In a surprising move Bombay High Court judge has announced his resignation in an open courtroom.
Justice Rohit Deo has said he resigned due to personal reasons.
Making the announcement in his courtroom in Nagpur, where the high court has a bench, Justice Deo said that he could not compromise on self-respect, reported PTI.
Following the announcement, the matters listed before him for the day stood discharged, the report said.
"Those who are present in the court, I apologise to each one of you. I scolded you because I want you to improve. I don't want to hurt anyone of you because you all are like family to me and I am sorry to tell you that I have submitted my resignation. I can't work against my self-respect. You people work hard," Justice Deo was quoted as having said.
He as per the report also said he has quit due to personal reasons and sent his resignation letter to the President of India.
In 2022, Justice Deo acquitted former Delhi University professor GN Saibaba in an alleged Maoist links case, setting aside the life imprisonment awarded to him and noting that the trial proceedings were null and void in the absence of valid sanction under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
Last week, Justice Deo stayed the operation of a Maharashtra Government Resolution (order) of January 3 through which the state was empowered to cancel punitive proceedings initiated by the revenue department related to the illegal excavation of minor minerals by contractors engaged in the construction of the Nagpur-Mumbai Samruddhi Expressway.
Justice Deo was appointed as a judge of the Bombay High Court in June 2017 and was due to retire in December 2025.
Before that, he was the Advocate General of Maharashtra in 2016.
