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Country needs more courts to render speedy justice: CJI

PHOTO: S. SIVA SARAVANAN

MODERNISATION MOVE: Chief Justice of India K.G. Balakrishnan (right) taking a look at the software for computerisation of courts at the Coimbatore Bar Association’s 126th Annual Day celebrations on Sunday. —

Coimbatore: There is a backlog of 3.56 crore cases in the courts across the country, including 48,000 in the Supreme Court, and the country needs at least 10,000 more courts to reach world standards in dispensation of justice.

This was stated by Chief Justice of India (CJI) K.G. Balakrishnan at the inauguration of the 126th Annual Day celebrations of the Coimbatore Bar Association on Sunday.

Mr. Justice Balakrishnan said that of the more than 15,000 courts in the country, only 13,600 were functioning and over 1,600 non-functional owing to vacant positions of judicial officers. Till recently, vacancies in Tamil Nadu were a cause of concern. But, they were filled up now. Bihar still had 300 vacancies and Uttar Pradesh 200.

The CJI said he had requested Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to increase the number of Central Bureau of Investigation courts. In the last 10 years, the cases investigated by the CBI were pending disposal and there was need for more courts to handle them. The CBI had filed voluminous documents in cases relating to corruption by bureaucrats.

After the enactment of the Family Courts Act in 1985, only 138 courts were formed. There was need for more such courts to clear the backlog of cases, he said.

Mr. Justice Balakrishnan also expressed concern over the backlog of cases under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act.

He said either new courts should be set up or the existing ones exclusively designated for handling such cases. Courts in New Delhi had six lakh cases and the State government had agreed to start 160 more family courts. Maharastra had agreed for 20 more.

The CJI exhorted the Officiating Chief Justice of the Madras High Court to take up the matter with the Tamil Nadu government for establishing more family courts.

There were more than one lakh petty cases pending in courts all over the country. The evening courts functioning in New Delhi and Ahmedabad and the morning courts in Andhra Pradesh were helping in clearing such cases.

Judicial officers were willing to work for more time to clear the backlog. It was for the State governments to sanction 30 per cent additional pay (basic) for those putting in extra working hours, he said.

The CJI wanted mediation and arbitrations under the Alternative Disputes Redressal System (ADRS) given greater impetus as they helped in resolving long-pending cases.

While exhorting the members of the Bar and the Bench to come together to render speedy justice by clearing the backlog of cases, he pointed out that only then would people repose faith in the judicial system.

Computerisation of courts would be completed in two years. High Court Judges numbering 877, 26 Supreme Court judges and 15,000 judicial officers have been provided with laptop computers with net connectivity.

Supreme Court Judges Justices P. Sathasivam and A.K. Ganguly, Madras High Court Judge and Officiating Chief Justice of the Court Justice S.J. Mukhopadaya and High Court Judge and Portfolio Judge for Coimbatore District Justice P.K. Misra spoke.

Bar Association president K.M. Dhandapani appealed for a Circuit Bench of the High Court in Coimbatore.

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