An Early Date

In these difficult Covid times
Lawyers face an uphill task
As their right to be heard clearly
Is being stifled by a double mask.

Sanitized judges perch protected
Appear alert and eager to hear
Yet the acrylic screen in between
Only emphasises lurking fear.

Our courtrooms are too small
And the causelists are too long
Those who believe in this system
Dutifully contribute to the throng.

Everyone who attends the court
Wishes their matter to be heard
But fret as the lawyer disappears
Taking next date without a word.

Courtrooms too are jam-packed
Like Mumbai's lifeline trains
Still, lawyers barred from boarding
Couldn't persuade judges brains.

Thousands of litigants all over
Have resigned themselves to fate
They have reached a point where
They're thankful for an early date!

Meanwhile for a few hours daily
Both bar and bench have fun
Before we forget what's justice
It must at least appear to be done.

(Raju Z. Moray is a Mumbai-based lawyer who enjoys writing poems. He is the author of two books 'Court Jester'(2017) and 'The Locked Down Lawyer'(2020)