JUDGMENT

S.N. Variava, J.-Leave granted.

2. Heard parties.

3. These Appeals are against Orders dated 16th April, 2001 and 19th April, 2001 passed by the Bombay High Court.

4. Briefly stated the facts leading to these Appeals are as follows:

Due to large scale diversions of public funds, belonging to banks and financial institutions, to the individual accounts of certain brokers, the Government first promulgated an Ordinance. Subsequently the Special Court (Trial of Offences Relating to Transactions in Securities ) Act, 1992 was passed. (This Act will hereinafter be referred to as the Special Courts Act.) Under this Special Courts Act one Special Court came to be established. In the beginning there was only one Judge. All civil and criminal matters, even if they arose from the same transaction were before the same Judge. The same Judge had, in fact, tried both civil and criminal matters even though they arose out of the same transaction or same set of facts. It is only because the work load was found to be very heavy that the Special Courts Act was amended in 1997, to enable appointment of more Judges. It is only thereafter that there have been two Judges.

5. In May 1995 Canbank