New Delhi , April 9: Don’t be surprised if you hear the argument of a lawyer in Hindi as the Delhi high court, instead of hearing court proceedings in English, on Wednesday allowed a lawyer to argue his case in his mother tongue, Hindi, as he felt he could better convey his client’s grievances through that language.
Justice Rekha Sharma on Wednesday allowed the plea of the lawyer, Das Goninder Singh, to argue his client’s case in Hindi.
The high court allowed the plea of Mr Singh, who was handling a case for his client, Trilok Singh Kakkar, in a civil case pending in court in connection with the purchase and selling off of shares.
After the court allowed Mr Singh to argue his case in Hindi, former Chief Justice of India V.N. Khare, talking to this newspaper over the telephone, said, “This is a good step taken by the court. In one way or the other, those lawyers, who are well-versed in Hindi and whose educational career is in Hindi, can very well represent their case to the court, although there are various high courts in India whose official language is English. It is a good step taken by Justice Rekha Sharma.”
Asked by Justice Sharma in Hindi why he (Mr Singh) did not file the application in Hindi, Mr Singh said his application could have been rejected at the filing counter itself as the Delhi high court’s official language and its proceedings were conducted in the English language.
Mr Singh, in an application to the court in English, said he has had Hindi as a medium of learning throughout his educational career and would be able to express himself more effectively about the facts of law and the case if he was allowed to argue his case in Hindi.
Since many lawyers are not well acquainted with English, they seek the help of English-speaking lawyers, the cost of which has to be borne by litigants, making litigation very expensive, Mr Singh added.
Another case is pending before the court of the Chief Justice of the Delhi high court for its disposal as to whether or not a lawyer can argue his case in Hindi.
Suchitra Kalyan Mohanty