IN THE

TENTH COURT OF APPEALS

No. 10-19-00032-CR

EX PARTE TARUN BHARDWAJ

Original Proceeding

ORDER

On January 28, 2019 we received and filed a pro se petition for a writ of habeas 

corpus from Tarun Bhardwaj. The petition was filed as an original proceeding. In a 

summary format, the petition asserts that Bhardwaj is competent, he has not been 

charged with a crime, there are no allegations of a completed crime, there is no evidence 

of guilt, and he is not a danger.

A very limited and incomplete trial court clerk’s record was filed on February 5, 

2019. Included in the record is a mental health report.

The “State’s Motion to Dismiss Pretrial Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus for 

Want of Jurisdiction” was also filed on February 5, 2019.

On February 5, 2019 we also received the first of dozens of documents tendered to 
Ex parte Bhardwaj Page 2

the Court for filing from an email address identified as “Parul Bhartdwaj.” All the emails, 

except one, from this address appear to be from Girjesh Sharma, who is representing to 

be Bhardwaj’s mother residing in India.1 Virtually every email we have received to date, 

more than four dozen, has had some form of attachment and most have had multiple 

attachments.2 For the purposes of this proceeding, and until one of the parties states 

otherwise or objects, we will proceed upon the presumption that the representation is 

true, that Bhardwaj’s mother is the author of the emails, and that she remains in India.

We have received a request from Girjesh to provide her copies of our 

communications with Bhardwaj. Because it currently appears that this is an original 

habeas corpus proceeding, there is not the usual prohibition of a non-attorney filing the 

petition and presenting information and evidence on behalf of the applicant. Moreover, 

in this instance, while the petition was filed by Bhardwaj, his current mental condition is 

an issue in this proceeding. Accordingly, while we will address our orders and 

correspondence to Bhardwaj, and expect responses thereto from him, we will provide 

 

1 One email from this address claims to be from Bhardwaj’s older brother, Prsoon K. Bhardwaj.

2 Prior to the filing of the Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus, the Court’s Clerk, several deputy clerks, and 

Chief Justice Gray, had been receiving emails with the same identifying information, Parul Bhartdwaj. The 

Court personnel were cc’ed in these emails that went to an extremely long list of persons; what would 

generally be characterized as a “blast” email. As such, it did not appear that these emails and the attached 

documents were directed to the Court, or to Court personnel, for filing in a proceeding or for the purpose 

of taking judicial action thereon. The documents were merely perused for the purpose of making or 

confirming that characterization, and those emails copied to the Chief Justice’s personal email account have 

been retained by him. Those emails will be forwarded to the Court and made available upon request. They 

do not constitute part of the record in this proceeding and will not be utilized or reviewed in making any 

ruling in this proceeding.
Ex parte Bhardwaj Page 3

copies to Girjesh, at the address from which the email request was received, and to the 

attorney representing Bhardwaj in the pending criminal matters.

We note, however, that Girjesh’s emails are not being served on the State, 

Bhardwaj, or his attorney. They should be. Every document sent to this Court must 

reflect that it also was sent to all other parties to the proceeding. TEX. R. APP. P. 6.3. This 

includes letters and emails. Moreover, every “pleading” must be accompanied by proof 

of service which complies with the requirements of the Texas Rules of Appellate 

Procedure and any applicable filing fee. TEX. R. APP. P. 9.5(d); 5.

What is a pleading, rather than a letter, may sometimes be hard to determine; but 

a good general rule-of-thumb is that if you are asking the Court for anything, or if you 

are responding to a request by another party or the Court, your document is probably a 

pleading that must include proof of service. See TEX. R. APP. P. 9.5. Proof of service may 

be in the form of an acknowledgement of service by the person served or a certificate of 

service. TEX. R. APP. P. 9.5(d). A certificate of service must state the name and address of 

each person served. Id. (e)(2). This Court and this Court’s Clerk are not parties to this 

proceeding and will not serve other parties to the proceeding with letters or pleadings. 

We also note that many of Girjesh’s emails contain requests or motions. While 

communications from Girjesh will be received into our document management system 

and posted on the Court’s web page so that all persons, including the State, have access 

to them, the Court will not rule on any request or utilize the contents of any email or 

attachment from Girjesh in any way, without expressly notifying the parties of having 
Ex parte Bhardwaj Page 4

done so.

We understand the stress and uncertainty on Girjesh as the mother of a defendant 

in a court in the United States of America while she is in India. But we ask Girjesh to 

seriously consider the limited issues that the courts must address and the procedural 

limitations on the courts in which they can be addressed. Much of what we have seen in 

the attachments is not relevant to any issue properly pending in this Court and serves 

only to distract the Court from the relevant issues. Moreover, Bhardwaj contends that he 

is competent to represent himself; and we note that to some extent, the efforts, 

monitoring, and interference by Girjesh and her desire to help her son from afar 

undermine that essential issue. Thus, until such time as Bhardwaj designates someone 

else to represent him in this proceeding or there is a judicial determination of his inability 

to do so, we will move forward in this proceeding based upon Bhardwaj’s representation 

of himself.

PER CURIAM

Before Chief Justice Gray,

Justice Davis, and

Justice Neill

Order issued and filed March 27, 2019