As the Supreme Court's three-Judge bench comprising justices Anil R Dave, Shiva Kirti Singh and Adarsh Kumar Goel, began hearing the NEET case on 6 May at 2 pm at the packed Court No 2, senior advocates, Vikas Singh and Rajeev Dhavan made brief submissions first.

Then the Solicitor General, Ranjit Kumar, requested the bench to resume the hearing on 9 May.

But shortly after this, about five to six lawyers began to argue at the same time, leaving the bench, litigants and bystanders utterly confused as to what was going on.

It was then that Justice Dave intervened, narrating an anecdote (supposedly) from history.

The apocryphal anecdote he narrated, is that Tipu Sultan's father, Hyder Ali, who was an illiterate but known for his military prowess and administrative acumen, could listen and understand even if all 40 persons standing in a queue, chose to speak at the same time.

“But none of us are like him,” Dave delivered his punchline, immediately making all those present laugh.

But the anecdote, apocryphal as it probably is, had the intended effect, with counsel maintaining discipline thereafter.