New Delhi, May 4 -- The Supreme Court's attempt to probe a four-decade delay in a criminal trial led to an unexpected moment of institutional introspection, as it emerged that the proceedings had effectively remained frozen for over a decade because the original records had been requisitioned by the top court in 2013, and never returned. A bench of justices PS Narasimha and Alok Aradhe was hearing an appeal arising from the conviction of a lawyer, who had been sentenced to one month's imprisonment for allegedly tampering with court records in a land acquisition matter. What began as a routine inquiry into inordinate delay took an unusual turn when the bench was told that the trial court had been unable to proceed in the absence of the original records, which continued to remain in SC's custody. The bench in February sought an explanation from registrar general of Punjab and Haryana HC on why criminal trial, initiated in 1983, remained inconclusive despite a specific SC direction in 2001 to complete proceedings within 6 months. htc...