BLACK COAT SYNDROME: POLITY
NEWS: Culture
of adjournments should go; case pendency should be resolved, says President
WHAT’S IN THE NEWS?
Time
has really come now to think of national integration of judicial recruitment,
says CJI
Black
Coat Syndrome': President Droupadi Murmu highlighted the issue of
judicial delays, comparing it to the ‘white coat syndrome’ in hospitals. She
emphasized the anxiety the poor face in accessing justice due to the slow
judicial process and the culture of adjournments.
Judicial
Pendency:
- Over 5 crore cases are pending in Indian
courts as of October 2023.
- There are only 20,580 judges in the Supreme
Court, high courts, and district courts to handle these cases.
Judicial
Infrastructure: Many courts lack basic infrastructure and
technology; 19.7% of district courts do not have separate toilets for women as
of September 2023.
Judicial
Vacancies:
- High courts: 347 out of 1,114 sanctioned judge
positions are vacant.
- District judiciary: 5,300 out of 25,081
sanctioned judge positions are vacant.
Gender
Inclusivity:
- Supreme Court: Only 3 female judges (9.3%).
- High Courts: 103 female judges (13.42%).
- District Judiciary: 36.33% female judges.
Key
Initiatives:
- ICT and e-Courts:
Electronic Supreme Court Reports (e-SCR) and virtual court systems.
- eCourts Portal: A
one-stop solution for litigants, advocates, and government agencies.
- National Judicial Data Grid (NJDG):
Public access to court statistics.
- Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR):
Lok Adalats, Gram Nyayalayas, and Online Dispute Resolution (ODR).
- Fast Track Courts:
For cases involving heinous crimes, women, and children.
Challenges
and Solutions:
- Courts must operate beyond their current
capacity of 71% to match case disposal rates.
- Standardizing the judicial recruitment calendar
and national integration of judicial recruitment is necessary.
- Pre-litigation dispute resolution and
district-level case management committees can reduce case backlogs.
Recommendations:
- Malimath Committee (2003):
Reduce vacation periods by 21 days to address long case pendency.
- Bridge the gap between the district judiciary
and high courts to create a more unified judicial system.
Source : https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/culture-of-adjournments-should-go-case-pendency-should-be-resolved-says-president/article68593731.ece