‘Decide on plea for making SC national appeals court’

Petitioner says present system of apex court handling all appeals has hit litigants

The Supreme Court asked the Centre on Friday to consider, and dispose of, a representation on the Law Commission recommendation to make the court a national court of appeal to decide only constitutional issues.

A Bench comprising Chief Justice H.L. Dattu and Justices S.A. Bobde and A.M. Sapre granted six months to the Centre to take a decision on the plea of V. Vasanthakumar, lawyer.

The petitioner said the present system of the court handling all types of appeals against orders of the High Courts and other fora and even those against interim orders had burdened poor litigants.

He quoted a 1986 judgment which stated that by converting the court into a regular court of appeal, the SC would soon be reduced to a position where it would find itself unable to remedy injustice to all on account of backlog.