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Source: The post is based on the article “Close to half cases in HCs pending for over five years” published in The Hindu on 6th April 2023
What is the News?
The India Justice Report(IJR) 2022 has been released.
About India Justice Report 2022
| Read here: India Justice Report 2022 | Judge vacancies remain endemic |
What are the key findings of the IJR on pending cases?
As of January 2023, close to half the cases in Indian High Courts were pending for over five years. In the Allahabad (Uttar Pradesh) and Calcutta (West Bengal and A&N Islands) High Courts, over 63% of cases were pending for over five years.
On the other hand, High Courts in northeastern India including Tripura, Sikkim and Meghalaya had less than 10% of cases pending for over five years.
This pendency of cases in courts is a demand and supply problem. The number of cases filed in courts is increasing each year while the number of judges presiding over those cases are either stagnant or not increasing in tandem with the rise in cases.
For example, the total number of active cases in various High Courts increased from over 41 lakh in 2014 to 53 lakh in 2022. However, there were unfilled judge positions in High Courts throughout all major States.
Overall judicial vacancies in Indian High Courts stood at 29.8% and High Court staff vacancies were at 25.6%.
What was the impact of pending cases on the case clearance rate of High Courts?
This demand-supply imbalance meant the case clearance rate of High Courts suffered.
The case clearance rate is the number of cases disposed of in a year, measured against the number of cases filed in that year. If courts resolve fewer than 100 out of every 100 cases they receive, the deficit contributes to the backlog, which in turn increases their pending caseload.
For instance, in India, of every 100 cases filed in 2022, only 95 cases were cleared that year, a clearance rate of 95%, with 5% getting added as a backlog.
In 2022, the Rajasthan High Court’s clearance rate was only 65%, the only High Court with a rate below 70% last year.
