From the Supreme Court of India down to the district level courts, the first and major complaint is of huge pendency. Copious write-ups and commentaries have been produced by print media on the subject, usually raising the question whether justice is really done to the seekers of justice when their cases are hanging fire for years at end.
Nevertheless, it does not mean that the agencies that are entrusted with dispensation of justice in our country are not making efforts to bring about a change in the existing situation and reduce pendency as far as possible. The Supreme Court is very much seized of the matter and it has taken a number of steps to reduce pendency besides communicating various instructions and suggestions to State High Courts of how they can try several methods of reducing pendency. However, at the end of the day, cooperation of the State Governments, and more particularly of the Financial and Planning Departments is crucial to the success of any reformative measure suggested by the judiciary. Let us concentrate on what is obtained in the case of our State in regard to schemes for standardizing judicial structure as per the needs of the State.
Like any other State in the Indian Union, the courts in the State, too, are faced with the problem of pendency. Being a hilly state with harsh climatic conditions in most parts of the State, the difficulty in meting out justice to the people in far flung areas becomes more difficult and delayed beyond reasonable time. In order to streamline judicial efficiency in the State, the State High Court sent a proposal to the State Government through the Department of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs during the financial year 2013-14 asking for establishing 18 fast track courts in the State in order to reduce pendency backlog. Eight fast track courts of the rank of District and Sessions Judges and 10 fast track courts of the rank of Civil Judges (Senior Division) would be of immense help in ensuring speedy disposal of the cases, the thrust on which is being laid by the judiciary across the country. The State Government has shown no urgency whatsoever to react to this suggestion of the State High Court. The files containing the proposal is being tossed from one department to another and at no stage do we find any show of urgency in finalizing a decision. Without going into the circuitous movement of the case at various departments, the whole thing boils down to the Planning Department giving its nod and then the Finance Department having the last word whether the proposal will have financial viability or not. So far that stage has not come and whether such a clearance to an estimated expenditure of Rs. 777.03 lakh will be included in the annual budget of the State or not is anybody’s guess. As of today, there appear no signs of any quick disposal of this case with the State Government. There are no Fast Track Courts in the State except for five existing regular courts of Additional District and Sessions Judges which have been designated as Fast Track Courts by the High Court to deal with cases against women. Similarly, Presiding Officers of eight courts have been appointed as Special Judges, Anticorruption for trial of corruption cases under Jammu and Kashmir Prevention of Corruption Act.
In final analysis, the brunt of delayed justice is to be borne by the ordinary citizen who has a case pending in the court and the court has no time to deal with it. Speedy justice is not a personal victory of the court; it is essentially the victory of a democratic system and this system can become efficient only when all the parts of the machinery work in unison. We wish the State Government does all it can to streamline the judicial structure and make it efficient and effective for the strengthening of democracy in the State.
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