Owing to the spike in COVID cases in the state of Kerala, the High Court decided to go online through virtual hearing since late Monday. In a shocking incident, a person who entered a virtual session was seen either brushing his teeth or shaving, during the proceedings before Justice VG Arun, on Monday, January 17. 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. While it appeared that the judge did not notice the incident, a video of the same is doing the rounds on social media.

Earlier, during the first and second rounds of the pandemic, hearings were held in a virtual courtroom and several judges had complained about decorum in the virtual courtroom, as people appeared to be carrying out personal activities during the proceedings. 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, depending upon the situation, the decision regarding its extension will be taken.