Mahakumbh traffic hampers judicial proceedings; Allahabad HC directs Prayagraj administration to ensure lawyers’ access to courts

The severe traffic jam in Prayagraj due to the Mahakumbh, which shows no sign of abating even after key snan dates have hampered judicial proceedings as well. The Allahabad High Court has directed Prayagraj authorities to ensure “unhindered” access for lawyers to court premises.

The High Court made the observation after it had to adjourn a case twice on the same day. The case was adjourned after the lawyer of one of the parties expressed difficulty in reaching court on time owing to traffic congestion in the city. Bar and Bench reported that several cases in the Allahabad High Court had to be adjourned during the past few weeks due to traffic restrictions in Prayagraj.

The High Court’s observation comes as the Uttar Pradesh government has declared Prayagraj a ‘No vehicle zone’ for two days. High Court Justice J.J. Munir noted that the court's functioning cannot be brought to a standstill owing to the restrictions.

The bench said, "While this Court understands that this is an unusual situation because of the presence of a large population visiting the Mahakumbh, it is the duty of the police to ensure that movement of learned counsel to the court is unhindered and does not affect the functioning of the Court," Bar and Bench reported. 

The Uttar Pradesh government has restricted vehicle movement in Prayagraj for the next two days considering huge crowd that will turn up to take snan for Maghi Poornima. The district administration said only essential and emergency vehicles would be allowed. 

Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav slammed the Yogi Adityanath government on Monday after several devotees travelling to Prayagraj complained that there was 300km-long traffic jam to Prayagraj during the weekend. Yadav said due to poor traffic planning, even essential goods did not reach Prayagraj.