Mumbai: Eight of the nine metropolitan magistrates of Esplanade court in Fort have been transferred and elevated as ad hoc district judges without immediate replacements, leaving only one to handle the busy court alone since June 19.Officers seeking remand are being compelled to produce those arrested before the 28th court or three in-charge courts at Mazgaon.The vacancies have created major difficulties for investigating agencies, including crime branch, central agencies such as directorate of revenue intelligence, ED, customs, directorate general of GST intelligence, CBI, and police stations across south Mumbai.The crisis erupted after Bombay HC’s June 19 notification, under which eight judicial magistrates serving at Esplanade were elevated as ad hoc district judges and additional sessions judges with effect from June 23. “These magistrates immediately handed over charge and left and since then, the load of these courts has fallen on the 28th court and the Mazgaon courts. There is confusion as there is no information on the matters listed and we have to urgently rush to the Mazgaon court 4km away, sometimes during peak traffic hours. Often, the matter is over before we reach or is kept back for hearing,” said an advocate.The magistrates promoted are A K Mandavgade, B N Ichpurani, V R Patil, V V Kulkarni, S K Fokmare, K S Zanwar, S V Nikam and S S Parave. Six of them have been posted to the city civil and sessions court, Nikam at Dindoshi, and Parave at Mazgaon.Members of the bar said the sudden transfer of remand work without simultaneous posting of replacement magistrates has disrupted the daily functioning of one of Mumbai’s busiest magistrate courts.
