09-26-2007, 03:30 AM
From Deccan Chronicle, 25 Sept., 2007
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>Itâs time to fast track justice </b>
By Joginder Singh
The government is contemplating to constitute a National Judicial Commission. New legislation now being considered will empower the Commission to look into inquiries against Supreme Court and High Court judges on receiving specific complaints. The Commission is also expected to make recommendations for the appointment of judges to the Supreme Court and Chief Justices and judges to High Courts. It will be a recommendatory body, and will not be vested with any powers. All High Courts have unanimously opposed the proposal.
<b>Amidst this, the government has been dodging the real issue of the quick disposal of cases. No move has been made to see how the huge backlog of cases can be reduced.</b> Consider these official figures:
* Total cases pending in the Supreme Court on June 30, 2007: 43,580.
* Total cases pending in 21 High Courts on March 31, 2007: 3,678,043 (29,98,226 civil cases; 679,817 criminal cases).
* Total cases pending in district and subordinate courts on March 31, 2007: 24,956,919 (7,210,174 civil cases; 17,746,745 criminal cases).
<b>A former attorney and a former Chief Justice of India have observed that the criminal justice system in India is on the verge of collapse, owing to an inordinate delay in getting a judicial verdict. Many litigants take recourse to a parallel mafia dominated system of "justice" that has sprung up in metros.</b>
The way our country has been run, with wafer thin majorities, it is doubtful if any action taken by the political executive can be evaluated without taking into account vote bank considerations. <b>In the name of equality, social justice and equity, every institution has been debunked and debased by the political class.</b> Mahatma Gandhi had said in May 1939, "I would go to the length of giving the whole Congress a decent burial, rather than put up with the corruption that is rampant." This was his reaction to the corruption in the Congress ministries formed by a 1935 Act in six States in 1937. Things have gone from bad to worse over the years.
<b>Criminalisation of politics is another aspect of corruption.</b> A committee set up by the government had observed that a network of mafias was virtually running a parallel government, pushing the State apparatus into irrelevance. There has been a rapid growth of criminal gangs, armed senas, drug mafias, smuggling gangs and economic lobbies which have developed a network of contacts with bureaucrats, government functionaries, politicians and journalists. <b>Criminalisation of politics has increased so much that known criminals are now members of legislatures. But instead of taking steps to reform the system, politicians are shedding crocodile tears. And when pressed to take action, they do so reluctantly.</b>
<b>The real villain in not providing speedy justice is the government. Of the sanctioned strength of 14,719 posts in district and subordinate courts in the country, 2,768 vacancies exist. In 21 High Courts with a sanctioned strength of 725 judges, 142 vacancies exist.</b> How can anyone get justice when there is no judge to give a verdict? As per a Law Commission report, there should be 50 judges per one million people. In our country, the number is fewer than ten. Instead of wasting its time and Parliamentâs time, the government should focus on ensuring that justice is available on demand and without any delay.
<b>The following steps can help: </b>Apart from increasing the number of judges, it is imperative to fill the existing vacancies without any further delay. Filling of vacancies should be an ongoing process, instead of once in a blue moon exercise. Modern technology should be made available to the courts, along with the supporting staff. There is a need to develop a no-adjournment culture by fixing priorities and a time schedule. <b>Petty cases like traffic offences, except for serious injuries or death, should be taken out of the normal channel of the courts, by developing an alternative redressal route. Cases relating to traffic challans and motor vehicle claims are innumerable. About 14.55 lakh bounced-cheque cases are pending.</b>
<b>Other cases in courts relate to marriage maintenance in which 2.42 lakh cases are pending, with a maximum of 34,230 in West Bengal. Cases involving food adulteration number 51,816, juvenile crime 43,863, and State transport challans 27,180. These cases can be fast-tracked.</b>
These are vital issues on which the government should focus, rather than on the formation of a National Judicial Commission.
The Supreme Court, in S.P. Gupta v Union of India has laid down that the "Basic Structure" of the Constitution cannot be altered. The concept of independence of the judiciary is a noble concept which inspires the Constitutional scheme and constitutes the foundation on which rests the edifice of our democratic polity. <b>The government should first put its own house in order, rather than trying to control the judiciary through this Commission.</b> This ill-conceived proposal has no takers in the country, except for politicians.
