CJI Surya Kant in Jaipur: Seminar on Retired Judges & Cybercrime Concerns

Rajasthan Chief Minister, Bhajanlal Sharma, is also scheduled to attend the event.

Coinciding with the CJI's visit, an unprecedented judicial arrangement will see 39 judges, including Acting Chief Justice S.P. Sharma, sit together at the Rajasthan High Court's Jaipur Bench.

Legal observers say this is likely the first time since the establishment of the Jaipur Bench that all judges will conduct hearings simultaneously from Jaipur, marking a significant moment in the state's judicial history.

To facilitate this, the High Court has restructured its roster, constituting four Larger Benches, six Division Benches, and fifteen Single Benches.

Notably, this is the first instance in Rajasthan where four Larger Benches, comprising more than two judges, will function concurrently. In addition, cases originating from Jodhpur will also be heard from Jaipur through video conferencing.

This is second visit of the CJI to the city within two months. He had earlier visited Jaipur on February 20 to inaugurate a national conference on cybersecurity.

On this occasion, he raised serious concerns over the growing threat of cybercrime in the country, revealing that he has been targeted by cybercriminals as well. His remarks, made during the inauguration of a three-day cybersecurity seminar in Jaipur, triggered a wider discussion on digital safety and trust in the online space.

Addressing the seminar, the CJI had said that fake websites using his identity appear frequently. "Every other day, I see a new website in my name. One day, a girl like my sister and my daughter received messages from a website in my name. Fortunately, the language in those messages was not offensive, as they likely knew about me and my views," he said.

He added that the matter was immediately reported to cybercrime authorities, which helped trace the operators. However, he noted that the websites were being run from Nigeria, highlighting the cross-border nature of such offences. "This demonstrates the complexity of this crime. Cybercrime knows no boundaries," he said.

CJI Surya Kant had also described Artificial Intelligence as a game-changer for improving access to justice, but warned that cyber offences are expanding beyond financial fraud.

He said cybercrime now threatens public trust and noted that around 6.6 million cybercrime complaints are pending across the country.

- IANS