Gujarat High Court launches hybrid hearing platform for Taluka Family Courts

The Gujarat High Court recently inaugurated a hybrid hearing platform for taluka family courts in the State..The platform, which allows family court judges to remotely adjudicate the cases listed before the jurisdictional taluka courts, was inaugurated by Supreme Court judge Justice Surya Kant and Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendrabhai Patel on December 7.Gujarat High Court Chief Justice Sunita Agarwal, State Law Minister Rushikeshbhai Patel, sitting Judges of the Gujarat High Court, Advocate General Kamal B Trivedi and other dignitaries were also present on the occasion..Cluster family courts at taluka level across Gujarat were established recently. All the talukas of the districts have been covered under jurisdiction of the taluka cluster family courts located at the headquarters of the particular taluka."These 73 Cluster Taluka Family Courts, wherein Family Court Judges are presiding over multiple Taluka Family Courts as per the sitting schedules of different days/dates during the month (depending upon the pendency), are now enabled as hybrid as well as remote adjudication Courts, with inauguration of eGujSWAS (eGujarat Scanning Workflow Automation System) with facilitation of authentic scanned version of digital case files from Taluka Courts to the Presiding Judges of Family Courts sitting at District headquarters or Cluster Taluka Family Courts," the High Court said in a press release..Explaining the features of the platform, the High Court administration said that case files of family courts would be digitised to facilitate a remote access to the presiding officers sitting in one or another taluka court. Video conferencing access has been provided for each of the taluka family court, the authorities said."As the Presiding Officer is holding regular sittings at the Taluka Cluster Family Court Headquarter and not the Talukas included in the cluster (mentioned as Jurisdictional Talukas), a facility has been established both at the Taluka Cluster Family Court Headquarters and Jurisdictional Talukas with Video Conferencing Rooms to enable litigants / Ld. Advocates to address the Presiding Officer of the Taluka Cluster Family Court for fresh filing as well as for evidence recording, except for Conciliation Sittings," the press release stated..Fresh filing of cases can also be done at the jurisdictional taluka court only so that the litigants and advocates do not have to travel to the taluka cluster headquarter or district headquarter of the family court."These digital hybrid hearing Family Courts with remote adjudication aim to be the first of its kind facilitating the easiest possible access to the litigants of the most important judicial forum of the nation from a social perspective i.e. the Family Courts," the High Court administration said.