Save trees, use paper judiciously: Law students’ plea

Source:-https://www.newindianexpress.com

BENGALURU: A group of law students have approached the Karnataka High Court with a public interest petition contending that the use of a single side of legalor foolscap-size paper is detrimental to the environment as it leads to cutting of more trees. They have sought directions to mandate the use of A4 size paper, printed on both sides, for legal purposes in the High Court and in its all subordinate courts to prevent serious environmental damage.

A division bench of Chief Justice Abhay Shreeniwas Oka and Justice Ashok S Kinagi, which heard the petition on Tuesday, issued notice to its Registrar General. The petitioners — Akriti Agarwal of Lucknow, Bhavana M of Bengaluru and Lakshya Purohit of Udaipur — have sought directions to the Registrar to amend the High Court of Karnataka Rules to mandate the use of A4 size paper, printed on both sides.

They pointed out that A4 size paper is easily available and is being used by all government departments and the corporate sector, which are the major litigants. It is only in courts where legal size/ foolscap paper is being used exclusively. This is a colonial practice and had been making justice only costly and inaccessible, they contended

SC has implemented use of A4 size paper: Students’ plea

Pointing out that the Supreme Court had already implemented the use of A4 size paper and printing on both sides for all purposes, the students stated that no action was taken on the issue by the Registrar though they had made a request through a letter dated March 4, 2020. Stating that the use of A4 size paper is necessary for uniformity and easy access to justice, they stated that the Supreme Court had issued a circular on March 5, 2020 on mandatory use of A4 size paper and printing on both sides for all purposes.

This came in response to a request made by them in September 2019. Due to their efforts, use of A4 size paper has already been implemented in the Supreme Court and high courts at Calcutta, Kerala and Tripura, they pointed out. They also contended that using different size papers at different places is not only a hindrance to people in accessing justice, but also renders the legal system non-uniform.