No business like show & tell business

Much of India's genius lies in its ability to make appearance match intended reality. As long as one literally goes through the motions, movement becomes uncontestable. Historians in the future will be impressed by how Allahabad High Court has conducted regular and fully-attended full-court meetings - deliberations comprising all judges of the high court to discuss important administrative and institutional matters. Except, as Justice Vinod Diwakar pointed out this week to general discomfiture, recent full-court meetings seemed 'stage-managed in the manner of a government whipping its members through a confidence vote'.

It's another matter that there have been only 16 full-court meetings convened in the last 10 yrs. So what if, according to Rule 8 of Chapter 3 of Allahabad High Court Rules 1952, CJ is required to convene a full-court meeting once every 3 mths, excluding the summer vacation? Well, that hasn't been happening. And when there are gatherings, they're suspiciously 'put on'. Much like a Zoom meeting where attendants have turned their cameras off, and engaged in downing late lunch, scrolling the phone, taking a power nap... anything but engaging in the meeting. But for the record, of course, the Zoom happens. Like most other successful things that do 'happen', full-court meetings do too. Never mind how genuine they are.