Joginder Singh is a former director of the CBI
<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>Itâs time to fast track justice </b>
By Joginder Singh
The government is contemplating to constitute a National Judicial Commission. New legislation now being considered will empower the Commission to look into inquiries against Supreme Court and High Court judges on receiving specific complaints. The Commission is also expected to make recommendations for the appointment of judges to the Supreme Court and Chief Justices and judges to High Courts. It will be a recommendatory body, and will not be vested with any powers. All High Courts have unanimously opposed the proposal.
<b>Amidst this, the government has been dodging the real issue of the quick disposal of cases. No move has been made to see how the huge backlog of cases can be reduced.</b> Consider these official figures:
* Total cases pending in the Supreme Court on June 30, 2007: 43,580.
* Total cases pending in 21 High Courts on March 31, 2007: 3,678,043 (29,98,226 civil cases; 679,817 criminal cases).
* Total cases pending in district and subordinate courts on March 31, 2007: 24,956,919 (7,210,174 civil cases; 17,746,745 criminal cases).
<b>A former attorney and a former Chief Justice of India have observed that the criminal justice system in India is on the verge of collapse, owing to an inordinate delay in getting a judicial verdict. Many litigants take recourse to a parallel mafia dominated system of "justice" that has sprung up in metros.</b>
The way our country has been run, with wafer thin majorities, it is doubtful if any action taken by the political executive can be evaluated without taking into account vote bank considerations. <b>In the name of equality, social justice and equity, every institution has been debunked and debased by the political class.</b> Mahatma Gandhi had said in May 1939, "I would go to the length of giving the whole Congress a decent burial, rather than put up with the corruption that is rampant." This was his reaction to the corruption in the Congress ministries formed by a 1935 Act in six States in 1937. Things have gone from bad to worse over the years.
<b>Criminalisation of politics is another aspect of corruption.</b> A committee set up by the government had observed that a network of mafias was virtually running a parallel government, pushing the State apparatus into irrelevance. There has been a rapid growth of criminal gangs, armed senas, drug mafias, smuggling gangs and economic lobbies which have developed a network of contacts with bureaucrats, government functionaries, politicians and journalists. <b>Criminalisation of politics has increased so much that known criminals are now members of legislatures. But instead of taking steps to reform the system, politicians are shedding crocodile tears. And when pressed to take action, they do so reluctantly.</b>
<b>The real villain in not providing speedy justice is the government. Of the sanctioned strength of 14,719 posts in district and subordinate courts in the country, 2,768 vacancies exist. In 21 High Courts with a sanctioned strength of 725 judges, 142 vacancies exist.</b> How can anyone get justice when there is no judge to give a verdict? As per a Law Commission report, there should be 50 judges per one million people. In our country, the number is fewer than ten. Instead of wasting its time and Parliamentâs time, the government should focus on ensuring that justice is available on demand and without any delay.
<b>The following steps can help: </b>Apart from increasing the number of judges, it is imperative to fill the existing vacancies without any further delay. Filling of vacancies should be an ongoing process, instead of once in a blue moon exercise. Modern technology should be made available to the courts, along with the supporting staff. There is a need to develop a no-adjournment culture by fixing priorities and a time schedule. <b>Petty cases like traffic offences, except for serious injuries or death, should be taken out of the normal channel of the courts, by developing an alternative redressal route. Cases relating to traffic challans and motor vehicle claims are innumerable. About 14.55 lakh bounced-cheque cases are pending.</b>
<b>Other cases in courts relate to marriage maintenance in which 2.42 lakh cases are pending, with a maximum of 34,230 in West Bengal. Cases involving food adulteration number 51,816, juvenile crime 43,863, and State transport challans 27,180. These cases can be fast-tracked.</b>
These are vital issues on which the government should focus, rather than on the formation of a National Judicial Commission.
The Supreme Court, in S.P. Gupta v Union of India has laid down that the "Basic Structure" of the Constitution cannot be altered. The concept of independence of the judiciary is a noble concept which inspires the Constitutional scheme and constitutes the foundation on which rests the edifice of our democratic polity. <b>The government should first put its own house in order, rather than trying to control the judiciary through this Commission.</b> This ill-conceived proposal has no takers in the country, except for politicians.
Joginder Singh is a former director of the CBI
<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->