As COVID-19 cases in India continue to surge, several High Courts have reverted to conducting virtual hearings again. In the first and second waves of the pandemic, many judges had complained about decorum in the virtual courtroom, as people appeared to be carrying out personal activities during the proceedings. In another such incident at the Kerala High Court, a person was seen either brushing his teeth or shaving, during the proceedings before Justice VG Arun, on Monday, January 17.

Following the surge in COVID-19 cases in the state, the Kerala High Court had decided to conduct virtual hearings from Monday. A man who entered the session on the same day was seen brushing his teeth or shaving, mostly facing the camera. While it appeared that the judge did not notice the incident, a video of the same was shared across social media.

The man, in the video, appears to have just woken up and is seen walking back and forth in a room that appears to be a washroom. It appeared that he was either shaving his beard or brushing his teeth during the proceedings, and was seen doing so by other attendees.

Watch the video here:

The decision to go virtual was taken by the Administrative Committee of the High Court chaired by Chief Justice S Manikumar. While virtual hearings will be conducted for a month, a decision regarding its extension will be taken after that.

In a similar incident in November 2021, a shirtless man was spotted in Justice Devan Ramachandran's bench during its afternoon session. The court had then remarked: “Who is this? What is going on? I don't have a problem with anyone listening to the proceedings, but at least adhere to the decorum. I can see a shirtless man here. This is a court, not a circus or a cinema." The hearing was about a sensational Church dispute.

(With IANS inputs)