court, a delegation of the Association later suggested to the Principal District Judge to shift two courts from the old civil and criminal court building to the district court building as a short term solution. As a long term solution, the legal fraternity questioned the government for abandoning work on the new Margao Civil and Criminal Court building, demanding the immediate resumption of the building work.
The issue is likely to come up before the High Court on Monday as the court is believed to have taken cognizance of a petition made by the South Goa Advocates Association on the condition of the civil and criminal court building and the stop in the work on the new building.
Perhaps for the first time ever, members of the South Goa Advocates Association did not attend the court building to highlight the issue of the dilapidated and unsafe condition of the building.
Addressing the media, Association president Adv Prasad Naik said the lawyers are not protesting nor boycotting the courts, but have decided to stay out of the court building to highlight the condition of the building and the plight of the lawyers, litigants, Judicial officers and the staff. “The water seepage started in the bar room, followed by the inundation of the court corridors. A couple of days ago, water entered the chamber of a Judge and there was water seepage in the courtrooms. And, now a portion of the false ceiling has come down. This cannot go on like this,” Prasad said, while demanding justice from the authorities.
Senior lawyers, including Adv Anacleto Viegas and Adv Frazer Rebello echoed similar sentiments, saying the condition of the court building not only poses danger to human beings, but for the files and important documents. “It is absolutely not possible for the lawyers to work when it is raining in the courtroom,” Adv Anacleto said.
Adv Frazer warned that the lawyers will be forced to stay away not just from the Margao Civil and Criminal Court, but boycott all the courts in South Goa if a solution is not forthcoming from the government. “This is a token boycott. All South Goa courts will see a boycott if the situation does not improve immediately,” he warned.
Adv Pritam Moraes said the lawyers were forced to take the drastic steps of staying out of the court building since there was no response from the authorities to carry out the repairs. “We had a distressful situation when it rained in the chamber of a Judge. We cannot enter the bar room. When courts are getting flooded what justice can be dispensed,” he wondered.
Adv Antonio Clovis Costa said one can very well imagine the seriousness of the situation when a tile landed on a lawyer in the court building. He also slammed the government for not resuming work on the new court building, which has come to a stop for the last three years.
