Voicing concern over long-pending cases, some dating back even to the 1970s, Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud said courts in the country should ensure that “the judicial clock moves ahead at least 10 years” by Independence Day 2023.
He was addressing a gathering of Andhra Pradesh High Court judges, judicial officers and other legal experts at the Acharya Nagarjuna University on Friday. At the event, the CJI inaugurated the A.P. Judicial Academy, launched the high court’s digitisation programme and various other initiatives.
The CJI said: “Across the country, almost 14 lakh cases have been delayed as some kind of record or document is being awaited. Across the country, more than 63 lakh cases are considered to be delayed as per the National Judicial Data Grid [NJDG] data, due to non-availability of counsel. We really need the support of the Bar to ensure that our courts are functioning at optimum capacity”.
He further said, “For instance, in A.P., the oldest civil case pending in Guntur was registered on March 22, 1980. The oldest criminal case is at Kalyandurg court, Anantapur district, which was registered on September 19, 1978. From 1980 to 1990 in Guntur, there are four civil cases and one criminal case pending. So, the district court can move ahead by 10 years, just by the disposal of these five cases. Similarly, in Anantapur, there are only 10 cases from 1978 to 1988 including nine criminal and one civil. The Anantapur court can move ahead by 10 years just by disposal of these 10 cases.”
“In the High Court, the oldest case is from 1976, and it needs to dispose of just 138 cases to move 10 years ahead of the curve.”
He continued, “The data in Andhra Pradesh is not mind-boggling, as it is in many other States. But if you use simple tools which are now available on the NJDG, we will be able to do justice and revolutionise the image of the judiciary in India.”
Digitisation shows benefits
Underlining the importance of technology, he said digitisation had immediate benefits in terms of pendency of cases. “At multiple stages, whenever an interim order is appealed, or an application is filed before appellate courts, be it the HC or SC, the record of the district court is called for. This record remains with the appellate court till the file is disposed of. In such cases, even if the appellate court does not order a stay, it effectively leads to a stay of proceedings for years at the trial court. However, with the digitisation of records, the record that is received can immediately be scanned and sent back, so that the trial does not suffer any delay.”
‘Rich jurisprudence’
He also underscored the “value of the rich jurisprudence developed by our Supreme Court and High Courts since independence of our nation, to preserve and protect the liberty of each individual”. “There is a brooding sense of fear among courts of the first instance, on how the grant of anticipatory bail or bail will be perceived at the higher level. This fear is not purely irrational. There are multiple cases where trial court judges have been pulled up for grant of bail,” he observed.
“In certain HCs, the performance of the judges had been analysed based on their conviction rate. I specifically called upon the Chief Justices of High Courts to ensure that such practices are done away with, as they are not a measure in the dispensation of justice in any manner. Rather, these practices create a sense of bias for the district judiciary and create a culture of fear psychosis. This results in either rejection of bail or grant of bail in extremely onerous conditions. Both of which are undesirable outcomes. This practice, at district courts, sets in motion a vicious cycle, where litigants are trapped in a judicial whirlpool,” the CJI said.
