Chennai: Frustrated by repeated requests by the Union government seeking adjournments, the Madras high court has wondered as to what prevented the State and central government authorities to pick up the instrument that Alexander Graham Bell invented more than a century ago——the telephone and sort out the issue.
“To say the least, this is exasperating. It gives an impression as if the central and state governments are incapable of picking up what Alexander Graham Bell invented years ago, and sorting out the issue” said the First bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice Pushpa Sathyanarayana, when the union government sought yet another adjournment on the ground that it was in the process of holding discussions with the Tamil Nadu government and to demonstrate its new litigation management system.
Originally, E Seshan, a conservationist and wildlife photographer, filed a PIL, challenging the legality of amendments to the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Act, saying a notification issued in December 2014 modified the definition of built up area and provided exemptions which ran contrary to the main Act.
When the matter came up for hearing on September 8 , the Centre submitted that the law ministry was setting up a Legal Information Management and Briefing System, which was still in an experimental stage.
It would help State and Central governments to track the status of cases involving them and to take necessary follow up action. Impressed by the information, the Bench said a module may be given to the high court as well so that it could examine it and make necessary suggestions.
Thereafter, allowing the Centre's request to grant two weeks adjournment, the Bench on October 6 said the Centre too would benefit from the court's orders and that the proposed module should not be construed as a secret document.
“If the module is being finalised and it is at the stage of fine-tuning, the inputs would be all the more relevant”, the court said. Thereafter, the Union government had on November 4 informed the court that it was in the process of holding meetings with the State government to demonstrate the system to the state authorities.
However, the Tamil Nadu authorities denied the same and informed the court that they had not received any such information from the Union government. Criticising the authorities for seeking repeated adjournments on the ground that they were yet to hold discussions on the issue, the bench said there seems to be great reluctance to give the module to even the high court to have a look and make suggestions.
“We are inclined to at least refer this order to the cabinet secretariat to bring to the notice of the authorities concerned our anguish about the matter in which such aspects are dealt with. But, Additional solicitor general of India assured the court that this matter would be brought to the notice of not only the Union law secretary but also the Law minister himself to be sorted out,” the bench added and posted the matter for January 7.
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