All city courts displayed nerve and resilience on Saturday, a day after a letter threatening to blow up all court complexes was sent allegedly by a Jaish-e-Mohammed operative. Work remained unaffected even as police personnel kept vigil everywhere.The computer typed letter addressed to the district and sessions judge, warned of fidayeen (suicide) attacks on district courts and was received by post on Friday by the receipt and dispatch section in Tis Hazari courts.The court building was subsequently checked and sanitised by a bomb detection squad last evening. An FIR under Section 507 (criminal intimidation by anonymous communication) was also registered at the Subzi Mandi police station against unknown persons.When the courts opened on Saturday, it was business as usual amid tight security, with personnel from the Delhi Police and other paramilitary forces deployed on all gates at the Tis Hazari, Patiala House, Karkardooma, Rohini and Dwarka court complexes.Everyone, including lawyers, was frisked and asked to show their identity cards before being allowed inside. All cars were also thoroughly checked and attendants were directed to look after parking properly so that there was no congestion inside court premises.As news about the threat was all over the newspapers and TV channels, litigants and lawyers were aware of the heightened security situation and cooperated fully with the police. “The lawyer fraternity will not be deterred by such threats and will stand united with the police to avert any mishap. No lawyer objected to being frisked or showing their identity cards. We are always willing to extend our complete cooperation to all agencies for keeping our court premises safe and secure,” Rajiv Khosla, ;president of the Delhi Bar Association at Tis Hazari, told Newsline.Most litigants also concurred with this view. “I was stopped at the gate and was not allowed inside after I failed to produce anything to prove that my brother had a date in the court. Thankfully, my home is nearby and I came back with a few case documents. The security is for everyone and we must understand that,” Naushad, a litigant at Patiala House court, said.The courts took up cases like any other day and no adjournments were granted on this ground, a court staff member said.A senior police officer securing the Tis Hazari court said, “It was an instance of unprecedented support and cooperation from the lawyers.” He said the FIR filed in connection with the letter was produced before a magistrate and permission for investigation was received. “Periodical reports will be submitted in court as we carry out the probe,” he said.
