Source: The post is based on an article “Costs of delayed justice” published in the Business Standard on 2nd August 2022.
Syllabus: GS 2, Functioning of the Indian Judiciary
Relevance: Issues and Challenges Pertaining to the Indian Judiciary
News: Recently, The Prime Minister of India spoke at the first all-India legal district services authorities meeting in Delhi.
PM’s Remarks about the issues in the Indian Judicial System
He referred to the poor state of affairs of the under-trial prisoners languishing in Indian jails.
He referred to the inhuman conditions of overcrowded Indian jails, an issue which was also raised by indebted businessman Vijay Mallya in a British court.
Other issues
Although, the Supreme Court had mandated the release of under-trial prisoners who had been incarcerated for 10 years without being convicted. But, most of the states have not made any significant progress in this direction.
There is a severe shortage of judges in Indian courts. The vacancies range between 20 and 40% at the high court and subordinate court levels. This happens due to the slow pace of judicial appointments at all levels.
The shortage of judges has led to delayed justice for millions of Indians. For example, about 47mn cases are pending across different levels of the system.
As per the PRS Legislative, if no new cases were filed, at the current disposal rate it would take high courts and subordinate courts three years each to dispose of the cases.
In addition, the legal aid provided by the state is of poor quality. It has distorted Indians’ access to justice. For example, most prefer to hire private lawyers to fight cases.
As per a 2016 study, the litigants attending the lower courts incur the loss of over Rs 1,300 per day in their wages and businesses.
India’s low ranking on the World Bank’s Global Ease of Doing Business survey, refers to the failure of the Indian judicial system to enforce contracts.
The Way Forward
The Prime Minister has said that justice delivery is as critical as access to justice.
The PM argued for “ease of justice” alongside ease of doing business and ease of living.
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