1. Please introduce yourself and briefly share what first drew you towards criminal law.
I am Shubh, a B.A.LLB.(Hons.) student at Maharashtra National Law University, Mumbai. I am currently in the 1st year of my course. My interests started to draw towards criminal law because I used to watch crime, investigation-type movies, and the interesting facts of the case is what really hooked me to criminal law.
2. What were your expectations from a High Court–level criminal law internship, and how did reality differ once the internship began?
I personally expected a High Court to be very strict regarding everything from dress code to punctuality. But in reality it was not that strict at all I mean it was of course stricter than a district court but still there was some slacking like some advocates rather than total black outfit, shoes and robe only used to wear robe over black coat with different colour of trouser and also you get to witness a variety of footwear as if you are in a market, from formals to sports shoes to fancy women sandals. I also thought that since it was a high court, judges would be punctual but instead I got to know why there are so many pending cases. Judges were literally slacking, taking breaks for a long duration.
3. Under whom did you intern, and what kinds of criminal cases did you most frequently observe or work on during your internship?
I worked under Adv. Dhiresh Kumar Dhiraj, where most of the cases I handled during my internship involved bail matters and fraud-related cases.
4. How did observing bail hearings, anticipatory bail matters, or quashing petitions shape your understanding of personal liberty in criminal law?
From what I observed from my internship was that concepts like personal liberty in criminal law only looks functional on paper while in reality it is different. Rather than being the aspect of righteousness it is just an ideal and somewhat in most of the cases the worthiness of the person is rather neglected and given to those who don’t deserve.
5. What role does legal research play in High Court criminal practice, based on your experience?
In High Court criminal practice very extensive legal research is required, although in the cases of bail, the outcome mostly depends on facts of the case and gravity of the offence committed.
6. Were you exposed to strategic decision-making in criminal cases, such as choosing remedies or forums? Please elaborate.
I didn’t really get to witness much but yeah I saw the steps he took like first choosing which type of remedy will work out the best, suppose for immediate bail in a court will lead to longer proceedings and multiple delays whereas for the same case bail but with a fine or compensation leads to faster solution for the case and also which type of court should we approach for the remedy like you can’t usually jump straight to High Court for bail without trying Sessions Court first.
7. What did you learn about the drafting style and precision required in criminal pleadings before the High Court?
What I learned from my experience is that there is no room for exceptions and that it doesn’t matter the gravity of concern, without proper drafting style your case will be rejected and the judge won’t even see your case file and also hundreds of cases are disposed of on a daily basis just because they were not filed in the correct format.
8. How did court observations help you understand judicial discretion in criminal matters?
Court observations helped me in understanding judicial discretion in criminal matters because for reference Liquor is banned in Bihar and an elderly woman was accused of possessing liquor but since she was a first time offender judge asked her to pay a fine of Rs.10k whereas for the same case of possession of liquor a man was asked to first pay a fine of 50k but then was reduced to 20k and also he was mandated to sign in the police station once every week because he had a criminal history.
9. How did this internship change your perception of criminal advocacy as a profession?
I always wanted to be a criminal lawyer and this internship served as a foundation to that dream. This internship has opened my eyes to what the challenges are in the course of proceedings and that the ground reality is far different from what I imagined it to be. For example, sometimes the client has committed such a heinous crime that the judge gets furious just by reading the facts which will significantly affect the judgement, therefore as a criminal lawyer this is one of the things we should keep in mind.
10. What habits or courtroom practices of your mentor stood out to you and influenced your approach to learning law?
The only habit which I observed and wasn’t aware of was bowing down to the judge just after entering the court room area and just before leaving at the entrance gate of the court.
11. Did this internship alter your understanding of the balance between the rights of the accused and the interests of the State? How?
As far as what I have observed during my 1-month of internship and what I had already in my mind there was a difference but not much. In reality the balance between the accused and the interests of the law slightly favours the latter that too only when you are poor. If you can afford a good lawyer or have ample monetary resources that that lacking can be compensated, for example even a murderer gets away with just compensation because he has political connections and also enough money to even bribe the judges sitting before him!
12. What was one misconception about criminal law that this internship helped you unlearn?
The one misconception regarding criminal law which I had was that most of the accused are guilty and they should be given harsher punishment but in reality most of the criminals aren’t even caught, some of the accused are either innocent or framed and in cases of POCSO and crimes against women, the real criminals are roaming free as no complaints have been filed regarding them whereas the innocent are being wrongly framed. It really shows the huge incompetency at the grassroot level.
13. How important is procedural knowledge compared to substantive law in High Court criminal practice, based on your experience?
In places like High Courts substantive law is important because you can not frame arguments if you don’t have any knowledge of the laws, however from what I had observed I personally believe procedural knowledge takes the lead, because cases like bail and quashing matters are procedural terrain. Although substantive knowledge is required for arguing, brilliant IPC arguments mean nothing if your petition isn’t maintainable. At the Trial Courts level facts dominate but in the case of High Court procedures takes the win as many people have ample knowledge of the laws but their lack of procedural knowledge renders their knowledge useless. Many matters are decided on questions of maintainability, jurisdiction, and statutory compliance before substantive issues are considered
14. What advice would you give to law students who want to intern in criminal litigation at a High Court for the first time?
From the very little experience I had gained in one month, I would suggest that before interning at a High Court directly for the first time you should go for district courts as the varieties in cases of different areas is what the High Court lacks but High Court has its own advantage the District courts are not that strict and its kind of chaotic there but as a first year student, interning at a District Court then at a High Court will serve as more beneficial.
Interview by Team LawLex
Curated & edited by Yashika Paraswani, Managing Editor