Telecom Sector: Common man should be made aware of his rights, said- Chief Justice of Bombay High Court

Whether a villager in Tamil Nadu or a mobile repairman in Goa, the common man has to be informed about his rights in the matter of telecommunications. - Chief Justice of Bombay High Court Devendra Kumar Upadhyay said this on Saturday.

He said that the initiative of the Bar Association would facilitate in bringing various complaints of the general public before TDSAT. Justice Upadhyay was speaking at a seminar organized on the topic 'Mechanism for resolution of disputes in telecom and broadcasting and cyber sectors' in North Goa. Other judges present on the occasion included Justice Nitin Jamdar and Justice MS Karnik, current Justice Naveen Chawla of the Bombay High Court. 

"As far as adjudication of issues before the tribunal is concerned, there are laws and rules for that. Since the nature of disputes is still in its infancy, tribunals are also in their infancy and are constantly evolving," he said.

Justice Upadhyay said since lawyers and TDSAT members are well acquainted with the rules, laws and legal nuances of the field, they should guide people according to the age-old principles of the dispensation of justice - equality, fairness and good faith.

"Though this role has been forgotten in the court system now, I would still like to emphasize that tribunal members should follow these basic principles of the dispensation of justice," he said.

Justice Upadhyay said the disputes coming up for adjudication before TDSAT relate to a wide range of matters and they may affect anyone sitting in a village in Tamil Nadu or running a mobile repair shop in Goa.

He said, "How to make a mobile repairer aware of his rights? I would request the Telecom Bar Association apart from discussing the legal aspects before the TDSAT, perhaps you should go to the bar associations in different parts of the country and discuss this so that they can also make themselves aware of the remedies available to them (public) under this law." 

Justice Upadhyay said that even an ordinary person running a mobile phone repair shop can fight for his rights on these forums, which he must be told about and some kind of awareness program should be run by the bar associations in this direction.