Chief Justice of India (CJI) Justice Surya Kant has voiced his frustration over the legal community's reluctance to adapt to a new system aimed at streamlining urgent hearings in the Supreme Court. Despite clear instructions issued soon after he assumed office in November 2025, the practice of lawyers personally 'mentioning' cases for urgent listing persists.
A Persistent Culture of Mentioning
The CJI had introduced a significant procedural change, specifying that barring extraordinary situations, matters requiring urgent hearing would be listed automatically. This move was designed to end the daily ritual where lawyers had to approach the CJI every morning to plead for urgent listings. However, the old habit has proven hard to break.
On Monday, December 30, 2025, lawyers again brought urgent matters before a vacation bench led by Justice Kant himself. An exasperated CJI remarked, “This culture of mentioning is difficult to be stopped, no?” His comment highlights the ongoing challenge in implementing judicial reforms, even when mandated from the top.
Congress Discontent Over Parliamentary Absences
In a separate development within the political sphere, the Congress leadership is reportedly unhappy with two of its Members of Parliament. The MPs skipped a crucial meeting of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Rural Development and Panchayati Raj held on Monday.
The agenda for the meeting was the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) – a flagship scheme the Congress party is actively working to position as its next major political plank across India. The party's irritation was particularly directed at the MP who had originally suggested the committee discuss MGNREGA but was absent from the meeting.
Sources indicated that BJP members outnumbered the Opposition in the committee as several non-BJP MPs were absent. It was reported that the BJP high command had specifically instructed its members to ensure strong attendance at Monday's meeting, turning the session into a display of political discipline.
VIP Movements in Lutyens' Delhi
In other news from the capital, BJP national working president Nitin Nabin is set to move into a government bungalow on the prestigious Sunehri Bagh Road. This address will place him in close proximity to one of his likely neighbours, Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi.
This allotment proceeds even as another prominent figure, former Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar, awaits the allocation of his official residence. It is learnt that Dhankhar had written to the government as far back as August 22, 2025, formally requesting the allotment of a bungalow. The contrasting situations highlight the often-complex process of VIP accommodations in New Delhi.
The events of the day underscore a common theme across different pillars of Indian democracy: the gap between established protocols and ground-level practices. Whether in the Supreme Court or in Parliament, systems face tests from entrenched cultures and political exigencies.
