Kolkata: An attempt by the Calcutta High Court to work on a Saturday to meet its 210-day yearly working roster was frustrated as few lawyers turned up for the weekend hearings.
On July 3, Calcutta High Court Acting Chief Justice Tapabrata Chakraborty issued a notification declaring July 6 (a Monday) a holiday to mark the 125th birth anniversary of Syama Prasad Mookerjee. In the same notification, ACJ Chakraborty announced that to make up for this work day loss, the high court would function on August 1 (a Saturday).
In Dec 2025, the Calcutta High Court had announced its holiday roster, setting aside 210 days for work along with 61 scheduled holidays, apart from regular weekend breaks. After the new BJP-led govt assumed office following the May 4 elections, July 6 HC had designated Aug 1 as an additional working day.
Since the HC does not work on weekends except for urgent matters, the Calcutta High Court Bar Association passed a resolution urging judges not to pass any ex-parte orders. The plea clearly indicated that many lawyers might be unable to attend the special Saturday sittings.
This was amply visible in the courtroom of Justice Saugata Bhattacharyya, who hears matters relating to the state police. The judge read out all 130 listed cases—from serial numbers 1 to 130—and recorded “Not Today” for each, as no state counsel appeared. At 11.10 am, after calling out all the matters, the judge concluded the proceedings.
Among the listed cases, a lawyer for petitioner MP Mahua Moitra attempted to mention her appeal, but Justice Bhattacharyya noted that he had already passed the necessary orders earlier. Regarding another petitioner—a former Trinamool MLA fearing fresh FIRs and arrest—Justice Bhattacharyya informed the counsel that the court could only hear matters based on specific actions, not mere apprehensions.
In Courtroom Number 1, presided over by the ACJ himself, human rights activist Sujato Bhadra filed a fresh PIL questioning the encounter killing of Prabhas Mondal, the main accused in the Baruipur case. Advocate Raghunath Chakraborty told the court that on July 4—four days before the encounter—human rights activists had submitted a formal letter to the officer-in-charge of the Baruipur police station, warning that a custodial killing of the accused might take place. Despite receiving this warning, the police took no steps to prevent the incident, and the accused was shot dead four days later while in custody. Seeking accountability, Bhadra urged the court to order an independent judicial inquiry into the death. In response, counsel for the State submitted that other similar PILs on the same matter were already pending before the court and that a status report had been called for. The HC directed the new PIL to be listed for hearing on Aug 18 alongside the existing petitions.