New Delhi, May 13 (IANS): The Supreme Court on Tuesday said as part of a pilot project, the judges are likely to come to the courtrooms in the court complex from next week to take up matters through video conferencing.

Since March 25, the top court has been taking up matters through video conferencing following the nationwide lockdown due to the spread of coronavirus. The top court had suspended the entry of advocates and other staff members in the high security zone. The benches, during the lockdown, are usually assembled at the residences of the judges. The lawyers were asked to join the court proceedings either from their residence or offices.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta enquired from a bench, comprising Justices L. Nageswara Rao, S Abdul Nazeer and Sanjiv Khanna, whether the judges were holding the proceedings from the apex court premises. The bench replied that it was a pilot project and added that from the beginning of the next week, there is high probability that judges may come to the courtrooms to conduct hearing through video conferencing. Mehta told the court that this appears to be a good idea.

During the third phase of the lockdown, the apex court also decided to constitute a single-judge bench beginning May 13, to take up matters connected with appeals of bail and anticipatory bail, where offences entail jail term of up to seven years, along with transfer matters. This has been seen as a step to address pendency in the top court.