Minister for Public Works G. Sudhakaran has asked whether judges should be held responsible for the cases piling up in various courts.
"How many lakh cases are pending in the courts? Is it because of the fault of the judges? Cases pile up owing to the shortage in the number of judges, staff and facilities," he said at Alapuzha on Saturday in response to the Kerala High Court's scathing remarks about authorities after an old, unattended pothole claimed the life of a 23-year-old at Palarivattom on Thursday.
Stating that all should fulfil their responsibilities, Mr. Sudhakaran asked whether the onus of fulfilling the responsibilities lies with the Ministers for Public Works and Finance alone. "We give the funds for filling the potholes. Those responsible should then fill the potholes. They should also set up signboards to alert motorists about the potholes," he said.
Do not generalise issues while stating that it was the joint responsibility of various agencies to maintain badly damaged roads, he added.
His remarks came a day after Justice Devan Ramachandran of the Kerala High Court had apologised to the family of the youth killed in the road. He had said that the court was hanging its head in shame. The victim K.L. Yedulal was hit by a speeding lorry as he fell from his motorcycle while trying to negotiate the pothole.
