Preventing malpractice and issuing suitable directions to monitor the progress of the investigation and prevent fraudulent judicial orders in the subordinate criminal courts.

( 1 ) IN the above writ petition, we have today pronounced our order in regard to the validity of the complaint entertained by the Metropolitan magistrate, Court No. 10, Meghani Nagar, Ahmedabad. In this writ petition, the writ petitioners have brought to our notice the malpractice allegedly used in the subordinate criminal courts in the city of Ahmedabad to obtain judicial orders by fraud. With a view to prevent such malpractice and to issue suitable directions from time to time in this regard, it has become necessary for us to monitor the progress of the investigation, enquiries and steps that are being taken by CBI and the High Court. Therefore, we think it appropriate to issue the following directions for the time being:

(I) We request the High Court of Gujarat to file a report on the progress of the enquiry that is being conducted against the judicial officer concerned. (ii) We also request the High Court of Gujarat to keep this Court informed of the steps taken to prevent such incidents from happening in future including steps taken to increase the supervision and inspection of the proceedings in the subordinate courts. (iii) We direct CBI to investigate and report to this Court if similar incidents have happened earlier either in the said Metropolitan magistrates Court or any other court and further inform this Court whether there is any prevailing practice in these courts of obtaining fraudulent judicial orders of the court. (iv) We direct the writ petitioners to inform this Court how many such incidents have come to their knowledge before they embarked on this operation.

( 2 ) THE above information and report shall be filed in this Court within 10 weeks from today. List this matter on 20-7-2004.