The Kolkata High Court will remain operational from Shashthi to Ashtami during this year’s Durga Puja vacation, with special arrangements for urgent cases instead of regular hearings across all matters, according to a new court directive reported by Anandabazar. The court will remain closed on Navami.
The decision was taken by Chief Justice Ravindra V Ghughe, breaking from the usual practice of a complete shutdown during the Puja holidays. The court will also sit on the Saturday and Sunday falling within the relevant period, the report said. It did not specify the calendar dates corresponding to Shashthi, Saptami and Ashtami.
The modified schedule does not mean that the High Court will conduct normal hearings for all pending cases during the Puja period. The court will prioritise urgent matters, for which special courts, described in the report as defined courts, will be arranged.
Lawyers seeking an urgent listing will have to apply by email through the specified process. The applications will then be assessed for their urgency, after which the concerned judges will decide whether the cases should be taken up for hearing. The arrangement creates a screening mechanism for determining which matters require judicial attention during the holiday period.
The change is relevant to litigants whose cases involve time-sensitive relief, including applications where waiting until the regular court calendar resumes could affect their legal position. However, the report does not identify the categories of cases that will receive priority or provide details of the email address, filing format or deadlines for applications.
The court’s total Puja vacation has been set at 12 days. Within that schedule, special vacation benches are preliminarily planned for October 16 and October 19. The Bar Association had sought the formation of special benches on those two days, and the Chief Justice has assured the association that the request would be considered sympathetically, according to the report.
The arrangement separates the court’s physical functioning from its ordinary hearing calendar. While the High Court will be accessible for selected urgent matters, routine cases will not automatically be heard during the holiday period. The final decision on listing will rest with the judges concerned after examining the applications submitted by lawyers.
The directive also places greater importance on the filing and listing process during the vacation. For litigants and advocates, access to urgent relief will depend not only on the substance of a case but also on whether the request is submitted through the prescribed email procedure and accepted for hearing.
Further operational details, including the composition of the special benches and the complete list of vacation dates, were not provided in the source report. The High Court’s special arrangements will remain linked to the 12-day Puja vacation schedule and the decisions taken on urgent applications.
