Long delay in committing cases of grave offences from magistrate courts to sessions courts seems a major impediment to the speedy administration of justice. Trial in several cases are said to be pending across Tamil Nadu as they have not been committed to sessions courts for various reasons.
Lack of interest on the part of the police in pursuing major cases after the charge sheets are filed, disappearance of documents from case files, non-furnishing of copies of material relied on by the prosecution on time to the accused have a cumulative impact on committal of cases to sessions courts. The delay in committal is less in rural areas than in cities, given the number of cases handled, it is pointed out.
According to an advocate, delay in committal of a case could wreak havoc on the victim and the accused. Citing a case of robbery filed against a HIV-positive patient, aged 28, he said the charge sheet had been pending before the magistrate court for more than five years. After committal proceedings, the accused pleaded guilty. The sentence of imprisonment was set off against the remand period. He died soon after freed from prison.
A major problem is the non-furnishing of sufficient number of copies of documents. There are also instances in which the copies furnished are unclear, forcing the advocates to apply to the court for fresh ones. Even murder cases are not an exception. “In some instances, documents may be missing from case files. This affects the victims and the accused. If the accused is poor, he may not be able to execute sureties for bail,” he says.
“Speedy trial is a fundamental right; but this remains only on paper,” says V. Kannadasan, an advocate. For their part, prison authorities forward representations of prisoners for speedy committal proceedings to the courts concerned. Courts also take immediate action wherever possible, he says.
Last year, Asra Garg, Superintendent of Police, Dharmapuri district, noticed that several cases, including 60 cases of murder and five of dacoities, had not been committed to the sessions court for trial. He took steps for the cases to be tried.
A periodical review by Chief Judicial Magistrates of cases that have not been committed for long will help to reduce delays. Manpower shortage in the lower judiciary should also be addressed, Mr. Kannadasan says.
